RAY WHITE DECLARES ITSELF NUMBER ONE ACROSS AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND: “WE HAVE MORE OF THE BEST”
Ray White has delivered an emphatic message to the real estate industry: it believes it is not only Australasia’s largest property group—it also has more of the region’s highest-performing agents.
After eight major awards events attended by more than 5,500 members across Australia and New Zealand, Ray White Managing Director Dan White told the network its leadership position was driven by the calibre of its people.
“We lead the market precisely because we have the best people, and the facts bear that out,” White said in the group’s spring edition of The White Report.
His conclusion was even more direct:
“So yes, we do have more—we have more of the best.”
It is a bold statement in an industry where nearly every major brand claims to be number one.
However, Ray White has released some serious numbers to support its position.
Ray White claims 14.1% of the combined Australian and New Zealand market
According to figures released by Ray White, the family-owned group now controls approximately 14.1% of the residential real estate market across Australia and New Zealand.
That means roughly one in every seven residential property sales across the two countries involves a Ray White office.
Ray White says the latest result follows a record year across several of its key measurements, including:
- Overall market share
- Market-share growth
- Auction market share
- Customer satisfaction
- Top-performing agents
- Sales completed across the network
The most striking figures relate to the individual agents operating under the Ray White name.
In Australia, Ray White says 24 of the country’s top 100 residential real estate agents by sales value are members of its network.
Those 24 agents reportedly sold a combined $5.3 billion worth of residential property, representing 24.8% of the total value sold by Australia’s top 100 agents.
Ray White also claimed:
- Two of Australia’s top 10 agents
- Six of Australia’s top 20 agents
- Thirteen of Australia’s top 50 agents
- Twenty-four of Australia’s top 100 agents
That would give Ray White more agents within Australia’s top 100 than the next three agency brands combined, according to Dan White.
The rankings and market-share figures have been presented by Ray White as being compiled from residential sales information collected from a range of market sources. They remain the group’s figures rather than a single independently audited industry league table, so that distinction matters.
New Zealand agents contribute more than $1 billion
Ray White’s New Zealand results were also significant.
The group says three of New Zealand’s top 10 residential agents and 20 of the country’s top 100 agents operate under the Ray White brand.
Those 20 salespeople reportedly completed approximately $1.03 billion in residential property sales.
The result strengthens Ray White’s argument that it has become one of the most powerful forces in New Zealand real estate.
Property Noise recently examined this contest in The Battle for #1: Who Will Be New Zealand’s Top Real Estate Agency?.
That analysis found Harcourts still has formidable nationwide scale, while Barfoot & Thompson remains exceptionally dominant in Auckland. Bayleys possesses considerable strength across residential, rural and commercial real estate.
Ray White, however, appears to have the strongest national momentum.
Its growing office network, recruitment of leading agents and increasing share of residential transactions suggest the traditional order of New Zealand’s biggest real estate brands is changing.
Ray White Leaders finishes number one for sales
One of the most significant results for New Zealand came from Wellington.
Ray White Leaders Group was named the network’s top group internationally by number of sales, beating Ray White operations throughout Australia and New Zealand.
The group includes offices across Wellington City, Johnsonville, Karori, Khandallah, Kilbirnie, Hutt City, Upper Hutt and Wairarapa.
As Property Noise reported in Former Wellington Independent Leaders Wins Major Australasian Real Estate Award, the achievement carries special significance because Leaders began as an independent Wellington real estate company in 1987.
It later operated as RE/MAX Leaders before joining Ray White in 2017.
Nearly four decades after it was established, the former independent Wellington company has now finished first for group transaction numbers across the wider Ray White Australasian network.
That result suggests Ray White’s New Zealand strength extends well beyond Auckland.
Kiwi agent Holly Jones leads the entire network
Christchurch agent Holly Jones, of Ray White New Brighton, was named Ray White’s top international salesperson by number of sales.
Jones has previously enjoyed considerable success within the network, including being named Ray White New Zealand’s number-one residential salesperson.
Her latest result places her ahead of Ray White agents operating throughout Australia and New Zealand for the number of completed transactions.
That is an exceptional achievement for a New Zealand agent competing against some of Australia’s most prominent salespeople and wealthiest property markets.
Property Noise has followed Jones’ previous success, including her earlier international recognition in Winner: #1 International Real Estate Salesperson.
Australia’s prestige agents remain major revenue generators
While Holly Jones led by transaction numbers, Brisbane agent Rochelle Adgo of Ray White Mitchelton was named the network’s overall top salesperson for 2026.
Ray White Double Bay secured the award for top individual office, while Ray White Upper North Shore and Northern Beaches was named the top group.
Gavin Rubinstein of The Rubinstein Group was named the network’s top principal and top residential performer.
These agents and businesses operate within some of Australia’s most valuable property markets, where a relatively small number of transactions can generate enormous total sales values and commission income.
Property Noise has previously reported on the extraordinary earnings possible at the top of the Ray White network, including in What the Average Ray White Real Estate Agent Earns.
The difference between an average agent and an elite performer can be enormous.
A leading agent operating in Sydney’s eastern suburbs may sell hundreds of millions of dollars in property, while thousands of less-established salespeople compete for a limited number of listings and may struggle to complete enough transactions to remain in the industry.
Market-share growth with fewer offices and fewer agents
One of Dan White’s most interesting claims was that Ray White’s market-share growth had occurred despite the group operating with fewer offices and fewer agents than it had previously.
If correct, that suggests Ray White is generating more business through a smaller but increasingly productive network.
That supports the central message behind White’s “more of the best” statement.
The argument is not simply that Ray White has more people. It is that a disproportionately large number of the industry’s highest-producing agents operate under its brand.
This approach may also reflect a broader transformation taking place across the agency industry.
Large brands are increasingly focused on:
- Recruiting proven high-performing agents
- Consolidating offices into larger multi-branch groups
- Investing heavily in technology and databases
- Developing centralised marketing and administration
- Growing auction market share
- Building mortgage and financial-service referral income
- Using agent performance data to improve productivity
Property Noise examined the pressures facing traditional franchise networks in The Big Real Estate Agency Brands Have Hit the Ceiling?.
Ray White’s latest figures suggest the group believes it can continue growing—not necessarily by placing an office on every corner, but by attracting more of the agents capable of winning the largest volume of business.
Does Ray White’s Australasian strength make it number one in Auckland?
Not automatically.
Property Noise recently compared the major Auckland real estate brands in The Auckland Agency War: Who Is Really the Number One Real Estate Agency in Auckland?.
That analysis concluded that Barfoot & Thompson still has the strongest evidence-backed claim to Auckland’s overall crown.
Barfoot & Thompson’s tightly integrated Auckland network and publicly reported annual transaction numbers give it an advantage when comparing performance across the entire region.
Ray White is nevertheless a formidable challenger.
The group has major operations in Remuera, Howick, Manukau, Ponsonby, Auckland Central, the eastern bays and the North Shore. Some of its businesses command exceptionally strong shares within their local suburbs.
Ray White can therefore be number one in individual Auckland territories without yet having conclusively demonstrated that it outsells Barfoot & Thompson across the entire Auckland market.
The distinction demonstrates why every “number one” real estate claim needs context.
Number one can mean:
- Highest national market share
- Most properties sold
- Greatest total sales value
- Most offices
- Most agents
- Largest property-management portfolio
- Highest auction clearance rate
- Best customer satisfaction
- Strongest result within a particular suburb
- Best-performing office within a franchise network
Different measurements can produce completely different winners.
Awards prove performance—but not necessarily value for vendors
Ray White’s results are impressive, but industry awards do not answer every question homeowners should ask.
High sales volumes demonstrate that an agent or agency can attract listings and complete transactions.
They do not automatically prove that the agency offers the lowest fees, achieves the highest price above valuation or provides the best communication.
Property Noise recently examined the cost of selling in The $30,000+ Question: Are Real Estate Commissions Still Justified?.
On a high-value property, a percentage-based commission can exceed $20,000, $30,000 or even $40,000. Vendors may then pay additional charges for photography, video, staging, online upgrades and auction marketing.
Homeowners should therefore examine more than an agency’s trophies.
Before signing an agency agreement, sellers should compare:
- The complete commission structure
- Administration charges
- Marketing and photography expenses
- The agent’s recent local sales
- Average time on the market
- Auction or deadline-sale performance
- Communication and reporting systems
- The proposed pricing strategy
- What happens if the property does not sell
- The individual agent—not simply the brand
Ray White’s network strength may provide major advantages, but the quality and experience of the individual agent remain critical.
Is Ray White genuinely number one?
Across the combined Australian and New Zealand residential markets, Ray White now has one of the strongest claims to the number-one position.
Its reported 14.1% combined market share is substantial.
Its representation among the highest-performing agents is even more compelling: 24 of Australia’s top 100 agents and 20 of New Zealand’s top 100, based on the rankings cited by the company.
The group also achieved major results at office, group and individual-agent level during its 2026 awards season.
However, consumers should recognise that these figures have been released and framed by Ray White itself. “Number one” remains dependent on the measurement, geography and period being examined.
Ray White may dominate overall Australasian market share while Barfoot & Thompson leads Auckland. Another agency may lead rural sales, commercial property, property management or a particular suburb.
The claim is powerful—but it is not universal.
The Property Noise view
Dan White’s “more of the best” statement is confident, provocative and supported by some impressive statistics.
Ray White’s greatest competitive advantage may no longer be the size of its yellow-branded network.
It may be the concentration of high-performing agents and businesses operating inside that network.
Twenty-four of Australia’s top 100 agents, 20 of New Zealand’s top 100, $5.3 billion in Australian sales from the group’s leading 24 agents and another $1.03 billion from its top New Zealand performers represent serious industry firepower.
The achievements of Ray White Leaders in Wellington and Holly Jones in Christchurch also show that New Zealand is making a meaningful contribution to the network’s Australasian success.
Ray White has not conclusively won every local market, every performance category or every consumer measure.
But if the question is which real estate brand currently has the strongest combined position across Australia and New Zealand, Ray White has placed an imposing set of numbers on the table.
Its rivals now need to produce equally transparent figures if they want to challenge the claim.
Source: Elite Agent – Dan White tells members Ray White has “more of the best”