Latest index update
Jul 25, 2026 22:49 UTC
Directory evidence last verified Jul 11, 2026 16:38 UTC.
Authority Model
Broad enough to be useful. Smart enough to expose AI-era leaders.
The Index builds a broad source-backed candidate universe, requires production, review, identity, and source-quality proof for public eligibility, then ranks qualified teams and individual agents by proprietary AI Visibility Score.
Thin leaderboards are treated as incomplete consumer products. A market category does not publish as complete until it has enough qualified candidates to support a credible team or individual ranking.
Living Index Updates
Maintained rankings, not a one-time snapshot.
Fresh public evidence can enter the research record continuously. Public rankings update only after the relevant source layer is validated, scores are recomputed, and the publication safeguards pass.
Review schedule
Reviews: weekly. Website/GEO: monthly. AI visibility: weekly / biweekly.
Publication safeguards
3 evidence layers are scheduled for review, 1 are due soon, and 4 are stale. Ranking updates remain clear after layer validation and recompute.
Raw source changes never move rankings by themselves. The Index refreshes evidence privately, runs validators, recomputes scores, and rebuilds public pages only from validated public-safe rows. Current refresh status · How updates work · Refresh status JSON · Refresh policy.
Current Public Coverage
The Index is designed to avoid thin markets.
1197source-backed directory rows
20markets with rows
600team rows
597individual rows
1197production-backed rows
1197AI-scored rows
1197AI-positive rows
0featured rows
Coverage Standard
A market should feel complete before it asks consumers to trust the ranking.
Launch depth
At least 10 teams and 10 individual agents per live market before the page is considered useful.
Mature-market depth
Top 25 teams and top 25 individual agents per major market before the market is considered nationally mature.
Directory entry gate
Source-backed production proof, identity clarity, and public source links strong enough for consumer research.
Ranked-shortlist gate
Public team and individual rankings require current production proof, at least the public review minimum, exact identity matching, acceptable source quality, and a completed AI Visibility score.
Featured entry gate
The same trust gates protect featured placement; no score, payment, sponsorship, or relationship can bypass them.
Highest AI Visibility / AI Visibility Score
The default public rank for qualified teams and individual agents. Trust gates determine who is eligible; AI Visibility determines their order.
Highest AI Visibility / AI Visibility Score
The proprietary public ranking layer for proven agents and teams, measuring whether AI-assisted search can find, connect, cite, and explain their public evidence.
For sellers, this is a proxy for modern reach, market saturation, reputation clarity, and listing exposure beyond the MLS. For buyers, it is a proxy for network depth, public credibility, and the ability to uncover options through connected sources.
Ranking Stack
How a candidate moves from intake to featured rank.
| Stage | Public status | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Candidate universe | Private intake | Collect known high-production agents and teams from public production, portal, brokerage, review, and entity sources. |
| Source-backed directory | Public broad coverage | Publish rows when production proof, identity clarity, and source links are strong enough for consumer research. |
| Trust-gate qualification | Public eligibility gate | Require current production proof, at least the public review minimum, exact entity identity, acceptable source quality, and a completed AI Visibility score before a row can enter a public team or individual ranking. |
| AI Visibility ranking | Default public order | Order qualified teams and individual agents by proprietary AI Visibility Score. Consumer Authority, production, and reviews remain visible as supporting comparison evidence. |
| Featured top lists | Editorial shortlist | Promote only candidates that clear stronger proof gates and have enough AI visibility evidence to support a consumer-facing featured rank. |
Consumer Lenses
One source-backed universe, multiple useful sorts.
| Lens | Sort | Consumer question |
|---|---|---|
| Highest AI Visibility | AI Visibility Score | Among proof-gated candidates, who is easiest for modern AI-assisted search to find, cite, and explain? |
| Consumer Authority | Consumer Authority Score | Which qualified candidates have the strongest supporting public-authority context? |
| Highest Production | Public sales proof | Who has visible transaction depth? |
| Most Reviewed | Public review count | Who has the broadest public service proof? |
No pay-to-play ranking
Ranking placement cannot be purchased. Factual corrections may be reviewed, and model calibration may evolve as AI search behavior changes. Candidate-specific scoring changes require source-backed evidence and documented trust-gate updates.
Future monetization boundary
Future referral monetization must not change ranking placement. Lead capture can monetize consumer demand only after the publication is trusted as an independent research layer.
The model is an interview-list research layer, not a universal best-agent claim, disciplinary review, fee analysis, or personalized fiduciary recommendation.