KW Cares

What KW Cares does

KW Cares is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN 68-0505969), headquartered in Austin, Texas and founded in 2003, that provides financial assistance grants to Keller Williams Realty associates and their dependent family members facing sudden emergencies. Its three core grant programs are Catastrophic Hardship Grants, Emergency Grants, and Emergency Disaster Grants, which together have delivered $66M+ ($68M+ on the 2026 Cares Month page) in assistance across 7,214–7,430 grants since inception, with $7M+ tithed to nonprofit partners. Approximately $2M was distributed across roughly 200 grants in 2025 alone.

The operating model is built on four donation channels: (1) Transactional Giving via the KW Command platform — automatic deductions set as a percentage or fixed amount on every real estate closing, accounting for approximately 70% of all donations; (2) the Loyal Hearts Club and other monthly/one-time online donations; (3) annual event revenue from Multiply Your Business (Market Center Watch Party tickets at $499, recordings at $30) and Cares Month; and (4) planned giving and mailed checks. The technology stack is non-proprietary: a WordPress front end, the ZeestrFUNDr peer-to-peer fundraising platform powering Market Center sub-campaigns, regional leaderboards and event ticketing, and Stripe as the payment processor.

Go-to-market is community-led rather than commercial. KW Cares reaches donors and beneficiaries through the KW culture of caring ("Family Helping Family"), Market Center kits, regional leaderboard gamification, peer-to-peer fundraising pages, and event-driven campaigns, with no external sales motion. Donors and grant recipients are both drawn exclusively from the Keller Williams Realty ecosystem across 30+ US regions and Canada, which produces high engagement but makes the organization dependent on the health and continuity of that single parent ecosystem.

Name

KW Cares

Legal name

Keller Williams Realty Cares

Website

https://kwcares.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

KW Cares is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing emergency financial grants to Keller Williams Realty associates and their dependents facing medical crises, natural disasters, or sudden hardship, funded primarily by transactional donations via KW Command and annual peer-to-peer campaigns.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Charitable Grants

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Financial Assistance & Benefits Navigation Services (BPAGAEAK)

Keywords

• Emergency financial assistance
• Hardship grants
• Disaster relief grants
• Nonprofit charitable services
• Recurring donor programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Austin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Transactional Giving via Command: Approximately 70% of all donations to KW Cares come through automatic deductions made with every closing via KW's Command platform. Associates set a percentage or fixed amount per transaction.
2. One-Time and Monthly Donations: Donors make one-time online donations via the website or set up recurring monthly gifts through the Loyal Hearts Club membership program.
3. Event Revenue: Revenue generated from paid virtual events including Market Center Watch Party tickets ($499) and event recording access ($30). Additional fundraising is driven through event campaigns with stated donation multipliers and matching gifts.
4. Planned Giving: Bequests and planned giving vehicles allow donors to include KW Cares in long-term estate planning.
5. Check-Based Donations: Donors can mail checks payable to 'KW Cares' to the Austin, TX office address.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

KW Cares is the 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable arm of Keller Williams Realty that provides financial assistance grants to Keller Williams associates and their dependent family members during sudden emergencies such as life-threatening illness, medical crisis, natural disaster, or unexpected death of a family member. Its three core grant programs (Catastrophic Hardship, Emergency, and Emergency Disaster) are funded primarily through donations collected via the KW Command platform with every real estate closing (~70% of donations), recurring monthly giving, annual campaigns, and virtual events. Grants are awarded to qualifying KW Family members at no cost to the recipient.

Product overview

KW Cares is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization affiliated with Keller Williams Realty that provides financial assistance grants to KW associates and their dependent family members facing hardship due to sudden emergencies. Its core products are three grant types — Catastrophic Hardship Grants, Emergency Grants, and Emergency Disaster Grants — which are funded primarily through a portfolio of fundraising programs and events. These include Cares Month (annual May campaign tied to Mo Anderson's birthday), KW Still Cares (year-end campaign), and Multiply Your Business (annual virtual training and disaster-relief fundraiser). Recurring giving is enabled through the Loyal Hearts Club (monthly donors) and Transactional Giving via Command/Greensheets, through which approximately 70% of all donations are received. KW Cares also provides the Market Center Cares Kit — a resource bundle comprising an onboarding playbook, one-sheets, FAQs, and a video library — to help Keller Williams Market Centers spread awareness and onboard associates. The entire fundraising operation runs on the ZeestrFUNDr peer-to-peer platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Catastrophic Hardship Grants Financial grants awarded to Keller Williams associates and their dependent family members facing financial hardship due to life-altering or catastrophic events such as serious illness or medical emergencies.
• Emergency Grants Financial grants provided to KW Family members experiencing urgent financial hardship due to sudden emergencies, offering rapid monetary relief.
• Emergency Disaster Grants Grants specifically designed to support Keller Williams associates affected by natural disasters, covering needs such as generators, chain saws, water, food, deductibles, and general recovery costs.
• Multiply Your Business (Virtual Event) Annual paid virtual training and fundraising event for KW associates. Tickets are sold at $499 for a Market Center Watch Party package and $30 for event recording access, combining professional development content with disaster-relief fundraising appeals.
• Cares Month Annual Fundraising Campaign An annual month-long peer-to-peer fundraising campaign held in May tied to Mo Anderson's birthday. Market Centers compete to raise $890+ per team, with the top-performing Market Center winning exclusive live coaching from Mo Anderson.
• Loyal Hearts Club (Monthly Recurring Giving Program) A monthly recurring donation membership program for KW associates and supporters who commit to give $25, $50, $100, $250, or a custom amount each month via credit card or check. Members are recognized and receive insider updates on the impact of their contributions.
• KW Still Cares (Year-End Fundraising Campaign) An annual end-of-year fundraising campaign featuring matching donation incentives from individual donors, highlighting the annual grant impact, and driving donations to support the year's disbursement of ~$2M through approximately 200 grants.
• Transactional Giving via KW Command A giving mechanism allowing Keller Williams agents to automatically donate a percentage or set amount to KW Cares with every real estate closing through the KW Command platform. Approximately 70% of all KW Cares donations flow through this channel; donors reaching $150/year become 'Impact Agents' with recognition benefits.
• Silent Auction An annual silent auction event supporting KW Cares' fundraising efforts, typically held in conjunction with the Multiply Your Business virtual event.

Quantifiable outcome

• $66M+ in financial assistance awarded to 7,214 grant recipients since 2003 (updated to $68M+ and 7,430 grants on 2026 Cares Month page)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• EmpowerHomeminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Platinum Level Sponsor of the Multiply Your Business 2025 event. EmpowerHome CEO Sarah Reynolds also appears as a Mindset speaker at the event. Logo displayed on event sponsorship materials.
• Mutual of OmahaminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Platinum Level Sponsor of the Multiply Your Business 2025 event. Logo displayed on event sponsorship materials.
• ResidentialTSminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Silver Level Sponsor of the Multiply Your Business 2025 event. Logo displayed on event sponsorship materials.
• BuildASignminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Silver Level Sponsor of the Multiply Your Business 2025 event. Logo displayed on event sponsorship materials.
• ZeestrcoreTechnology or IntegrationTechnology platform provider powering KW Cares' fundraising campaigns, peer-to-peer fundraising pages, donation processing, event ticketing, and campaign management. KW Cares uses ZeestrFUNDr as the underlying fundraising software platform. Zeestr provides the tech infrastructure, not the funds — donations go directly to KW Cares. KW Cares is a Beneficiary on the Zeestr platform.
• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party payment processor used by Zeestr for processing all online donations. Handles payment processing, data security, and fund transfers directly to KW Cares' bank account.

Scale indicators20 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• MusiCares: The Recording Academy-affiliated nonprofit providing emergency financial assistance, addiction recovery, and health support to music professionals. Closely mirrors KW Cares' model: industry-affiliated charity providing hardship grants funded by per-transaction/per-engagement donations from a defined professional community.
• The Actors Fund: A national human services nonprofit supporting professionals in performing arts and entertainment with emergency financial assistance, counseling, and social services. Operates the same industry-anchored charitable model targeting a defined professional membership in crisis.
• SAG-AFTRA Foundation: Union-affiliated charitable arm providing emergency financial assistance, hardship grants, and disaster relief to performers and their families — an industry-funded safety net model directly analogous to KW Cares' associate-focused emergency assistance.
• Motion Picture & Television Fund: Industry-funded charitable organization providing social, financial, and health support services to entertainment-industry professionals. Operates the same embedded charitable infrastructure within a corporate ecosystem as KW Cares.
• REALTORS Relief Foundation: The National Association of Realtors-affiliated 501(c)(3) foundation providing disaster relief and hardship assistance to REALTORS and their families — the closest structural analog to KW Cares, serving a competing real estate ecosystem with the same industry-funded emergency grant model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kw-cares
• Facebookfacebook.com/kwcaresfamily

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about KW Cares