I Built the eXp Onboarding Coach I Wish I Had
A free AI skill that helps new eXp agents find the right tools, ask the right questions, and stop guessing their way through week one.
If you just joined eXp Realty and feel confused, you are not crazy.
The onboarding process can feel like walking into a city where every building has a different login screen. There is Passport, My eXp, eXp World, Workplace, eXp University, eXpert Care, SkySlope, etc, etc. Every time you think you found the right place, someone tells you, “Oh, that moved,” or “That depends on your state,” or “Ask your broker team,” or “Search for it in Workplace.”
I feel you. I used to be a fellow eXp agent, and I remember that first stretch clearly. eXp has a huge amount of support, training, and software, but the hard part for a new agent is knowing what exists, where to find it, and what order to do things in. Most agents get stuck because the path is scattered across too many portals, too many acronyms, and too many “ask this department” answers.
So I decided to use a little AI magic. I built a skill called eXp Agent Onboarding Coach, and the goal is simple: give new eXp agents a calm, practical guide through the first days and weeks after joining.
The skill turns your AI assistant into an onboarding coach for eXp agents. You can ask, “I just joined eXp. What should I do first?” and it will give you a staged plan instead of generic motivation.
It helps you figure out what to do today, what to verify with your broker or country team, which eXp tools to log into first, which training to watch, how to approach CRM setup, what to avoid before your license is active, what to ask your mentor, and what to prepare before your first transaction.
Use the skill as a support layer alongside eXp support, your broker, and your mentor. Think of it as the organized friend sitting next to you, sorting the mess into a checklist: do this first, ignore that for now, ask this person before you act, and save this link because you will need it again.
I built the skill around three practical jobs. First, it gives new agents a clearer onboarding map. Second, it helps agents discover eXp tools they may not know they already have. Third, it keeps reminding them when something needs official verification from the right source. I built it with a global view from the beginning, because eXp is not a one-market brokerage. The skill is designed to ask where the agent works before it gets specific, so a California agent, a Texas agent, an Ontario agent, a UK agent, and a South Africa agent do not get treated as if they are operating under the same rules.
How to install and use it
You need two things: an AI agent and the eXp Agent Onboarding Coach skill.
The simplest technical setup is Hermes Agent, but the skill also works with Claude Projects, ChatGPT custom GPTs, Cursor, Claude Code, OpenClaw, and most other AI agent tools that can read Markdown instruction files.
Hermes is an open-source AI agent from Nous Research. It can install skills, remember workflows, use tools, and run from your computer.
To install Hermes, open your terminal and run:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent/main/scripts/install.sh | bashAfter that, run the setup wizard:
hermes setupDuring setup, Hermes will ask you to choose a model provider. You can use OpenRouter, Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini, local models, or another supported provider. Once Hermes is ready, install the eXp Agent Onboarding Coach skill with this command:
hermes skills install https://raw.githubusercontent.com/oftento/exp-agent-onboarding-coach/main/SKILL.md --category productivityThen start Hermes:
hermesLoad the skill inside Hermes:
/skill exp-agent-onboarding-coachNow you can ask your onboarding question in plain English. For example:
I just joined eXp Realty. I am active in Texas, but I am overwhelmed. I have Passport access but I have not set up CRM or MLS yet. What should I do first?If you prefer Claude, download the skill files from GitHub , then add SKILL.md, CLAUDE.md, AGENTS.md, the references folder, and the templates folder to a Claude Project. Start with this prompt: “Use the eXp Agent Onboarding Coach instructions. I just joined eXp. First ask only the questions you need, then give me today’s plan and this week’s checklist.”
If you use ChatGPT or a custom GPT, download the latest release ZIP, upload the files into a custom GPT knowledge base, or paste the SKILL.md instructions into your GPT configuration. Use a short instruction like this: “You are an eXp Agent Onboarding Coach. Follow the uploaded SKILL.md. Always ask for the agent’s country/region and local market before giving detailed onboarding steps. End every answer with concrete next actions.”
For Cursor, Claude Code, OpenClaw, or another agent tool, put SKILL.md, AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, references/, and templates/ in your project folder. Then tell the agent: “Follow AGENTS.md and SKILL.md. Act as an eXp Agent Onboarding Coach.” The skill is plain Markdown, so it travels well across systems.
The GitHub repo
The skill is public here: https://github.com/oftento/exp-agent-onboarding-coach.
The latest release is here: https://github.com/oftento/exp-agent-onboarding-coach/releases/latest.
The direct Hermes install URL is https://raw.githubusercontent.com/oftento/exp-agent-onboarding-coach/main/SKILL.md.
Once it is installed
Start with a simple prompt. You can copy this:
I just joined eXp Realty.
Country/region:
State/province/market:
My status: application submitted / waiting for activation / active / not sure
Do I have Passport access? yes/no
Do I have MLS/board/portal access? yes/no/not applicable
Am I brand new or transferring from another brokerage?
Please give me:
1. what I should do today;
2. what I should do this week;
3. what tools I should log into first;
4. what I should ask my broker/mentor/country team;
5. what I should not do yet.Here is the kind of answer you might get:
## Your current stage
You still have two operational gaps: MLS/board/portal access and CRM setup.
## Today’s plan
- [ ] Confirm your license/affiliation is active under eXp in your market.
- [ ] Log into Passport / Okta.
- [ ] Confirm access to My eXp.
- [ ] Find eXpert Care in eXp World.
- [ ] Join your local Workplace groups.
- [ ] Create an eXp Support Directory.
- [ ] Ask your local broker/team what must be completed before advertising or working with clients.
## Tools to check first
1. Passport / Okta
2. My eXp
3. Workplace
4. eXp University
5. eXp World / eXpert Care
6. CRM of Choice: BoldTrail, Cloze, Lofty
7. SkySlope or your local transaction platform
## CRM note
Before paying for an outside CRM, check eXp CRM of Choice. BoldTrail, Cloze, and Lofty may be included for standard use through your existing eXp tech package. Verify current availability, IDX/MLS fees, add-ons, and country/market rules.
## Ask your broker or local team
- Am I cleared to publicly announce I am with eXp?
- What exact brokerage name and license disclosures must I use?
- Which MLS/board/portal steps are still pending?
- Which transaction platform should I learn first?
- Am I assigned a mentor?
## Do not do yet
- Do not advertise yourself as active until your affiliation is confirmed.
- Do not publish ads without checking required disclosures.
- Do not bulk text or email your database without consent/compliance review.
- Do not buy leads before your CRM and follow-up system are ready.That is the whole point. The skill gives you a checklist, but it also gives you timing. New agents need the right next step, the right support contact, and the right warning before they accidentally publish something or buy something they should have checked first.
Why this matters for recruiters and sponsors
If you are an eXp recruiter, sponsor, team lead, or mentor, this is something you can send to your downline as a support layer. A new agent often asks the same questions over and over: Where do I log in? What is Passport? Do I use My eXp or Enterprise? Where do I find training? What CRM should I use? Wait, I can use Cloze and Lofty too? Who do I ask about MLS? Can I post my announcement yet? What do I do this week?
This skill gives them a starting point before they panic, guess, or buy tools they may not need. If it helps one agent avoid three days of confusion, it is worth sharing. If it helps a whole downline get oriented faster, even better.
What we should tackle next
Often is built around a simple promise for working real estate agents: AI moves fast. Agents move with Often. The Often Letter is the weekly version of that promise. The goal is less hype and more useful work. Each issue should help an agent answer one practical question: what should I understand, try, automate, delegate, or change in my business this week because of AI?
That means we care less about abstract AI news and more about the work sitting on an agent’s desk right now. When we cover a tool, we want to show what happened, why it matters to an agent’s business, and what to do next. When we build a skill like this one, we want it to become a practical field guide, something an agent can open when they are stuck and use before lunch.
So yes, share this with any eXp agent who is stuck in onboarding. Send it to your downline, your team, your new agents, your mentor group, or the person who just texted you because they cannot find the right portal.
But I also want the conversation to be broader than this one skill. Tell me where the friction is in your business. Is it follow-up? Listing prep? Social content? Recruiting? CRM cleanup? Transaction coordination? Open house systems? Hiring an assistant? Training your team? Explaining AI to clients? If something in your business feels repetitive, confusing, messy, or unnecessarily manual, I want to know about it.
The Often Letter publishes weekly and it is 100% free. Subscribe if you want practical AI workflows, agent-ready tools, and field-tested systems for real estate work. And if you have a pain point we should tackle next, reply and send it over. The best issues usually start with a real agent saying, “This part of my business is driving me crazy.”
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