Under Clever CEO Luke Babich's leadership, the company scaled from a St. Louis startup to one of the country's largest agent-matching platforms.
ST. LOUIS, April 22, 2026 — Luke Babich, CEO and co-founder of Clever Real Estate, a St. Louis-based real estate company, has been named a finalist for EY's Entrepreneur of the Year 2026 in the Heartland region, one of the most prestigious awards for business leaders.
Founded in 1986, the Entrepreneur of the Year award celebrates leaders who disrupt markets, build category-defining companies, and transform industries while uplifting their communities.
The Heartland program recognizes leaders from Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, and Nebraska. Independent judges select regional finalists and winners, with regional winners advancing to the national competition later this year.
“Being named a finalist for the Heartland Entrepreneur Of The Year is an honor, and I'm proud that we can help consumers save money on one of the most important transactions they'll ever make,” Babich said.
Clever was founded in 2017 by Babich and co-founder Ben Mizes, childhood friends from St. Louis, with a mission to make buying and selling a home more transparent and affordable. Under his leadership, Clever has grown into one of the country's largest agent-matching platforms, all while remaining headquartered in Babich's hometown of St. Louis.
“Clever was born because of the problems Ben and I encountered firsthand as investors,” Babich said. “Most homeowners pay $15,000 to $30,000 at closing without a clear picture of what that money actually buys them. We built Clever to change that, giving homeowners a simpler, more transparent way to sell without losing tens of thousands in unnecessary fees.”
Clever reached profitability in 2021 after raising an $8 million Series B and posting 300% revenue growth. Two years later, Trustpilot ranked it as the top-rated real estate agency on the platform, and the company launched Clever Closing Services.
Inc. named Clever one of the Midwest's fastest-growing businesses in both 2023 and 2024, and the St. Louis Business Journal recognized the company as one of the city's best places to work in 2024. In 2025, Clever Offers, the company's cash offer comparison platform, surpassed $500 million in home sale transactions.
Learn more about the Entrepreneur Of The Year award: https://www.ey.com/en_us/entrepreneur-of-the-year-us
About Clever Real Estate
Clever Real Estate's content reaches over 10 million readers annually, and its nationwide agent matching service has a 5.0-star Trustpilot rating across 4,000+ customer reviews. Since launching in 2017, Clever has reached $15.6 billion in real estate sold, matched over 215,000 customers with realtors, and saved consumers over $230 million on commission fees. Clever's network spans over 18,000 agents across all 50 states.
Please contact Nicole Lehman at nicole.lehman@movewithclever.com with any questions or to arrange an interview.