Latest news with #MauricioUmansky
Fox News
2 days ago
- Business
- Fox News
Real estate expert urges for lower interest rates, larger supply of homes to increase affordability
The Agency founder and CEO Mauricio Umansky discusses record home prices in the United States and why the Federal Reserve should cut interest rates on 'America Reports.'
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Kyle Richards looks tense during chilly reunion with estranged husband Mauricio Umansky in rare joint outing
Kyle Richards made a rare public appearance with estranged husband Mauricio Umansky during a frosty reunion Thursday morning in Los Angeles. Two years after their shock split, the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, 56, and her real estate mogul ex, 55, appeared noticeably distant as they sat outside a café, seemingly locked in a serious discussion. Sitting between them? An unidentified blonde woman with a laptop open on the table, appearing to play mediator. Kyle, dressed in a yellow floral top and hiding behind dark sunglasses, looked stone-faced as she angled herself toward the woman — keeping her body turned away from Mauricio. The Bravo star, who's long been rumored to be in a romance with country singer Morgan Wade, didn't crack a smile during the chilly exchange. Mauricio, sporting a casual tee and jeans, also looked tense — sitting with legs apart and an unreadable expression as the conversation unfolded. After the sit-down, Kyle made a brief move toward her ex, leaning over to seemingly offer a polite goodbye. The chilly meet-up came just a month after the former power couple shared a frosty hug while arriving at Cipriani in Beverly Hills to celebrate their daughter Alexia's 29th birthday. Kyle and Mauricio also share three other daughters: 36-year-old Farrah, 25-year-old Sophia, and 17-year-old Portia. Though they announced their separation in July 2023 after 27 years of marriage, the couple has yet to file for divorce. In August 2023, just one month after their split, Kyle famously starred in Wade's whimsical music video for Fall in Love with Me, where the two kissed, fed each other, and even shared a bubble bath. Despite ongoing rumors of a romance with Wade, Kyle has not been publicly seen on any dates. Mauricio, meanwhile, has been spotted with several women since the split, including models Nikita Kahn, 34, and Klaudia K, 33. Meanwhile, fans worried Kyle might be stepping away from Real Housewives of Beverly Hills were reassured when creator Andy Cohen teased her return for season 15. After the sit-down, Kyle made a brief move toward her ex 'Kyle is coming back,' Cohen revealed on Jenna & Friends with Jenna Bush Hager on June 13. 'I don't know if I'm supposed to announce that, but she is.' He also hinted that Sutton Stracke, Bozoma Saint John, Jennifer Tilly, and Kyle's sister Kathy Hilton would all be part of the new season's cast. Fashion designer Rachel Zoe is set to join the show as a newcomer. 'Now, the great thing is she legitimately knows Boz, Sutton, Jennifer Tilly, Kathy Hilton. So, she knows them and she's in that universe. 'She's going to fit right in perfectly,' Cohen added. Production on RHOBH season 15 has not yet begun.
The Independent
01-07-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Husband of Real Housewives and celebrity realtor files anti-trust lawsuit over real-estate listings
Real Housewives reality TV star and real estate broker Mauricio Umansky has filed an anti-trust lawsuit against the National Association of Realtors trade body. The lawsuit, filed in federal court Tuesday by Umansky's now-defunct platform The Pocket Listing Service, concerns a dispute over private real estate listings often favored by celebrities and high-profile clients. It alleges the trade body forced his platform, The out of the market, according to Housing Wire, and follows a recent landmark anti-trust suit where the association had to settle for $418 million. Umansky, co-founder of global brokerage The Agency and who starred in shows The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Buying Beverly Hills and Dancing With the Stars, first filed the suit in 2020 but it was paused last year. The pause expired at 12 a.m. Tuesday and was refiled by 12.30 a.m., according to The New York Times. Umansky was married to Kyle Richards and the show followed their lives in Beverly Hills. Howevever, the two have been separated in recent months. The initial suit claimed the association's policies when it comes to real estate listings were anti-competitive and were damaging to the private database of off-market listings he created in Los Angeles, The Times reports. An off-market listing means a property is for sale but it is not publicly advertised. The suit is the latest in a series of litigation over how homes can be listed in the digital marketplace. 'This lawsuit is about defending innovation and consumer choice in a market long dominated by entrenched gatekeepers,' a spokesperson for Pocket Listing Service, told Housing Wire. 'We created a platform that responded to growing demand for privacy, flexibility, and discretion — particularly in highly-competitive and high-profile markets — and were met with coordinated resistance from an organization with a vested interest in preserving the status quo.' The association controls access to most multiple listing service systems, which are used by agents to see which listings are available for their clients. Umansky's platform was a 'much-needed' alternative to the association's 'outdated and monopolized' multiple listing services system, according to the complaint. It was designed for clients who preferred to keep their listings on the down-low. Celebrities and high-income sellers often prefer these listings, which are also known as 'pocket listings' or 'whisper listings,' because of privacy. The complaint 'alleges that NAR and its affiliated multiple listing services colluded to eliminate competition from PLS through the adoption and enforcement of the Clear Cooperation Policy,' Housing Wired reported. The policy mandates that listings be submitted to the association's affiliated multiple listing services within one business day of a listing being publicly marketed. The suit alleges that this shuts down any viable private listings. 'There should be flavors for everybody, and everybody should have the choice as to what they want to pick,' Umansky said at an event last month. 'Restricting what we can and cannot do stops creativity, and it stops innovation.' In March, the trade body rolled back some restrictions of its policy, allowing listings to be publicly marketed for a certain amount of time before being published on a multiple listing service.
New York Times
01-07-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Celebrity Broker Sues National Association of Realtors Over House Listings
The National Association of Realtors, which came to a landmark $418 million settlement last year over claims of a conspiracy to fix commissions, is facing another antitrust lawsuit — this time over who can control access to real estate listings. Mauricio Umansky, a reality television star and a co-founder of the global brokerage The Agency, sued the trade organization in federal court on Tuesday morning. Recognizable to fans of 'Buying Beverly Hills,' 'Dancing With the Stars' and 'The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,' Mr. Umansky has been at loggerheads with N.A.R. since 2020, when he first went to court, claiming that its policies for real estate listings were anti-competitive and had damaged a private database of off-market listings that he had created in Los Angeles. The suit was paused last year, when N.A.R. was dealing with its commission settlement. That pause on litigation expired at 12 a.m. Tuesday morning; Mr. Umansky had refiled his suit by 12:30 a.m. Representatives from N.A.R. did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the suit. The revival of Mr. Umansky's claim is the latest in a flurry of litigation in the real estate industry, as agents and brokerages tussle over how and where homes for sale can be listed in the digital marketplace. Last week, Compass, which sells more homes than any of its competitors in the United States, sued Zillow, the country's largest real estate site, which blocks any home that is not listed on its site within 24 hours from appearing there forever. Compass claims the 'Zillow ban' breaks antitrust laws. Zillow's policy echoes a long-held practice at N.A.R. that was recently relaxed. N.A.R. has guided real estate rules in the United States for over a century, and in 2018, the Justice Department opened an investigation into its policies, including those involving listings. The federal inquiry signaled that N.A.R.'s so-called 'clear cooperation' — which requires agents to enter any new home for sale into a public listing database within 24 hours of advertising it — could be considered anticompetitive. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
CTV News
22-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
‘I love the area': Mauricio Umansky on Halifax, bringing his global brand to the East Coast
The Agency CEO Mauricio Umansky is pictured at the launch party for the firm's Halifax office on June 22, 2025. (CTV Atlantic / Melanie Price) Halifax and Beverly Hills might be worlds apart, but that's not stopping American real estate mogul and 'Real Housewives' celebrity Mauricio Umansky from bringing his global brand to the East Coast city. 'We've been expanding all over Canada and you guys have a great market here and it's beautiful and so it just made a lot of sense,' he told CTV News Sunday afternoon. 'And, here, I am, proving that we can bring boutique real estate to the world.' Umansky first rose to fame through appearances on 'The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,' which premiered in 2010. As CEO of The Agency – a global, boutique real estate brokerage that has 130 offices in 13 countries – Umansky's brand has also been featured on Bravo's 'Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles' and Netflix's 'Buying Beverly Hills.' Mauricio Umansky The Agency CEO Mauricio Umansky is pictured at the ribbon cutting for his firm's Halifax office on June 22, 2025. (CTV Atlantic / Andrea Jerrett) The Agency added a Halifax location to its firm in February 2024 and Umansky was on hand for the official launch party and ribbon-cutting Sunday afternoon. 'I love it, I love the area. I like the people that I've met so far, they've been really nice,' he said. 'Everyone is just so friendly and happy.' Mauricio Umansky The Agency CEO Mauricio Umansky is pictured on the Halifax Waterfront in a photo shared on his Instagram page. (Source: Instagram/mumansky18) This was Umansky's first trip to Halifax and his first time trying its official food – the donair. 'I just had a donair and it was absolutely delicious,' said Umansky at The Agency Halifax launch party Sunday afternoon. 'Loved it.' That's not the only quintessential Halifax experience he's had while in the city – he also spent some time on a waterfront patio, in the bar district, and at a popular Irish pub. 'I had a great night last night, we had a great day. I went to Water Polo for dinner and then we went to go make a little bit of a mess of Argyle Street and we went over to Durty Nelly's,' he said. 'I ended up there and that was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed the people and the music and all of it.' The Agency Halifax A team photo of the agents at The Agency Halifax. (Courtesy: The Agency Halifax) The Agency decided to open the Halifax office after local agents reached out to the company. Umansky says the people and the culture are some of the key factors when deciding on a new location. 'We always decide what location we open up depending on people,' he said. 'So, it's more about growing the culture, growing the people, and we believe that we can bring luxury and a boutique feel to global real estate.' While Halifax might be a smaller market than what he's used to, Umansky says marketing and real estate are the same everywhere, as you have to be creative and innovative no matter where you are trying to sell. He also says his global brand is focused on service – not price point. 'Everybody deserves to have great service and great luxury no matter what price point you're at. That's the belief that we believe in,' he said. 'When you're in a bigger market … you have more to play with, so you're able to get a little bit more creative with your type of marketing. So, to be able to then bring that to a place like Halifax, because we're learning it in Beverly Hills or Hollywood, or New York, and then to be able to bring it here just elevates the level of service for the community here and for all of our clients here.' Mauricio Umansky Mauricio Umansky, CEO of The Agency, is pictured. (Courtesy: The Agency Halifax) As for why someone should choose The Agency, Umansky says his company is very selective about who it hires, and he has a unique No. 1 rule for his agents. 'No a--holes. So, if you're one of those you'll get kicked out fast,' he said. 'We have a zero-tolerance rule and I think that's what separates us.' In addition to the Nova Scotia office, The Agency also has brokerages in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, and Quebec. As for whether The Agency will expand to other parts of Atlantic Canada, Umansky says it's a possibility. 'I think that now that we are here we'll continue to have that conversation. It's my first time in Atlantic Canada, but I think that now that we're here we might as well keep going. Why stop here?' For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
