Getty Mauricio Umansky
Mauricio Umansky owns one of the most successful real estate brokerage firms in the country, but he got his start in the business working for his brother-in-law, Rick Hilton.
More than a decade ago, family drama played out on “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” and in headlines when Umansky left Hilton’s firm, Hilton & Hyland, to start up his own brokerage firm, The Agency.
But during the February 1, 2023 episode of the “Behind the Velvet Rope with David Yontef” podcast, a real estate agent who works for Umansky’s firm and co-stars with him on the Netflix reality show “Buying Beverly Hills,” said he’s not trying to compete with his brother-in-law — and never was.
“I don’t feel that Mo feels competitive with anybody, to be honest,” said “Buying Beverly Hills” star Allie Lutz. “He knows where he stands. I think we’re very different. We’re really a different brokerage than Hilton & Hyland. … It’s not because we’re like, oh we’re better than, it’s just we’re different. We really are different. … They are not comparable.”
Lutz noted that all families have drama and she teased that there is more that people don’t know about the situation.
“Like listen, they’re family and like, you know, of course, I mean is there family drama with every family?” she said of the Hiltons and Umanskys. “Yeah, there’s always gonna be some drama in some way. …I mean, I guess I know why, but people are so, like, interested in that relationship. But I don’t think you should discount why Mo is where he is.
“There’s a lot more backstory to it that not most people [know],” Lutz added. “You know, listen, you think you know people, but the truth is, like, we don’t, right? Like, we know what people are willing to share and show, but a lot happens behind the closed doors. So that’s, like, their family stuff, and I don’t think there’s any hatred towards each other. I think it’s, like I said, we’re two different brokerages and we can both succeed in the space, you know?”
Mauricio Umansky Did Not Mention Hilton & Hyland When Talking About His Career Path on the First Episode of ‘Buying Beverly Hills’
GettyKathy Hilton and Rick Hilton.
After losing his job in the clothing industry, Umansky started out in real estate working for Hilton’s firm more than 20 years ago. He left Hilton’s company to start The Agency, but when explaining his work history on “Buying Beverly Hills,” he neglected to mention ever working for the Hiltons.
During a November 30, 2022 appearance on “Watch What Happens Live,” Umansky explained why he skipped over part of his backstory following his wife Kyle Richards’ and her sister Kathy Hilton’s falling out during an explosive cast trip for RHOBH.
“The reality is, I didn’t feel like it needed to be mentioned,” Umansky said of keeping his history with Rick Hilton out of his story. “There’s a lot of drama going on between them, Kathy and Kyle, right now. There’s enough going on.
“I just didn’t need to rehash it,” Umansky added. “I didn’t need to bring it into something new. It was really all about me and about us, and not about anybody else, so it was just something I chose not to mention.”
Another ‘Buying Beverly Hills’ Star Said She’s Been Contacted by Hilton & Hyland and Other Firms
Melissa Platt, another employee at The Agency, also spoke on Yontef’s podcast and revealed that she gets calls “all the time” to join other firms.
“I first started at Hilton & Highland actually. And again, it’s a treasured brokerage, it’s awesome,” she said. But, she added, “The Agency was more my vibe. But people do move around. A lot of people get calls, they get poached, they get offers, you know, there’s some brokerages that will pay agents to move over.”
“We’ve all been thrown offers,” Lutz added. “We are constantly being, you know, recruited. That’s part of business.”
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