Alexia Umansky on life after ‘buying Beverly Hills’
As the daughter of The Agency founder Mauricio Umansky, the longest-running consecutive Real Housewife, Kyle Richards, and the niece of Hilton and Hyland’s Rick and Kathy Hilton, Alexia Umansky is a unique hybrid of real estate and reality TV royalty. She grew up The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and went on to star in both seasons of Buy Beverly Hills after getting her real estate license.
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When we left her on Buy Beverly Hillsas a new real estate agent, she found her way in the challenging world of LA real estate as her parents began to navigate a public divorce.
Since then, Alexia has reached a career high by helping buyers purchase a $14 million listing; married Jake Zingerman; and furthered her business as a social media influencer, creating paid partnerships, including one with Starbucks.
If RHOBH After ending season 15 with Alexia’s wedding footage, Inman spoke with her to find out what her career and life have been like since then Buy Beverly Hills packaged. What follows is that conversation, edited for length and clarity.
It’s been two years since ‘Buying Beverly Hills.’ What’s going on?
[I’m] still does real estate. Still love real estate. I miss the show. Really and truly. But even though the market isn’t as great as it was when I first got into the business, I still love it so, so, so much. I’m so happy.
What’s going on at The Agency?
We did an office makeover. It was really fun. You know, when we opened our most recent, current office in Beverly Hills, I felt like our aesthetic was really cool for the time, but we’ve been here for a whole minute, so we went with a more natural, very loungey look.
We have more communal seating… we tried to go for a Soho House feel so everyone could come and sit [together] … I started doing this thing with a bunch of people in the office called ‘Simply Socials’ where you get together and just socialize to keep the energy up in the office and feel connected to everyone, and keep the collaboration going, but to kind of remove that piece of work.
We want to maintain that family bond between everyone. And I feel like our company has always done that very well because my father is who he is. He’s always been such a family man and he considers The Agency his family. So having that personal connection is just very important. So updating our space and focusing on our connection with each other has been a really strong point for us over the past two years.
Speaking of family, are your sisters still in the real estate business?
Farrah [Brittany] is. Farrah is absolutely killing it. She has always been one of my biggest inspirations. Sophia [Umansky] no more. She was busy with our marketing for a while, but now she is busy with her own social media.
Has your father already appointed a successor? I know that was important last season.
I feel like my dad had a moment where he was like, “I’m not going anywhere,” and there’s almost been a resurgence of excitement for him lately. It’s always been there. But I just feel like he’s an absolute animal now.
He travels the world, opens offices, works with Tony Robbins – he does all these incredible things. And so I feel like taking a step back and slowing down is the last thing on his mind. So if anything, he’s so focused on taking everything to the next level, for the company and for himself. He’s really into it now.
What about the rest of the cast? Are they still there?
Melissa [Platt] is back in Dallas. We love Melissa. She was actually one of my bridesmaids for my wedding. She’s one of my best friends, and I just love her so much.
And then there is Santiago [Arana]. He’s still killing it. As usual, he heads the Brentwood office.
Jon Grauman actually moved from LA and lives in Ojai [Ed. note: Grauman lives in Napa Valley]or somewhere with a lot of wine, which is very appropriate because he and his wife love wine, and decided to open his own real estate agency.
Zach [Goldsmith] is still with The Agency, Farrah and I. Brandon Graves is still with us. Sonica [Vaid]she left after season 1.
We saw that Ben Belack just left for SERHANT. What is the general opinion SERHANT. entering California?
I’ve always thought that, Ryan [Serhant] has been a great realtor and I love his marketing. And I just think he’s such a charismatic guy, and I’m really excited for Ben [Belack]Actually.
He has always been someone who positions himself as a leader, and I feel that at SERHANT he is being placed in this leadership position. And I feel like it’s a great collaboration. I’m excited for them both.
You have the advantage of working with your father. Is there one lesson he taught you that sticks with you?
This is something he’s said to me all my life, and he quotes: Is it Napoleon Bonaparte? At least that’s what he says. But it’s basically, “Dress me slowly, I’m in a hurry.” He’s been saying that to me all my life, and a lot of it also applies to work, where it’s really just that [means] Take it slow or you’ll mess things up. Take a deep breath, one step at a time, and get through the day.
So you just got married. Tell us about the wedding.
I enjoyed every second of it [wedding planning]and my mother and my father were both very involved in the planning process. I was so grateful to have both of them to bounce ideas off and talk to them about everything. And we ended up creating a Midnight Garden theme, which I was really excited about.
And I really just wanted it to feel like a fairytale in the mountains of Topanga Canyon, and it felt exactly like that. Everyone always says that your wedding day is the best day of your life, and I thought, “I really hope that’s true, because there’s a lot of pressure on a day.” And I’m so happy to say that indeed it was.
And now you’re married and you have your career. What’s next on the horizon?
Well, we have a honeymoon planned this summer. Then I feel like I’m kind of in this place where I’m going to enjoy my summer, and once that happens, I might be talking about having a baby soon. I’m in this head space now where I’m enjoying married life, and I definitely want a baby. It’s just a matter of when.
In The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills reunion trailer, Andy Cohen asks your mother, “If you file for divorce, will you ask for half of The Agency?” To which she replies, “Well, it’s mine.” What happens in that case?
That’s a good question. I think that’s something that only time will tell. But the reality is that my father and my mother still care for each other a lot … I don’t necessarily know the inner workings of how that’s all set up, but I know my father wants to share his success with his daughters and his wife.
And they still have a great relationship. Our family is still so close. We still hang out all the time, so I don’t see that being a problem… But if it’s hers, it’s hers, and I think my dad would support that.
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