Real estate mogul Mauricio Umansky, the estranged husband of “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Kyle Richards, is seriously considering swapping luxury listings for Los Angeles City Hall.
The 56-year-old founder and CEO of The Agency revealed that a future run for mayor of Los Angeles is on the table while appearing on “Live With Kelly and Mark,” where he outlined some of the issues he would want to address if he ultimately launches a campaign.
“I am considering running for mayor of Los Angeles,” Umansky, who is a registered independent, revealed.
Umansky—who separated from Richards, 57, in 2023 after 27 years of marriage—said he believes the city needs to focus on its residents while also finding ways to attract businesses.
“We need to take care of our people. There’s so many things to do in Los Angeles. It’s one of the greatest cities in the world, without question,” he said. “We need to take care of crime. We need to take care of the homeless. We need to do all of that stuff, but we need to bring business back.”
However, Umansky made clear that he isn’t preparing to jump into a mayoral race immediately.
Instead, the real estate executive said that if he does decide to pursue political office, he would use the coming years to prepare both his personal life and his business for the demands of a campaign.
“If I do it, it would have to be for the next race, and start prepping for it and start prepping my business [The Agency] for it, start prepping my life for it, and then you run,” he explained.
It’s not the first time Umansky has floated the possibility of entering Los Angeles politics.
During an August appearance on the “Money Rehab” podcast with Nicole Lapin, the real estate tycoon revealed that he had already given the idea considerable thought, while stressing that he wasn’t ready to declare his candidacy.
“I’m not running for mayor yet. I never said never,” he said at the time. “Maybe one day. I’ve thought about it a lot, but not yet. I’m a registered independent, and I believe in the middle. I think we’ve lost the middle. I think it’s kind of gone, which is kind of sad.”
Umansky went on to describe the political landscape as “so extremist,” saying he would like to focus on “finding balance and finding that middle again.”
When Lapin asked why voters should support him if he did eventually run, Umansky pointed to his views on business and the economy.
“Because I’m going to make L.A. great again,” he responded. “Look, we need to do a lot of great things for L.A. On the financial side, I’m definitely more on the Republican side.”
Umansky also invoked former President Ronald Reagan, saying he believes in “Reaganomics” while arguing that some of those economic ideas now fall closer to the political center.
But much of Umansky’s focus appeared to center on an industry he knows well: real estate and business.
He argued that Los Angeles needs to do more to retain its entertainment industry, which he described as critical not only for employment but also for tourism.
“We’ve lost so much of Hollywood. We need to give Hollywood incentives,” he said. “What put Los Angeles on the map was television and movies. The reason we have people come from all over the world to visit L.A. is because of the movies.”
“If we stop filming movies and television here, it’s not only about the employment that’s coming, it’s about the tourism,” he added.
Umansky also pointed to changes he says he has witnessed firsthand in California’s luxury real estate market, claiming that high-end buyers have increasingly moved away from the state.
“The luxury buyers are gone,” he said, warning, “If we don’t start fixing that now, that’s going to affect us.”
For now, Umansky has stopped short of formally entering a future race. But his latest comments make clear that the possibility of trading his role at the helm of a global real estate brokerage for a run at City Hall is one he is actively considering.
His glimpse into his future plans come after Richards revealed how an emotional message from her estranged husband left her heartbroken on their 30th wedding anniversary.
Richards admitted that the reality of their split hit particularly hard as the former couple marked what would have been a major milestone.
“I’m just having a moment. Today’s my 30-year anniversary. It makes me sad,” Richards confessed to Vicki Gunvalson in a preview for one of the latest episodes of “Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: Roaring 20th.”
Her emotions only intensified after Umansky reached out with a heartfelt message reflecting on the end of their marriage.
“He sent me a text and it just sent me off. He said today’s always such a hard day and I love you. He said I don’t know how we got here. I thought we were stronger than that. I really had thought that,” Richards, who shares daughters Alexia, 29, Sophia, 26, and Portia, 18, with The Agency founder, recalled.
Gunvalson was visibly moved by her friend’s admission, saying, “My heart is breaking for Kyle because they’ve got everything everyone is looking for and 30 years of marriage. All of a sudden, it’s dissolving.”
Richards went on to reveal that the public reaction to her separation has also weighed heavily on her, particularly comments from fans who had long viewed her marriage as proof that lasting love was possible.
“The thing that bothered me the most honestly was people saying that we gave them hope that true love existed, and now, that went out the window for them,” she told Gunvalson. “But I understand people thinking like that.”
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