Mauricio Umansky claims Rick and Kathy Hilton were “extremely upset” with him and wife Kyle Richards after he left Rick’s company to start The Agency.
“He and Kathy held tremendous anger toward us, which is not the way I choose to live my life,” the real estate broker wrote in his new memoir, “The Dealmaker.“
“Naturally, Kyle was very hurt by their reaction, and it was a difficult pill for her to swallow.”
The “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star’s husband left his brother-in-law’s real estate firm, Hilton & Hyland, after he wanted to be made a “full partner” and Rick allegedly told him, “‘No, we’re not doing that.'”
“So I went home to Kyle and told her what had happened,” he continued. “She agreed with me that it was very unjust. But, ultimately, it didn’t matter what we thought. In my opinion, Rick wasn’t going to change his mind, and he wasn’t prepared to pay me what I’d earned.”
Umansky, 52, explained that if they “paid me what I deserved,” promoted him to partner and “showed me an inkling of professional love,” he would have stayed.
“For their part, they didn’t see it that way,” he wrote. “They couldn’t understand how I could just make the decision overnight and not give them a chance to convince me otherwise.”
The Bravolebrity claimed that, at first, Rick, 67, “seemed like he was okay with it,” but he “later learned that was not the case.”
“So, again, from my perspective, there’s never been any bad blood between The Agency and Hilton & Hyland,” Umansky added.
“What I did not expect was that, after he’d given my resignation more thought, Rick stopped speaking to me, which extended to Kyle and our whole family. And of course his wife, Kathy–Kyle’s sister–did the same.”
Umansky claimed that he’s not exactly sure what “triggered” the falling out aside from possible fears that he would “poach” Rick’s clients.
“They cut all communication and no longer invited us to Thanksgiving dinners or other holidays,” he wrote. “I never would have stolen a client from Rick, though maybe he didn’t believe my motives were pure.”
Umansky also emphasized that, to this day, he has never hired an agent from Hilton & Hyland because his “intention is to keep the family dynamic intact for Kyle, for my kids, for their cousins, for all of us.”
Despite the family tension The Agency caused, Umansky said Richards, 54, was “100 percent supportive of my decision” and believed he was “completely justified.”
“But, again, as she’s been throughout our entire relationship, Kyle was unconditionally supportive of me,” he gushed. “She’s not only my wife; she’s my best friend.”
Kyle and Kathy, 64, have had a complicated relationship ever since Umansky started The Agency in 2011.
They were able to repair their bond a few years ago, but that all changed when they had a falling out on the last season of “RHOBH” and are still not on speaking terms.
Umansky’s book, “The Dealmaker,” dives deeper into the mogul’s real estate ventures, life in the public eye and his family. It hits shelves April 11.
Reps for the Hiltons did not immediately return Pvnew’s request for comment.
