Watch out, Bravo — there’s a new reality-TV series bringing some “Real Housewives” stars over to Netflix. “Buying Beverly Hills,” the streamer’s newest addition to its real-estate repertoire, is a docusoap that follows property boss Mauricio Umansky, the husband of “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Kyle Richards.
“This was something totally out of my comfort zone, so she was that grounding support.”
Mauricio and his family have spent the last 12 years on camera for their Bravo staple. But now, the mogul’s new show will highlight his professional life as the founder and CEO of international luxury brokerage The Agency. It will also spotlight an ambitious group of agents that includes his and Richards’s daughter Alexia Umansky and his stepdaughter, Farrah Brittany.
Though Mauricio and his daughters are no strangers to the small screen, he and Alexia tell POPSUGAR that Richards was a helpful support system while filming “Buying Beverly Hills.” “Alexia had a lot of drama. She had a lot of ups and downs,” Mauricio shares. “You’re going to witness them, and watch them, [but] it’s really fun. I think Kyle definitely helped her through that process as a [therapist].”
To prepare for her Netflix debut, Alexia says she asked her mom a lot of questions and even got some fashion tips, too. “First of all, my mom styled me every day, basically,” she says. “So you’re going to see a lot of duplicate outfits of hers and mine on ‘Housewives’ and ‘Buying Beverly Hills.'” And secondly, Alexia says, she learned that filming is a “lot of hard work,” and her mom is a veteran. “So when I needed to be cool, calm, and collected, I went to my mom and she always made me feel better,” she says. “This was something totally out of my comfort zone, so she was that grounding support. She’s had so much experience [and] so many tips throughout the whole entire thing.”
“It was definitely emotional for me in a lot of ways, but I have become, I would like to think, a much better agent now because of it.”
For viewers curious about how Mauricio and his daughters will appear on “Buying Beverly Hills” in contrast with “Real Housewives,” the real-estate tycoon promises that we’ll see him step outside of his “supportive husband” role. “Watching me as a boss and a father, and then as a boss father on ‘Buying Beverly Hills,’ it’s totally different dynamics,” he says. “The dynamic between me and Alexia and my daughter Farrah is very interesting and real. The fact that we’ve already been on television and in front of a camera for 12 years has probably made us a little bit more comfortable, [but] you’re going to see a completely different dynamic and some great emotions.”
The show also follows Alexia through her own real-estate journey, much of which is spent proving herself at her father’s company. Although she has a few hiccups — and admits it was nerve-racking to have them happen on camera — Alexia says her first season on the show was a “very humbling experience.”
“A humongous learning experience for me,” she adds. “There were a lot of moments where we did this [work], all these agents as a team, and so we had to discuss a lot of the things I did right and wrong as a team [as well], almost like a magnifying glass . . . It was definitely emotional for me in a lot of ways, but I have become, I would like to think, a much better agent now because of it.”
It remains to be seen whether “Buying Beverly Hills” will become Netflix’s next big real-estate franchise (especially as it’s up against “Selling Sunset“), but the show’s first season promises amazing architecture, celebrity appearances, a dash of drama, and even a “surprise.”
“Buying Beverly Hills” starts streaming on Netflix on Nov. 4.