THR’s Power Broker Awards Toast Winners, Unity After L.A. Fires

There is hope for this world yet! The fifth annual L.A. Power Broker Awards — presented by luxury real estate PR firm The Society Group and co-hosted by Compass Development Marketing Group — was a tight-knit, familial affair, a cozy and jovial event after a harrowing year in Los Angeles. Held at the Mandarin Oriental Residences Beverly Hills on Wednesday in luxuriously casual spaces designed and furnished by Vesta Home, the night feted powerhouse sellers on 2025 THR‘s Top L.A. Brokers list, and was followed by an awards presentation awarding outstanding achievements in L.A. real estate over the past year.

The night started out with a cocktail party in an airy and bright residence in the Mandarin Oriental, as realtors sipped drinks and munched on bites as live music played. There was an overwhelming feeling of camaraderie in the air, unusual in the cutthroat world of real estate. “It’s amazing to be at these events with all these people that we love to work with and that we see all the time, but we all get to hang out and talk about work and talk about life and catch up and see how everybody’s done during the year in a multi-level way,” Douglas Elliman’s Heather T. Roy noted. “It’s a really nice check-in.”

Beverly Hills Estates’ Lea Porter, celebrating her second year on the list, took in the scene appreciatively. “It’s such an amazing honor because when you look around at who is here: these are the biggest players in Los Angeles,” she said. “And the first time you may have imposter syndrome. But the second time you might start to lean in and actually enjoy it!” Porter was chatting with Coldwell Banker’s Joyce Rey, a perennial deal maker on the list with whom she is currently collaborating.

Much of the good nature at the awards stemmed from the bonds formed in the aftermath of January’s fires, when realtors banded together across brokerages to help those devastated by the fires. “Right after it happened, we had so many, I want to say powwows and meetings to try and figure out what to do next and how to help our clients,” Nourmand & Associates Rochelle Atlas Maize recalled. “And half of my colleagues had lost their houses too, and they’re just struggling to figure it out for themselves and their clients. And it was just a trying time, but it did very much to bring people together. So that was kind of the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow maybe, so to speak.”

Carl Gambino of Compass agreed, saying, “I think in L.A., I really saw the brokers pull together, especially with the fires, and it’s really been — for such a tragic experience — wonderful how the brokers all worked together.”

After cocktails, it was up to the Mandarin Oriental’s stunning rooftop, where L.A.’s most prestigious agents, decked in their couture best, crowded on plush white couches together like teens at a slumber party to watch the ceremony. The highlight of the evening was when The Society Group’s Alexander Ali featured an adorable slideshow of agents as children, urging guests to guess who was who. Beverly Hills Estate’s Rayni Williams proved particularly adept at guessing the correct agents, though she was occasionally drowned out by the good-natured ribbing of jokesters Aaron Kirman and Matt Altman.

In his speech accepting the Media Maverick award for charitable efforts and media campaign after the L.A. fires, Jason Oppenheim of The Oppenheim Group showed his softer side.

“This is actually pretty meaningful because I felt like when the fires occurred in the Palisades and Altadena, it kind of galvanized the real estate community probably more than I’ve ever seen it,” he said. “I know that we’re all pretty close friends, but we don’t really get too close to activism or at least we don’t usually all agree on the same type of activism. But I think we all realize how important the real estate community was after the fires. Actually, it was the proudest moment for me as a real estate agent and a part of this room was in how we reacted to the fire. So, I think this is an award that we all won.”

These sweet sentiments from some of L.A.’s toughest brokers continued, when Kirman accepted his award for Team of the Year, honoring Christie’s International Real Estate SoCal’s $1.473 billion in total sales. “I’m looking at this room and I’m thinking, ‘Oh my God, we’ve grown so much.’ Because five years ago when we were here, I would hear whispers, ‘I hate that person. I hate this person. Keep me away from that person,’” he said in his speech. “Today, there’s nothing but great love and energy and everyone is calling each other friends. And I actually think it’s real and it’s legitimate.”

He continued by reminiscing about Tomer Fridman, his current colleague at Christie’s International Real Estate SoCal. “Tomer and I… we were rival enemies. If he could’ve, he would’ve run me over with a car, if he thought he could get away with it,” Kirman joked. “And here we are all working together as friends and partners, and it just reminds me that we can’t work in this business without each other. And so even though it’s a difficult business and it’s competitive and it’s hard, at the end of the day, we all need each other to succeed. I’m grateful for everyone in this room and I love the fact that we’re all friends and making it work and making it work brilliantly for each other.”

This collaborative spirit was evident in many of the honors bestowed. The Stratospheric Sales Award was presented to Drew Fenton and Linda May (Carolwood) for the $110M sale of Spelling Manor. Condo Sale of the Year was awarded to Jonah Wilson (Carolwood), Sally Forster Jones (Compass) and Fridman (Christie’s) for the sale of the penthouse at Beverly West. Rey (Coldwell Banker) won the award for Agent of Historic Architecture, while Bryce Pennel (Douglas Elliman) accepted the Rising Star Award. Smith and Berg (Compass) were awarded the Philanthropic Impact Award for exceptional charitable activity, including wildfire relief.

The most heart-tugging acceptance speech was given by the witty and whip-smart Juliette Hohnen (Douglas Elliman) who won the award for Celebrity Property Portfolio. With tears in her eyes, she thanked her mother, children and husband, while a sea of colleagues smiled back at her. “I just want to thank this community. I love real estate agents. You guys are my friends and I really appreciate this,” she noted.

After the ceremony, winners and honorees stretched their legs, swigged the last of their champagne and went off for a group photo shoot. “The five-year photos had us all laughing and connecting, and the casual vibe was exactly what we needed after long days in the field,” Christie’s International Real Estate SoCal’s Cindy Ambuehl said. “I loved that we were able to mingle, as opposed to sitting in designated seats at a table. It really allowed us to work the room with each other and that was important.”

Who knows if this new fuzzy feeling will last, but last night in Beverly Hills, camaraderie and compassion reigned. “What Aaron said is completely right,” Hohnen said as the evening wrapped up. “We are all friends now.”