At the Partner Real Estate 2025 Gala, one message resonated clearly from industry partners in attendance: strong platforms are built on trust, consistency, and shared values — and Partner Real Estate exemplifies all three.
Representatives from Zillow Group, including senior leadership and growth advisors, attended the event to celebrate a long-standing partnership and to show support as Partner Real Estate launches its next chapter with the LPT platform.
Their presence underscored a rare distinction in today’s real estate landscape — a brokerage that has earned credibility not just through production, but through culture, community impact, and consumer-first leadership.
“Partners Like Rudy Are Hard to Come By”
Ted Ham, Manager of Zillow Group’s Key Accounts Partnerships for the Los Angeles market, emphasized the importance of the relationship between Zillow and Partner Real Estate.
“I manage all the growth advisors for the entire LA market,” Ham shared. “One of the reasons it was so important for me to be here tonight is to support Partner Real Estate — especially with the introduction of the LPT platform.”
Ham highlighted the longevity of the partnership, noting that Partner Real Estate has worked closely with Zillow for over a decade.
“Great partners like Rudy are really hard to come by,” Ham said. “Through all the changes, through all the different iterations of this industry, Rudy is someone we lean on very heavily in this market.”
That consistency, Ham noted, is what sets Partner Real Estate apart — a brokerage able to evolve while maintaining trust and performance.
Zillow Leadership Recognizes Community Impact and Agent Joy
Kimberly Sheldon, Vice President at Zillow overseeing Preferred Business partnerships, shared why attending the gala in person mattered to her.
“It’s one of my favorite things to see our partners in person,” Sheldon said. “To see the impact they’re having — and the joy the agents have while driving impact in their communities — is incredible.”
Sheldon also highlighted why Rudy Lira Kusuma was nominated by Zillow for a major internal award.
“They were nominated because of the impact they have on their community,” she said. “They contribute approximately $100,000 a year in charitable donations, and that level of commitment is truly unbelievable.”
For Zillow leadership, that combination of production, culture, and service reflects the kind of partnership that aligns with Zillow’s consumer-first mission.
Elevating Agents While Serving Consumers
Alicia Palados, Growth Advisor at Zillow, works closely with Partner Real Estate’s leadership team to support agent success across Zillow platforms.
“We have a really large partnership with Partner Real Estate,” Palados explained. “I work with Rudy and the leadership team to help elevate all of the agents on the team and the success they see at Zillow.”
Palados emphasized that the strength of the partnership goes beyond lead volume or performance metrics.
“Consumers shop on Zillow because they trust it,” she said. “And the partnerships we have with Partner Real Estate matter because these agents care deeply about buyers, sellers, and helping people find home.”
She added, “That’s why this partnership is so strong — Zillow cares deeply about the consumer, and so does this team.”
Culture That Translates to Client Impact
For many in attendance, the energy of the event itself told a deeper story.
Isaac Guzman, a business partner present at the gala, described the environment as something rare in today’s brokerage world.
“The culture here is incredibly energetic,” Guzman said. “These aren’t just coworkers — they’re family.”
He noted that this sense of unity directly impacts clients and communities.
“That commitment to one another translates into real impact for their clients,” Guzman explained. “It creates an environment where people can really thrive.”
Guzman also pointed to a shared mindset among those in the room.
“It’s important to be around people who understand service — people with a servant’s heart,” he said. “That’s what I see here. People who believe in using real estate to make a real difference in people’s lives.”
A Trusted Partner Entering a New Era
The presence and praise from Zillow leadership reinforced what Partner Real Estate’s results already show — this is a brokerage built on long-term relationships, agent success, and consumer trust.
As Partner Real Estate moves forward with the LPT platform, the alignment reflects more than innovation. It reflects continuity — taking a proven culture and elevating it with a platform designed for scale, simplicity, and opportunity.
For agents, consumers, and industry partners alike, the message from the 2025 Gala was clear:
When trust, culture, and performance align, growth follows — and Partner Real Estate is just getting started.