Tributes pour in for Conrad Zurini, Remax broker-owner and industry leader

The Canadian real estate community is remembering Conrad Zurini, broker-owner of Remax Escarpment Realty and Remax Niagara Realty, who led a combined network of more than 1,200 agents.

In a statement, Don Kottick, president of Remax Canada, shared, “We’re deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Conrad Zurini. Conrad was a member of the Remax community for nearly 30 years and was always a strong supporter of Remax in Canada. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and agents during this difficult time.”

Tributes began pouring in across social media Friday as reports of his passing spread through the industry.

Remax Hallmark Realty shared a tribute on Facebook, calling Zurini “a passionate, caring, and inspirational leader within the Remax family and the real estate industry.

“His unwavering commitment to sharing his knowledge, wisdom, and experience touched countless lives and helped shape the success of so many around him,” the post read. “More than a respected leader, Conrad was a true friend. We will forever cherish his energy, passion, humour, and the positive impact he made on everyone he met.”

Kingsley Ma, area vice president for Remax Canada, shared that he first got to know Zurini when he volunteered to speak at the Lower Mainland Broker Owner Retreat, remembering him as “the definition of a true entrepreneur — fast-paced, incredibly knowledgeable, and always looking for ways to do better.

“More than just an incredible broker-owner, he was a generous person,” Ma wrote on Facebook. “If there’s a Hall of Fame in the real estate industry, he has earned his permanent place there.”

Industry leader and regular REM contributor

Zurini was a regular contributor to Real Estate magazine and a second-generation Realtor — a self-described “SOB — son of a broker.” He was an outspoken advocate for homebuyers, a skeptic of policies he believed favoured lenders over consumers and an early and serious thinker on how artificial intelligence could affect the Realtor profession.

REM publisher Andrew Fogliato, who first met Zurini in 2014, described him as someone who made everyone feel immediately at ease.

“I came into Remax Escarpment to run a training session. I was an outsider walking into one of the biggest Remax brokerages in the world, and he welcomed me like he was welcoming a friend home,” Fogliato said. “That was Conrad. Never afraid to say what he actually thought. I knew him for more than 10 years and he was one of the people I respected the most in the industry. The industry, REM, and I personally will feel his absence. A tremendous loss for everyone who knew him.”
 

No further details have been released. Real Estate Magazine has reached out to Remax Escarpment and the Zurini family for comment. 

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