Every year ends with an incongruous mix of emotions — seasonal cheer, but tempered by nostalgia and mourning for people who are newly missing from holiday gatherings.
These losses are perhaps more profoundly felt in the real estate world, which is not quite a family but often feels like one because its members regularly gather for business deals, events or just to break bread.
Here, listed alphabetically, are some of the notable figures in real estate who died in 2025.
Earle Altman. The founder of ABS Partners Real Estate, who helped build a 14-million-square-foot investment portfolio, died May 1 at 93. Altman spent decades at Helmsley Spear before launching ABS Partners and was known for mentoring younger colleagues and shaping institutional investment strategies in New York.
Michael Barker. The founder and chief executive of Barker Pacific Group died suddenly at 80 after a fall. A hands-on executive with a blunt style and entrepreneurial instincts, Barker built BPG into a national development and investment firm with billions of dollars’ worth of projects across the Bay Area, Texas and the Sun Belt.
Al Brende. The co-founder and longtime CEO of Land Tejas died Aug. 26 at 80. Brende helped build dozens of master-planned communities around Houston, positioning Land Tejas as a major regional builder and steward of large-acreage development.
Sara Burack. A broker who sold luxury homes in the Hamptons and was a cast member of Netflix’s “Million Dollar Beach House,” Burack was killed in a hit-and-run on June 19. She was 40. Burack had been a go-to agent for wealthy Hamptons clients and was a personality who bridged Manhattan and East End markets. Police later arrested a driver in the case.
Russ Burns. The longtime chairman and former CEO of Clayco died of cancer in March at 65. Burns led Clayco through major expansion, oversaw large construction and development projects and left a legacy in Midwest development and construction circles. The firm renamed buildings in his honor.
Stanley Cayre. The eldest of the Cayre brothers and co-founder of the Cayre Group died at 89. The Cayres parlayed a home-video and retail fortune into a real estate and apparel empire. Stanley’s death closed a chapter on a family that quietly shaped New York for decades. He had helped scale their business into national property investments.
Jacob Chetrit. A key member of the prominent Chetrit real-estate family, he died in January at 69. Chetrit was a force in the Manhattan and South Florida property markets and was remembered for high-profile ownership stakes and years of acquisitions.
David Childs. The SOM architect, best known for designing One World Trade Center, died March 26 at 83 after a struggle with dementia. Childs’ work reshaped Manhattan’s skyline from the Trade Center to major corporate towers. He was lauded for marrying technical rigor with civic ambition in large-scale projects.
Tom Cousins. The Atlanta developer and philanthropist, a one-time owner of the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, died July 29 at 93. Cousins parlayed homebuilding into major urban projects and civic initiatives, creating the Purpose Built Communities model that influenced neighborhood redevelopment nationwide. He bought the Hawks when they were in St. Louis and moved them to Atlanta.
Benito Flores. The housing rights activist and “reclaimer” in El Sereno, California, died in July at about 70 while resisting eviction. Flores became a local symbol of grassroots housing protest after occupying a vacant state property. He campaigned for years against displacement.
Frederick Ford. The longtime executive at Draper & Kramer and the first Black president of Chicago’s Union League Club died July 14 at 98. Ford steered major South Side and institutional projects over a six-decade career and was remembered as a civic leader who opened doors in Chicago real estate leadership.
Frank Gehry. The esteemed architect, best known for his Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, which sparked a revival of the Spanish city when it opened in 1997, died Dec. 5 at 96. The New York Times wrote that the museum made Gehry “the most recognizable American architect since Frank Lloyd Wright.”
Catherine Holbrook-Healy. The Chicago real estate agent and founding member of The Laricy Team died Jan. 21 during childbirth. She was 40. Holbrook was a well-known local agent and volunteer with the Chicago Association of Realtors. Her sudden death shocked the community and prompted widespread tributes.
Serge Hoyda. The Great Neck-based developer, who helped revitalize parts of the Lower East Side, died at 74. Hoyda’s four-decade career covered finance, zoning, acquisitions and adaptive reuse; he converted, managed and developed more than 40 mixed-use buildings. Late in life he operated event and production spaces and was remembered for neighborhood-level investment that catalyzed change.
Isaac Kodsi. The South Florida developer and longtime real-estate attorney who led Ark Capital Group died unexpectedly at 59. Kodsi was active in Coconut Grove development and a visible player in Miami’s condo and development market.
Doug Lebda. The founder and CEO of LendingTree died Oct. 12 at 55 in an all-terrain vehicle accident at his family farm. Lebda’s platform shaped mortgage shopping and, therefore, the housing finance ecosystem.
Wesley LePatner. The senior Blackstone real-estate executive was killed in a July mass shooting in Manhattan. She was 43. LePatner led core segments of Blackstone’s real-estate businesses and was widely praised for leadership, philanthropy and advocacy for women in her field.
Gerald Luss. The noted midcentury-modern designer and architect, who shaped corporate interiors in the postwar era, died at 98. Luss’ work helped define modern office aesthetics. The design and academic communities saw him as an influential practitioner and teacher.
Dan Moody Jr. The co-founder of Houston’s Moody Rambin died Oct. 10 at 84. Moody helped popularize townhomes and atrium office buildings in Houston, guided his firm through boom and bust cycles, and left a legacy of civic involvement and neighborhood development that shaped greater Houston.
Louis Naidorf. Naidorf, the architect behind Los Angeles’ Capitol Records Building and other regional landmarks, died in August at 96. Naidorf’s midcentury modern designs and decades of teaching left a visible imprint on Southern California’s built environment and on generations of architects.
Greg O’Connell. The Brooklyn developer credited with reviving Red Hook and later the upstate town of Mount Morris, died at 83. An NYPD detective turned developer, O’Connell undertook revitalization projects that aimed to preserve local character while fostering housing and small business growth.
Mort Olshan. The founder of Olshan Properties, longtime New York landlord and part-owner of the Yankees, died in February at 99. Olshan’s half-century in New York real estate included landmark redevelopments and stewardship of major retail and residential assets. He was remembered as a larger-than-life figure in the city’s market.
Marshall Rose. The developer, philanthropist and husband of Candice Bergen oversaw major renovations and civic projects. He died Feb. 15 at 88 from complications of Parkinson’s disease. Rose’s firm was involved in high-profile institutional work and historic building rehabs.
Mendel (Mendy) Steiner. The Brooklyn-based multifamily investor, who amassed a notable portfolio in a brief career, died by suicide in January at 33. Steiner was active in acquiring rental buildings across multiple markets.
Todd Mathews Wallace. The Austin developer and JLL executive, who led CSW Development and major Central Texas projects, died in July at 53 after a multi-year fight with cancer. Wallace was credited with helping position Austin for new development waves and mentoring younger brokers and developers.
Barry Swenson. The San Jose builder, whose family construction firm shaped much of Silicon Valley’s skyline, died in April at 85. Swenson’s company constructed and renovated many of the region’s largest commercial projects. Local leaders also praised his role in building civic institutions.
Steve Turner. James Stephen “Steve” Turner, the Nashville developer behind the Gulch and major cultural projects, died Feb. 11 at 77. Turner transformed a derelict railyard into one of Nashville’s most desirable mixed-use neighborhoods and was a longtime benefactor of the Country Music Hall of Fame and other civic causes.
Zayad Roumaya. “Zad” Roumaya, a Dallas developer who helped revitalize the Cedars neighborhood, died May 11 at 67, reportedly by suicide. Rouyama’s small-scale residential and arts-oriented projects converted neglected blocks into vibrant, walkable streets. His death prompted local reflection on mental-health pressures in development.
Gail Sankarsingh. The top Douglas Elliman broker, known for new development sales in Manhattan, died Dec. 1 at 57. She had battled cancer for years. Sankarsingh ranked among Elliman’s highest producers and was noted for building a high-end clientele around banner condo projects.
Darin Tansey. The Miami Beach Douglas Elliman agent, who worked on high-end Florida developments, died in September of a heart attack at age 50. Colleagues remembered him for his coaching and dealmaking. His Miami celebration of life drew dozens of the agents he had mentored.
Donald Soffer. A developer who shaped Aventura and was a pillar of South Florida real estate and philanthropy, Soffer died July 20 at 92. He built and financed major projects that transformed Miami-Dade and left a multigenerational family presence in hospitality and development.
Elaine Wynn. The casino executive, investor and philanthropist, who co-founded Mirage and later influenced Wynn Resorts’ direction, died April 14 at 82. Wynn’s stewardship and shareholder activism reshaped Las Vegas resort development, and she was long active in arts and civic philanthropy.