A star of Selling Sunset has been hailed by his social media followers after offering a kind gesture to those affected by the Los Angeles wildfires.
The west coast US city has been hit by devastating firestorms over the past week, with several wildfires still uncontained to the city’s north.
Several celebrities, including Paris Hilton and Sir Anthony Hopkins, have lost their homes as six separate fires continue to rage in the hills above the city.
The celebrities affected are among around 200,000 people who’ve been forced to evacuate their homes, with several buildings being completely burned down.
Enter Jason Oppenheim, the 47-year-old TV presenter and real estate mogul who made a grand gesture on social media on Friday night.
Jason is one of the featured stars of Selling Sunset – the luxury property reality TV show that follows the lives of the employees at the Oppenheim Group real estate company.
Beginning in 2019, the show has now run for eight seasons, with Jason pulling in a huge social media audience of a whopping 1.5million followers.
And knowing that at least some of those followers might have been affected by the LA wildfires, he sent a message to anyone in need.
‘If you’ve lost your home in the Los Angeles fires,’ his written statement began, ‘and you need to find a place to rent until your home is rebuilt, all Oppenheim Group agents will represent you for free or credit you back any commission we receive in the transaction.’
He continued in the video, saying: ‘I woke up this morning to a lot of friends and clients reaching out because they lost their homes over the last couple of days.
‘They need help with places to live now. Their families are displaced. As real estate agents we obviously have an obligation to help them find a place – even when it’s going to be difficult.’
Jason carried on: ‘Thousands of people are looking for places and there aren’t anywhere near enough houses available. But the Oppenheim Group is offering to represent anybody for free.’
In response, @NK50 said, ‘Class act! This is what community is about,’ while fellow realtor Kimberley Marr described the move as ‘super kind and generous’.
TV personality Gretchen Rossi called the decision ‘so beyond kind,’ as Jonas Myers commented, ‘This is so generous. Love what you guys are doing.’
Jason told Laura Kuennsberg that he was inspired into action after being alerted to landlords who have apparently used the situation to boost their profits.
‘I had a client. We sent him to a house that was asking $13,000 a month. He offered $20,000 a month, and he offered to pay six months upfront. And the landlord said, “No, I want $23,000 a month”.’
He continued: ‘There are price gouging laws in California. They’re just being ignored right now, and this isn’t the time to be taking advantage of situations, and it’s also illegal to take advantage of a natural disaster.’
Watch Selling Sunset on Apple TV.
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