On Thursday, April 16 2026, Rob Thorwald, CEO and Qualifying Broker at Corcoran Plaza Properties, passed away unexpectedly. We wanted to honor Rob and the hole left by his passing with a few words.

Rob was quiet, unassuming, and a kind, gentle and generous leader. When Rob first took over as Qualifying Broker, I was skeptical. I'd rarely heard him speak -- he didn't have the smooth, outgoing, salesman personality that I thought was required by the role, and he was still selling homes, which I thought meant I'd be competing against him (and losing) for business. What I came to learn about Rob -- as he purchased the company, transitioned us to the Corcoran franchise, and moved our headquarters -- was that he had no ego, wanted us as individual brokers to succeed as much as he wanted his business to succeed, and had just the right temperament to lead the transition. He was an astute businessman but also an empathetic and compassionate human.

Rob would drop what he was doing any time I had a question. As a relatively new broker, Rob's deep knowledge of the Santa Fe market and his willingness to patiently and thoroughly share that knowledge was invaluable to me. He was constantly thinking of others, and on more than one occasion was willing to dig into his own pockets to help me build my business. 

Rob's presence around the office will be sorely missed -- his belly laughs in our team meetings, his lunch-and-learn deep dives to keep us all at the top of our game, his casual way of poking his head into our office to see if there was anything we needed, or check in on the deal we'd had questions on the week prior. Thank you, Rob, for your unique leadership, your guidance, your patience, and for building Corcoran Plaza Properties, a brokerage unlike any other in Santa Fe. You are missed.

- Brendan