My family considered taking a huge leap, rather than the yearly jumps, to help out two particular friends: one- my best friend/sister, and two, his dear friend (Godparents to our son). We decided to buy them homes near us (as they wished), so as to prevent them from taking out a mortgage and to have them nearby. They each had a fixed, substantial budget to shop around. We enlisted a knowledgeable group to assist them, and to find the home/condo of their dreams. The process, from start to finish, for each went so smoothly and their desires were heard. Additionally, my husband and I were left at ease knowing they were in good hands. They were shown a list of properties within the Lincoln Park area, as well as a few in Gold Coast. Questions and concerns were immediately addressed by the team. The individuals are so in love with their new home, and we are so thrilled for them! Thank you for the exceptional service provided to our friends. read more

My husband and I have had multiple transactions w various Realtors in Chicago through the years. It wasn't until we met with Jennifer Ames that we realized Jennifer was exceptional. We witnessed this through our entire sales process. Jennifer and her team were extremely responsive, very fair and exceeded our expectations 100% of the time. From the beginning of the sales cycle through the negotiation process, their response time with returning calls & setting appts were unbelievably quick. I'd also like to point out Gus Lopez who put his heart & soul into each & every encounter! His integrity and passion for making the transaction come together and simply "doing the right thing" was truly amazing!!!!! If/when we either buy or sell in Chicago - The Ames Group has absolutely earned our business for a lifetime! Many thanks Jenny, Gus and team! Lexi and Mike read more

Jenny's team is absolutely fantastic in every way. They were prompt with helping me with any questions I had and always did their best to assure me. Jenny always stood out from the rest of the other brokers because she always created a personal connection and ensured that her customers were very comfortable with doing business. Excellent professionalism and always a pleasure to work with. Thank you for all your help! read more

I was referred the AMES group from a colleague who had an exceptional experience with them while buying their townhouse. I met with Several members of the team and felt comfortable with each person. My husband and I had great interactions with Mike Loffredo. He understood exactly what we wanted and was a pleasure to work with. Their group has a phenomenal reputation and I now understand why. They know the in and outs of luxury real estate and go above and beyound to make clients happy. We could not be more happy with this group or recommend them further. We will definitely use them again for all of ours real estate needs. read more

Working with a previous agent, we were having a hard time selling our vintage 1880s rowhouse. It had an excellent location (near Lincoln Park proper), it had two parking spots (very unusual for the location), it had a new roof and much new infrastructure, and it had lots of charm. It did have a few problems, notably a very dated kitchen. We had been willing to invest in a kitchen renovation pre-sale, but we kept getting the advice (from others) that we did not need to do so. We tried for a few years to sell the property with another agent, unsuccessfully. Each time we put the house on the market, it did not sell, and we became landlords instead, in the interim. We finally, and happily, gave Jenny and her team a try. She was very clear with us on the first walkthrough the things that we needed to do: change the paint in some rooms, change the staging, and most of all invest in the kitchen. We made the (substantial) investment in the kitchen rehab. We put it on the market. We had competing offers. We got back our renovation investment and, more importantly, sold the house quickly for a fair price. Jenny and her team were great, start to finish. Highly recommended. read more

I don't know where to begin, but I guess I'll start with the fact that I was on course to move from Dallas to Chicago and had a very short amount of time (2 months) when I decided that I'll be buying and not renting. I reached out to Jennifer Ames because of her reputation and expertise hoping that I could pull this condo purchase off within a couple of months, which most people would say is an unrealistic timeline to buy your first piece of real estate. To give you a better frame of reference for my review- at this point, I am 23 and have just graduated college with my Masters! As the President and CEO of her agency- Jenny, specializes in serving high profile investors and buyers.. As someone who just graduated college, I am still some years away to qualify in that category haha. Regardless, she, personally, took out the the time to reach out to me. Jenny, asked me to give her a list of the neighborhoods I am interested in, price range, type of property I was in the market for, and (of course) my budget! Based on that preliminary conversation, she was able to gauge my property interests and suggested a more location based approach in my search. Although, I did a fair share of research, I did not have much of an idea of what, exactly, is out there for me. I was very pleased by the fact that she took out the time to explain how the city of Chicago is planned (grids), its history (pre and post fire) and the map of the city (from a real estate perspective). This is what stood out to me. It is like she actually cared! As a buyer who did not know much about the city, that really helped me to develop a pervasive understanding of what and where I should be looking to buy. While I understood, any business needs to be lucrative to function, a great business is which goes above and beyond and puts its clientele first. And, that's when I realized how she earned her reputation of excellence in the industry. Fast Forward a couple of weeks and I was introduced to her team; knowledgeable, professional, and every bit as client oriented, her team carried me through the process of home-buying as if I had been doing this for years! Within 4 weeks, we had narrowed it down to 6 places. My broker, Mark, scheduled showings, and we were on the hunt! He would tell me exactly how it is, and what the pros and cons of each property were. He created a rating scale for me, where each major decision-making factor had point value. For each property, we would add up the points and come up with a total. We would discuss the scale before and after each showing. This scale helped me make this very hard process of elimination, relatively easier. After a lot of contemplation, back and forth emails and phone calls (yes even when he was on vacation), we narrowed it down to 3. When it came down to the top 3, he scheduled another round of showings and after each one, we went through the scale, once again! After much discussion and further debating, I finally found THE ONE! And as soon I did, I notified Mark. He arranged another showing for me for that property. Once, I gave me a final approval, he wasted no time and got right to action. Throughout the negotiations process, I was kept in the loop and was provided a price list of similar properties being sold in the area to ballpark expectations. Once we found the best agreed upon a price, I gave him a go ahead and he shook on a deal on my behalf.From thereon- contracts specialist, Liz, came into the picture. She, not only, did an excellent job answering contract specific questions, but also, answered all of my (silly,skeptical) first-time buyer questions. She was and still continues to be a great resource for me. For those of you who have no idea, buying means dealing with multiple parties. The buyer's broker team, seller's broker, seller, lender's team, attorneys, the city, title company etc etc etc to name some. If not for this phenomenal group of experts, I would have never been able to pull this off. Throughout my experience, I always felt that I could trust them with my decisions. They made it as easy as it could be. Thanks to my mom and dad's idea and initial support, and Jennifer Ames Realty's expertise, I am a proud owner of a lake facing studio in the wonderful neighborhood of Lakeview. Wouldn't think twice before recommending Jenny and her team ! read more

As others have already pointed out, Jenny Ames and her team at Engel Völkers Chicago are - in a word - exceptional! Ames Group Chicago is comprised of a team of consummate professionals - each and every member working together to ensure for smooth and seamless transactions from start to finish. The team is responsive and pro-active in ensuring client needs are consistently met. In an industry moving more and more towards discounted and impersonalized service, it's nice to know that there are still agents who genuinely care about their clients, have the experience and expertise (and results!) necessary to thrive in this challenging market and are always willing and able to offer concierge level services. I recommend AGC to all my family and friends and would give them 10 stars if I could! read more

I found myself suddenly in the position of having to move to Chicago quickly from Michigan. I am not current or familiar with the market. I Called Jennifer Ames and her team at Engel Volkers Chicago. Jenny and her Team, Especially Chase Miller were open and accommodating, but MOST importantly they listened to My needs and must haves. I had 4 days to come to Chicago and look for a place to live. They were great at emailing me potential places and seeing what worked, and what did not. When I arrived I was met with Friendly, knowledgeable people. I saw many places that met all of my must haves. Narrowed the list to two, and returned with my husband to see the two. I started the process Mid September and was able to purchase and move by the end of the first week of November. I highly Recommend Chase, Jenny and the rest of the team. They were great!!! read more

Jenny Ames and her team are simply exceptional! They sold our house in Lincoln Park several years ago, and they simply did an incredible job. Not only were we incredibly pleased with the result, but we actually enjoyed the thoughtful process. Despite running an impressive real estate business, Jenny is somehow always available and incredibly responsive to her clients on big and small issues. She also attracts great people, and so communication with her team is a pleasure and feels seamless. read more

Jennifer has the worst service. Her customers are paying for laziness. She doesn't follow up. Doesn't return calls and NEVER shows up to show her own listings She sends other people who know nothing about the property and can't answer any questions. I can't understand how she stays in business read more

Do not use this office. They make their money taking deposits on rentals. They misinform, lie, and take your money. Tried to call Andy Shiparski for an explanation, but no call back or any reasonable explanation. They are the worst! read more

We invited Jennifer to our home for a market analysis, hoping to get her professional insight and hire her as our listing agent. She arrived on time and did a walk through of our place, then sat down to show us a folder and highlight other properties she has sold. That is where the analysis ended. She told us that she would follow up within a few days with a very thorough market analysis and potential price for our property, but never did. In fact, we never heard from her after that initial meeting. I even sent a follow up email to her office with no response. I spent 15 years working for the most prominent firms in the financial industry and my mother worked for Coldwell Banker for 20 years. I have never experienced such unprofessionalism. What I failed to tell Jennifer at that initial meeting was that my family estate was looking for a realtor for a portfolio of Gold Coast properties. Her loss, not ours. read more

Jennifer and her team are second to none. Through out the selling process, from recommendations during staging, photographing the place, showing the place and managing the selling process, we could not have been more impressed. Unlike most Realtors, Jenny approaches the real estate business with professionalism and was very refreshing to work with. I would recommend Jenny and her team to anyone. read more

Jennifer provided her experience, insight and considerable knowledge of the Chicago marketplace to help us come up with a realistic estimate for a condo that we recently purchased -- an unusual property that was hard to assess. While her expertise wound up saving us a bundle, she provided it knowing that she would not profit -- it was a by-owner, no agent deal and she had no affiliation either with the seller or with us. She offered a wealth of information and in no way discouraged us from buying the property, but rather helped us understand what it was worth and why, contributing mightily to our peace of mind. It would be hard to find another Chicago agent who would have -- or could have -- done the same. read more

I have had the best experience with Ames Group Chicago, and especially with their agent Sarah Ambrose Brinkmann. She is highly professional and competent! I honestly feel that their experience and marketing helped me sell my condo in a tough market. I was concerned about selling my condo downtown Chicago because there were several one bedrooms on the market that were sitting for at least 3 months. Ames did a beautiful job presenting my condo in the best light possible. The photos and marketing materials were gorgeous and I sold my condo in 2 weeks. Since I was so pleased with my selling experience, I hired Sarah to help me buy a new condo in the area. It took me over 4 months to find a new place but Sarah hung in there with me until I found a property that I completely loved. She was never impatient and continued to say she wanted me to be happy. She was knowledgeable and reliable and connected me with a competent lender and real estate attorney. Overall, this was the best real estate experience I have ever had! As good as it gets. read more

Jenny was recommended to us by a good friend, and I'm very grateful. I knew she brokered some significant real estate deals and hoped she had time to handle our modest, first purchase on the home buyers market. From the very beginning, Jenny treated us like we were her most important clients - sending us updates at all hours and putting us in touch with her extraordinary team. During our first meeting over coffee to review the process, Jenny mentioned one property she wanted to show us and why she thought it might be right for us. On our first whirlwind outing, we saw that West Loop condo and a couple dozen others. We compared every place to that first one Jenny identified, and it's been our home for over a year. She not only found us the perfect home, but remained a part of our lives - recommending a great home improvement consultant and taking an active interest in our work. She is a tremendous agent, a wonderful and generous friend, and the only recommendation I have ever submitted on Yelp! Our thanks to Jenny, Eleanor, Scott, Mark, Kai, and the whole Jenny Ames team! read more