Jen Wolan was recommended to us by a friend, and we would recommend her to anyone in a heartbeat! During our first house viewing with Jen, we explained our situation - months of viewing houses and a handful of beat out offers. Just as we were beginning to feel discouraged, Jen gave us great advice and guided us in getting through the tough Bay Area housing market. Being a first time home buyer was very intimidating, but having Jen as our realtor kept us reassured and confident throughout the entire process. Jen is professional, responsive, and a pleasure to work with. She is very knowledgeable of the market; introduced us to new neighborhoods, reviewed disclosures in detail, and patiently answered every simple or complicated question we had. There are so many positive things to say about Jen that the list could go on forever! If you are looking for a realtor, don't waste anymore time and reach out Jen! read more

What a great experience! Jen provided the partnership we needed to find a great home. In a search that began before the pandemic and extended well into it, she was patient, deeply knowledgeable and incredibly responsive. As (until recently) lifelong renters, Jen was able to fill in all the blanks and give us confidence in making the leap to home ownership -- schools, seismic retrofitting, commutes, permitting; there wasn't a question we had that Jen wasn't able to answer. I would, and have, recommend her to any of my friends and colleagues looking to buy in Berkeley, Oakland and beyond. read more

My husband and I worked with Jen on our home search in 2019. She helped to identify our needs and wants and get to to know us as a family before making some recommendations, including some outside of our original search area. Jen is warm, friendly, knowledgable, and transparent. I love that she is an East Bay native and knows the area front and back. She has also worked as a teacher and has a child of her own so she advised us well on school districts, etc. She helped consult with us prior to and during the offer process, including turning confusing legal jargon into relatable and understandable language. We felt confident in the offer that we made. She helped us land our first offer in the East Bay and we couldn't be more happy with the home! read more

We had talked to Jen Wolan on and off over several years about selling our home and when the time finally came, we knew Jen was the perfect fit. She was respectful and encouraging of our process as we got our home, one that had been in our family for 80+ of its 100 years, ready to sell. Her calm demeanor and professionalism along with expertise in our particular area of Berkeley made an emotional process as stress free as it could be. Jen listened to our ideas and made smart suggestions so that buyers could really see our home as their own. With Jen's tough negotiation skills, we accepted an amazing offer and walked away confident we had a great partner in the process. If you have the opportunity to work with Jen, don't think twice! read more

We cannot recommend Jen enough! We decided to put our beloved East Bay home on the market in the middle of Fall 2022. Jen had a vision and devised a plan to have our house on the market in a months time. Multiple contractors and a staging crew later, our house was transformed into a showpiece! We couldn't have been happier with Jens contractors and her ability to pull all the work together in such a short time. The website was constructed beautifully and really showed off our house in an amazing way. One open house and multiple offers later our house was under contract. Jen advised us on what we needed to invest into our property in order to get the most return. Her professionalism, knowledge of the East Bay market, and attention to detail in every stage of our home sale was exceptional. We highly recommend Jen! read more

Jen helped me buy a new home and sell my old home in the East Bay and I could not be more appreciative of her help and guidance. In selling, she knew exactly what needed to be done to bring in the most interest and best offer and handled everything for me. She was highly communicative and always available when and wherever, never opposed to working around my schedule. She was also very empathetic to how difficult it was for me to let go of a place I loved. In buying, she worked hard to understand what I was looking for so there was no wasted time with non-starters. When it was offer time, she asked all the right questions and knew exactly what approach to take, allowing me to land a great house in an amazing neighborhood at a price I could afford. I highly recommend working with Jen! read more

When our family needed more space, we decided to start a home search in Berkeley and figured we would find a place quickly. Cut to a global pandemic and incredibly tumultuous real estate market, and we ended up looking for nearly two years before finding something that would work for us in our price range. Thank goodness we had Jen Wolan as a partner in that process! Not only did she tirelessly show us house after house, she knew every street in the City, every realtor with a listing, and all the good and bad about each neighborhood. She gave us an endless amount of invaluable advice, crawled around on the ground with us to check out foundations, and made the otherwise tiring process feel fun and pressure-free. After finding the perfect house and guiding us through the buying process, she helped revamp our old house for sale, putting together an amazing team of professionals to be sure we were showing our house in the best possible light. During a difficult close (due to lender issues on the buyer's side), Jen helped negotiate additional compensation for us because of the hassle, and handled all of the details while keeping us calm. Although we are very happy in our new home, we have joked that we might move again just for another opportunity to work with Jen! :) read more

Jen helped me enormously with both preparing and then selling my house in Oakland.  I appreciated her clear explanations of all the steps in the process, and her aid in coordinating all repairs and improvements within a tight timeframe prior to the sale.   Whenever any unexpected difficulties would arise, she went above and beyond and calmly ensured that the house was ready. I cannot recommend her highly enough!  She actually needs 6 stars. read more

Jen was an amazing partner in helping us purchase out first home! We can't think of enough positive words to articulate how grateful we are for Jen's guidance throughout the process. She spent time up front getting to know us and our preferences. She set clear expectations around the housing market and the home buying process. She really knows the East Bay neighborhoods well and she recommended potential homes to us based on our preferences and her knowledge. And lastly, Jen is extremely responsive - even while on vacation. We would recommend her 100 times over!!! read more

Jen was amazing from start to finish. Very helpful for a first time home buyer. Explained the process, helped match me with a mortgage broker, was always available to talk, listened to my interests, and had a good balance of hands on/space. Went from the beginning of process to getting an offer accepted in about 3 weeks! Jen is a true professional, but also plenty personable. Would definitely recommend. read more

My husband and I worked with Jen to sell our Richmond Annex house and we absolutely loved the experience of going through the (at times super stressful!) process with her. Jen helped us navigate all the in's and out's of selling our home in the crazy Bay Area market and walked us through exactly what we needed to do (and didn't need to do) to get it ready for the showing and selling process. In addition to being super down to earth and always having a good sense of humor, Jen completely understood the ongoing pressures and needs of our everyday lives (I worked from home and we have toddler twins) and always took that into consideration. I cannot recommend Jen enough! read more

Jen was invaluable in the search for our first home. She was super responsive and knowledgeable about all things East Bay. She is also very patient and flexible, taking us through numerous walk throughs during this difficult COVID time. She clearly has a ton of experience as she quickly points out issues (and opportunities) which allowed us to honestly evaluate properties. We will certainly use Jen again if we ever decide to move out of Montclair and relocate elsewhere in the East Bay. read more

Jen was an amazing agent for my partner and I during our first time home search in 2020. She was recommended to us by a friend, and took care to understand our needs and aspirations for our house. She's incredibly knowledgable of the East Bay housing market, and as SF residents looking in the East Bay her guidance and feedback on neighborhoods, school districts, and regions was invaluable. The market was incredibly competitive while we were searching, and Jen constantly offered insightful and strategic advice on what competitive offers would look like. Jen was very supportive and patient as my partner and I took our time during our 6 month search to really get a feel for the house and neighborhood we really loved. And once we were ready to make our first offer, Jen was pivotal in getting that offer accepted! Jen helped us navigate a complex closing process, and we were able to move into a home we love right in time for the holidays. Highly recommend Jen to any buyers looking in East Bay - she's incredibly knowledgable of the market, very responsive, supportive, and all around wonderful person. read more

Jen was an invaluable partner to me and my wife during our just-completed first home search in the East Bay. During the search process, Jen's knowledge of local neighborhoods at the street-by-street level (especially in Berkeley) was second-to-none. She was a quick and patient study on the type of home we were looking for. She would instantly know whether a new home that came on the market was worth seeing based on our criteria. Once we were under contract, Jen calmly navigated us through very stormy waters, including unprecedented challenges in the lending and closing process relating to COVID-19. Jen took no shortcuts on important decisions and approached things with an open mind (despite always having a thoughtful recommendation). We appreciated Jen's sense of humor and optimism throughout, it made the whole process that much more fulfilling when we got across the finish line. I highly recommend Jen if you're considering buying in or around Berkeley in the East Bay. read more

Buying and selling in Berkeley is special, requiring local expertise from a trusted real estate partner. Jen helped us make the emotional decision to sell our home in Berkeley. Her expertise was most helpful with navigating the timing of the market and when there were unexpected issues with the property mid-escrow. We valued Jen's approach based on experience and data always with ready examples to help with the decision-making process. read more

Jen has helped me out immensely when I was a prospective first-time home buyer in the East Bay, and I highly recommend her for her professionalism, knowledgable guidance, and expertise when it comes to the home buying process! Jen is very knowledgable when it comes to the East Bay housing scene with good guidance and recommendations when it came to deciding on where to purchase. She knows a lot about the neighborhoods, school districts, food scenes, safety ratings, and much more espeically when in the Berkeley/Albany/El Cerrito areas. She gives very honest and insightful insights on every property that we looked through, even willing to walk me through available properties on weekday nights. Jen is also very easy to work with as she is extremely friendly and responsive with best interests for the buyer. For anyone looking for a real estate agent to guide them through the home buying process in the East Bay and eventually close on a property, I cannot recommend Jen Wolan enough! read more

Working with Jen was an amazing experience for us as first-time home buyers! Jen was an incredible wealth of information throughout the process, from which open houses would be worth it to attend, to putting together the most tailored offer for a particular home, to the particular considerations for each neighborhood. We bid on four homes over the course of 5 months, finally landing the 4th! And we are so, so happy with the result. The price was right and our house completely fits our needs. Jen helped us pivot when we needed to and carefully listened to our needs and wish lists. Through the ups and downs of this process, I felt incredibly supported by Jen's thoughtfulness and thoroughness. She cares very much about how her clients feel during the process and she checked in with me multiple times to make sure I felt confident in my choices. She is also really available and responsive - anytime I needed to get her opinion on something or ask her a question, she was always able to schedule a call with me right away. Jen is also very well connected and knows top-notch foundation experts, home inspectors, and contractors. All of her recommendations have been total professionals who have either helped us in the home inspection process or are helping us with some fixes we need to do on our current home. I wholeheartedly recommend Jen!!! read more

We can't say enough about Jen. We were new to California and didn't know where to start and Jen was so gracious. She showed us several different areas in the East Bay and was always willing to meet us on short notice. Since we didn't know exactly where we wanted to be she sat us down and discussed commute time, schools and home value/cost. It is because of this we were able to narrow our search and really focus in on a few areas. I was extremely nervous about the entire process and she helped put my mind at ease. I should also mention that we had to do all of our house hunting with our 2 young daughters (5 & 7) and Jen made them feel super important. She asked them questions about what they wanted or what they liked about the houses. The girls loved Jen and they were sad when the process was over. Our search was short and we found the house we wanted because of Jen's helpful guidance. Jen is a good listener, supportive, knowledge and extremely kind. We couldn't have done it without her. We are thrilled to be in our new home and we can't wait to make many happy memories there. We highly recommend Jen Wolan if you are looking for a kind, knowledge patient realtor. She was amazing! -Sawyer Family read more

Honestly, I don't know what we would have done if Jen hadn't been our realtor. Sure, I knew her personally, but I didn't know her extraordinary work ethic, ability to work in absolute chaos and ambiguity, and she's so organized and ready. We had over 100 groups and 16 offers on our cute little bungalow (that she 100% is the reason it was so cute!) and we couldn't be happier with the vendors and improvements made, as well as the final sale. If you need someone that is there for you, ready to get you the best deal, while also caring about your pocketbook in the process, Jen is absolutely the realtor for you! read more

Jen is a top real estate agent and as great as any buyer or seller could want. She is extremely knowledgeable about the real estate market, especially in regard to Berkeley, Oakland, and El Cerrito. Not to mention, Jen is extremely friendly, professional, and responsive. Whether you're a frist time home buyer, looking for a luxury home or an investment property, once you've worked with Jen, she will be the only agent you will want to work with again. read more

I do not live here, I live in St. Louis and had to sell my recently deceased father's house in the Hiller Highlands. I connected with Jen through a friend and interviewed her and also talked to another top Realtor in the area. Being a Realtor myself, I suggest that I have a good insight about the real estate biz and am happy to report that my initial inclination that she is a sharper and frankly better than most was correct. Forthright, self assured, and assertive are three characteristics that describes her. In short, she made the process and smooth as possible and in the end she did what you look for in a Realtor; I got more than I expected for the home and had a contract in under a week from listing. Pretty good for a home that my dad did not put a nickel in since he bought it in 1995. I highly recommend Jen. read more

I've worked with Jen Wolan two times. Both times, we've been very happy with the result of our housing ventures. The first time, I've reached out to Jen to buy a house. We were able to find our dream home in a few months and pretty much kept on our tight deadline. Jen is very easy to work with. She is detail oriented and does not sugar coat details and or expectations; which I believe is key when trying to search for a house. She is very calm and logical and is important as when buying or selling your home - it can be very emotional. The second time I worked with Jen is when I decided to sell my townhouse. With Jen's knowledge and expertise, I was able to sell my house quickly and with very little stress that comes with selling a house. We were able to target the right buyer and was able to close quickly and extremely happy with the outcome! Overall, my experience with Jen is extremely positive and she make sure the client knows what is happening with every step of the way of the process. We are very grateful for her professionalism, expertise and honesty throughout the whole buying and selling of our homes. See you on our next venture! (Just not to soon - still trying to settle in the house that we love so much!) read more

My wife and I worked with Jen to buy a house in Berkeley. She was super responsive and diligent, helping us figure out what homes were available within our price range, especially as we figured out our wants and needs by visiting many homes. She was super-knowledgeable about what prices homes would sell for and how to make a competitive offer without overpaying. We appreciated her keen eye for the Berkeley market of mostly older, quirky homes, and her frank thoughts on which homes were better or worse (certainly on technical matters like foundations, repairs, and so on). It's a rare real estate agent that is both open to what you want and will nudge you away from a potential mistake. We bought a lovely home with Jen's guidance (and beat the next best offer by $10k). We would highly recommend Jen! read more

Let me start by saying that Miles and I spent almost 3 years trying to buy a house - first in San Francisco, and then we gave up and almost tried to move to Seattle ... we were pretty sure it was never going to happen, but still, we refused to give up. A good friend of ours recommended Jen and her partner, Kathryn. Our first step was to sit down together in their office and discuss our needs. We realized then that with our budget, we would be focusing on Upper Dimond / Redwood Heights in Oakland, so Jen took the lead because she works (specializes) in that area. We made it very clear that we didn't want to be running around from open house to open house (when we were looking in SF we looked at 8-10 every weekend which was exhausting). We had to be focused with our search. At the time our baby was about 9 months. Our main needs were that we needed a 3 bedroom to house visiting family and we needed to be in a zone with a good school district and also a nice neighborhood to grow up in. Jen was an absolute joy to work with. We find most agents pretty annoying - but Jen was quite a nice person to spend time with and be around. She was also focused, brief, yet kind in her conversations with us ... she never talked to much, tried to sell to much - she very clearly had the intention to help us find a house that we would be happy in (rather then just sell a house). Because houses list for a lot lower then they sell for, and we were looking in a new area - we really needed Jen to guide us. I would text or call her with a listing and ask if it was within our budget - using her gained knowledge of the selling prices, Jen would advise us to look at it (if she thought it would sell within our budget) or skip it. 100% of the time she was correct. Within two months we had found and purchased a house we are now living in. I am sitting in the house with my baby playing, my Mom knitting, my husband cooking, and my dog running around. This was the dream we had and Jen made that dream come true. Not only do I highly recommend Jen Wolan - if I ever sell our amazing house, we will be working with her again. read more

Exceptional realtor. Deserves a 6th star. I'm a first-time homeowner and Jen came highly recommended via a friend of mine after I clumsily tried to get in the highly competitive and frustrating process of buying a house in the Bay Area on my own using Redfin. My advice for first-time home buyers -- this is your biggest purchase yet, it's really complex; an app paired with a team of amateur agents won't do. You need an expert who will dedicate time and attention to you. Jen took the time to guide and educate me throughout the process over months. She is highly experienced and leverages a deep knowledge base of home sales in the East Bay over years. She was patient and took me through all the steps necessary to bid on 3 houses, then through the closing process. She was very responsive throughout all steps of the process and supportive with my choices (I did give up for a few months). When we finally closed, she remained available and responsive after the closing when I was seeking advice on a number of topics. Jen took long calls late in the evening to walk me through disclosure documents and offer letters. By the time of the third bid, I was comfortable reviewing documents on my own given the great advice I had received (I would still confirm my conclusions with Jen). She's proactive and anticipated all possibilities along the way. Jen is also very well networked. Our third and winning bid was in a private sale in which a friend of hers was the listing agent. This opportunity would have never been available to us leveraging Redfin and Zillow and going to open houses. I highly recommend Jen if you're looking for a house in the East Bay. read more

Jen is an amazing agent. She is a good listener, honest and provide great advice. She is not putting any pressure on you. She knows perfectly well the Real Estate market. I enjoyed working with her. read more

I highly recommend Jen Wolan as a real estate agent for the East Bay. We came in with a limited budget in this highly competitive market and landed in our dream home in Berkeley all because of Jen. She is extremely knowledgeable about Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito, Richmond, Oakland and Emeryville and was able to talk through pros and cons on a block-by-block level with different homes. She aggressively advocated for us during what turned out to be a very complicated negotiation process. She was always available to talk through things and is knowledgeable about the costs involved with repairs. Since we've settled in to our new home, we've also benefited from her network of local contractors to do work on our home. Most importantly, we always felt that Jen tried to help us get the right home for us. She didn't want us to overspend and end up with a home we couldn't afford, but she also didn't want us to settle for less and end up unhappy with our purchase. She truly advocated for our interests and we couldn't recommend her more highly. read more

Both my wife and I really can't recommend Jen enough. As first time buyers, she helped us through every step of the way with a level of patience and understanding that we really hadn't expected. In this insane Bay Area real estate market it took seven offers and seven months, but we finally ended up with the perfect house for us - and she never wavered in her on-demand support and advice through the whole lengthy ordeal and her savviness is ultimately what got our offer accepted. She had a great way of balancing our expectations with reality without making us feel silly, stupid or unrealistic for having said expectations. And once we got into an what turned into an incredibly complicated escrow (because of the sellers situation), she really took charge of everything and worked pretty tirelessly to force everything to go smoothly, while coaching and educating us through everything that was going on. Extremely knowledgeable about the areas and communities as well - every connection and person she has recommended to us (broker, inspectors, etc) have been nothing less than stellar. In the end, we've been a little sad we don't have an excuse to call her everyday. read more

Jen was amazing. Not only was Jen extremely nice and knowledgable, but she also was super accommodating. I knew very little about this process and Jen walked me through everything. I had a lot of questions and we were on a very tight timeline but she was always available during my last minute panic attacks to put my mind at ease. She also made arrangements to accommodate my terrible schedule. Shed meet me early in the morning or on the weekends or in the afternoon...moving things around in her schedule to make it work for mine. I would definitely use Jen again, if I were ever looking for a new place to buy! read more

In addition to having a professional working relationship and working together for over 7 years Jen represented me in the purchase of my first property and over a year later helped me sell that same property. Jen is very familiar with the Berkeley, Albany and Oakland markets and during my home search she was patient, diligent, hard working and overall a pleasure to work with. Through our various conversations she was able to determine what was important to me and then from there use that to focus our search. What I really appreciated as a first time home buyer was how easy and straightforward she presented the various nuances of a purchase transaction and helped me better understand the entire process as a whole. Having a good working relationship with other agents in the area helped us in our offer and I think her ability to connect and relate to others made all the difference in getting me the property. The same was true when I decided to sell and she went above and beyond to hold the property open for multiple broker tours and weekend open houses, evaluate offers and ultimately help me make the right decision. Jen Wolan is an awesome agent and I strongly recommend her to any prospective buyers or sellers who are looking to buy or sell in the East Bay. Having a local agent is all important and Jen is one of the best! read more

Jen was recommended to me when I was buying a house for the first time, and I feel so lucky that our paths crossed.  Jen is just a great partner throughout the process. To cover the basics, she was  punctual to every showing and very responsive to texts, phone calls, emails and meeting deadlines. These are  super important in a market like the Bay Area where decisions are made quickly.  In addition to being reliable, Jen is a great sounding board. She's gave me as much time as I needed to ask questions on the process and the market, and shared her opinion on each of the homes we visited. I was grateful to have her discerning input as I navigated the market as a first-time home buyer.  And when push comes to shove, Jen goes above and beyond. She was *low key* my emotional crutch during the negotiation and throughout parts of escrow. She even put me in touch with a contractor and hardwood floor specialist to help with the remodel once we closed.  I highly recommend working with Jen. 10 out of 5 stars. read more

Jen is a consummate professional and a fantastic partner. She has bought and sold a house for us and on both sides of the transaction she provided great advice and counsel, real insights into the East Bay market, and an honest assessement of different properties. She is responsive, patient, thoughtful, and was great to work with. She also laid out the process and timetable (for sale) very clearly, and made the experience as seamless as possible. I have only good things to say. read more

Jen is an outstanding agent. She helped us work through a complicated agreement on the house of our dreams. She's whip-smart, always worked towards a solution, and made us feel no challenge was insurmountable. She held our hands throughout and made it happen. We wouldn't be where we are today without her. Can't recommend her enough. read more

If I could give Jen 10 stars I would. Where to begin---she held our hand through an estate sale that was very emotional. Jen was laser focused on getting house ready for staging. All of her advice was spot on. The open house saw 200 parties through and 12 offers. Her presentation, photography and list for superficial improvements drove the eventual sales price above anyone's imagination. Jen is a consummate professional who is extremely trustworthy. Wish I could have her on the east coast when we go to sell our home here! read more

Jen is simply amazing! She is very knowledgeable about the market, schools and has connections to all the important players in the closing process. She is patient, fun to work with and very responsive. Being a first a time home-buyer, it was critical that we had someone who could walk us through the process step by step. She helped us find our dream house in less than 3 months. In short, we would refer our closest friends and family to Jen for her services. read more

Jen is top notch. She helped me, as a first time home buyer, through the intimidating process of purchase from beginning to end. Jen's connections to other agents proved helpful various times. During a competitive offering situation, Jen gave me fantastic guidance and kept me calm when the pressure was on. I was out of town for offering, escrow and closing... literally could not have done this without her. I highly recommend!!! read more

Highly recommend Jen from District Homes. She is immediately responsive to client contact, from the initial inquiry all the way through to the final escrow process. She is both personable and professional, tells you what you need to hear rather than what you want to, and pays attention to all aspects of the sales process (including, most importantly, making herself available if, and when, issues arise.) If you want a pro-active advocate on your side when you are selling your home, one who knows the local market, as well as how to position and present your particular home, I encourage you to contact Jen. read more

Jen did an amazing job helping us to sell our house. She took into account the needs of our family and the selling process that would work best for us. She was incredibly helpful throughout the process and answered all of our questions. We were able to trust her expertise and experience to make the right choices for us. She gave us her advice when decisions needed to be made but also listened to our preferences. We were able to get the selling price we were looking for on our house and would highly recommend Jen to anyone. read more

We had a wonderful time working with Jen! She was very knowledgeable about the East Bay market, able to give us a quick rundown of any property we showed interest in and willing to do some research whenever she felt it would benefit us. She was patient with our questions, responding to our messages quickly and clearly, and helped us become more informed as first-time buyers. She explained thoroughly and clearly what we needed to pay extra attention to, and was always mindful of our scheduling needs. We felt like we could take the process at whatever pace was appropriate for us. When it came time to make offers, Jen was a strong negotiator and helped us represent ourselves in the best way possible. We felt like although she had a busy schedule herself, she always made time for us and was very responsive to any concerns that we had. When there was a mistake with the disclosures by the selling agent, she worked quickly and efficiently to fix the error. Jen made sure we were comfortable at every step of the process. Beyond her skills as a knowledgeable and clear communicator, she was always very kind and genuine with us, and her focus was always on making sure we were informed and never overwhelmed. It is very easy for us to wholeheartedly recommend Jen for every step of the process. read more

Jen is an amazing realtor! She guided me through the home buying process with care, ease and understanding. On a very tight budget in the Bay Area, I never thought I would find the house that I currently own. She has outstanding knowledge of the local market and has a very keen eye for her clients. Not only was she incredibly responsive and flexible during the buying process, she is just a wonderful person with whom to interact. She kept me moving along during the exhausting closing process---I don't think I could have done it without her. After closing, she was there for me countless times, answering questions and even offering referrals to handymen, etc. Overall, the biggest purchase of my life was a smooth and dare I say enjoyable process. I can't thank you enough, Jen! read more