It's unfortunate that this review is at a 1-star level, but it honestly reflects my experience…read more First, if I had to do this over again, I would NEVER sign a 6 month contract w/ any agency not just Berkshire, (but that's just my personal opinion) and with any contract make sure you understand all the add-on fees (administrative bs etc) that are tacked on prior to signing, because ultimately it comes out of your $$$. Negotiate these away if you can. The Despota Team consists of 3 individuals (Team Manager, husband & wife)--1 of which I had previously worked w/ who was very proactive 5 years ago when we purchased our home, and the sole reason I reached out to her when we were interested in selling our home. Upon signing our 6-month contract (mistake #1) & not negotiating the add-on fees (mistake #2), that is when everything stopped becoming effortless and quickly became a colossal headache. Team Depsota required micromanaging and cattle prodding (not something I expected from Berkshire) and in my opinion once the contract was signed (6 months) & the listing went live their work/effort ceased. See detail below: 1. There were numerous errors on the primary listing that required correction. 2. We had many phone calls/texts over whether the property was in a flood zone or no flood zone (which makes a difference in the state of Florida). 3. I had to request that on open house be held at the property and the time the agents selected was between 3pm-5pm on a Saturday afternoon which certainly was not ideal in my eyes. Once again, NO suggestion from the "Team" that this could be beneficial in promoting the sale of our home. 4. Photos on the listing required management and initially looked awful and the flow of the photos made zero sense until I called to have the unnecessary pictures of Walmart signs, strip malls etc removed. Maybe the "Team" should be reviewing how their listings look---just a thought. Overall, our experience was unsatisfactory. Our house sold because of all the hard work outside agencies did in repeatedly showing our home to potential buyers. The Despota team of Berkshire Hathaway I feel stands on its name only and just expects that its name alone will move properties. The "team" provided little to no effort and at times their effort was sloppy. If I could have issued the buyer's agent 70% of the commission I would have done so because it was earned. The Despota team certainly didn't earn their cut in my eyes. Potential sellers beware & just do your research before signing a contract. If I had to do it over again, I would find an agent that is "hungry" and wanting to put in the work. Jennifer Hardy

From the owner: Kathy Despota has helped buyers and sellers throughout Tri-County Area of Tampa Bay, and the…read moresurrounding areas accomplish their goals for more than 30 years. During her successful career, she has become proficient in the marketing and sales of residential properties, income producing properties and new construction of residential homes. When you require a professional real estate agent, turn to a broker that ranks in the top .5 percent of the top 1 percent out of 88,000 Berkshire Hathaway agents in the country. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Properties Group is a full service real estate company with 18 Berkshire Hathaway offices in the Tampa Bay area. Kathy Despota and her two buyer specialists; Peter Gerlich and Muriel Gerlich have all worked together as a team since 1997, making Kathy Despota one of the top agents in our area. Whether looking to buy or sell Kathy Despota the one to turn to for all your real estate needs. Trinity Florida

Philippa is AMAZING. As a first time homebuyer looking for a house during one of the craziest…read moretimes, Philippa was extremely helpful and more importantly brutally honest in the best way possible. She took the time to get to know me, what I was looking for and didn't waste time helping me find the place I can call home. She could tell within minutes of walking up to a property if it was worth a walk through or if we should move onto the next one. Philippa took the time to make sure I understood what to look for in a house as well as every part of the home buying process. When my initial offer didn't get accepted, she quickly negotiated details of my offer with the listing agent on a deal that worked out perfectly for everyone involved. If you want a realtor who knows what she's doing and can make anything in the home buying/selling process a breeze, Philippa is the best.

Selling my home after two years of living here in FL. I was disappointed with my experience…read more Communication was inconsistent (since she is located in VA) and I often had to follow up multiple times to get updates or answers to my questions. the overall process was more stressful than I expected. Based on my experience, I would not choose to work with this company again. Haven't had the best of luck working with realtors here. Glad I'm headed back home.

This is the third time I have worked with Tatum on either purchasing or selling a home and would…read moreabsolutely recommend her to anyone. She's thorough, knowledgeable and professional at all times. She always has my best interest when negotiating a purchase or sales price. Love her attitude and determination.

Tatum is one of the most hardworking agents you will ever encounter. She was super helpful on…read moredeciding what areas of Tampa were the best fit. She had experience down to the neighborhood that we were interested in. Don't hesitate to give her a call! Referred her to one of my best friends too and he had nothing but great things to say.

I am delighted to write a review for Diane Hawk-Jump as I believe she is the most competent real…read moreestate expert in the Tampa Bay area. I have extensive experience in the real estate market and have worked with numerous Realtors and scores of closings and transactions. Diane is extremely talented, effecient, dependable, trustworthy and always has the best interests of her clients as her highest priority. She is 5 all the way!!

Brenda and Jeff are the only Realtors I would ever trust with the sale and purchase of a home. 3…read moreyears ago, they helped me find the home of my dreams and Brenda was by my side the entire time. I was living in Colorado at the time and she fit me in her busy schedule every weekend to show me multiple houses (sometimes 5 in one day because I was only there for the weekend). She acted as a mother figure to me and my first purchase in letting me know her personal and professional opinion without being pushy on what she thought was the best purchase. She helped me close on my first home so efficiently that I knew I had to go with her if I ever decided to sell my home.. Fast forward to this year when I wanted to sell my home. I originally went with another agent because he was a family friend and let me tell you how much of a mistake that was.. I put my trust in someone I didn't know and they completely left my home unlocked and let any agent come in and out of my home without any respect to me as a homeowner. When I called them out on it.. they blamed me as the homeowner for being out of state and suggested that I needed to have a more secure program of monitoring which agents went in and out of the home. What? On top of that.. they said I should list my home at the amount it would appraise for... I knew this was the last straw and I had to call Brenda. When I called, she was very knowledgeable about the law and let me know how I could inquire into canceling my contract with the previous agent. When I canceled my contract to switch realtors, SHE WAS ON IT RIGHT AWAY. She and Jeff went over to my property and secured it right away with their lockbox and kept track of every realtor that was seeing the property. They also requested specific feedback so they knew exactly how to adjust the price given how the market was reacting. They took the bull by the horns and in a matter of 2 months, they were able to sell my home for more than I thought I could get. Throughout the process, this team put in WORK. They contacted the contractor that did my renovations to come back and fix things that should've been done originally, they took excellent photos, re-listed my house right away, and they CARED ABOUT THE DETAILS. They took an interest in the way that everything looked because they told me, "in order to get top dollar, we need this place looking like top dollar". These are people who work for their money. From getting the lawn manicured to the paint touch-ups fixed, as well as noticing any 4 point issues that were bound to come up on inspection... THESE TWO KNOW WHAT THEY'RE DOING. They are one of the best in the business and it's for a reason. Brenda is known for how tightly she writes contracts and Jeff is known for focusing on the details with repairs and getting things done ASAP. This team is the dream team and I'll never go with anyone else when buying or selling real estate in Florida. PERIOD.

Brenda will get you the best price on the house that you want. She is very friendly, and along with…read moreher husband Jeff, they will make sure you get the best deal for your money. We have bought two homes through them and have referred them to different family members who all enjoyed working with them. Just really great people who are not in it for themselves and want to make sure you are happy.