I worked with Michael to both buy a new home and sell my previous home. I can't state enough how great of an experience it was working with Michael as both a buyer and a seller. For buying / looking for our new home, Michael was really great at figuring out what we wanted and guiding us towards the right properties. He did a great job at matching our pace (we had a period where our search halted); When we wanted to look at places or get advice about a property he was totally available to us.... but was never pushy or salesman-y when we wanted to take a break. He did a great job of helping us understand the pros and cons of the different places we were considering and helping us figure out how to navigate the bid/offers so that we were competitive. In the end, the timeline between once we got "serious" and when we found our new home was only a few months. He helped us find a place in the middle of COVID which had a whole additional set of challenges, yet we always felt safe and are so happy with the home we found in Rockridge. For selling our new home, Michael made this a very simple process. He did a great job advising us on how to prepare our home to maximize the interest and sale price while minimizing our expenses. We had already moved out, and so he was super hands-on in helping manage the people preparing our home for the sale and found us all the folks to do the various repair work and staging. In the end, we ended up having 8 offers and a sale price much higher than we were anticipating. Michael did such a great job making it as stress-free and simple of a process as possible. The whole time we worked with Michael, he made us feel like we were his only clients. I was so impressed with how available, patient, and helpful he was with us. He seems to really enjoy what he does and it shows in how fun he is to work with. I've sent several friends his way, and would definitely work with him again in the future if we were to ever move again. read more

I was doing research on a different realtor when I came across Michael's info, and decided to contact him instead of the original person I was referred to. Despite us being on the needy and particular side, Michael hung with us and was a great advisor and helped to align us on expectations within the current market. He was calm and rational at all times, and comes across as an all around good person- every time a listing agent asked us who we were working with and we said his name, ALL of them knew him and had a positive reaction. After honing in on what kind of house we were looking for, and striking out on a few offers, Michael caught wind of something coming on the market "soon", and this turned out to be the one that checked all the boxes for us. Worth the wait, and in November of 2019 Michael guided us through another offer, an exciting acceptance, and the closing of a house we couldn't be more excited to now call our Home. He continues to be a great partner, adding valuable insight to all things home related, and we couldn't recommend him more to others. read more

I'll just keep this simple. Michael was recommended by my best friend, for whom he bought/sold 4 homes in the past 20 years. He sounded too good to be true. The description was all true. The 5-star reviews you find here are not exaggerating. When he's acting as seller's agent for you, his advice is grounded in deep experience and prudent judgement. Listen to him. Our closing price was higher that anyone hoped. read more

Just wanted to drop a quick, but long overdue note for Michael, who checked every box for our family while selling our house in the Berkeley Hills. Michael is easy to work with -- fun to work with, really -- but never over promised anything. He made it clear what needed to be done to sell our house for the price we wanted. We trusted him and he went to work. Even during a time when the supply chain was causing myriad headaches, Michael was able to engineer several key remodels by leveraging his connections. It's a scary thing to invest additional money to make money but I can assure you every recommendation he made paid off. Our house sold way over the asking price -- typical for the Bay Area, but this was above our must-have price. The remodels happened quickly and looked great. The buyer's went so far as to point out a kitchen remodel as their favorite part of the house. Beyond all that, Michael was extremely easy to communicate with, but also respectful of the many things we were juggling in our own lives. And he did all this during the pandemic, when his professionalism was a source of comfort in a stressful time. Have worked with the Grubb Co. multiple times now and have always been happy, but even among that elite group of agents I think you'll find that Michael stands out. read more

My husband I recently worked with Michael to buy our dream home in the Crocker Highlands neighborhood in Oakland, and shortly afterward to sell our loft in Jack London Square. Both transactions went seamlessly (and much quicker than we could have hoped!) and he was totally wonderful throughout the entire process. He was so patient, incredibly responsive (and we were texting him pretty much constantly), kind, genuine, extremely knowledgeable and well-connected (which we learned is super important in this market). He's also just a ton of fun to hang out with, and we loved getting to know him and his lovely wife during the process. We feel so lucky that we were able to work with him, and truly feel we have him to thank for the amazing house we now get to call home! We would recommend him wholeheartedly to anyone looking for a trusted guide and champion through the home buying process in this crazy Bay Area market. read more

Michael sold us a wonderful home in Oakland hills (as seller's agent) and a few years later helped us re-sell the same home when it was time for a move. Overall, could not have been happier working with him. High integrity, great customer service, knowledgable, high integrity. We had a deeper experience with Michael when he was our selling agent, so I'll talk about that. It was an old house that required a lot of work to get it ready for market, and we were already living remotely. Michael made the process painless--taking on the legwork himself, coordinating contractors, arranging for staging, and ultimately getting us into a multiple offers situation. At every stage, his judgment was awesome and his customer service impeccable. He did a good job of setting our expectations through the process and getting through the whole thing in a way that required minimal time, energy, and drama of us. I couldn't recommend Michael highly enough. We may have paid him an above-market commission. He earned every penny. read more

We loved working with Michael to find a home in the east bay. As first time home buyers, we had no idea how hard it would be to find the right place, especially as we were moving from across the country. Michael was always very patient with us and took us to see tons of different homes (he would even drive us). He would point out details we wouldn't have noticed otherwise, from style to seismic details. At times, he helped us through times when my wife and I disagreed over which houses we liked better (we joked that he was a great marriage counselor!). Michael was never pushy on how much to bid -- he walked us through all the variables and then made it clear that our bid was our choice based on how much value we saw in the house. We lost our first offer (came in 2nd out of 10), but won offer #2. Finally, Michael walked us through everything from creating the offer to closing. After closing, he would even check in to make sure that we had no lingering problems (he recommended a handyman to us). I'd highly recommend Michael to anyone looking to buy a home in this crazy market! I can't imagine having done it without him. read more

It's hard to describe just how much of a real partner Michael was for us throughout the home buying process. It's obviously a stressful and complicated experience on the best of days, doubly so here in the Bay Area. Michael helped keep us sane and calm, he is the master at bringing a thoughtful and rational perspective to a complex and emotionally charged decision. He's extremely knowledgeable about local market and different home types generally, he guided us through evaluating a number of tricky properties, and on several occasions helped us walk away from options that would have easily distracted us. Michael is a true professional with an easy, candid, low pressure communication approach. Having finally found our ideal home in Glenview, we can't imagine what this process would have been like without Michael by our side. He's a true gentleman, I'd recommend him to anyone trying to navigate the market and marital challenges of choosing and buying a home in this market - your marriage will be better for it! A huge thank you to Michael for all his support! read more

We met Michael at an open house in Oakland when we first began considering buying a home. We were immediately struck by his sense of humor and friendly yet authentic demeanor. Right after we met him, he invited us to sit down and discuss the home-buying process and share his expertise with us. As first-time home buyers, he left an impression on us immediately and was so helpful even in that initial meeting to help us move forward. Fast forward a year or two later, we reached out to Michael out of the blue after finding a potential home that we wanted to put an offer on. After several months of searching and striking out with offers, Michael always gave us straight forward and strategic advice that was much welcomed to us, as we were very green. He was always patient and even fun to work with along the way on what could have been a frustrating journey! In the end, he steered us in the right direction with his advice and we're now enjoying our first home. A true class act, he even brought us our first at-home meal after we moved. We would definitely work with Michael again in a heartbeat and recommend him to anyone looking in the East Bay! read more

I don't know where to start. My wife met Michael at an open house in Berkeley, and instantly jived with Michael. She came home and told me she found our realtor. From day 1 of meeting Michael, we received multiple emails about open houses and reports for the areas that we were interested in. First off, dude is fashionable and has so much charm. If he doesn't make you smile, then you're just cold hearted. Secondly, he's very genuine and he listens to your needs as a buyer and seller. I know this because he was our realtor on both ends. Here are some bullet points: //Aggressive when you need it Michael will get you the ins-outs when you need it. As a buyer, this is important because you're anxious and want to get the low-down with the other realtors and buyers in specific areas and especially here in the bay area where it is super competitive. As a a seller, you want to make sure all you're outlets are covered. Marketing and word of mouth with other realtors. Very important. Michael has a great network. //Responsive and fast When you need a disclosure packet or someone to make some noise or get the digs on comps or neighborhood information, Michael will have them lightning fast for you. No BS. //Friendly, patient and with a wide network Like I said, Michael is a charming guy. It goes a long way. Need a contractor for some remodels? check. Need a discount on some appliances? check. Need a Mcintosh hi-fi stereo? check :) Need a friend? double-check. Michael and his wife, Carol are great people. Michael was patient with us through our emotional rollercoster. Calm. Collected. Fun. Honest. Michael, if your're reading this, thank you. Everyone, Michael is your dood if you're looking in the competitive east bay area. read more

Loved working with Michael to buy a home in 2015. He helped us tour homes throughout East Bay and was patient, friendly, and helpful while we shopped. We put in a couple of offers with him and one with a realtor at a different agency; Michael was far superior. I'm a little skeptical of realtors in general (they can make a lot of $ for seeming to not provide that much value), but Michael's insight and advice was invaluable and I'm convinced he was the decisive factor to help win us our current home in Berkeley. After escrow closed, Michael helped us decide what home issues exposed in the disclosures were items we should fix immediately vs later. And he even provided recommendations for appliances. Big thumbs up. read more

Michael recently helped us find a home in Berkeley and I could not recommend him more! As first-time homebuyers that had recently moved to CA, Michael was the perfect advisor to help us understand the general process as well as the particularities of the East Bay market. Michael's personal history with the market lends a unique expertise that you may not necessarily find with all realtors. Because Michael has been in the industry for so long, his recommendations for who to work with once we decided to make an offer helped us gather the team that we needed to get all the necessary paperwork in order during escrow. Michael also seems to know a person or a company for anything you might need related to establishing a new home and making changes, which helped us through the transition. Buying a home is such a major and personal decision, and we were so glad to have worked with someone who was so knowledgeable, personable and generous with their time. read more

Michael Friedman: how did we get so lucky to have him as our real estate agent? Patient, knowledgable, kind, and even fun to hang out with as we spent many hours together going from house to house. And above all, so, so professional. Just a top-notch pro. I cannot recommend him highly enough. read more

Michael was a great resource for our July 2015 home purchase in South Berkeley. He knows everyone who works in this space in the East Bay and has great tips about every neighborhood. He is also a pleasure to be around and to work with. We have referred several friends to him since we purchased our home. If you're looking for a pro agent in the East Bay, you can't go wrong with Michael. read more

Michael helped us find our dream home in the Oakland Hills, expertly navigating us through a very heated market at an especially busy time of the year. It was an absolute pleasure to work with Michael. I couldn't recommend him more highly. (In fact, my parents recently moved out here from NY, and if/when they're ready to buy I will absolutely steer them to Michael). Michael is incredibly knowledgeable about the East Bay market. He also is very well known in the area, and very well liked and respected. This is a huge asset. While touring homes, whenever we mentioned that Michael represented us, the agent would tell us how lucky we were to have him leading our search. His reputation proved to be tremendously helpful given the competitiveness of the market, where most homes have multiple if not double-digit offers. Michael is also smart, patient, thorough, and responsive. And he has great judgment and offers great advice. He walked us through each step of the process -- this was our first home purchase -- and he answered all of our many (many) questions and emails. He was in our corner every step of the way and was deeply committed to helping us find the right home at the right price. He also has a lot of knowledge about construction. Through this process, we found three different homes we seriously considered making offers on. For each home, Michael addressed any questions we had about the inspection report and offered his advice on any issues of concern. This was invaluable to us as buyers. We're truly grateful for his help, and would give an extra star if we could! read more

We were first time homebuyers who worked with Michael to buy in the highly competitive market of North Berkeley. Michael is the best agent we could have asked for. He was incredibly patient with us, extremely responsive, very knowledgable, and calm under pressure. He was very honest, while still aggressive helping us to compete in this market. He was outstanding during the closing process, helping to get our offer over the finish line. We truly can't recommend Michael highly enough. read more

What a pleasure to work with Michael Friedman! Prior to working with him, I had met him at an open house & found his approach very appealing (knowledgable without being aggressive), so I tucked away his business card for future. When that future arrived, four years later, I reached out to him to help me buy a home in Oakland, and my instincts paid off. He was an invaluable agent to have on my side, with a great deal of experience & knowledge of Oakland/Berkeley real estate. He helped me write multiple offers and offered sage advice when I needed it. I ended up with a beautiful home in Oakland, an easy closing process, and a friend for life in Michael. You would be well served to work with Michael even if you don't know what you are looking for! read more

It's a challenge to describe how incredible our experience with Michael Friedman was. We were not the easiest of clients, had a very complicated situation, a terrible loan company and myriad other issues that made us very high maintenance. That all being said, we were first time home buyers and stumbled upon Michael at one of his open houses last Summer. We immediately knew that he was the guy for us and we couldn't have been more right. He supported us through all the ins and outs of pre-approval, kept us updated on all the current market trends and always gave us sound, realistic and unbiased advice as we were looking. When it came time to actually bidding, Michael made magic happen. Literally. Somehow we were able to come in under our anticipated offer price and win the house!! It was all thanks to Michael's attention to detail and diligence. Then we went through what turned out to be a horrific escrow that almost cost us the house due to mistakes made by our loan company, but Michael somehow smoothed everything over and made sure that we didn't lose the house. I don't even know what he had to do but he did it and we closed last week. Michael is not only a broker of the highest quality and integrity but he is just a phenomenal human and a warm, loving individual who truly cares for his clients. Now, we are about to move into our perfect home and it is all because of this gem of realtor. We cannot recommend him highly enough. read more

Michael took great care of us both as buyers and as sellers in Berkeley. He's trustworthy, knows his business and was a really good guide and partner throughout the process. He figured us out quickly and worked with us in a way that inspired confidence that we'd end up with the right results. He was always calm, very prepared and just a good guy to be around - critical qualities for what can otherwise be a nerve-wracking process. read more

We had a terrific experience with Michael. He took us around Berkeley to introduce us to the area, and showed us a number of houses in Berkeley and Oakland. He was knowledgeable and patient -- for example by recommending we go back to the house when it wasn't an open house and get a feel for what it would feel like to live there. Ultimately we closed on a home in North Berkeley (our third offer) and could not be happier. We definitely recommend Michael for home purchases in the east bay. He also helped us through the purchase process and after with finding appliances, etc. read more

I've worked with Michael twice now, once to buy a home and once to sell. Both experiences were FANTASTIC. I cannot say enough good things. In the first instance, my new husband and I had been looking at houses casually. We were leaving for long-planned vacation when friends sent us a listing. We decided just to have a quick look, though knew we weren't serious yet. Well, we fell in love with the house. Making the offer had to happen the next day, and the rest of the purchase process had to be done via Skype from Europe. Michael strapped in and got us through it, from advising us on what offer to make to actually get the house (always tricky in the Bay Area), to every detail of the purchase despite the logistical challenges. Thanks to Michael, we're now living in a house we absolutely adore. The sale of my previous house was the opposite process, a total renovation over the span of almost a year, with permitting delays and the whole thing. Michael was a dream to work with here as well. I was selling my rambling fixer-upper in an emerging neighborhood in Berkeley, now that I'd remarried and move into the new place. Michael oversaw the whole process. He recommended and helped me select contractors, talked through and advised on things like adding a bathroom and reconfiguring the kitchen. He had the insight to bring on a stager early, and she gave brilliant, creative advice on interior paint colors. He has beautiful taste himself, and recommended cabinets, appliances, light fixtures -- even handle pulls!. Through all of it, he thought about who our target audience was -- who would be buying in that neighborhood, what they'd be looking for and find interesting, how to make my house stand out for them. He also helped manage reno costs, yet investing in things that would really make a difference to buyers. The result was a gorgeous renovation that sold for several hundred thousand more than the asking price, to a nice family that has a real appreciation for a neighborhood I had loved. What I came to appreciate most about Michael over the many, many months of working with him, is the vibe and the attitude he brings to it all. Both buying and selling a house can be stressful, and renovating a house can make you tear your hair out. Michael is incredibly smart and on top of every aspect of the work, yet manages to bring an easy-going, 'life is good' vibe that makes everything go more smoothly. Michael made both buying and selling a pleasure. read more

Michael managed the sale of my house and was absolutely fantastic to work with. There was lots to do prior to the sale and Michael was able to work through all of the issues big and small. Michael has an extensive network of trustworthy contractors, information sources, and businesses in the area and he used that team of contacts to ready the house for its new owner. The state of the house and the final sale price came in above my expectations. Sure its a hot market for sellers right now but in any kind of market Michael knows what to do and gets it done. I trusted Michael fully and he came through and was so very helpful during the process. read more

My wife and I just bought a house with Michael and would wholeheartedly recommend him. He was incredibly responsive, had great advice, and had a great attitude and sense of humor. He really helped us navigate a difficult market and keep our spirits up. read more

Michael helped us buy our dream house in the Berkeley hills just last month. We LOVE our new home and he was incredibly thoughtful all the way through the process. He helped us look for flaws in the house so that we would know what we were getting into. He bought us a warranty on all the appliances so that we wouldn't have any surprises for the first year. He wanted us to think critically about the house, not only say great things about it because we fell in love instantly. He worked hard to make sure our offer came in at the right bid and with the right letter. Then, he advocated for us. The Berkeley market is so competitive so there's so much to get right in the process. And, it worked. Michael (and his wife) helped us celebrate with baked cookies, homemade dinner on the night we moved in, and champagne. The perfect personal touch. Michael is thorough, knows his stuff, and is a very straight shooter. It felt like we were working with a friend who wanted us to make a calculated and good decision. Would love to work with him again...one day (in a long time from now!). read more

Michael was the seller's agent when we bought our home in the Oakland foothills area. We were so impressed with his attention to detail, his responsiveness and knowledge of the house, that when it came time for us to sell the same house, we used him as our own seller's agent! Because Michael has access to the Grubb Company's resources chief amongst which is a network of experienced colleagues and contractors, we were able to stage and show our home to it's potential and get an offer that we were very happy with. We would recommend Michael to any seller or buyer without reservation. read more

We worked with Michael to buy a house in Oakland in 2014. It was a fantastic experience. He helped us find the right neighborhood, debriefed with us after open houses, and worked with us on putting together a number of offers. His strong relationships with other agents and his insightful advice on bidding strategy were so helpful to us throughout that process and critical in making sure we ended up in a house that we love. After we moved in, he had great suggestions for updating our kitchen and helped us connect with people to put the plan into action at a reasonable price. We've recommended Michael to several friends for their purchases and will continue recommending him to anyone who is in looking to buy or sell in the East Bay. read more