Continued from Joe Ehling original review I don't know what black magic he used, but A HOUSE, right DOWN the block from where we were staying must have been posted online for ONLY A FEW MINUTES. Mike had his alerts ON! And saw the listing; He called the sellers' agent directly and made sure that WE were the first to SEE IT. ASAP. TODAY!! He had us ride in his car down the block(We had NO IDEA whatwas happening in those few moments(15 minutes at most) because he waited until we arrived at the front door and pulled over to them let us look at the fresh posted sign: FOR SALE). The look on our faces when we stopped just less than 200 yards away from our current place . We all jumped out and walked inside the home and I FELT SOMETHING at that moment. The agent even said hello to us by name. That was nice. I felt like we were EXPECTED. So as you've figured, the LOCATION WAS PERFECT, price PERFECT for what we wanted to pay, size was proportional to our current family size, BUT with the large lot size, perfect for expanding someday. So the REST was History. That was it. 50 year old maintained both inside/outside, front lawn, good size yard; of course a few DIY projects. We took all these mental notes back home so we could present an offer over listing price. Anticipation is not one of my strong suits. ‍ After what felt like forever, ONLY being 4 days later.....THEY ACCEPTED OUR OFFER! The home was OURS. UNBELIEVABLE! Mike kept us in the mix the entire way through. We got the keys to our forever home in less than 45 days! And on my actual BIRTHDAY! Wow! Amazing! I can now sit back on my brand new couches or eat in my brand new kitchen and enjoy company with family and friends anytime I'd like. I can bbq, sing karaoke, watch sports and SO MUCH MORE. ALL of THIS WOULD NOT have been possible without the help of Michael Rickstad. Mike's passion and pursuit for putting his clients NEEDS 1ST, is the reason why I am giving Michael Rickstad a 10/10. He showed himself to be very responsible, reliable, sensible, communicative, caring, and charismatic. Down-to-Earth, a good man. A complete pleasure to work with. I am SO GRATEFUL and APPRECIATIVE to you, Mike, for everything to make OUR family's dream of owning a home come true. You're more than welcome to come by and have a drink if you're ever in the neighborhood. Just give me a heads up text first. Forever Thankful. read more

Working with Michael Rickstad during one of the most stressful times of any future homeowners lives turned out to be an AMAZING and UNFORGETTABLE experience. I asked some friends who helped them find their home. Out of the few cards I received, Michael's business card was the best sharpest looking one and I liked it, So I kept it at the top of the stack. I was going online to do some general research on houses for sale And after a few hours of doing that, I gave up. I started looking up the agents using google and Mike's information, his history, and reviews were posted online. After taking some time to read through, it showed he knew the business. About two weeks later, I first remember sending Mike a text in the beginning telling him who I was and that I'm looking for a home. This was on a Monday or Tuesday morning. He replied that we should meet up. Summer 2019 was just the beginning, But nothing monumental or CRAZY was happening in the USA at this time, specifically in California, EXCEPT maybe- My Wife, of less than 1 year being married to, was walking around already 5 months pregnant. At some time when we were able to meet up during our lunch, I wanted to hear from Mike how he felt about where the housing market was AT in terms of whether it was the time to buy or NOT. We got a very good vibe from Mike about his involvement with buying/selling homes by how he spoke about houses and the market. He was definitely fluent in it. The lunch was great and meeting him that way was good. Moving forward, Mike gathered our information and was able to setup an online account in which we could have total access to view information about available properties in many communities we had interests in. I enjoyed being able to go online anytime of day and see what was on the market or in escrow, to help me identify certain factors like price and square footage, types of homes and amenities, likes/dislikes. Anytime I would favorite a place, add a star to it, Mike also received a notification about it so he would be able to follow up. Halloween 2019, my wife had just delivered our pride and joy; a wonderful baby boy named LC. We felt it was best to raise him where we lived at the time and planned to start looking again the following year. That's when COVID happened. March 2020, we decided as a family to move just a bit East of Escondido with my in-laws to help us raise our son, while we both managed to still work full time. This specific time in our country and world was very difficult to deal with; COVID-19. Instead of that, I'll fast forward to a time where our son was now 1 years old: Almost the end of 2020 and WE as a family decided it was time to start looking again. By January 2021 we were in full search mode and Mike always found 1-2 spots that were on our lists, but 'SOLD TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER' is the name of the game and so we felt PATIENCE was going to be our key to victory. A few weeks later, as warmer days filled the streets of Escondido, our new adjusted plan was to find homes within our current neighborhood. So Mike assured us that whatever places we found, he'd reach out first and get back in touch. It was a relief that my wife and I could focus on our family, work, and packing up to leave our current place while he did the leg work for us. And then on my One Saturday off work, we'd make a day of visiting as many homes as we could together. We setup viewings in 3 homes we were definitely interested in and by 9am that morning, we went back-to-back-to-back. Lunch break, had a team meeting and said throw an offer out and see what happens. Mike said "Don't worry guys, we're gonna find it! I know these didn't have EVERYTHING you're looking for, but I'm SURE the PERFECT one is out there waiting for YOU TWO to finally unlock IT'S doors. " Look out for Part 2 review read more

We closed escrow a few days ago. This is our first house. Rick went above and beyond what I expected from a realtor. There was no limits placed on phone calls or walking properties. Communication was excellent as I did not know what to expect in our first home purchase. I would recommend Rickstad realty to my closest family members. Thank you for your knowledge and guidance. We are extremely please with our home purchase. read more

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Responsive and Reliable! If anyone knows the San Diego market that would be Mike. I bought my first condo and couldn't have done it without his support and knowledge. When we found a listing that checked all the boxes, Mike immediately took action and was able to schedule the first showing for the place. The next day we put in an offer and days later I'm in escrow. The process was so smooth and effortless. 2 years later, I'm still extremely satisfied with my purchase. Thank you Mike for making buying a home smooth and seamless. read more

My family and I Recently sold our multi unit property In North Park. Michael Rickstad made the process so easy and stress free. He really went above and beyond to make sure the entire transaction was seamless getting us a lot more money then other real estate agents were promising to yield. Michael Rickstad also helped us with the purchase of our new real estate property and I have to say Michael will be the go to guy for all Real Estate future endeavors as my family and myself were very impressed with the entire experience. Thank you so very much Michael we appreciate you. read more

Michael helped me purchase my home in 2013 and still checks in to see how I'm doing. After taking me to see multiple houses he was able to find me the best house for the location and price I wanted. The best part of his service was that he was always accommodating to my schedule, very professional and never stopped helping me look at view houses till I knew I found the one. He is helping me find a new residence and helping me sell my current residence. Talk about a one stop shop! Thank you so much!!! read more

My husband and I recently bought a house in Murrieta and I'm so grateful to Rickstad Realty, they made this whole home buying process so easy without stress. Very professional and Kept us informed throughout the whole process. We are very happy in our new home. read more

Talk about a realtor that knows his trade, and you must be talking about Michael Rickstad! Michael went above and beyond any of my extremely critical expectations. Michael kept me in the loop every step of the process while I was selling my house. The HOA where my house was located was in litigation for some unforeseen unavoidable issues, and there were no houses sold in our community for over two years. Michael worked his magic and was able to get me above asking price and my house was the first house to sell in our community in two years (other than cash sales). He made my sale such a joy that I have referred him to all my friends and family and will be using his services in the near future again. Thank you Michael for being transparent. read more