This is long but our home sale was not an easy one! But let me lead with this, we closed with the…read morehighest price in our area for comparable homes over the last 6 months during a very uncertain economy, political craziness, a buyer's market and competition with low-priced homes. No biggie. My housemate and I were looking to sell our condo in Hayward and stopped by a nearby open house and that's where we met Ben. This was our first home, and we put a lot of love into it to upgrade and customize it to be the best living and workspace for us. Even though we weren't potential buyers of that home, he freely gave us his time and knowledge. Ben is very down-to-earth and gave us sound advice. Our condo's HOA had been in litigation with the builder Taylor Morrison, which was due to be closed soon so he gave us his contact and advised us to call him back when we were ready to sell. We checked out Paras Team online and everything looked professional, clean and spoke of experience and an awareness of the times. When time came to sell we connected with Ben and he quickly set up time to meet at our home with Renee to do a walkthrough. Funny thing is, Ben represented the sellers who we bought from! From repairs, staging, and moving up the timeline with vendors to prepare our home to show, the Paras Team was on it. Very quickly we had lots of interest in our home and a potential buyer. The buyer's agent was their mother for whom being a realtor was not a full-time job. She required a lot of assistance and Ben was more than gracious to offer his help. Unfortunately, we ran into some huge obstacles due to our HOA having been in litigation. Although it was formally closed, our home was still showing up on the no lend list with Fannie Mae. The first lender needed very specific information regarding the litigation, and our HOA was not willing/able to respond. After several attempts and no response, the buyers trusted Ben to switch to another lender. We were nervous as we saw homes popping up listed a lot lower than ours. However, Ben calmed our nerves and was extremely patient with all our texts and questions. He led us all through another minor hiccup with the HOA (yay for HOAs) and we eventually closed! We want to give Ben the biggest shoutout for his genuine presence through it all. I know it's probably expected, but even after your typical business hours, Ben worked to help us and answer our questions. So, we also wanted to give a big thank you to Renee and his family. We would happily work with Paras team again and would recommend them our friends without hesitation. Thank you Ben, Renee, Trang, Essy and whoever else we may have missed!

We had the absolute pleasure of working with Ben Paras of the Paras Team as first-time home buyers,…read moreand we truly could not have asked for a better experience. From the very beginning, Ben was incredibly easy to connect with and made us feel completely at ease. His depth of knowledge and expertise was evident right away, but what really stood out was how approachable and patient he was throughout the entire process. As newcomers to the home-buying world, we had countless questions--but Ben never once made us feel ignorant or overwhelmed. He took the time to walk us through everything, answering every single question with care and clarity. Not once did we feel pushed or pressured in any direction; Ben truly listened and allowed us to find our way, all while offering guidance when we needed it most. The search took time in a competitive market, but Ben never wavered in his support or commitment. He stuck with us for months as we worked to narrow down exactly what we were looking for, and thanks to his persistence and guidance, we finally found the perfect home. Beyond just being a great Realtor, Ben and his team are incredibly well connected. His network of professionals--from fellow realtors to his wife's interior design business and renovation partners--gives any client a major advantage. Whether you're looking for your first home or your forever home, Ben sets you up for success on every front. We're so grateful to have worked with Ben and couldn't recommend him and the Paras Team more highly!

Cheryl is an honest, thorough, and dependable agent. She helped us through all of the processes and…read morereally made sure we understood how everything worked. She did an amazing job knowing when to schedule inspections and was always able to pull these off with very little notice. These often were 100% essential in finding extremely important deal breakers - like a house that looked like it had a good foundation, but in reality was about to fall off the cliff! She has been invaluable as a guide and sounding board for house projects and contractor recommendations. Another aspect that I appreciated about Cheryl is that I never felt like we were pressured into placing any offer that we were not comfortable with. She did a wonderful job educating us whenever we had questions and when we wrote an offer it always felt right. I am also very appreciative with Cheryl's patience with us. We weren't in a rush and we have strange tastes. Cheryl continued to work with us and allowed us to wait for the perfect home.

I am SO happy to give this unsolicited review for Cheryl. Cheryl helped a close family member close…read moreescrow in the city. That is no small feat considering the seller's market and inflation skyrocketing. Upon meeting her, it was like love at first sight...like agent-to-home-buyer kinda love! All the stars were in alignment. She pitched her business and most importantly she *ASKED* for the business and didn't assume you were going to go with her. She's a solid, knowledgeable agent. Certifications galore and has high integrity. I personally was there when my family member vetted properties. Trust me, I was extremely honest and brutal while vetting each property and she showed everything we asked for and was so kind throughout everything. She was always on time and quick. My family member had been working with an agent that was not diligent because that agent wanted to close escrow on luxury condos. Well, let me say that HE missed out on this sale. My family member got Cheryl and literally not even in a blink of eye, he closed escrow within *months* as a first time home buyer. THAT is simply IMPRESSIVE and speaks volumes. I am honored to know Cheryl. She not only helps with closing the sale, she is CONNECTED with local businesses, honest workers if you need help repairing your home. HIGHLY RECOMMEND this agent for ALL areas of the the San Francisco Bay Area. She is top notch. She is diligent, friendly and does everything with a smile. She is there and takes you through. Cheryl: you deserve this review and I am so happy that my family member found YOU. You are a rare gem and if I ever find myself in the position of purchasing a home in the city, I know you have my back.

Amanda has been a solid partner in homebuying. She saved me from the general incompetence in the…read morecurrent SF Real Estate market. She will always outshine you in effort and dedication...and with Amanda...you're engaged. Previously, I had a realtor via a coworker, who started out engaging, but went silent. He also provided me with a mortgage broker who was the equivalent of a used car salesman. I knew this wouldn't work...so I reached out to my friend group for a reccomendation...and Amanda called me on a Friday night. We talked over what I was looking for, I told her about my finances, money, pre-approvals, etc. and she got the picture. On Monday I had the MLS listings in my gmail inbox to look over. And she called me and told me the real background about the HOAs, financing, etc. Ask your realtor: "What is the effect of SB326? Can I get financing?" Well Amanda told me before I knew what "SB326" was. She also helped me find a first time homebuyer loan with downpayment assistance. That Friday we submitted an offer on a condo in SF, and by Saturday morning they had accepted our counter offer. And Amanda was with me for inspections and demanding some corrections to the property. Amanda listens to you first, and then gives her opinion second. But she will be communicating with you early morning and late night, because she is fighting for you. She is a partner on this and wants you to get what is fair. She helped me buy my first home and I am forever indebted.

We are beyond grateful that we got in contact with Amanda. She helped us secure our first,…read moresingle-family home, and she made the entire process incredibly seamless, organized, and comfortable the whole way through. She knows the process and the different Bay Area markets inside and out, and she has a contact for anything and everything we needed help with before and after closing. Who you choose as your agent makes a world of difference in the quality of the process and the outcome. We would highly recommend her to anyone and hope to work with her again!

Joanna was the most AMAZING realtor to help us find our first home 5 yrs ago. She listened to…read moreexactly what we wanted and sent us properties to review almost daily. She even sent out a mailing to home owners to inquire about interest to sell in properties we were interested in! When it came time to make the offer on what ultimately became our home, she went above and beyond and included a token for the seller that she knew would make the offer even more personal. We're almost sure her thoughtfulness is the reason we were successful during the bidding process. We couldn't have asked for a better realtor or person to go through the very stressful process of buying. We were looking for close to a year before we met Joanna, and she helped us find a place that we loved in a matter of months. Thank you, Jo! 5 years later and we're now working together again to sell our home. We're still confident that you're the best in the biz!

Joanna has been amazing throughout my first home buying process. Even after being discouraged by…read morethe bay area/peninsula housing market, Joanna did not give up on me! I remember talking to Joanna about exactly what I wanted long before my purchase and she pretty much found me my dream home! She's really an expert in the area and knows how to navigate her industry. She kept me in the loop and was quick to respond to the many questions I had along the way and connected me with the right individuals throughout the whole process. I truly think that if it wasn't for her dedication, I wouldn't have had the chance to buy my dream home in the bay area at a great price. Thank you so much, Joanna!

As first time home buyers in the bay area, my wife and I were extremely grateful to Alex and his…read moreteam for working with us to thoroughly explore all our options in financing our home. Alex is extremely professional, accessible and was a fantastic resource for us during the entire process. Being in such a competitive market, Alex and his team at Broken One Mortgage ensured the experience of financing our home to be the smoothest part of our home purchase. Couldn't recommend Alex enough.

We've used Dana Johnston for refinancing 4 or five times. He makes the process totally painless…read more We just completed our last refi in under 3 weeks from start to finish. He is well organized and professional, he keeps our prior information and got us a great rate. I used to dread refinancing. Now, it's easy.

And for my 1600th review…read more.. We absolutely loved working with Ben in signing our new rental! After looking for several weeks in the San Mateo area, and finding the rental market not only fantastic, but underappreciated we ended up finding a space that met all of our criteria, but was slightly over our budget. However since the honey was game to take a look at everything (if not just for the adventure) we took a look - and fell in love. While I really wanted the space we ended up just asking Ben to let us know if anything changed, price, pet, or timing wise. Which he did. Which is why we live in San Mateo now! :D Ben has been incredibly responsive and helpful in getting us settled and we have absolutely loved working with him. I couldn't recommend his team enough, especially because we are truly in love with our home!

Miriam and Ben are simply THE BEST. They were our agents buying our house in Nov 2018 and have…read moreactually helped several of our family buy, sell and rent on the peninsula. Both Miriam and Ben know all about each cities - their history, how they're developing, and the trends and characteristics of each neighborhood. They were very accurate on predicting pricing even in advance of properties going on the market. As our agents they were great sourcer and explorers - visiting places for us - taking videos and pictures and assessing whether we should spend time to visit them. Most importantly Miriam and Ben we're patient, got to know what we were looking for and were NOT pushy. During closing they helped us zero in on the right price and helped us close our dream home. They were such a joy to work with, we highly recommend them! .

I worked with Ivonne Gutierrez with Alain Pinel for a short period. Things started off okay. Her…read moreand I met to discuss what I was looking for in a home. After I left her office I was optimistic. We then scheduled an appointment to look at a property that she wanted me to see in Morgan Hill. Somehow, she mixed-up the date and at the time we were suppose to meet I contacted her and she informed me that she wasn't going to be able to make it. Nobody's perfect and we all make mistakes and so, I forgave her but, I made a simple request - let's set-up a ground rule that if either of us is going to cancel an appointment, let's give each other 24hr notice (emergencies as an exception). She apologized and agreed. However, after, she completely stopped working for me. No phone calls or email to notify me. She dropped me as a client without notifying me. Unfortunately for me, I didn't find out until I contacted her to make an offer on a property, to which she never responded. I finally called her and made it official.

If you are a first time home buyer with a tight budget, looking to stay in the San Jose area, CALL…read moreIVONNE. She's local, lives in San Jose, knows the market/neighborhoods, has great relationships with seemingly everyone in the home buying process (other agents, home inspectors, loan officers, notaries, title companies), KEEPS IT REAL and advocates for you during the negotiations process. What my husband and I appreciated is Ivonne really listened to our immediate needs (tired of renting) and our plans for the future (maybe start a family). We contacted Ivonne, July 2014, thinking we won't be able to get into a home for a while because of our budget. ONE MONTH LATER, we had the keys to our tiny townhouse in the Cambrian area, largely because she showed us what's possible and her unmatched follow THROUGH skills. Based on our pre-approval (which she also walked us through/connected us with a great loan officer/made sure we kept up on the paperwork), Ivonne showed us a variety of options within our budget in Cambrian, South San Jose, Blossom Valley, West San Jose and borderline East San Jose. Once we found a place, she helped us put in an offer and we just watched Ivonne work her magic. She negotiated with the seller's agent, kept us in the loop via phone, email and text, helped set up our inspections and addressed our first time home-buying jitters. WHAT SETS HER APART - she will remind you to stay true to what you want out of a home. When I was seriously considering a large townhome, in a gated community, in a much less desirable neighborhood she mentioned, "You don't look happy. Let's keep looking." When I fell in love with a one bedroom off Moorpark, and considered converting the walk-in closet to a nursery she responded, "I know you want to have a baby in the future and this place is your decision, but as a Mom myself I can tell you that you will not want to carry all the baby stuff up and down those stairs, just to get to your front door." I trust Ivonne because she wasn't afraid to be 100% honest with me and highly recommend her if you're ready to own.

Kimberly help me to find new office for construction company…read more She find me the best location in Campbell close to the highway. She help me to close the deal that was hard to close ! Very professional great attitude and great customer service!!!!

We're first time home buyers and were looking for our "perfect home" within our price range. We…read morespoke to a few other realtors but they were pushy and not really interested in doing the work with us but rather would just send us automatic emails every so often. Kim was not like that. She listened to our needs and wants from the start. She was attentive and had great communication skills. She also wasn't pushy, which is so appreciated when the whole process can be intimidating from the get go! She did her research, walked us through the process from start to finish and made sure we understood everything that was going on. She was super easy to get a hold of, bent over backwards for us and took care of all the inspection scheduling and walk through appointments so everything was super easy for us and as hassle free as buying a home can get. If you're looking for a realtor that will be on your side and make home buying less intimidating, I would highly recommend Kim!