Jay M. 11/23/2011
11/23/2011
I want to offer this recommendation for Grace Bishop from the perspective of a home inspector who often works with Grace. Early in my career I purchased a franchise that marketed to real estate agents in a way that was suggestive that their home inspectors would be light on their comments by writing reports “In the right perspective”. Several legal fees later, I severed my association with that franchise and that experience galvanized the idea that I will only develop relationships with clients who will spend the time and money to receive a thorough inspection. I also was resolved to develop relationships with real estate agents who take the inspection seriously instead of just going through the motions to only cover themselves. I knew by reputation that Grace was the right kind of agent and that was confirmed quickly when I started working with her. Luckily I work in a geographic location where I believe there are more agents like Grace than any other part of the country. Recently I dealt with out of town agents who did not share Grace’s professionalism and respect for what I do. I kept thinking, “I wish these guys were like Grace.” Grace respects my time, prepares clients to respect my cancellation fee, and always supports my method. I believe that her respect for her team members in addition to her devotion to her clients is what sets her apart.
Jay M.
Berkley, CA
Leslie C. (11/9/2010)
11/9/2010
Grace Bishop was the best referral I have ever received! She performed and delivered above and beyond all my expectations.
I was a first time buyer with little knowledge of how the real estate industry truly worked and my time and flexibility to traverse through this unknown world was limited by my profession. Grace was focused, knowledgeable and able to point me in the direction of what I needed to do to educate myself as well as was accommodating, patient and kept her word as to what she could do for me.
Buying a house is a complex endeavor that triggers many emotions, engulfs a good portion of your life and can be overwhelming. Grace can break it down to digestible pieces. Her immense knowledge of the East Bay Real Estate Market, neighborhoods and referrals to quality professionals whose assistance you may need during the buying process or 5 years later are invaluable. Her experience helps you to become a stronger contender for your dream home as she can advise you in bidding, negotiations and be an objective person to help you navigate any situations that arise during the process. Further Grace takes the time to get to know you and what you want from a house as well as how much you want to spend. She values your time, won’t waste it and is constantly looking for that “house” for you. Her expertise offers you more than less experienced eyes could see of a house”s potential or pitfall.
Once you have Grace as a real estate agent, you have her as a friend and resource for life. Five years later and I still go to Grace first with questions, to seek referrals etc. for anything that has to do with my house. She always has the time, an answer or referral waiting for me. If for some reason she doesn’t hold the answer she knows someone who will. As I explore my next housing options, the one thing I know for sure is that I will choose Grace Bishop to be my agent.
Leslie C.
Oakland, CA
Leslie B (11/3/2010)
11/3/2010
As a professional trustee, I have used Grace to sell two different client’s homes in the East Bay. Having worked with several real estate agent’s, I immediately appreciated Grace’s organizational skills, and her ability to get the workmen in to get the house ready for sale. In both instances, the house sold for over the asking price-which was great in a “down” market.
I wouldn’t hesitate to reccomend or use Grace again.
Leslie B.
San Leandro, CA
K. K. 9/22/2011
9/22/2011
I’m a first time home buyer. My partner and I were looking for a home that would give our son priority for a good elementary school in the Oakland options process. Whenever we would talk to Grace about a house we were interested, she was very informed. She knew something about all the houses we were interested in and knew the neighborhoods were interested in in great detail.
One thing that really impressed me about Grace was that when we had settled on a house to make an offer she checked in with me to make sure that I was happy about the house even though it didn’t have some of the things that I had initially said that I wanted. This showed me that (1) she had actually listened to me when I was talking about what I wanted from a house and cared enough to remember what I said and (2) that she was more concerned about my being satisfied with my purchase than her earning a quick commission.
While both Grace’s integrity and detailed knowledge of what was actually on the market were impressive, where she really shone was once we made an offer. She explained the whole escrow process to me from beginning to end. She helped us figure out what sort of offer to make and helped us negotiate with very difficult sellers. She talked me down, whenever I worked myself up into a tizzy. We ended up getting the house for significantly less than it listed for, largely because of Grace.
K. K.
Oakland, CA
Jim Farber & Melissa Graviss (12/3/2010)
12/3/2010
After 8 years of looking for a house, we met Grace and found our house.
For whatever reasons, our bids with other agents got close but never were accepted. Grace got us our house on our very first bid together. If only we had found her sooner!
Grace understood our needs and our limitations right away and seemed to really get what we were looking for. She asked all the right questions and made us come up with some tough answers. Just one month after working together, we had our house and 30 days later, we moved in. Grace was our fearless leader throughout the home buying process. From negotiation tactics to mortgage and inspection help, we literally could not have done it without Grace and her very strong contact list. Through the process, Grace was our unflappable rock. She gets our highest recommendation.
We love our new home and truly have Grace to thank for it.
Jim Farber & Melissa Graviss
Oakland, CA
R.W. (12/1/2010)
12/1/2010
I would highly recommend Grace Bishop at Red Oak Realty on Solano Avenue. She was very patient with us in our search for a house and took the time to understand what we were looking for. She narrowed down the search and showed us only the houses that fit our search perimeters instead of everything on the market! In fact Grace’s great customer service continues to date even after the purchase of our home. She continues to be a great resource for anything house related. Grace is very warm and yet a true professional.
R.W.
El Cerrito, CA
Elsa M. (4/13/2010)
4/13/2010
Grace has a dedication to her client that is immeasurable. I never felt overwhelmed. She has an awareness of the local market and what it takes to sell a house in the area. Now that the is sold, I miss hanging out with her.
Elsa M.
El Cerrito, CA
Bill D. (1/7/2010)
1/7/2010
Grace Bishop is a real pro. A lot of money changes hands in Bay Area real estate and the profession attracts a certain amount of dabblers and lazy hopefuls. However, when it comes to the biggest purchase most of us ever make you want someone with the experience and resources to make sure your plans and dreams do not fall through. When my wife and I bought our house in Berkeley in 2004 it was a very frustrating experience! We took a long time getting our feet wet and worked with three agents (the first was inexperienced, the second was pushy and did not listen to our needs) and made a dozen unsuccessful offers before finally buying a home. We liked the agent that handled that transaction but she was from outside the area and when it came time to sell in 2009 we thought we could do better with someone very dialed-in to the local market. With some houses in Berkeley still going for top dollar while others sat on the market or sold for bargain basement prices we wanted a smart, successful agent who handled a lot of deals and knew how to get us a great offer. We interviewed several prominent Berkeley/Albany agents and were very impressed with Grace. She came to our first meeting very prepared, with a market analysis, neighborhood sales history and information about how her affiliation with the team at Red Oak Realty could help make a smooth transaction. Once we started the process Grace was always on the ball. You can tell she loves real estate and gets a real charge out of putting a deal together. She made great suggestions for ways to make our house look its best, held our hands through the scary parts and was always respectful and professional.
Once we sold our house and started looking for another we learned that Grace is a great listener too. She never pushed us to look at places that did not fit what/where we wanted and was always happy to show us a place. Grace is a working mom so her team is important. She went on maternity leave before we found a place we wanted to bid on so that transaction was handled by another fantastic Red Oak agent, Sue Arendt. Grace definitely loves to keep her hand in though and despite being on leave, made some calls and suggested some scenarios that ultimately helped a tricky deal go through.
In the end, we sold our house over asking with multiple offers amid the great real estate meltdown and then bought the kind of house we wanted in the exact neighborhood we wanted. I call that a 5 star experience.
Bill D.
Berkeley, CA
Leslie S. (1/2/2010)
1/2/2010
We worked with Grace Bishop at the Red Oak office in Berkeley. This was our first ever home purchase, and she could not have made it go any smoother. Grace was completely on the ball, and was an amazing hand-holder and calmer of nerves. In helping us with this enormous undertaking, she kept track of all the important details, and gave us invaluable advice on everything. We got a great price on a wonderful house that we love.
She was always easy to contact whenever I had questions, and if she didn’t have an immediate answer would get back to me as soon as she did have one.
We’ll definitely be working with her again.
Leslie S.
Berkeley CA
