Real Estate Transaction Resources
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Nate Scharton
Old Republic Title Company Branch Manager / Senior Escrow Officer 4045 24th Street, Ste A San Francisco, California 94114 Phone (415) 282-0830 Fax (415) 282-0859 natescharton@ortc.com "I've used Nate on several escrows over the past years. He's wonderful... professional, responsive, and knows a great deal about escrow transactions. My clients were all very happy with his services." Steve Salviejo Stewart Title of California Branch Operations Manager North Bay Division-SF Pacific Heights Branch 1388 Sutter Street, Suite 1220 San Francisco, CA 94109 Phone (415) 441-8492 ext.9088 Direct (415) 762-9088 E-Fax (415) 520-9462 ssalviejo@stewart.com "Steve is very knowledgeable and responsive to clients. He returns calls and emails promptly and will go the extra mile during the escrow process. He's also a very nice guy and makes clients feel at ease." |
Stephen Hill Building Inspections
General Property Inspections P.O. Box 415 Brisbane, CA 94005 Phone (415) 595-6837 homeinspectors-ca.com "Stephen has done many home inspections for me over the years. He is extremely knowledgeable of all aspects of building construction and building codes. Honest, diligent, thorough, and professional. If there is a problem with a property he will almost certainly find it. The only caveat is he is really friendly and quite the talker. He is my go-to person for property inspections." General Contractor's Inspection Service General Property Inspections 1630A Taraval St San Francisco, CA 94116 (415) 822-9090 gcisnow.com "They have one of the most detailed, professional reports in the industry. I've used Burk Karr in the past. He was professional and knowledgeable. He came out for a second time when the roof of a property needed further inspection at no charge (it was raining and he went up without hesitation)." |
Lingruen Associates
Wood Destroying Pest Inpsections 1555 Yosemite Ave Suite 54 San Francisco, CA 94124 Phone (415) 822-2324 lingruen.com "They are my first choice for pest inspections. Diligent, thorough, honest, and professional. I've used them almost exclusively over the last 8 years and they are one of the best. They are well-known in the San Francisco real estate industry." Clive Jones
Energy and Water Compliance Inspection RE Inspection Services (707) 477-8954 reinspec@gmail.com "Clive is reliable, professional, and reasonably priced. He is my first choice for energy and water conservation inspections. He always manages to fit last minute requests into his schedule." |
Homeowner Resources
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ABC Roofing
1610 Armstrong Ave San Francisco, CA 94124 (415) 931-4480 "They have worked on my listings in the past. Professional, reasonably priced, reliable." Dryfast Damage restoration 1500 Market St San Francisco, CA 94102 (415) 861-4182 dryfast.net "I had an emergency at one of my listings and they took care of it quickly and professionally. Highly recommended." |
Tom's Hardwood Flooring
181 Taraval St San Francisco, CA 94116 (415) 665-5032 "Person to call for wood flooring refinishes at a great price. He's the value option. I've used him for listings as part of the pre-listing preparations. Although I would not use him for high-end properties, he definitely is my choice for other projects. He scheduled a hardwood refinish on short notice, was professional, on-time, and finished the job on budget within deadline. His crew is professional, moved appliances, covered everything, and did a good job. Clients were happy." Excellent Window Cleaner 2171 Francisco Blvd E, Ste E San Rafael, CA 94901 (415) 821-9039 excellentwindow.com "They did an excellent job of cleaning my properties. Reliable, professional, and the owner is a great guy." |
Ace Plumbing and Rooter
945 Taraval St Ste 201 San Francisco, CA 94116 (415) 824-6333 aceplumbingandrooter.com "I've used them on listings to comply with the SF Water and Energy Conservation ordinance. I've never had a problem scheduling with their office staff. They are very knowledgeable, and professional." O'Grady Plumbing
1610 Evans Ave San Francisco, CA 94124 (415) 233-6692 ogradyplumbing,com "He came highly recommended from another agent. I have referred clients to him in the past. Nice guy and knowledgeable." |
General Contractors
Some tips:
*Always get a fixed bid. A "Time and materials" or Cost Plus contract can cost you much more.
*Ask for a detailed and itemized proposal/cost estimate. Be detailed in your questions. A general estimate proposal contract can end up being 3 times the amount of the original quote due to Change Orders (addendum to the work and amount in the contract). Be up front about your budget and expectations and ask them to identify worst case scenarios for costs.
*Dry rot is a big issue with older building in San Francisco. You may sign a fixed contract for a bathroom and kitchen remodel, but most likely they will find dry rot and bill accordingly. The cost could skyrocket.
* San Francisco building department is very strict and usually inflexible. Make sure they have experience dealing with SF Planning and SF DBI.
*Always check their license at www.cslb.ca.gov. Ask for 3 references.
*Ask them about their track record for on-time completion, budget, relationship with subcontractors (they could delay your project), project management staff, percentage of their contracts that are within the original budget, and if they have ever been in a lawsuit with previous clients.
*Contractor's may only ask for 10% or $1,000, whichever is less, of the contract amount up front. Always ask for an invoice and any changes to the original contract should be in writing (Change Order). Otherwise, the client has no obligation to pay for extra work outside the contract, even if it was already done.
*Contractor's can lien your property for non-payment. It's called a mechanics's lien.
Some tips:
*Always get a fixed bid. A "Time and materials" or Cost Plus contract can cost you much more.
*Ask for a detailed and itemized proposal/cost estimate. Be detailed in your questions. A general estimate proposal contract can end up being 3 times the amount of the original quote due to Change Orders (addendum to the work and amount in the contract). Be up front about your budget and expectations and ask them to identify worst case scenarios for costs.
*Dry rot is a big issue with older building in San Francisco. You may sign a fixed contract for a bathroom and kitchen remodel, but most likely they will find dry rot and bill accordingly. The cost could skyrocket.
* San Francisco building department is very strict and usually inflexible. Make sure they have experience dealing with SF Planning and SF DBI.
*Always check their license at www.cslb.ca.gov. Ask for 3 references.
*Ask them about their track record for on-time completion, budget, relationship with subcontractors (they could delay your project), project management staff, percentage of their contracts that are within the original budget, and if they have ever been in a lawsuit with previous clients.
*Contractor's may only ask for 10% or $1,000, whichever is less, of the contract amount up front. Always ask for an invoice and any changes to the original contract should be in writing (Change Order). Otherwise, the client has no obligation to pay for extra work outside the contract, even if it was already done.
*Contractor's can lien your property for non-payment. It's called a mechanics's lien.
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Achill Beg Construction
achillbeg.com "James is a nice guy and does great high-end work from design build to remodeling. He does quite a bit of his own development projects, so he may not be available. One of the best new construction modern homes in San Francisco I've sold was his design-build. It was a rather spectacular home in my opinion... one of a kind and simply beautiful." |
Aaron Gordan Construction, Inc
agcsf.com (415) 742-4900 "Great contractors, came highly recommended." Matarozzi & Pelsinger Builders matpelbuilders.com (415) 652-4710 "Gold standard of service. For luxury client homes." |
Real Estate Attorneys
Landlord-tenant, Condo Conversion, TIC
Landlord-tenant, Condo Conversion, TIC
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Goldstein, Gellman, Melbostad, Harris & McSparran, LLP
1388 Sutter St Ste 1000 San Francisco, CA 94109 (415) 673-5600 g3mh.com "They are very knowledgeable about real estate laws specific to San Francisco: TICs, Condo Conversion, Condo Litigation, etc. I refer clients to them who need TIC agreements or are ready for condo conversion. Great, easy to read articles on their website" |
Steven Adair MacDonald & Associates, P.C.
870 Market St Ste 500 San Francisco, CA 94102 (415) 956-6488 samlaw.net "Very good and experienced landlord-tenant attorneys. They look for the best solution for their clients. Problem solvers and negotiators, they will not "rack up" so to speak your hourly bill and are honest with their advice. I refer investors with tenant issues to them." |
The Law Offices of Bornstein and Bornstein
507 Polk St. Suite 410 Suite 410 San Francisco, CA 94102 (415) 409-7611 bornsteinlawyers.com "I've used them for an advisory role for a complex sale. I advised my clients to talk with him first about all aspects of owning this "problem" property. Daniel was very knowledgeable about landlord tenant issues. He is straight to the point and efficient with his time. He advised my clients honestly, including backing out of the deal... "is it really worth it?". The only caveat is he is not a "hand holding" kind of attorney but if you want straight forward advice, he's very good." |