Testimonials

Earl and Urbane SF offers the kind of service that is disruptive in the real estate industry. As a first-time home owner in San Francisco market, I could not have came away feeling more confident in my purchasing decision without Earl’s help as my trusted advisor. With every hard hat tour of the building layouts and questions about homeownership, Earl learned more about what we were looking for in a home. His ability to advise decisively speaks volumes of his experience, as well as his dedication to treat every decision as if it was his own. On top of that, Earl also covered our 12-month HOA, which was a great welcoming bonus as well. I would highly recommend working with Earl if you value the following: - deep domain knowledge - highly personalized advisory service - treating every decision as if it was his own - working with someone who gives you the time you need to make a decision b…

Earl and Urbane SF offers the kind of service that is disruptive in the real estate industry. As a first-time home owner in San Francisco market, I could not have came away feeling more confident in my purchasing decision without Earl’s help as my trusted advisor. With every hard hat tour of the building layouts and questions about homeownership, Earl learned more about what we were looking for in a home. His ability to advise decisively speaks volumes of his experience, as well as his dedication to treat every decision as if it was his own. On top of that, Earl also covered our 12-month HOA, which was a great welcoming bonus as well. I would highly recommend working with Earl if you value the following: - deep domain knowledge - highly personalized advisory service - treating every decision as if it was his own - working with someone who gives you the time you need to make a decision but also decisively getting things done when needed

Please allow me the opportunity to share my sentiments for the OUTSTANDING, EXCEPTIONAL service I received from Urbane SF for a recent condo purchase. In the midst of an insane market where prices continued to rise, with multiple cash offerson choice properties, in some cases over 20% asking price, trying to buy a condo in the SF Bay Area was more than a challenging task, not to mention that I needed a hands-on consulting Realtor® to bounce ideas, while making a long-term real estate decision to address work location proximity, retirement and investment goals. Having Urbane-SF: Earl Chan &Norm Fung by my side made all the difference. Earl & Norm’s “can-do” attitude with the client’s interest at the forefront was key to our success in securing my purchase. They turned a daunting experience into a REWARDING one. The service I received was unheard of and unlike any I nor anyone I knew had r…

Please allow me the opportunity to share my sentiments for the OUTSTANDING, EXCEPTIONAL service I received from Urbane SF for a recent condo purchase. In the midst of an insane market where prices continued to rise, with multiple cash offerson choice properties, in some cases over 20% asking price, trying to buy a condo in the SF Bay Area was more than a challenging task, not to mention that I needed a hands-on consulting Realtor® to bounce ideas, while making a long-term real estate decision to address work location proximity, retirement and investment goals. Having Urbane-SF: Earl Chan &Norm Fung by my side made all the difference. Earl & Norm’s “can-do” attitude with the client’s interest at the forefront was key to our success in securing my purchase. They turned a daunting experience into a REWARDING one. The service I received was unheard of and unlike any I nor anyone I knew had received (I happen to also work professionally in a real estate environment). Urbane-SF hand-held me through the entire process. They are patient, caring, and understanding. They are passionate about doing their best for the client, for me! Earl was there for me every step of the way; you would think that you might be his only client. Urbane-SF took the time to first understand my real estate, financial and personal objectives, affordability, budget targets. All of this information was evaluated against the market inventory, and we began my search. With a non-aggressive, helpful manner, Urbane-SF attended open houses with me, walked me through the offer process, mapped out potential scenarios and strategies to ensure I was comfortable with the offer and acceptance decisions along the way. Urbane-SF shared its knowledge of current as well as past market experiences.Urbane-SF provided property pricing comparisons; they took me through the pros and cons of every aspect of the transaction. They shared their honest opinions as if the decisions were their very own.They tried to place themselves in my shoes. I really felt that they were always looking out for my best interests. When possible, Earl even transported me from my work office and back to visit the property a 2nd, 3rd time, and spent hours at my home inspection, while we thoroughly examined the property. When I had questions for the seller, Earl or Norm corresponded through email or phone with the selling agent immediately, and provided expedient responses with clarity for the layman. Urbane-SF has resources, such as real estate attorneys at their finger-tips to help answer questions on rent legislation, hints on interior decorating ideas, and furniture and moving company referrals. During my search when Earl went overseas on vacation, he assured me that he would be reachable and close-by, and indeed he was. He provided in-presence local support through his associate (Norm Fung) who was just asknowledgeable and compassionate. But Earl, himself, was sleepless for 2 nights in London while writing multiple offers on my behalf. Understanding the stress of a major move, Earl also initiated the hire of a packing service, and continued to ask if there was anything else he could do to help. He even offered his truck to help move.I should mention that I am extremely analytical, and will ask a million questions, maybe more than once using different words. I would send an email late in the evening, and what do you know, when I awoke in the morning, there would be a response for me from Earl or Norm from even later that evening, or early morning. Do these men ever sleep? There has never been a question I hesitated to ask, and Urbane-SF always graciously responded. You can ask Urbane-SF anything! Hence, I must confess that I’m not exactly the easiest client to satisfy, not to mention that I have very high expectations of any service provider. Urbane SF never stopped to amaze me. I was pleasantly surprised that Urbane-SF consistently continued the extraordinary service and support even though the sales transaction was essentially complete, and any other buyer would and could have handled the remaining buyer to-dos on their own.This Realtor® marches alongside the entire time. I plan to engage Urbane-SF now to prepare my home for rental, to secure a lease, as well as to provide future ongoing property management services. This firm is a top, client-focused and dedicated, trustworthy, full-scope realty organization. Urbane-SF represents customized service at its finest! If you need a superb Realtor®, I highly recommend Urbane-SF!I guarantee that they will “WOW” you as they have me.

Yes, five stars all the way. And this, his first review here, is authentic (I was an ordinary client). This is the guy you want, and probably his sales staff is excellent too. We were struggling with a mortgage and two credit lines, and finally decided to sell the family house to avoid a Notice of Default. Earl helped us review options other than selling, and eventually orchestrated a very successful open house, review of interested buyers and final selection. All very gently and with complete respect. There was no pressure or drama which of course would have added to our problems. And then he even helped us with the inevitable move-out and relocation. Amazing! He is quiet and friendly, but do not be suspicious that he is somehow "too slick". Of course his way is smart -- after all he is a professional -- but I can tell you that it is also genuine. Through escrow we never had even a hint…

Yes, five stars all the way. And this, his first review here, is authentic (I was an ordinary client). This is the guy you want, and probably his sales staff is excellent too. We were struggling with a mortgage and two credit lines, and finally decided to sell the family house to avoid a Notice of Default. Earl helped us review options other than selling, and eventually orchestrated a very successful open house, review of interested buyers and final selection. All very gently and with complete respect. There was no pressure or drama which of course would have added to our problems. And then he even helped us with the inevitable move-out and relocation. Amazing! He is quiet and friendly, but do not be suspicious that he is somehow "too slick". Of course his way is smart -- after all he is a professional -- but I can tell you that it is also genuine. Through escrow we never had even a hint of disappointment.

We were only a bit more than two years in the States after living over 20 years in Europe, was renting in St Francis Wood paying a lot towards rents and we knew it was time to invest in a home of our own but had zero experience regarding how to do so or where to start in a country we didn’t know at all. We met Earl by chance at an open house and knew based on intuition and witnessing his interaction with others, that we wanted him to be our agent. We spoke briefly at the open house and invited Earl to our home that evening to discuss our desire to explore the possibility to purchase a home. We spoke for hours with Earl asking important questions and providing needed insight on the process and what to expect and he was extremely precise on painting the picture to us. We knew then that he was the absolutely best person to help us on making it happen. The task at hand for Earl was super c…

We were only a bit more than two years in the States after living over 20 years in Europe, was renting in St Francis Wood paying a lot towards rents and we knew it was time to invest in a home of our own but had zero experience regarding how to do so or where to start in a country we didn’t know at all. We met Earl by chance at an open house and knew based on intuition and witnessing his interaction with others, that we wanted him to be our agent. We spoke briefly at the open house and invited Earl to our home that evening to discuss our desire to explore the possibility to purchase a home. We spoke for hours with Earl asking important questions and providing needed insight on the process and what to expect and he was extremely precise on painting the picture to us. We knew then that he was the absolutely best person to help us on making it happen. The task at hand for Earl was super challenging. San Francisco’s market was incredibly hot and what we wanted was in very limited supply. Both my wife and I love mid century architecture and design. We had lived in a mid century inspired home while in Finland and wanted something similar. Views were very important and the floor plan had to suit our family and living style. Because of our foreign status and unique employment arrangement, Earl immediately began investigating lending options to see which would best suit our situation. He quickly got us set up with several lenders, helped to explain the many confusing lender requests and processes and remained closely involved through out the process. After visiting many open homes and writing one failed offer, we finally came upon the house that was meant for us. This home had the potential to be perfect but needed a lot of work. Additionally, because of our rental situation it was important for us that the purchase line up with our obligation to provide adequate notice to our landlord. We knew it was a tough deal to structure in such a competitive market. Earl did not hesitate; he respectfully explained the pros and cons, provided us with the information necessary to understand how certain terms might impact the success of our offer and proceeded to engage the listing agent. Incredibly, Earl was able to negotiate a fantastic price, provide the perfect timing so that we did not double pay rent and a mortgage, had the sellers agree to perform extensive renovations and repairs effectively integrating the would be renovation costs into the purchase price and coordinated the work with a variety of contractors in order to have the home close and completed by the time we moved out of our rental. During the course of escrow, there were many negotiations that ensued and Earl was always successful in his ability to negotiate our terms while keeping everyone on the same side of the table. The selling agents were always complimenting us on how good our agent was. We already knew this. Something absolutely amazing from him was that at all times, he made us feel as we were always in control of the situation and there was never something to worry about. I need to emphasize that the peace of mind through the whole process that he transmitted to us was priceless. We just had Earl and his family over for an authentic Argentinean Asado (bbq) in the perfect backyard of our perfect new home.