Barbara Hendrickson and Rudy Gonzales just sold our Albany home for the highest price of any home ever sold in Albany! Barbara is a superb, experienced, savvy, highly skilled real estate agent. They are very good listeners who understood our challenges and laughed at our jokes. They are a wonderful team. As Barbara says " Two Heads are Better Than One". Over 25 years ago Barbara helped us buy our first house in Albany, which was then a 2-bedroom bungalow. The real estate market at that time was extremely hot, and we faced a very difficult competitive situation for buyers. Facing multiple offers, Barbara helped us come in with the right price, and her negotiating skills helped us put in the winning offer--not an easy task! Like many Albany families, we added on to our our house to accommodate our family, and after our children left, it was time to downsize. Naturally we chose Barbara again to sell our house last year, because we felt her connections, marketing abilities, and negotiating skills would help us secure the highest price. Barbara and her partner, Rudy Gonzales, worked closely, tirelessly and patiently with us over many months helping us prepare our house for sale. She and Rudy provided us with resources for every aspect of the job putting our now 4-bedroom, 2 1/2 bath charming, vintage craftsman home house with a century old Coastal Oak in the back yard, to obtain the best price. They arranged inspections and referred us to contractors and other professionals to do needed work at excellent prices. Barbara and Rudy helped us choose the best time to put our home on the market to hit it at its absolute peak. With a new roof, minor repairs, interior painting, exterior shingle staining, floor refinishing and refreshing of the garden to give it that smashing "curb appeal", our home sold in two weeks with 7 offers. It was Barbara and Rudy's negotiating skills that brought us the unexpected extra at the end when they asked two highest buyers--and their offers were unbelievably high to begin with-- to bring their very, very best offers, and they did once again. In the end we had to choose between two serious, well qualified and heartfelt buyers, which we did and that's how we got to have the house that sold for the highest price on record ever in Albany ! Thank you Barbara and Rudy. read more

Barbara is amazing and I cannot recommend her highly enough. After my mom moved to assisted living, I needed help to sell her view home in the Berkeley hills, while minimizing the burden on me to come across the Bay (I live in SF). Barbara project managed the whole thing -- she hired and worked with all the contractors and inspectors to paint and prep the home for sale, coordinated access issues with my estate sellers/haulers, hired a great stager, ran a couple of intense weeks of very well-attended open houses, and in the end helped negotiate a great price from a robust pool of offers. Best of all, I love that Barbara was sensitive and sympathetic to our situation -- minimizing the burden on me, while helping my mom to comfortably say farewell to her home of over 30 years... no small task! I couldn't be more grateful for all her hard work -- kudos also go to Rebecca Nemeth, another Red Oak realtor, who assisted with the disclosures and digital document maze. Love you both! read more

Barbara is a great asset in buying or selling a home (I've done both). The thing I adore about here is that she's great at finding the best things to entice buyers whether you're selling a starter home or a manse in the Berkeley hills. Her professionalism, expertise and healthy dose of patience during my selling process was super. She had access to people in my price range who could help get the necessary work completed, as well as sage advice in preparing the house was surely a significant factor in why our house sold when others nearby languished. As a first time seller, I could only imagine the challenges that I would have faced, and it was great to have an ally in the process. When I was buying she was equally good as we went through the inevitable back & forth. I'm a pretty sage buyer as I work with construction, and Barbara adds a great level of knowledge about the market - what else is out there and how my potential house fit in the spectrum, to help me make decisions about my offer. What impressed me the most was her willingness to keep lines of communication always humming along. Her responsiveness to calls, emails and requests, large and small-even in the midst of her son's wedding(!)- demonstrates to me the sign of a true professional. She loves what she does and it shows. If you're looking for a realtor I think she's worth your time for a chat. read more

In the wake of the recent sale of our 3 bedroom family home in North Berkeley, I'd like to share my experience of working with our realtor Barbara Hendrickson. This was the first time that my wife and I attempted to sell a home. Despite our reservations concerning the volatile state of the housing market, we scheduled an initial meeting with Barbara after reviewing her impressive website, justsellmyhouse.com. Once Barbara starting talking with us, it didn't take long before we were won over by her candor, positive energy and direct approach. We emerged from that first conversation with a clear understanding of what we would be facing - feeling like we were in capable hands - and that we would be guided through a process, fraught with many variables, by an expert in her field who has achieved a remarkable track record of success and longevity - and most importantly, who wasn't afraid to tell us what we *needed* to hear rather than what we *wanted* to hear. Throughout the different stages of selling our home, Barbara was always patient and responsive to our many questions. In the middle of a very turbulent real estate market, we sold our home quickly, rather easily and we were delighted with the purchase price. Simply put - there is no substitute for the life experience that Barbara brings to her realtor-client relationship. Smart and self-assured, she possesses the kind of real confidence that can only come from a career spent closing hundreds of home sales. I can't recommend Barbara enough as a realtor. She has truly seen it all, knows how to convert her experience into efficiency and will keep her (and your) eyes firmly focused on the prize. Nathan Friedkin Berkeley, CA. read more

Barbara has been instrumental in finding our dreamhouse in Berkeley. The fact that she knows the market like the back of her hand, that she knows anybody and everybody in real estate and that she knows every tiny corner in Berkeley, have all been big assets to make that happen. After she spent ample time getting to know us and getting a good grip on the type of house and neighborhood that would fit us, Barbara worked tirelessly but patiently to find that perfect place and always made sure we never compromised. She was also a trusted and reassuring guide in the maze of red tape every home buyer is at risk of getting lost in, offering us both sound advice and access to first-rate professionals - from mortgage specialists and insurers to foundation experts. We can't recommend Barbara enough. Buying a house in the East Bay is daunting, but with Barbara on your side you can't go wrong. read more

Barbara Hendrickson at Red Oak Realty is a great real estate agent. She was recommended to my wife and I by a couple that we hold as the gold standard of business savvy so we had high expectations. We got what we expected. Barbara is energetic, focused, and detail oriented. She is direct to a fault. She is long established in the area and her experience shows in how quickly she can help you find the property and come up with the winning offer. I know for a fact we would not have won our bid if we were submitting it with somebody else. The huge amount of paperwork was efficiently handled by Barbara and her office - no last minute craziness, no funny business. In retrospect I realized she frequently knew what we wanted better than we did. We've been in this house, our first, for two years now. It's been great. read more

I've known Barbara since 1990, when she helped me purchase my first home (a condominium). In 2001 she helped me sell my condominium for a ridiculous profit, assisted my husband in selling his North Berkeley childhood home, and helped the two of us purchase our beautiful South Berkeley house in which we currently live. I love Barbara, both professionally and personally. She is incredibly knowledgeable, extremely hard-working, and fun to spend time with. I don't think there is any other realtor who understands the Berkeley/Oakland real estate market better than Barbara. She is an astute negotiator who is familiar with all the nuances of buying and selling a house. When we purchased our current home, we were not the highest bidders at a time when overbidding was standard practice; Barbara's insight into the psychology of the seller, and her suggestion that we write a personal letter to the seller highlighting our particular circumstances, was the key to winning the bidding war, and we got a GREAT deal on our house. Barbara is tireless, endlessly enthusiastic, and clearly loves what she does. She is smart, funny, and extremely professional at the same time. If you are serious about buying or selling a home, there is no doubt in my mind that Barbara will make it happen for you. I would never use another realtor! http://www.justsellmyhouse.com read more

I enjoyed working with Barbara because she is totally honest. She won't sugar coat things and she won't try to sell you just anything. She is always there for you, even after you make the purchase! She knows the markets and she knows the neighborhoods (and she has an amazing roster of inspectors and contractors at her fingertips.) We were probably the clients from hell for Barbara. We were out of town clients who knew nothing about the local market. We were indecisive, we insisted on working with our own finance team, and we pulled out of several deals. Barbara stuck with us through it all with infinite patience and finally found us the home we love. She was always upfront, never pushy, and she really listened to us. Buying a home is a huge financial and emotional decision and it's important to find someone you feel good about working with. Barbara was that person for us. read more

We should probably just go ahead and adopt Barbara. She has been the real estate agent for our family on so many transactions that we've lost count. She sold our first house and then twenty years later she sold our second house. She sold my mother-law's house, after her death, on behalf of our family. She sold our godparent's house for their estate. Recently she sold two very complicated mixed use commercial properties for us. She sold Virginia's sister's house in Berkeley which she found her ten years earlier. She has always been honest, energetic, and meticulous in her work with us, and she has always gotten us solid sales with qualified buyers for lots of money. Come to think of it, we may just have Barbara adopt us. If you're looking for a sale, no foolin', call Barbara. If you want help in finding a home, call Barbara. She gets the job done, she's smart and a delight to work with, and she paints beautiful paintings. How can you beat that? Al & Virginia Silbowitz Out of town Sellers Berkeley read more

Barbara is just fabulous! My husband and I found her in 2003 when she helped us buy a house in the very competitive Albany market and Barbara has been our realtor and friend ever since. Two houses later, we can't imagine a real estate transaction without her advice and connections! She is everything you want in a realtor- responsive, knowledgeable, resourceful, hardworking- with deep roots in the East Bay. She's a straight shooter and a wonderful person! We can't recommend her highly enough! read more

If you are looking for an agent that will put your needs above any other motivation, Barbara is not your agent. This review should of course be digested with a grain of salt, as I was not her client. Barbara represented my former land lord for the sale of his Oakland home. My neighbor and I pooled our funds to make a competitive offer on the multi-unit house we've lived in for many years. Our land lord expressed to both us and Barbara his desire to see us own his home. Barbara explained to everyone involved multiple times that we would be given an opportunity to counter an offer if one should come in above ours. To avoid an excessively long review please contact me for details. We were not given an opportunity to counter-offer. The seller was directed by Barbara to make his decision in half an hour, and Barbara called our agent while he was signing the other offer to tell us that we were in second place and that the other offer was too strong and that we could not compete. Over a month later, the house closed this last Friday, and the final posted price was only $10,000 above our offer and well within our comfort price point. My former land lord told me it was not an all cash purchase but a financed loan, which means our offer was equally strong. This was the ideal situation that every real estate agent hopes for on every house: a bidding war. For unclear reasons Barbara chose to cut us out. Our former land lord would have taken any direction Barbara recommended. In the case of this Oakland home: -Barbara failed to negotiate more money for her client, and to help carry out his wishes of passing the house to loyal tenants and friends. -Barbara provided the sellers preferred buyers with a disclosure package that did not contain all the information provided to other buyers (the engineers report was given to us with 18 hours to review and re-submit our opening offer). -The seller told me that Barbara had not explained the mix-up with the disclosures, and she allowed him to believe that our improved offer (raised after reviewing all disclosures) was a counter offer. -She inexcusably determined that her clients preferred buyers could not compete, and did not honor her promise to give them the opportunity. -Barbara withheld information due to her client that was necessary for him to make an informed decision about his home sale. We will likely never know what her motivations were to finish the deal in the manner she did. The real tragedy of this situation is that what was a great relationship with our former land lord is now strained due to circumstances that would have easily been avoided had we lost the house knowing that we could not afford it. As I continue to look for a home, I will avoid homes listed by Barbara and her agency. Instead of putting resources into working with an attorney or investigator I will focus my efforts moving forward. This review is my only recourse for what appears to be an agent operating in bad faith. read more

We love Barbara! To give some context, we had a very negative experience with the agent with whom we worked when we purchased our condo, so we were stalling and procrastinating when it came to selling it. Thankfully, we found Barbara. What a difference! She went above and beyond in getting our unit ready to sell (and in record time). Our condo sold quickly and above asking. It was one of the best decisions we made and and we would absolutely hire her again. The entire process was painless and when we are ready to buy again, we will call Barbara and her associate, Kim, immediately. read more

I have worked with Barbara for over 15 years and she has represented me as buyer and sellers agent in both my personal, multifamily and commercial purchases. She has always exceeded my expectations. She has solved many problems for me and takes each project on as if it were her own. I trust her judgment and expertise 100%. Barbara is a dedicated real estate professional and I feel very lucky to have found her. I would highly recommend her for any and all real estate transactions. read more

I was looking around our beautiful home the other day and realized its been 16 joyous years since we moved into our abode thanks to Barbara H. She was fearless in getting us this place and so professional in her dealing with us. We are still friends with her to this day and she's currently advising me about another property. Great lady. read more

We were so lucky to have met Barbara during one of her open houses. We're even more lucky that she has chosen such a great partner in crime ( Kim Markison! ). We were first time home buyers. We reached out to Barbara 2 days before we had to put our first offer in. Keep in mind, we weren't pre-approved or and had not talked to Barbara about representing us at this point. In just 1 day, Barbara connected us to a great loan officer, got us pre-approved and wrote our offer letter! We could not have done any of this without her continuous support, especially during those late night email exchanges and phone calls. This process has been pretty stress free for us and we know that is only because we knew we had Barbara behind us. I can go on and on about how great she is. Bottom line, Barbara knows what she is doing and will help you navigate any housing market with ease. read more

Barbara has been a wonderful agent to work with. She's aggressive, scrappy, honest, and hard working. When we were assessing agents, she outshined other agents by being highly responsive, suggesting listings to us, calling up other agents to share the inside scoop on houses - all before we had even agreed to work with her. In her mind, we were already her customer, even if we hadn't committed yet. That kind of perserverance helped win us over. She's also a hoot to work with! She pretty quickly got a sense of what would work for us. She probably saved us loads of time by rejecting houses that she knew we wouldn't like - too noisy, too close to neighbors, too small, etc. She knows her stuff, and was right. She's been in the biz for maybe 30 years, and the experience shows. The first house we bid on, we lost. Quite honestly, we thought she was out to lunch when she told us the price range that she thought would win the house. We bid lower. There were 18+ offers, it went for $150K over asking price, and she was pretty much right on the money for what she predicted. In hindsight, I'm glad we didn't get it, especially at the winning price. Even though we lost, it was a good learning experience. Something else that really impressed us during that lost bid: she called up and emailed many local agents who were under contract for houses that were pending but not closed. She managed to squeeze the contract price out of them so we could build a good base for price comp analysis. Only by asking her network of other agents for a favor could we have gotten this pricing info. Redfin, eat your heart out! In this crazy sellers market of early 2013, I think this kind of insider-relationship edge is what will help people get into the market. I'm positive we couldn't have bought this house without Barbara. When it came to the house we ultimately won, her personal relationship was critical to us having the winning bid. We had fallen in love with the house, but unfortunately could not bid due to a family emergency at the time. She happened to be longtime acquaintances with the seller agent. Lucky for us, the house fell out of escrow, and the agent chose to call Barbara first. That relationship probably gave us the edge that helped us win the house uncontested. The actual transaction was completed with us and her business associate, Kimberley Markison. Kim took us through the process of the offer, negotiation, and close. Together they made a great team for us! read more

We decided to switch agents mid-search and came across the dream team of Barbara and Kim via Yelp. Barbara is incredibly knowledgeable and has a resource/connection for everything. We bid on two homes with her and won the 2nd in a very competitive bidding scenario! I appreciated Barbara's no-nonsense approach and her ability to tell us exactly what we needed to do to win our house. She made our first home purchase almost painless and we would highly recommend her. read more

Being first time home-buyers in a very aggressive market ( every house receiving over 12 offers) it was of utmost importance for us to have a real estate agent who would 1. Be willing to work with us and within our budget 2. Understand our needs 3. Help us navigate the crazy marketplace Barbara was all of that and more for us. During our initial meeting, she was upfront and honest about our chances in a competitive market - but she never gave up. Most other agents we spoke with were hesitant since we were not the most attractive buyer given the market. Barbara not only showed us various homes, but made sure she sat in the each of those homes with us to understand our needs. Very soon Barbara had our taste figured out and showed us the perfect place! She negotiated a good price and ensured that we closed soon. Our entire process took 2 months = which is super fast!! She would reply to our emails however late at night it was. She asked all the right questions and took so much personal interest in ensuring that the home was right for us.If you are looking for an honest, upfront, funny, sharp and experienced agent - look no further! Thank you Barbara for helping us find our first home! :) read more

My wife and I have worked with Barbara twice for buying and selling. When we first met her in 2008, we had already found the house we wanted and she made the process as painless as possible, including recommending a mortgage broker who was also superb to work with. Then, in 2015 when we were ready to sell that same home, we reached out to her, of course. We ended up moving across the country before the whole deal was done, and she took care of us like family; making sure we had all the info we needed to take offers while we drove across the country! We felt taken care of and knew because of her kick-ass negotiation skills, that we would get an incredible price for our home and we did! I would hands down recommend her to anyone. read more

My husband and I just sold our North Berkeley home with the very capable help of Barbara Hendrickson. I don't think I can say enough wonderful things about her or our entire experience with Barbara. Never before have I ever met anyone so dedicated to her job and so enthusiastic about real estate. From the moment we sat down with Barbara we could tell that she was fired up and ready to get started. I remember Barbara saying in our first meeting, "I live and breathe real estate". Well, I can certainly vouch for the veracity of that statement! This is an extremely knowledgeable experienced woman who fully understands the ins and outs of the real estate business. The sale of our house involved a lot of prep work - painting, repairs, cleaning, inspections, staging, etc. I felt overwhelmed with the list of things to do, especially as I was in the process of moving into a new home. I could not have made it through those chaotic weeks without Barbara. She knew what needed to be done to put the house on the market and she worked tirelessly to get everything accomplished. Though we may have very different aesthetic styles, Barbara knows what improvements make a house marketable. So while I nitpicked and complained about the furnishings chosen by the stagers, Barbara calmly assured me that I had to focus on the overall big picture. As it turns out, her vision was spot on. My husband and I had an idea of how much we should reasonably expect to get for the sale of our home. We also had a "dream price" that we hoped we could get in the best of circumstances. Four days after the open house, we were simply stunned to receive four offers that exceeded our expectations. We are certain that we would never have gotten such great offers without Barbara's help. From day one she truly believed we could get our dream price and she made sure it happened. But here's what I appreciated the most. Throughout the whole time I worked with Barbara, she always made me feel like I was her absolute top priority. No matter what time of day I called or emailed her, I almost always received an immediate response. If I needed something done she was on the task right away. From hiring someone to fix the fence to getting junk removed from our garage, Barbara took on everything I was too busy to handle myself. She really eased so many of the burdens that I faced as a seller and she always had a way of calming me down when I was stressed. Best of all, through the process of selling our home my husband and I formed a friendship with a very special person who now feels like part of the family. We couldn't have asked for a better experience or a better realtor. If you're selling your home, you will be beyond fortunate to have Barbara on your side! read more

Many know Barbara Hendrickson, (Realtor) as a top producing listing agent, representing sellers. We, on the other hand, had the luxury of working with her on the buying side of our transaction. As clients, we were very peculiar about the specific location and style of the house that we wanted. For 6 months, we worked closely with Barbara and finally purchased the Berkeley house that we absolutely love. Our buying experience was intense and nerve-racking at times. However, Barbara kept us calm and on track though the whole process. This clearly demonstrates that Barbara is not just an amazing realtor; she makes dreams come true. Barbara's immense knowledge of the local Berkeley market and 33 years of real estate experience proved to be invaluable in helping us identifying and closing the deal. Plus, this was not a usual "straightforward 30-day escrow - We spent four months negotiating, and re-negotiating with the seller. Barbara masterfully helped us navigate through the entire process with skills, patience, professionalism and a work ethic that few can match. Whenever we asked, Barbara usually responded within minutes, even late at night! When it came to time for actions, Barbara's speed, efficiency and diligence were simply top-notch - With only a couple of days for inspection contingency, Barbara mobilized her network of professionals within hours to look thoroughly at the property and consequently she negotiated more seller credits than we were hoping to get! Having worked with numerous real estate agents over the past 10+ years, we know that Barbara Hendrickson has the level of experience that we can always count on. In fact, the best compliment actually came from the seller's agent after we bought the house - "you are so fortunate to have the best real estate agent in Berkeley working with you". Thank you, Barbara! read more

Barbara helped us purchase our first home, which just closed escrow. We were first time homebuyers in a terribly difficult market (Berkeley) and we found Barbara to be an expert in that market. She was always available to us and she clearly had our family's best interests in mind. More than anything else, I appreciated Barbara's frank style and no-nonsense approach. She was quick to tell us if we were pursuing a property that would be out of our range and equally quick to implore us to get away from a crappy flip. When we got to negotiations, she's as good as they come. I recommend Barbara without reservations. She helped us find a great home for our family in a market that we were worried we'd be priced out of. She is communicative, an expert at what she does, and, most importantly, she truly cares about her clients and always holds their best interests at heart. read more

Recently Barbara represented the buyer for my home and I did everything to make sure her buyer was happy with my home that got sold to her, I left her notes on how to take of the flooring and went beyond in helping making sure her buyer was happy with her purchase. Unfortunately, I reminded Barbara to tell her buyer to switch the PG&E to her name, thus taking my name off. She did not tell the buyer or the buyer forgot and I wound with an extra bill that after numerous communications the bill still has not be settled which I don't appreciate. Sometimes the little things matter and this should have been taken care of easily, instead I have to post this because I am frustrated that being nice sometimes doesn't pay. read more

Barbara Hendrickson from Red Oak Realty was our agent for selling my father's house on Peralta Ave in Albany after he passed away. We had interviewed several agents from other firms but chose Barbara because she had a great track record, an extensive understanding of what buyers wanted in the local market, a well-developed network, and was able to communicate to us a clear vision of how best to market the property. Because my co-trustee and I both lived out of town, we had considered the possibility of selling the house as is. Barbara convinced us that some strategic remodeling would be worthwhile. She was masterful in marshalling the necessary contacts and resources and keeping us appropriately involved as necessary and informed throughout. When all the work was done the house looked great! In a little over two months, the house was on the market. Two weeks later, we had five good offers, and we closed escrow 15 days after that, at substantially above the asking price. Barbara got it all done in 91 days! We put a lot of trust in Barbara and it paid off. The return on the remodel investment was superb, and we had a fast sale in a market that was starting to soften. Barbara is a great agent, fun to work with, and we highly recommend her! Special thanks are also due to her wonderful colleague, Rebecca Nemeth, who contributed to this success. read more

When we needed to sell our first house, we thought we needed to interview at least three realtors, and we had already seen two that we liked. We liked the friendly Red Oak logo that we saw everywhere in our neighborhood, and so we explored their website and clicked on the list of agents. Barbara Hendrickson's name linked to her own web site "justsellmyhouse.com". What a joy! A bright, friendly site that spoke for itself with the right amount of very useful information without the need of any unnecessary hype! Hmm, we thought, that could at least be fun to explore further. I send her an e-mail, and received an answer within 15 minutes, apologizing that she is in a meeting and didn't answer earlier! OK, I thought, she is not beating around the bush, is she? So we met a few days later, and Barbara quietly walked around the house with a big smile on her face. It became quickly apparent that she understood our situation completely: why we had bought this house, what we liked about it, why we were selling it, and to whom the house might appeal to. Her enthusiasm was infectious from the beginning on, and over time we learnt to deeply appreciate the thoroughness of her preparation instructions, her wide-reaching network of inspectors, contractors, gardeners, painters, stagers, and colleagues, and lastly her skill in negotiations that quite frankly left us in awe! It was beautiful to watch the wheels of experience and care work together in such focused unison. And most of all: the entire process was fun from beginning to end. Barbara gently nudged us along when we were getting off-track, but knew to give us room when we needed it, and was always cheerful. She turned a dreaded, stress- filled endeavor into a fun, not-to-be-missed, and utterly rewarding experience. We feel thoroughly privileged to be her clients. read more

"You might not get the house you love, but I promise you will love the house you buy." Having surveyed the East Bay housing market on our own, my wife and I wondered whether we could possibly find a home that fit all (or even most) of our needs. So when Barbara assured us early in the process that she would find us a home we would love, I was skeptical. That we were able to find our ideal home less than two months after we began looking is a testament to Barbara's ability to quickly grasp our preferences and translate them into a short list of potential options. Of course, Barbara's help went far beyond simply finding the right house. We were first time buyers with little knowledge of the housing market, but Barbara patiently walked us through the process of setting a realistic price range, evaluating the factors that add or subtract value from a property, thinking through the needs of our growing family, finding financing partners who could quickly and efficiently complete the underwriting process, and constructing bids that would appeal to sellers without promising more than we were comfortable giving. Our case is the perfect example of how critical it is to get an experienced agent on your side, and Barbara went above and beyond all of our expectations. Her professionalism and work ethic are unassailable. But we appreciated her charisma and humor even more. My wife and I were very lucky to have an agent that just clicked with our personalities and her name even became one of our son's first words (she will always be "Bar-bar" to him now). Her number one goal is to make her clients happy and that intention really shows in her efforts. As the five star rating suggests, Barbara is as good as it gets. Anyone buying or selling a home in the East Bay would be lucky to have her as an agent (and friend, really). read more

My wife and I just moved to Berkeley and bought our first home with Barbara's sage assistance. Barbara was a joy to work with. Being from out of town, her guidance on the particularities of the east bay was invaluable. She has an amazing wealth of knowledge and contacts in the area. She was great at putting us in contact with various people to do inspections and advise about work needed at a particular house. But most of all, it was a real pleasure to hang out with Barbara during the many months of our home search. We whole heartedly recommend Barbara. Andrew read more

If you want to sell your house, work with Barbara Hendrickson. She was amazing, and we ended up selling our home (in El Cerrito) for quite a bit more than we had anticipated. Barbara is generous, creative, and straightforward; she'll tell it like it is, but always in the service of the task at hand, which is getting you the best price for your home (I assume she's the same way if you're on the purchasing end, too). For us, every suggestion that she had about how to go about selling our house was right on the money. We were working with a very small staging and prep budget, and Barbara worked with us to ensure that our house presented as well as it possibly could. She told us what needed to happen, and what we could do without -- and she was right about everything. We loved working with her. We really appreciated how direct she was with us about every step of this process, and how responsible (and patient) she was about helping us understand each thing as it happened. We couldn't have imagined a better realtor, or a better experience in selling our house. Thanks Barbara! read more

Barbara Hendrickson is a very smart, professional realtor. She sold our home on Oak Vale Avenue in the Claremont in a very short time frame at a price well beyond our expectations, $2,550,000. Achieving that price was the result of her carefully crafted marketing strategy and her close attention to detail during every step of the sale. When we told Barbara we wanted to sell the house, she selected the date for the Open House based on factors we had not considered. We met with her and discussed all the information that she had gathered which helped us choose the right listing price. Barbara worked on the sale of our house every day. We really felt supported by her. She was always "on it" and provided thorough answers right away to any question. She negotiated with the stager about scale, style and color throughout the house while we were busy packing up 32 years of stuff in 2 weeks. Her marketing was consistently superb. Our home was shown by many agents and our Open Houses were very well attended. Barbara represented us in a few other transactions including a large commercial building that we owned in Oakland where she brought us seven offers from both commercial and residential agents and made us $200,000 over asking, but that is another story. Her skill at reading people and situations came into play throughout the process. We are so grateful for her years of experience and her creativity. She really worked for us and had our interests at heart. She has great negotiating skills, is funny and is really enjoyable to work with. This is the reason she is the top realtor at Red Oak. We have referred Barbara to many friends and family and all of them have had a great experience. read more

We first met Barbara over eight years ago when she was the realtor selling the condo we were renting. What could have been a stressful time was made so much easier. When it came time to selling our own condo, the first person that came to mind was Barbara. We have been working with Barbara now for several months and have just closed on our first home. Not only did our home close within 30 days of listing but we had 15 offers and sold 26% over asking! Barbara has been awesome to work with in so many ways. She's laid back, yet extremely responsive, understanding and listens to your concerns and needs. Barbara was very helpful making our condo more marketable and getting the right price for us. We genuinely think she wants to see her clients achieve the best realized price for their property. Barbara's years of experience are invaluable when it comes to interacting and negotiating with potential buyer's agents. We got the highest price with the best possible terms. Can't recommend Barbara enough! She really has made this process as pleasant as possible for us and we would wholeheartedly refer her to anyone looking for a real estate agent in the East Bay. read more

Barbara, thank you for the tremendous effort you put forth to sell my home on Anson Way in Kensington. It was obvious that you are a true professional and are very well connected with people who are valuable when it comes to selling a property. The flow of events from our initial meeting to the final document signings was well orchestrated and easy for the seller. The people you referred for tasks such as handyman services, lawn and garden care, inspections and staging were all very professional and performed their jobs promptly and skillfully. I would recommend you and Red Oak to any person thinking of selling their home. You and your support staff at Red Oak will do the job and get the very best price for the property. Thank you for all of your efforts and I wish you much good luck in your future endeavors. read more

We chose Barbara Hendrickson of Red Oak Realty to sell our three unit house in North Oakland recently. She showed up to our first meeting well prepared, with local comps, and lots of ideas of how we should go about marketing our property. I immediately liked her communication style, very straightforward, businesslike, creative, and also fun to talk to! Selling rental property takes more expertise than the regular single family home or condo sale, and I was concerned that we find the right realtor for the job. After interviewing various realtors we had no hesitation in hiring Barbara, as she immediately inspired confidence and made us feel at ease with the process. As it turned out there were some complications with the sale of our property due to unforeseen disclosure issues which came up during the inspection process. Barbara reassured us that issues like these were quite common, and that the sale may just take longer than anticipated. She remained calm and just went along with her job in a positive and professional manner. I am sure that our sale took up much more of her time than she had originally anticipated, and dealing with multiple showings of tenant occupied property adds further challenges. As it turned out our tenants were very comfortable dealing with Barbara, and there were no issues that we had to deal with. We were sure glad to have had Barbara on our side when it came time for the final negotiation of the sale, and would have no hesitation in recommending her to our friends. read more

We have known Barbara Hendrickson for over seven years, after initially meeting with her to consider selling a previous home. We ended up selling that home through a private sale, so did not use realtor services. However I called upon her several times for consultations during the last seven years and she just so generously and freely gave whatever advice she could, which was always helpful and proved her resourcefulness and expertise. We decided to buy a home in Berkeley toward the beginning of 2012, just as home sales decidedly and permanently completed their shift into a sellers' market, inventory was low, and so were interest rates so many buyers competing for same houses. Unfortunate timing on our part, but Barbara proved to be a tireless advocate on our behalf. We put in seven good offers over the course of the last 18 months, and were finally rewarded with a great house find in our budget range. Barbara always wisely counseled us to bid the max that we were comfortable with both in terms of if we got the house, or in the case that we didn't get the house we would not have regrets about not having bid more. So the homes that we offered on went to other deserving folks because it was their time, or they had all cash, and what can you do about that? The only two times we ever did feel some regret were when good homes came along that were available to us exclusively but beyond our financial comfort zone and they "got away". In retrospect, it is, again, a wise realtor who does not encourage her clients to spend beyond their means, and later might get into trouble or have buyers' remorse. Barbara, and her assistant, Kim Markison, a realtor herself, helped us navigate the complicated process of inspecting a potential home, getting estimates and input from many different contractors, inspectors, the city permit office, etc, and finally negotiating a contract wherein we felt we got a good deal. Barbara's resourcefulness, local connections & insider knowledge, and experience came into positive play many times. She and Kim never lost patience or energy, even when we did, and looked at probably over a hundred homes on our behalf--it's very helpful to have someone else look at homes, and rule it out for you so that you don't have to spend your Sunday afternoons looking at houses unless they're worth it. She recommended to us a great mortgage broker, who negotiated the perfect terms for us, and she also provided a few other names so that we could comparison-shop. We highly recommend Barbara, and Barbara and Kim as a team, and are delighted to end up finishing such a long business relationship/transaction as friends. read more

We're not so young anymore (85) and we needed guidance and some comforting as we set about selling our house. Our son in Colorado actually had Bay Area real estate agents apply for this assignment. Barbara's application was so impressive that it foreshadowed the efficiency and grace Barbara displayed as she subsequently sold our house in Kensington. Barbara did a superb job, in every way. She worked with dispatch-and the team she set up for the task, Nurture Source Designs for the house preparation and staging, and all the other folk who got involved, were quick, efficient, considerate of our budget. Courtney Cohan, who helped with the various contracts and other paperwork was splendid, too. But all of this complex undertaking was orchestrated by Barbara-who would return calls instantly, and who was an unfailing source of practical and effective advice. We sold the house quickly, well over asking price. The presentation of competitive bids, six or seven of them in rapid succession, was a fast-moving drama directed with skill and efficiency-- around Barbara's living room table. When the agents had finished, Barbara gave the advice we had requested of her logically, and with the sort of understanding of both buyers and sellers which was characteristic of all her dealings.. Barbara surely must have spent far more time on us than a strict business calculation would have required. In consequence, the sale of our house went without any hitch at all. What more could one ask. And as the best reward of all, we have really acquired a new friend-with whom I've walked the Richmond waterfront, with whom my wife has gone to the theater, with whom we've visited at each other's' houses and shared meals. And I think it's not at all irrelevant to point out that Barbara is a skilled and committed painter. The generous, free-ranging, intuitive spirit that infuses her work as a painter can't help but reflect the honest, generous, insightful, competent manner in which she lives a rich life as an exceptional realtor and an artist. PFN PFN August 24, 2014 read more

Barbara did a great job with negotiating a fair price on a 1921 craftsman bungalow in Central Berkeley. She's excellent at keeping in touch with updates during the search process and arranging for any necessary inspections. Post-sale, she'll also recommend contractors/vendors for any work or services you might need to do (though I would suggest vetting them independently, like you would any recommendation). All in all, I'm satisfied with our home and the relatively painless process by which she helped us acquire it. read more

Barbara Hendrickson and Rudy Gonzales are savvy realtors, and excellent communicators. Their special blend of sensitivity, humor, teamwork and professionalism made me feel supported in just the right ways as I went through the painful process of prepping my home for sale. They are grounded, knowledgeable, compassionate and witty. I feel very grateful to have found them. All this...and they got a fantastic price for my house. read more

Working with Barbara to sell our rental property was a joy. Always unruffled, even when we found ourselves in a protracted battle with our property manager, she managed to negotiate a fair deal for both our tenants and us. She also somehow managed to keep us mostly calm and we believe that made all the difference. It was our first house, it was a complicated transaction, and she just kept reminding us about the goals that we'd established from the very beginning. She is ethical, knowledgeable, realistic, and has a great sense of timing and humor. If we ever return to the Bay Area, she is the first person we'll call. read more

Almost twenty years ago Barbara helped me buy the house which she helped me sell this March. In 1997 I may have been the last person to buy a house for asking price ($360,000). In 2014 with Barbara's superb stager, fine tuning and subtle but direct negotiation skills, the sale price was 30% above asking. There was a little bit of luck, the market was good, the timing excellent, but it was mainly Barbara's due diligence and understanding that made the sale so successful. She has a wonderful network; repairmen, stagers, mortgage brokers, assistants who follow up on the endless paperwork involved in buying and selling. Her attention to detail and her care turns the professional relationship into a friendship. For most importantly, Barbara inspires trust--and deserves it. With that element in place, real estate dealings become a pleasure rather than a source of stress. Since selling my house in Berkeley I have bought an apartment in New York City, where my agent was a friend of Barbara's..... And this summer, I will be working with Barbara once again to sell a rental apartment overlooking the SF Bay and the UC football stadium. Instead of dreading the process, I can look forward to it. read more

Barbara helped us 13 years ago to get into our house in Albany by providing spot on advice about the local conditions and tactics necessary to have our offer accepted. This past month, she helped us with a super complicated set of transactions that involved selling our Albany house and under tremendous pressure, getting our offer accepted in Berkeley in a super competitive market. She stayed calm and rational throughout while we felt tremendous stress. She is a pro with a lot of experience. She keeps the hours of an obstetrician and has the skills of a psychiatrist. read more

I recently had the amazing good fortune to work with Barbara for the sale of my father's home in Berkeley. My father had recently passed away and the actual process of selling his home, while it made sense, was emotionally wrenching to me. Barbara became my rock to lean on. She honored the difficulty I was having letting go by giving me space to be trying and she bolstered me with chocolate when I was low. Her focus on the end goal saw me thru to a fantastic result; we got way over the asking price. Barbara's negotiating skills were key to juggling the multiple offers to extract this gem of offer. The property presented a unique challenge as it had been a single family back in the '40's, was converted to a duplex for many years and the new buyers intend to reconnect it back to one home to suit their needs. Barbara oversaw more than a few days of hair-raising back and forth as the buyer' sought to assure themselves of the legal requirements to make this change. I could totally absent myself from this stressful process knowing she was taking care of it, superbly. In the end, the buyers are happy and I am at peace with the sale knowing they will love the house. On top of that we wildly exceeded our financial expectations. I could not have gotten to this blissful state without the experienced guidance and at times, mothering administration from Barbara. I can't recommend her services enough. read more