I'm a realtor and I deal with a lot of title companies and Lakeside is hardest one I've ever had to…read morework with. Most title companies try to find a way to accomplish their clients' needs. This one does the opposite and some of the management (not all) are down right mean as hell! As real estate agents, we sometimes put money into properties and get reimbursed at the closing table and can add our expenses to the ALTA. I've done this with over a dozen other title agencies. But Lakeside does not allow reimbursements from the ALTA and sends all the proceeds to the seller (or buyer) and asks them to divvy it up post closing. I get it..it's their prerogative on whether they should have to do extra work or not by adding things to the ALTA, but I just feel like they should make it known in advance. I will say that my processor was great. But please stop hiring mean people in management!

I had to register three complex title changes. Mr. Malakoff knew exactly what and how to do. He…read morewas extremely efficient and professional.

As a first year real estate agent I did my first ever closing with Aestar as my closing agent. The…read moreprocess was seamless, professional, and efficient while also very easy to understand as Jonathan communicated with me the entire way. I highly recommend Aestar as they are respectful, direct, and take care of their clients. This full service experience was so wonderful I will continue using Aestar as my title and escrow service.

I am an agent in VA, DC,& MD. With all my years of being a Realtor, Jonathan with Aestar has been…read morethe best processor I've ever have the pleasure in working with. He's knowledgeable, experienced, and usually responds within minutes if not seconds 24/7. I've worked with Johathan twice so far and bith times have been great. With locations in VA, DC, and MD, Aestar made it easy for me to close conveniently. I've worked with over 10+ title companies in the past and Aestar is #1. I highly recommend Aestar to any Realtor in the area!

Do not use this company. They did not convey clear title to me when handling my closing despite…read morecharging me for doing so. Even worse, after the fact, they are unresponsive by email and will not pick up or hang up by phone. Beware, this can be a nightmare for you in the long run.

DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY, and here's why: if you need any post closing services in the future, maybe…read morebecause you need to transfer your title to a trust, and/or a family member to complete your will, or to an LLC to expand your rental business, this CLA Title & Escrow Company WILL NOT handle any of your post closing services even if you're a returning customer (I used CLA Title & Escrow for my closing of residential property). This is the only title company that does not handle their customers' post closing services. This means that ultimately you have to find a different local title company to extend the service started by CLA Title & Escrow. That local company will likely refuse you because most of them do not underwrite the title insurance (Fidelity National Title Insurance) sold by CLA Title & Escrow, and they don't want to do any "small" work when another company already did the "big" work. A good title and closing company is the one that takes care of customers for closing (big work) and post-closing (small work) as well. All 20 local Title companies I researched advised me to go back to the title company that handled my closing, and that's how the business is done, totally normal and customary, because they do not service the title insurance sold by CLA Title & Escrow and/or transfer the title for you. And other local title companies may or may not agree with how the deed and closing was handled by another title company.

Ibi and Fred make a great realty team, and they are even better people. After experiencing how…read morepleasant Ibi was to work with on the buying side in Rockville - and how knowledgeable she was about her profession, Montgomery County, local contractors, area restaurants, etc. - we asked Ibi to help us sell our Rockville home a few years later. She worked the market during the weeks before we went live, and we sold for over-asking on Day 1. When we moved back to Maryland, Ibi and Fred helped us find a great deal in a desirable neighborhood in Gaithersburg. They again helped us find contractors for various repairs and met up with us for lunches to make sure we were settling in. During COVID-19, we decided we needed to find a different home with more of a yard and home office space. We could not afford what we wanted closer in to DC, so Ibi and Fred helped us scour the marker across Montgomery, Arlington, Alexandria, Fairfax, and Anne Arundel Counties. We finally found our gem north of Annapolis, and won it in a hot market under asking, while selling our Gaithersburg home again on Day 1 for over asking. Ibi and Fed have come out to visit us by the Bay to check in and have been learning the market on this side of the state. They're great to work with, and now great friends, too.

Ibi Sofilas and My Realty Team are simply the best! She and her associate Fred Levy have expertly…read morehandled three real estate transactions for our family in the past 13 years. After the first experience we knew we'd never have to look anywhere else for our real estate needs. The first two transactions were home sales. With their creative sales strategies, we received top dollar offers in just a matter of days on both properties. The third experience proved to be more challenging requiring all the knowledge and experience only a 20+ year seasoned professional team can offer. With all the ups and downs of a hot seller's market they were able to navigate the real estate landscape and find our ideal retirement home. At each step along the way they kept us informed and updated. Their work ethic, persistence and positive attitude were amazing. I can honestly say that this deal would not have happened without Ibi and Fred leading the way. We recommend them without hesitation to friends, family and neighbors. Jim and Kathy Ruth

Great experience transferring car title. Professional, friendly, knowledgeable associates. Much…read morebetter experience than going to MVA. Highly recommend!

In, out, fast. Cost me $7.50 to turn in my tags and get a receipt. Whole thing took 3 minutes. This…read morewas AFTER I took a peek nextdoor at the DMV to see a long line, not moving. Hassle free with little cost that was so worth it!

When it comes to people skills & salesmanship, I don't think I have encountered anyone in the real…read moreestate industry as impressive as people at Gemini. But when it comes to integrity, their practices are very ummmm questionable, if not outright fraudulent. Before I got into this real estate transaction, I had my dream team trio (Best real estate agent, best loan officer, best settlement office/attorney) which I had been using for numerous transactions for decades and would trust them with my life. Armed with that, my lowball offer on an REO property got accepted, only because I could close within 14 days or less (been doing that for almost a decade). And here's when I was introduced to Gemini.... I received a phone call from Gemini right after I get my ratified contract telling me that they are handling the seller's side, and if I use them, I would save thousands on buyer's title insurance (which was a lie, it was a lot less than that), and since everything is almost done on their side, they can close as soon as I want them to close (another lie). I confirmed if they can close within 10 days, and their exact response was "if your lender can close tomorrow, we can close tomorrow!" (It is scientifically and legally impossible to do that, and I take part of the blame for not sensing this lie/sales tactic). And everything would be smoother without any hiccups (it could actually be true if Gemini was competent settlement office).... So I went with them... BIG MISTAKE... Fast forward, my lender took care of her part in a week, 48 hours prior to the closing, when I get my disclosures from my lender, I call Gemini to confirm, and find out they haven't even gotten started on their part.... And don't know when they can get started... Or tell me for sure how long it could take, maybe weeks, maybe months, they are just busy at this time. Their reason: The person you spoke with at Gemini was not aware of the closing process or our workload. His job is to earn your business! We apologize for the inconvenience and we make sure we will have a staff meeting regarding this issue. The result: The closing got delayed, went past my rate lock, I lost lots of time from my day job, had to reschedule all the contractors, I lost out on the ability to close in the summer time which was exactly a $17,700 loss (in future REI income), an unwinterized REO stayed vacant and open for an extended period of time (when I finally took possession, the windows were busted and most of the appliance were gone, go figure...). The icing on the cake: There were major (10+) violations that they failed to discover/disclose during title search which I'm still trying to fix (the primary job of a settlement company)

Thank You Gemini Title & Escrow for your service, sincerity and integrity. Your hard work and our…read morenetworking together helps build our success. Special thanks to Matthew Scouten & John Hodges and the Gemini team for making us feel welcomed at anytime.

As a first-time home buyer, I had no idea about the buying process besides searching websites to…read morewebsites aimlessly. Until we met Aya and Frank from Magnolia realty, they are very knowledgeable, and extremely helpful with all aspects of buying, listing and sale. She gave helpful recommendations, guided me through the whole process and always available to answer or return my phone calls. We have had 2 other real estate agents before her, and while they have been all good - Aya is just more efficient, cares more about her clients and always had your best interest in mind. During the process, we had some issue with my lender, Frank tried his hardest and made countless phone calls to get my condo close on time. We absolutely loved working with Magnolia Realty and would highly recommend Aya & Frank to all my friends who are looking for homes -Zu

Aya did a wonderful job for us as buyers of a new home in Bethesda. We knew the house we wanted…read more(we are from the area) and needed a no-nonsense agent to help us with the contract bidding and finalization. She came through superbly. Aya is a great agent in general, and very reasonable rebate-wise (check out her website for details)- especially if you know the house you want. Very attentive to clients (and has a good sense of humor!).

I reached out to Marketpro on yesterday. A viewing was scheduled for today. They called me to…read moreconfirm at 8:00am this morning for a 10:00am showing of the home. It is now an hour later 11:00am. No one has called or followed up. If you can't show up for a viewing, how are you going to purchase a house! I should have looked at the reviews before calling them. It appears they SUCK anyways! Definitely won't be using them to sell my house! Seller BEWARE!

So this company has gone from harassing, unsolicited text messages, phone calls to now paper mail…read more Clearly they do not care about BBB or FTC complaints. Additionally, they continuously lie about "removing you from a contact list". Then the company has the nerve to go to Yelp and report your reviews as false, and then Yelp turns around and deletes it, as they did with a previous review. Even with proof of harassing text messages from this "company". Guessing it might be time to look into legal action at this point.