We closed on our first home in late March 2026 after a months-long process that required navigating…read morea tight timeline, a complex condo approval, and significant financial stakes. Kevin Leibowitz at Grayton Mortgage was exceptional throughout. As first-time buyers, we came to this process with limited knowledge of how mortgages work. Kevin invested considerable time in telephone conversations where he walked us through the fundamentals -- how loan structures work, what the key figures mean, and how different decisions would affect our outcome at closing. He was never dismissive of our questions and consistently ensured we understood what we were agreeing to before moving forward. His value became most apparent on closing day itself. Kevin attended in person and conducted a line-by-line review of the final figures. He identified a duplicate charge of approximately $13,000 that had not been flagged by anyone else in the room, including our attorney. He challenged it directly, and it was removed. Without his presence and diligence that morning, we would have overpaid by a significant sum. Kevin is responsive, precise, and genuinely invested in his clients' outcomes. We would recommend him without reservation to anyone navigating a purchase in New York City.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Kevin was outstanding to work with as a first time home-buyer. Extremely thorough and well educated…read moreon the entire process. it was a very smooth experience. I would recommend to use him!

Nicholas Venezia did an excellent job on the sale of my one bedroom apartment in Dyker Heights…read more At our initial meeting, he came prepared with a marketing plan and comparables that demonstrated his in-depth market knowledge. He worked with me to set an asking price that would appeal to the market but not leave value on the table. I started getting offers literally one day after hiring Nick due to his network within the neighborhood that brought a number of prospective buyers to my property. After evaluating many offers in the following few weeks with his advice, we had a contract out less than a month after listing at 5% below ask. He was a pleasure to work with and communicated with me frequently throughout the entire process. I'd highly recommend Nick to anyone who is selling a property in this market.

I just wanted everyone to know Ben Bay Realty is the BEST, Nick Venezia is a very professional and…read morewonderful person. It was a pleasure to work with him and the company. My home, as well as 3 other homes on my block were sold in less then 3 months. I would recommend this company and especially Nick to all interested in selling and buying, you will not be disappointed. It was a very enjoyable experience. Me and my neighbors were very happy with his service.. Carolann Saponaro-Tangorra

Could not be happier with my experience with Maryla and her team at Guardhill. I was worried about…read morea tight closing window, but Maryla helped move the process along as quickly and as painlessly as possible and I was able to get a mortgage commitment ahead of schedule. Being a first-time homeowner, I had many questions about the process but Maryla always responded extremely quickly and often outside of business hours. She did her best to keep my costs low and always let me know in advance of any expenditures I should expect. The customer service was top notch with Guardhill and I would definitely recommend them for your mortgage needs!

I couldn't be happier with GuardHill's service and ability to close my loan on time. I had a very…read morecomplicated purchase that they were able to help navigate swiftly and ultimately close on time. I am positive if I picked a different mortgage provider I would not have been able to get this deal done. They are experts and highly skilled at closing loans and getting through underwriting. I am so grateful for GuardHill's incredible team (special shoutout to Suzanne and Betsy who were ROCKSTARS!!!). I can't recommend them highly enough and will be using GuardHill every chance I get for all other purchases moving forward.

After 4 visits to NYC looking for an apartment working with different reputable agencies, Devin was…read morethe only broker that showed us apartments with our preferences (really the only broker that actually listened). He was courteous, thoughtful, professional and really made the volatile, and somewhat harsh, NYC apartment market bearable for my family. We have had a very positive experience in our current apartment/neighborhood. Devin continues to keep in touch with good wishes to our family. We wholeheartedly recommend Devin!!

Devin is a very helpful, pleasant and professional broker. He always answered our questions/texts/…read moreemails promptly, had new ideas, whatever places he took us to see met our requirements, and very easy to speak with.

Five stars for Sean. He is a consummate professional--highly attentive, knowledgeable, and patient…read morefrom mortgage pre-application through closing. His expertise, style, strong relationships with a wide array of lenders, and team orientation (working very smoothly with my real estate agent and lawyer), made the mortgage process easy, securing a great rate for me. Sean's talent and expertise will save you an enormous amount of legwork in NYC's high-speed competitive real estate market. Highly recommend him for anyone looking for top-notch service in NYC.

Sean and Nicole are so kind, professional, and knowledgeable; they had our best interests in mind…read moreand we felt trust in them throughout the entire process. Despite the uncertainty of the current landscape, we were provided with frequent check-ins and guidance. Sean took the time to listen to us and to talk us through everything, and getting all our documents organized and uploaded felt pretty straightforward. Nicole and Sean were always impressively prompt in answering our questions and allaying our anxieties, and managed to get us rates that beat our local banks' by far! Our entire process was virtual, and we'd had little sense of what to expect before working with Sean. With larger institutions, I'd felt like just a number, but Sean really went above and beyond in helping us understand the process, as well as in advising us about how to proceed. Nicole and Sean definitely smoothed a complicated process, and we felt super lucky to work with them! Block has the best rates and the best service, and they really understand the NYC market.

Working with Kayla to buy our first home was an absolute pleasure! Our friends who have worked with…read moreher multiple times recommended her to us and we were completely blown away by her professionalism, knowledge, and responsiveness. As first time homebuyers, we had a plethora of questions throughout the process and she always responded in a patient and timely manner. Another thing that really impressed us was the depth of her knowledge about the property market in LIC and her insights about the buildings. The wealth of experience she has from all the years of doing what she does really shone through during all our interactions with her and she consistently exceeded our expectations. She even continued to follow up with us after the closing to see how we were doing. Kayla is the epitome of going above and beyond, and we give her our highest recommendation!

Kayla demonstrated how a competent broker should act. Kept us well informed throughout the process…read moreand was delightful to work with.

I spoke to Lisbeth she was extremely professional and helped me find the perfect place…read more ML

My realtor was Anthony Shelton, I had a blast working with him smart, professional, punctual,…read more provided me with a great selection of apartments, negotiated it on a price with the owner for me. Very responsive to my text messages kept in touch with me until I got my keys made sure everything went well with moving in. Five stars! Thank you. Highly recommended!

I am really disappointed with the level of service, communication, and turnaround time, and will be…read moreresearching other options. I have been at this with them for approx five weeks and I'm told it's a pretty straight forward mortgage, yet no answers yet, and told it's going to be another two weeks. Chris tells me pre- approvals are on the back burner, and some lenders don't even do them anymore (hard to believe) so I feel like I'm penalized for not having a property yet.. while brokers tell me this is the responsible way to buy. I wish I would have done more research before I allowed Grand Oaks to do a hard pull on my credit. If I had a nickel for every time I heard Chris say 'I have been doing this for a long time', I would have money for another down payment. Just do your research folks, don't make the same mistake I did. Live and learn.

Chris was there for us from pre-approval to closing. He is professional, patient, and truly knows…read morehis stuff!! We would recommend him to anyone who is looking to purchase a home!