As a foreigner in the US, the whole house-buying process was absolutely, completely, and utterly alien to me, and so it was incredibly helpful to have Karen in our corner when it came to buying a property in Oakland. We won't have been the easiest of clients, I'm sure, but she fielded all our questions, requests and even the occasional demand with great humour and undeniable can-do attitude. Even when we went through a brief period of stress when it looked like the property might fall through, she came through and saved the day. I wouldn't hesitate to conclude that if it hadn't been for Karen, our house-buying would have ended miserably. Patient, thorough, and friendly, I'd recommend Karen to anyone who's looking to buy property in the Oakland area. read more

When searching for a realtor to sell my house I was directed to Karen Manuel with Compass Realty. She came highly recommended and exceeded my expectations throughout the entire selling process. Her communication skills and knowledge of the process helped me navigate getting the house ready, completing documentation and working with the Concierge team. Her experience was invaluable every time there were questions or decisions to be made. She guided me through every phase of the process. In short, I could not have had a better agent. read more

We worked with Karen on buying our first home here in Oakland. Despite being pregnant, looking at properties in a global pandemic, and attempting to buy during totally crazy sellers' market, the process was so smooth! It was thanks to Karen's dedication, wisdom, savvy, and work ethic. We would recommend Karen to any new, seasoned, or stressed potential homebuyers or sellers. She's the real deal and we would definitely work with her again! read more

Update: We had the pleasure to work with Karen again, as we recently sold our townhouse in Oakland and bought a house in Alameda. Karen acted as our agent for both and continued to be the fantastic partner she was for us when we first worked with her. She is prompt, organized, and incredibly knowledgable in everything related to buying and selling in the area. She doesn't sugar-coat things when giving pertinent info. We had an incredibly tight timeline for both selling and buying, and Karen was able to keep up with our brisk pace and managed to get us into our new home ahead of schedule. We love her. read more

We recently had the pleasure of working with Karen to purchase a home in Alameda. As first time home buyers, Karen did an incredible job of educating my wife and me with the ins and outs of the home buying process and proved instrumental in helping us craft a winning strategy to obtain a home in such a competitive real estate market. We were under a very short timeline and Karen went above and beyond to meet this for us. Her deep knowledge of real estate in the East Bay communities, her impressive attention to detail and refreshingly warm positive attitude made working with Karen a truly pleasurable experience. I really can't say enough good things about Karen so will just say this: if you are looking to purchase a home in the East Bay, be sure to work with Karen Manuel. You won't regret it! read more

Karen Manuel - Compass - Real Estate Agents Near Me - Berkeley, California

After looking at houses for almost two years, we are now in one, thanks to Karen Manuel. My husband and I worked with three different agents before we came across Karen and couldn't have been happier with her as a realtor. Even my mom, who has twenty plus years experiences in real estate thought she was amazingly honest and thorough--just what you want when dealing with realtors. Buying a house for the first time is nerve wracking enough--you don't even know the right questions to ask half the time, but Karen asked them for us and brought up things that none of the other realtors ever brought up. Her thoroughness matched with her great service has helped us find an amazing house at an amazing price. She even helped us get a lower mortgage rate and saved us thousands of dollars a year. If you are looking for a house in Alameda, I cannot highly recommend Karen enough! Call her! read more

Karen is a phenomenal real estate agent. My husband and I were living in Marin and were first-time home buyers. We were considering buying in the East Bay, but the prospect of going across the bridge for one open house at a time seemed daunting. Karen coordinated an excellent day full of viewings for us. Our viewings were all pleasant and informative. During the tour, we learned about earthquake retrofitting. And at the end of the day, she sat us down and explained in very clear terms the process of buying. In the end, we ended up buying in Marin. However, should we ever decide to move to the East Bay, I would 100% contact her again to help us out. And I would recommend her, without any hesitation, to any of my friends who are looking to buy property in the East Bay. Thank you, Karen! You rock! read more

Karen Manuel was not our real estate agent, but took over when our agent went on vacation. She went out of her way to assist us while they were gone. She constantly communicated with us about the houses available in our price range and offered to tour them with us. She encouraged us to write an offer on a house that we had previously thought was unobtainable. Because of her thoughtful diligence and encouragement to write an offer, we now have our dream home. She encouraged us to write a back-up offer, and in the end the first buyer backed out and the house was ours! Thank you Karen for being so helpful and a true professional! Because of you, we have our dream house. read more

Karen shepherded our family through many many months of looking, until we found "the one." She urged us to offer a lower bid than what we were expecting - we were so afraid to lose out- but we got the house. She has a winning combination of professionalism, expertise, humor, intelligence, kindness and honesty. Karen made the occasionally onerous task of house hunting in a hot Oakland market doable. We made 2 other offers, and when we didn't get either house, she had just the right words of encouragement to keep us going. She is more low key than a lot of agents, quietly confident, but that suited us perfectly. We love Karen! read more

Karen took me through my first home purchase, a condo in Oakland. It was an absolutely fantastic experience, and I cannot recommend her highly enough. I had a lot of questions throughout the process, and she was patient with me and had all the answers (from market trends, to areas and personalities, to legal issues, to renovations, process and expectations, and on and on). I really wanted to see everything that was out there, and we probably went to over 50 condos over the weeks we were working together; each time she'd show up with a stack of papers and planned route, we'd go through all the properties, talk pros and cons, and then we'd go away and take notes on what was next. She kept an ear to the ground for off-market listings from agents that were close to what I was looking for, and took me to a couple of those. The paperwork is daunting for a first-timer, and she helped me through the stacks of disclosures, finding some things I hadn't spotted, working with the other agents to get clarity. We put in two offers; the first we didn't get simply because the price was out of reach for me. The second was accepted on the day, exactly as desired. We've just closed, and I'm super excited to move into my new condo! Karen is extremely knowledgable, patient, and friendly, and she really looks out for her clients. You'll be very happy to have her in your corner! read more

Karen was a pleasure to work with. My wife and I couldn't be happier with the service we received. She is responsive, extremely knowledgeable and always gave great guidance. She made sure we got the information we needed even when we didn't know we needed it. In short, we HIGHLY recommend her. read more

This lady knows how to get top dollar for your home! Her suggestions were invaluable during the bidding process when we were at a loss as to how to proceed. I cannot recommend her highly enough. read more

Let's face it. Real estate agents are generally NOT my favorite people. But Karen breaks the mold - she's a joy to work with! At every step she was professional, but with a realism and a sense of humor that kept us going through some weird and tough real estate woes. Karen is detail-oriented and helped keep us completely on track throughout the whole process of purchasing a condo in Oakland. Not only that - but once we moved in, she hosted a housewarming party for us in our new place - complete with snacks and hors d'oeuvres, and even home-made brownies! Karen is wonderful and I would highly recommend her to anyone looking to purchase or sell in the East Bay. read more

Karen was an absolute pleasure to work with as a first-time home buyer. She armed me with tons of background information in terms of comparable sales in the area, had great insight into the market and the eyes of a seller and what makes a strong offer. When I was ready to make an offer, she spent hours on the phone walking me through every provision in the purchase agreement so that I knew exactly what I was doing and what to expect. Her expertise and ability to answer questions quickly and get to the heart of the matter saved me a lot of time and anxiety. Even during the COVID quarantine, Karen was willing to do everything allowed under the shelter-in-place to show us properties. If you are buying in the East Bay, Karen should be your agent! read more

Karen is more than our realtor. She is our knowledgeable, trustworthy and ethical real-estate advisor. My husband and I have been working with Karen for five + years and recommend her without reservation. She has represented us as buyers and sellers and is committed to making transactions successful. Karen is smart and honest. She is very well-connected and supportive. Buying and selling real estate is stressful and Karen makes the process much easier because she is competent in all the subjects that matter in the transactions. We've been involved in transactions where small details were missed by the other agents involved and I am always thankful that Karen never skips a step or misses an important detail. Karen is warm and personable and truly cares. She has guided us away from situations where she may have profited to ensure we didn't get into a risky situation. She is knowledgeable about the local real estate market, competing markets, real estate law and everything else that makes buying or selling homes successful. If you seek a reliable, creative agent with an amazing reputation - call Karen today. read more

Do these reviews seem too good to be true? They're not! Go scroll down, look at the not-recommended reviews -- they're five stars, too! Karen helped us sell our Oakland home during a stressful time for our family, and even in a "hot" market she went the distance to help us get the absolute best price by working closely and thoughtfully with us on every aspect of the sale and understanding the market as it changed rapidly. This was our first time selling a home and she helped us navigate and understand the process to the best possible result. Karen is thoughtful, diligent, even-keeled, and relaxed when you need someone who is all those things by your side through a stressful time! Just the times she made us laugh when we really needed one were so worth it. She is like your favorite aunt or cousin who just always has a positive and uplifting presence to add to every mundane thing. In summary: If you are looking for an honest, smart, friendly, dedicated real estate agent to help you buy or sell a home, look no further! If you are looking for a smarmy, slimy, quick-buck, dim-bulb huckster, keep looking! read more

I was referred to Karen through a friend for help with my home purchase and I feel very lucky to have worked with her! Karen was, in every interaction, very professional, patient, and knowledgeable. Karen guided me through every step of the process and highlighted details I wouldn't have thought to ask about or think about due to my lack of experience house hunting. I would highly recommend Karen without hesitation to anyone looking for a property in the Bay Area. read more

Hi. I just relocated from Switzerland to Alameda on a corporate move. Karen was chosen for me as a specialist in international and corporate moves, clearly we need special help! It is of course far more complicated to move and buy real estate internationally. Karens style is confident, she listens well and has a wealth of experience to guide you through the process. I chose a condo and we agreed a 30 day close! My bank said impossible but we did it in 29 days! How? Great advice from Karen, calm and transparent communication, timely intervention when necessary and a 24/7 service culture. Whether moving internationally or locally to the great SF area, you'll be in good hands Mark Parker read more

Karen is a terrific realtor and person. She was extremely patient and helpful while my finance and I were looking to buy our home. Although we had good credit, we did not have a lot of money to put down for our house. She showed us many types of houses and drove us all over Oakland (for months!). She is very knowledgeable about East Bay properties and neighborhoods. She also knows her stuff when it comes to the condition of houses. She is honest, down to earth, nice, not sales-y. Best of all she stuck with us through a very difficult transaction with the previous owners and loan situations until we finalized the deal. We would definitely use Karen Manuel as our realtor again. read more

In a sellers' market, Karen's seasoned experience really paid off for us. Like the tortoise vs. the hare, slow and steady won the race. With only 12% cash down and on our third offer, Karen provided us with expert advice on contract closing strategies and was a great consultant on disclosure docs, neighborhood dynamics, and property rehab costs. She's the perfect reality check in the stressful Bay Area fantasy world of real estate. ; ] Now and for the long haul (after almost a year in our new home), we are completely grateful and appreciative of Karen's insights and help in securing our first home together! read more

Karen is truly one of a kind! We can't express how grateful we are to Karen Manuel for the almost miraculous purchase of our home! Despite the crazy Bay Area real estate market, with her skillful navigation we were able to secure our home while selling our property on the east coast. We weren't sure that it could happen the way we hoped - but it did! Karen is very professional. Her calm and collected demeanor puts both her clients and the other party at ease. At the same time, she is proactive and really moves things forward. She is rock-solid dependable and knows her stuff! Karen worked magic for us! read more

Karen is fantastic. She helped me secure a rental when I recently moved to the Bay Area from out-of-state. Highly professional, insightful, diligent and kind. Highly recommended. I look forward to working with her again. read more

It is rare to find someone with Karen's negociation skills, level of organization (invaluable when you get into contract and the paperwork is flying) and depth of knowledge related to real estate law and contracts. Karen is the utmost professional - always responsive, always punctual, always follows through. On top of all that, she is a really nice person! read more

We are first time homebuyers, and we used Karen Manuel as our real estate agent. A friend recommended Karen to my husband and me, and I have to say that friend has great judgment! Karen represents the opposite of most stereotyped adjectives I previously associated with real estate agents. She was honest, committed, sincere, straightforward, and stable. She looked out for us, and discouraged homes that could have been a major pit fall. Karen was truthful. She didn't say things just because we wanted to hear it, she was upfront and candid. For making such a serious financial investment as buying a home, she guided us through grueling, lengthy contracts. She didn't rush to get us through or push us to sign documents we did not understand. Karen was built to run marathons, as she dredged through 100's of pages of contracts, never needing a break. She kept a steadfast pace and exhibited superhuman endurance, still smiling and looking fresh until the end. I appreciate her strong ethical standing. She wanted to make sure we were completely happy and satisfied with our home. Our happiness came first, rarely thinking of her own gains, to the point that she even offered to pay out of pocket for a second home cleaning. She was adaptable to us as a family. While my husband would crawl around on his hands and knees under the houses, she cheerful held our son. For our own convenience, Karen met us at our home according to our schedule. Being a mother herself, she has a deeper understanding and tolerance for others (such as her willingness to pause as we put our baby down for naps/ bedtime). Karen helped us stick to our original home criteria-including location and our set price. She did not push us into the uncomfortable zones or out of our budget. Karen was knowledgeable, loyal, and forthright. She had stellar communications, as she was reliable and responsive. She translated real estate vocabulary into our language. Without a doubt, I would recommend Karen to a family and relative!! read more

When I decided that the time was right to buy a house, I came to Yelp to try and find a realtor. My criteria was someone who would help educate me about the process of buying a home (since I was a total and complete novice) and someone who had my best interests at heart and wouldn't try and push me into a house beyond my budget. Fortunately someone else mentioned both these things about Karen in a previous review. I called and we met. Flash forward a year and I'm writing this review in my new home, which I LOVE. Karen put together the most amazing team for me and worked really hard, above and beyond any of my expectations! I trust her implicitly and would reccommend her without hesitation. Thanks Karen!!! read more

We had such a positive experience working with Karen. Karen was our buyer's agent in Alameda. She was thorough and patient. Buying a home can be very stressful and this was not our first time so we had a level of comparison. What I really appreciated was how calm she was through the process. She never pushed us and really spent a lot of time helping us research and look at lots of options. We had a great experience and would absolutely use her again! read more

Karen Manuel was our agent who helped us sell our house on Oakland. We chose Karen because after meeting her I felt that we were in good hands and guess what? We were right! She helped us stage our house, guided us through the entire process and was there whenever we needed her. She's a constant professional who knows how to sell homes. I highly recommend her! read more

Karen has everything my husband and I could have hoped to find in a realtor as first-time homebuyers. She patiently answered all of our questions, spent a generous amount of time showing us houses and explaining their pros and cons, and skillfully aided us in crafting an offer that ensured we got the house we really wanted. We felt very confident having Karen represent us throughout the transaction, and we appreciated her professionalism when dealing with a difficult listing agent. Even after closing on our house, Karen has continued to be a valuable resource and advisor to us as new homeowners. We absolutely would work with Karen again! read more

I highly recommend Karen if you are looking for a professional conscientious, thorough, honest and caring advocate in real estate. As trustees for our mother's estate, my brothers and I were fortunate to have Karen guide us through an at times overwhelming process. I trusted Karen as our advocate. She was diligent and hardworking and did her homework: researching and showing us potential properties with an attention to detail. In the end, what I will never forget is how understanding and caring Karen was with our family and especially with our elderly mother. Even after our work was finished, Karen has been an invaluable resource, always available and willing to go out of her way to listen, answer my questions, and advise. I wholeheartedly recommend Karen Manuel! read more

Karen is as close as you will get to having a mom help you look for a home. She was a great combination of friendly, professional and aggressive. Buying a home is an emotional roller coaster and there is no way we could have done this without her help. Above all else I trusted her! read more

Searching for a home and the process of actually purchasing one is no easy task and I'm so glad we had Karen on our first go-around--especially in this insane Bay Area market. She is compassionate, patient and down-to-earth. Her authenticity shines and we absolutely trusted her to help us navigate these new waters. She always took the time to explain everything. We are so thankful to be where we are and could not have done it without her. read more

Karen is wonderful--knowledgeable, realistic and a good listener. She'll help you find the house you really want, make sure you know all the pitfalls or risks and answer all your questions and alleviate your anxieties. read more

Karen is as good as it gets! She is honest, smart, organized, thorough -and really knows the market and all facets of East Bay real estate. She also knows alot about houses and can point out potential problems that you may not notice. Best of all though is that she is patient and you will never feel pressured or rushed into a decision and you feel like she is working for you and not for her commission. A genuinely nice person-and a pleasure to work with. read more

Karen was amazing. I didn't think anyone could find a house for my daughter and son-in-law that they both liked. But she did and she saved us money and had the patience of Job. I would highly recommend her to anyone. Her honesty and humor makes her a good friend as well. read more