To say it was a pleasure to work with Mr. Schonian is an understatement. As first time home buyers,…read morethis was a big deal for us. There were countless things Karl helped explain. He was always prompt with his response, patient and honest. My husband said he always went above and beyond our expectations!! He helped me to navigate through different scenarios and made things happen. I'm not a procrastinator myself so I really appreciated this. We look forward to building our portfolio and working with Mr. Schonian in the future.

Karl and his team continue to deliver professional and friendly service to my family. We've been…read moreworking with Karl for a few years now and we have nothing but respect for him and his team. This time around we didn't think he could help us due to a few challenging factors; VA loan, self employed, and spouse hours were cut. Not to mention, taxes were being held up due to COVID-19 pandemic. We have found him to be so helpful and recognise how time consuming this must be for him; but at no time had he made us feel that it was an inconvenience to him. Karl was organized, thorough, professional, and kind which made all of the difference in our interactions.Thank you for your patience as well as treating us as people rather than just home loan customers.

Thankfully we weren't out any fees in our process, just time. Rich didn't return VM or emails…read moreregularly. It took several calls just to get his team to send a checklist and their system would still show missing docs...Although our credit isn't perfect, for what we discussed as to what type of loan we wanted and where we were looking to buy, this could have and would have been a very simple process. He clearly didn't want or need our business.

Our last refinance experience with Rich Atkinson and Alameda Mortgage could only be described as…read moreatrocious. Rich took over our loan application after we learned that our original loan officer had left the company. Our experience with Alameda Mortgage prior to being reassigned to Rich was a complete disaster, having wasted countless hours of our time (filling/re-filling out disclosure documents and hunting down financial documentation) and draining several hundred dollars from our own pockets. This is probably why our original loan officer left the company. Rich (presumably a Principal and/or manager at Alameda Mortgage) assured us that he would take care of us and everything was OK. Unfortunately, Rich Atkinson's words of assurance turned out to be nothing more than empty promises, as he frequently made commitments he didn't follow through with and he failed to respond to numerous e-mails (sometimes taking several days to respond). It should be noted that the mortgage we were applying for was pretty straight forward and our credit scores were good - excellent. We'd finally had enough after not getting a response back from Rich on two separate e-mails that we had sent over the course of 47 days. With that, we drafted a letter and sent it to Rich via e-mail, fax and certified mail. In addition to discontinuing our mortgage application with Alameda Mortgage and Rich, we demanded a refund of all the expenses we had incurred over the last several months. It's now been over two months since we sent the letter and (not surprisingly) we haven't received any response from Rich. In short, Rich Atkinson rarely followed through on commitments he made to us, he frequently did not respond to our messages in a timely manner and he ultimately left us in limbo with nothing to show for our time and efforts. As such, we would never work with Rich Atkinson again and certainly wouldn't recommend him to any of our friends. On the bright side, immediately after discontinuing our refinance application with Rich Atkinson and Alameda Mortgage, we switched to another mortgage company and the entire refinance process (from initial application to closing) took 27 days! Certainly better than the 7 months we wasted with Rich Atkinson and Alameda Mortgage.

Since they have been taken over by Commercial bank everything that made Community Bank of the Bay a…read more5 star they took away, so we closed our accounts.

I am the founder of a newly formed local nonprofit based on Alameda Island 'SailingAlameda Inc…read more DBA SailingAlameda.org.' dedicated to serving low income families with children at risk. I was referred to CBB by a nonprofit accountant consultant who highly recommended going with them. I never expected the outpouring of support from Helen, our banking representative at CBB who went above and beyon the call of duty to get our organizations banking documents and our donation portal set up so quickly. Helen actually came out, jumped on BART to visit me during my lunch hour at work to deliver important papers for my board of directors to sign then return to her. I was amazed that she also extended her support by meeting me at our office location in Alameda after hours on a Sunday afternoon to receive the signed documents! Our donation portal opened yesterday afternoon and at this writing is accepting credit card donations. Helen is a fantastic representative for Community Bank of the Bay, the bank appears to have hired a true grass roots leader in helping all nonprofits get off the ground, she was also spotted during a nonprofit event in Oakland by one of our board members doing what she and Community Bank of the Bay does best - Supporting the Nonprofit community and going beyond and above of what my expectations where. If I could give 10 stars I would, this is the Bank you need to support all your nonprofit banking needs, led by a true grass roots individual who genuinely cares for your needs. CALL THEM BEFORE CONSIDERING ANY OTHER BANK! 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed. Best! President CEO and founder of SailingAlameda.org

I can't say enough good things about Mr. Palma. He has always been going above and beyond for more…read morethan just myself, but my entire family. My parents have exclusively been working with him for years now and he's never once not picked up a call, text, email, etc. Whenever I have any question regarding tax or something in the realm of finances, he's more than happy to walk one through the process. I was surprised to see someone of his caliber not with a big firm, but upon my personal due diligence found out that he's ex-Deloitte for many years, which means he really knows his stuff. I look forward to using him more for my finances as time goes as well as seeing his business grow.

A polished, polite and professional organized team. I was…read morethankful they took me on as a client when most firms were at capacity. I purchased their tax planning service. They delivered on their promise to routinely meet with our business to strategize and plan and were prompt in responding to our needs through the year. They also prepared my state and federal taxes, and I received a tax refund! Working with their firm did pay off. I couldn't remember the last time I got a refund! I always owed something when working with other financial professionals. Some other reviewers comment that Miguel markets too much, which he does market a lot for his services, but I came to learn through our partnership that he is enthusiastic knowledgeable, and passionate about sharing financial planning and services . I found Miguel and his team to be trustworthy and deserving of manging these aspects of my business. If you own a business and have your finacial reporting in order*, can afford their services*, and be able to financially implement* any tax planning done together, then yes I highly recommend this firm. Thanks Miguel, Jasmine, Pedro and Gabriel.

Had some concerns in regards to my annual taxes. Zula was so kind and understanding. Nabil was…read morequick and overall gave a great experience. I plan to use them for any future needs and refer friends . Thank you EBA!

Terra and East Bay Accounting are caring and professional in every respect. I had a difficult…read morepayroll situation with immediate deadlines, and Terra stepped in and did an amazing job. I can easily tell she cares about her clients and is able to navigate through any problem - especially in difficult situations. I have no hesitation in recommending Terra and her team for your taxes, bookkeeping, and payroll. 5 stars!

Jason & Geoff are great! They found a home for my difficult scenario and when the underwriter came…read moreback asking for additional items they found a way to work through it in a common sense manner that got us all to the finish line on time! I'm very happy with the loan & terms I got and will be back when they notify me it's time to refinance. Really great work! Thank you again Jason & Geoff!

From the owner: We specialize in home lending!…read more From conventional to Jumbo, FHA to VA and all that lies in between, we are can pair you with the best mortgage for your needs. Seasoned with years of experience and access to over 40 different lending channels, we have the right loan for your purchases, refinance or cash-out needs.

We were lucky enough to have Ted Hill as our loan officer. He was incredibly honest, upfront and…read moretransparent through the home buying process. From getting qualified to the finalizing of our loan through home purchase, he was available, answered our endless questions and as a young first time homebuyer, treated me with the utmost respect. We couldn't be more appreciative!

From the owner: Bay Area Funding Group specializes in loans for residential properties in the East Bay. Our senior…read moreloan officers are some of the most qualified in the business, offering you loan options, tools, resources, knowledge, and expertise. Apply easily on line, pick up the phone and call us, or come in to visit. Whether you are looking to be pre-approved, apply for a home loan or refinance, we offer competitive rates to allow you to find a loan that is just right for you and your family. Ask about our VA and FHA loans and reverse mortgages. We design solutions for even the most complex lending situations. Contact us today.

We have worked with Jay and Chris a couple of times now, and they are always consummate…read moreprofessionals. We have been very happy with the mortgage refinances they've handled for us. They are diligent and responsive to our concerns and never fail to get back to us promptly to handle any questions and provide thorough information about the process and status of the loans. We recommend Jay without any reservations whatsoever.

Jay is the best! I was referred to Jay by a friend after Big…read moreBank "X" declined my refinance loan because (after 2 months!) they could not get the proper insurance documents from my HOA. Jay stepped in and within 3 weeks a new loan was approved, at a higher appraisal value. Jay is able to quickly resolve problems as they come up, explains what is needed to keep the process moving, and what is needed to close the loan. I could not be happier and would recommend Jay to anyone.

Friendly, thorough, and smart!…read more I decided to try and find an accountant after doing my taxes myself for years. A couple of years ago I had HR Block look at my taxes and felt like they were just going to run my info through Turbo Tax so I finally listened to a close friend who referred me to Aaron. Man I'm glad I listened! Aaron was super friendly and thorough. He caught a ton of stuff I had missed on my previous returns and even helped me itemize my deductions saving me hundreds of dollars. I can't say enough about my experience with Hunter Tax Associates!

I am sorry to say I have never had a worse experience. My family and I had been using a local Tax…read morecompany since 2001. This company was outstanding. Unfortunately he retired and sold his book of business to Hunter. My family and I should have switched yet we trusted the new company. This was a very poor decision on our part. In my 45 years of doing my yearly taxes this was the worst experience ever! Their personal touch, lack of communication and overall professionalism was unacceptable. My wife and I have never been more disappointed. Needless to say we will never use them again and would encourage anyone looking to use their services to re think that decsion.