Joe Gallardo – Highland Partners

I recently became a first time homeowner and knew absolutely nothing about the industry or the process, until I met Joe. He’s INCREDIBLY responsive, informative, trustworthy and a true expert in his field. He genuinely listens to what is most important to you when searching for a home, and goes above and beyond to make sure your needs are met. Buying a home can be a daunting and overwhelming process, but Joe made it as smooth as possible for me. I could not be happier with my first home in Oakland. Thank you Joe!

This guy is ALL professional. He recently handled some investments for me that were complicated on the one hand (1031 exchange) and on the other were spread across the East Bay (Oakland, Walnut Creek and Brentwood). Everything worked out on time and so smoothly. Joe knows the East Bay and put in the work to identify the properties I was looking for. ‘Communication’ is such an important thing in this business and it is top priority for him — keeping in touch, returning calls, forwarding information, etc. And OMG he just loves Oakland and what is happening here! His enthusiasm is infectious. There is no BS with this guy. He understands what ‘being your agent’ really means. (And that wasn’t the case with every agent and title officer involved in my deals!). Joe Gallardo is my go-​to Realtor, period, but anyone buying/​selling Oakland should have this experience!

Buying a home is a stressful experience and, as a first-​time home buyer, I was extremely nervous. Joe was incredibly patient, hard-​working, and an all-​around pleasure to work with. He explained every detail along the way and asked a lot of questions to ensure he understood what we were looking for in a home. It’s a competitive market and I was getting a little frustrated with the bidding process — Joe came up with some creative ways to make our offers stand out (but without exceeding our budget). We had two offers accepted in the end and were very grateful that we had options for the house that we actually purchased.
Joe’s professionalism through the entire process is what stands out to me. He was very understanding as we dealt with the initial sticker shock of homes. Also, he was patient as we learned about the overall housing market and the blind bidding process used in home sales. What I really liked about working with Joe is that he never pushed us to bid higher to win a purchase, rather, he found out what prices we were willing to pay and showed us houses that we could attain in that price point. After looking at homes in our price range, we could work with Joe to put in (or remove) the appropriate clauses in our offer sheet that would make our offer attractive to the seller’s party. In the end, it took us a couple months to find the right house in the right price range. We put in a bid well within what we were comfortable paying, and our offer was accepted. We’re very happy how things turned out and would definitely recommend Joe to anyone looking to purchase a house.

I was so lucky to have Joe as my real estate agent. He was patient, collaborative, honest, persistent, responsive, informative, and kind… this list of adjectives is, by far, not complete when describing how wonderful Joe is. I was on an extremely tight budget, especially looking in Oakland, so having Joe as an agent was that much more important. He helped me find and buy the best first-​home I could ask for. He connected me with other lenders to make sure I was getting the best mortgage, and was sincerely looking out for my best interest. He took the time to truly understand what I was looking for as a first-​time home buyer making an investment in to my future, and as a mother of a small child. I recommend you consider Joe as your real estate agent!