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<h1>Testimonials</h1><p>Hear what past clients have to say about their experience.</p>

beds

1 Bedroom

2 Bedroom

3 Bedroom

4 Bedroom

Buy a Home

Sell My Home

cost

Under $50k

$50k-$100k

$100k-$200k

$200k-$300k

$300k-$400k

$400k+

baths

1 Bath

2 Baths

3 Baths

4+ Baths

Rent

Sell

Love that you have the kitchen/bath/design experience/sense/eye to help see through the "diamonds in the rough" homes on the market.


Love that you have the kitchen/bath/design experience/sense/eye to help!

In July of this year, my wife and I decided to purse the next chapter of our journey in the greater Seattle area.  With little more than a general knowledge of Seattle and its surrounding towns that was almost 30 year old, we set off to find a home.  Thank goodness that our first call was to Realtor Heather Blacksmith!  
 
Heather, with her keen understanding of our needs as well as of Seattle and the surrounding area was instrumental in our search.  She not only helped us select a municipality but a house as well that met our unique needs.  Heather listened carefully to what we were looking for and was able, within one short visit, help us nail down an area that would meet our needs (Edmonds).  Once we agreed on the location, Heather then helped us find just the right house that would meet the many criteria that we had for what would make for a great post-retirement house.  She listened carefully to what we both considered important and then found houses that meet those criteria.  She sorted through dozens of listings and presented only those to us that met those requirements that we set.  Once we found the house that met our needs and exceeded our expectations, she was then extremely helpful in helping us to explore financing,  close on the house, and then make a number of key contacts to help us get settled in our new neighborhood.  In fact, Heather and her family were there when the first load of boxes and furniture showed up from Portland to welcome us and to help us unpack!  
 
I have never experienced customer service like this and highly recommend Heather Blacksmith and Lake and Company to any and all that are looking to make a move to the Seattle area.  

I have never experienced customer service like this!

I'd give you 5s on a few more things as well: 

Staying within my price range and not trying to "up-sell" me 

Making me feel like you had my best interests at heart by talking me out of a condo with high HOA dues and into a TH with better potential for re-sell value 

Being knowledgeable about the market, Seattle neighborhoods, and all the "working parts" of a house-- roof, sewers, heating, plumbing, electrical, etc. 

Being enthusiastic, patient, and down to earth and fun to be with-- and very chivalrous as well-- opening doors, picking me up, making me feel like you were my friend as well as my agent. I'm glad I met you! Thanks for all your help. 


I'm glad I met you! Thanks for all your help!

Thank you for your hard work and attentiveness. We’ll continue to refer family and friends! Ross made us feel like we were the only clients he was working with! 

Thank you for your hard work and attentiveness!

We met Heather in early December 2017, when she was showing an open house. We were very impressed with Heather who was very amicable and listened to our situation and ask questions and provided advice during the open house. She followed up very promptly that same evening with the answers to some of our questions. 

Before hiring Heather to represent us, we ask multiple questions and Heather was very honest and truthful with us. She then looked for a suitable condo, and within a few days came up with a possible property.

Heather was very accommodating and would check out & visit the property in advance and liaise with the selling agent to build a good relationship with the selling agent. 

Heather seemed to go the extra mile for us, and nothing was ever a problem for her. With Heather's advice and guidance we were successful in purchasing a condo in Seattle and beat out multiple other strong offers on the table.

Even after the purchase of the property, Heather has followed up with us to see how we are doing.

We would definitely recommend Heather, and use her again for future properties.

We would definitely recommend Heather!

We're so fortunate to have had Lara as our realtor! We live out of state and needed a knowledgeable Seattle realtor and after interviewing several we picked Lara without hesitation. All aspects of the listing, sale and closing went so very well! Our advise to anyone looking for a realtor: select Lara!

Highly likely to recommend

  Shannon is an outstanding agent! She went to bat for us, was responsive and helpful throughout the buying process, and made the experience great!


Shannon is an outstanding agent!

Thank you for making the whole process of selling my home so problem-free. All of your advice, experience and support helped reduce the stress especially during this difficult time in my life. You two compliment each other and make a great team. Don't change anything! Thanks again!

Thanks again!

One day while getting in the car with Ross, (Ross is awesome and picks his clients up to tour homes) I noticed he had a bunch of tools in the back of his car. He was apologetic for the noise they were making. It wasn't bothering us at all and we later learned he was dropping them off with a former client who found a home and needed tools. This is one small example of the awesomeness of Ross. 

We are first time home buyers who barely scraped enough to buy a home in the madness of the Seattle market, and we needed a lot of guidance and strategy to help us navigate not only the first time home buying process, but the illogical nature an over saturated low inventory market. Ross had helped fellow friends and colleges which made the decision easier but after interviewing a few other realtors, we knew he was the one. 

Ross is the realtor you want on your side. Not only does he brings years of experience in the Seattle market, as a bonus he used to remodel homes in the Seattle area so he knows a lot of the pitfalls we needed to consider. Oil heat? Galvanized pipes? Years left on a roof? Foundation type? Electrical? Siding? Flooring? Heating? All things he can recognize and point out as a consideration for purchase. We could also give him a list of homes on a Monday and we were out looking at them on Tuesday. He also spent a few weekends taking us on tours and it didn't matter how far apart they were. 

He is also VERY patient. We had a lot of questions and no matter the time of day or frequency, his response was always prompt and well thought out. As a great realtor should, Ross helps to guide the purchase rather then inject his opinion. He looks at the whole picture and asks questions to help us understand how the different aspects of the home and purchase fit into our needs and budget. However he had no issues saying a house was solid or needed a lot of work to be comfortable.

Ross is also committed to the sale. Based on our fist few offers, all losing to bids 10-30% over asking, or homes with multiple per-inspections/offers, we were becoming a bit discouraged on the entire process. Due to the constraints of our budget and down payment, we knew we needed to be creative and re - strategize on approach. When we finally stumbled into a house we had a chance at buying, knowing the competitive nature of this market, Ross jumped into action. He spent a Saturday with us scheduling (and un-scheduling) pre-inspections, communicating with the listing agent, guiding us on our offer, earnest money, contingencies, escalation, and making sure we had all the offer documents in place. When it looked like we were going be out bid, he continued to work with us until the later evening on Sunday, re-negotiating with the listing agent and sellers, gave us some solid advice, and our offer was accepted on Monday afternoon, even beating out a higher offer. Even after mutual acceptance he came to our workplace to pick up our earnest money check and hand delivered critical documents to the sellers escrow agent to make sure the process moved smoothly. 

I can't recommend Ross enough. We could have "tried" to save a few dollars by going through a service like Redfin but I can tell you we would have never had a chance in this market where a skilled and knowledgeable agent is required. Now I'm very excited to be on the receiving end of Ross's tool library for our new home needs. 


I can't recommend Ross enough!

Justyna was fantastic in helping me finding my first home. She was thorough, organized, responsive, and really had a great pulse on the current market. Buying a home for the first time in this market was nerve wracking and Justyna patiently listened to me and expertly guided me throughout the entire process.

Justyna was fantastic in helping me finding my first home!

This review will be the highest I can give due to Lara's consummate professionalism and expertise. We were buying from out of state which meant Lara had to go above and beyond to make us feel comfortable with a purchase that often seemed confusing due to our lack of understanding of West Coast Real Estate Culture. Indeed, we found there is a lot more trust involved in West Coast home and mortgage purchasing, so we needed someone like Lara (honest, clear, articulate and specific with information). From the start, she was fun to hang out with when looking for properties. Lara was the perfect mix of hip and cool (my daughter will be living in the apartment) and power business woman. She provided incredible care. She was available, it seemed, 24 hours, in answering our questions immediately. I don't think a call went unanswered for 10 minutes, even with the time difference. She was professional with her constant reminders of what came next and what we would need at the next stage, consistently updating us AS SOON as she had information to help us with our decision. What is most impressive was her ability to understand the market so well with asking prices and the discussions with the buyers to find a working fix list. There was NO HITCH. Lara knows this business. Whip smart, yet able to explain everything simply. The smoothest transaction possible! AND QUICK! Wow! I would work with her again in a heart beat. You would be wise to call her up today if you are interested in having the easiest purchase of a home possible.

If you are thinking about selling yours, please her a call: 

We have known Sydnie Taylor for several years and would highly recommend her to anyone looking to purchase or sell a home. She represented us in the fall of 2011 when we purchased our dream home in Laurelhurst. This ended up being a difficult negotiation with several unforseen obstables. If it were not for Sydnie we likely would not have our home today! Her expertise, business-savvy, and persistence were crucial to our success! In addition, she was helpful and very available to us every step of the way! We couldn't be happier and would love to discuss our experience with anyone who is looking for an amazing real-estate agent!


We couldn't be happier!

Barbara is a very experienced realtor and cares for her clients throughout the listing and buying process. We experienced this through several successful closings with her. We would not hesitate to use her again. Thank you and keep up the good work.

Barbara is a very experienced realtor!

Kristin gave us wonderful input to get the house ready to sell and get top dollar! Ranging from what to fix to choices of stagers.  I highly recommend her!


We can't thank you enough for your hardwork during our moving process. Your professional touch and friendship was a great comfort in relieving the stress of moving. We had complete confidence in you and were able to rest easy, knowing you would handle all the details and any arising problems. We will highly recommend you to friends and family. 

Above and Beyond with Professionalism and Expertise

Nadine went over and above in helping get the home ready to sell. Thanks.


Nadine went over and above!

Leslie, you are the best. It was very nice working with you. 


You are the best!

[Your] artistic ability to present the house was magical. You have been such [a] great agent! The house sold so rapidly to nice people at a good price. Nothing could have been better! You are the best! 

Nothing could have been better! 

Lihai is a kind and dedicated professional. She has gone above and beyond during the whole process, from house hunting to closing. She was there all along the way to explain each step (I was a first time buyer), and I felt in good hands when closing came. I highly recommend her!

Lihai is a Kind and Dedicated Professional!

David sold our house for us and knocked it out of the park! This was our first home and sale and David delivered the high-touch service we required. He provided sound advice up front, was available for our many questions, and even rolled his sleeves up to help with the work. His recommendations on readying the house, price and timing were well researched and proved invaluable. David kept us focused on the end goal (which was no easy task) and delivered more than we could have imagined was possible.

He knocked it out of the park! 

I had a fantastic experience working with Justin. I was a first-time home buyer and I needed a lot of guidance. 

Here is the best part about Justin. He discouraged me from buying the first place I considered buying. It wasn't right for me, and though I was excited about it, he knew I would not have been happy there long term. He was honestly concerned about helping me find the best house for me, and he was confident that with his help, I would be able to find better places. I took his advice, waited for a better option, and I couldn't be happier. I think I would have been really frustrated by the condo and I am thrilled about my current home. 

I was so surprised by that. Here I was, considering buying, and you'd think my realtor would be pushing me to buy. But he wasn't. He was pushing me to consider all the options and to make the best possible decision for myself. He really cares about his clients and getting them into the best homes for them. I cannot underscore this enough. 

Local Knowledge: Justin was incredibly knowledgeable about the area and what is considered valuable. Moreover, Justin has a lot of knowledge about house construction. He can see whether the plumbing or electricity are out of date, he can provide guidance (and referrals) on how much it would cost to update a kitchen or put in new windows. As a single female, this was especially crucial guidance for me. 

Process Expertise: I'm not sure what other realtors do for their clients, but man did Justin work for me. He provided referrals for the inspection and sewer scope. He emailed with my parents to assuage some of their concerns. He checked out the location before I signed to make sure the former owners had moved out. He was present and actively engaged during the inspection, asking questions and climbing on my roof. Just to name a few times he went what felt like above and beyond. I couldn't have asked for better support. 

Responsiveness: Always responds via cell or email. Always. 

Negotiation Skills: We negotiated some and it was really nice to have him on the front lines of that. We got the price reduced by about $10k (after the price had already dropped 2x on the market) and got a few more things added after the inspection. I feel like I got a really fair price for my house. If you're in the Seattle area, I couldn't recommend a better realtor. 


I couldn't recommend a better realtor!

I am so grateful someone I know recommended I work with Kevin; it was an absolute pleasure and he went above and beyond at every stage of the process. Being new to the US housing market, Kevin took a lot of time to ensure I fully understood the process and was a critical point of contact between me and the other parties involved. Even when I wouldn’t have expected Kevin to support, he was more than happy to jump in and make sure all elements of the purchase were progressing quickly. He’s clearly very connected and well respected locally which helped immensely and I can absolutely see why. He took the time to make sure we were evolving the search as I learned more about my needs and was flexible on his time. I couldn’t have hoped for a better experience and will absolutely recommend him to anyone I know who is looking for a Realtor.

He went above and beyond at every stage of the process!

We met Sarah Cate at a home buying class. We were first-time homebuyers with very little knowledge about the whole process. Sarah Cate helped us get connected with a local lender and she patiently walked us through the steps from “sold searching”, inspection, looking for signs of problems, commenting on the quality of construction to details of negotiation and making an offer. She is very intuitive, professional, responsive and always on top of things. Although house hunting could be very tiring, it never felt like a drag because Sarah Cate was really fun to work with. She’s got great energy and you know she really likes what she does.

We never felt forced to make an offer and she respects our needs and preference.  When we finally found the house for us, the whole negotiation and closing was a breeze.  We’ve been in touch with her even after closing and she’s been helpful by recommending contractors for renovation projects. We feel really lucky to have found a realtor who’s got our back and we highly recommend her if you’re looking for a realtor who is trustworthy and could help get you a home that you are looking for especially in this crazy competitive market.

Highly likely to recommend 

Darnell is a superb real estate agent. She has assisted me with three transactions (two purchases and one sale) and she is great-- responsive, attentive, available and hard working. One could not find a better agent. I have heard from friends about their agents and their agents do not remotely compare to Darnell. I would (and I have) highly recommended her. We could not have closed on our most recent purchase without Darnell's skill and fortitude. A+, five stars.

Darnell is a superb real estate agent!

Kristen is the most pleasant, competent, professional, honest, determined person I've had the pleasure of doing business with.  When I purchased my home, I was single with a 7 year old.  No one in my entire family had ever owned a home before.  I needed to navigate all of the nuances of purchasing a home for the first time with Kristen as my only source of support.  She was amazingly patient with me.  Prior to Kristen finding this home for me I had never lived anywhere for more than 2 years...ever.  I've been in my home for 18 years now and still love it!  I am counting on Kristen to help me through my next purchase (and sale of my current home) when I decide it's time to find a home in which to retire.  I've reached out to Kristen over the years for advice, referrals and information and she has ALWAYS been responsive and helpful.  I recommend her to anyone looking to buy or sell their home.

What a fortunate chance meeting at that open house last summer! Thanks for your attention over the months. I really appreciate your diligence and professional skills.

Thanks for your attention over the months!

David has been a pleasure to work with and get to know. David was able to help find us a house in a neighborhood we love, make a competitive winning offer and negotiate closing terms within a month of seeing the unit. At the same time, David did not pressure us to jump at anything we were not comfortable with and respected our wishes and even dealt with a lot of indecisiveness on our part. David was able to help us set up speedy and reliable home inspections and even made what could be a stressful time actually enjoyable. Even during his vacation abroad David made sure to check-in with us at every step of the way, which really made us feel good about each new decision process. We were also so excited to find that David chooses to donate portions of his commission to the Scholarship Fund of Pacific Marine Research whose mission is to educate future stewards of the Puget Sound.  We highly recommend choosing David Todd as your Agent and know that by doing so you will keep investing in the future of the Seattle communities.

David has been a pleasure to work with and get to know!

Ross is one of the best realtors that I know. He is personable and engaging and professional and goes out of his way to understand my needs. I never get that salesman vibe and always enjoy working with him.

Ross is one of the best realtors that I know!

Our homebuying experience with Eva and Tara was terrific due to their personality, knowledge of the market, perspective and the connections they brought to our buying experience. We were coming from out of state into this ludicrous market and they made the process less stressful (even fun at times) and maneuvered us into a successful buying experience in less than a month. From the start they were honest about our position in the market, helped set our expectations and educated us thoroughly so that we understood our options. Hearing from both of them gave us as buyers the different perspectives that we each needed. They also listened earnestly and were a solid sounding board to equalize the emotional roller coaster that is home buying.

Their connections to lenders, inspectors, and positive relationships with other brokers made things happen super quickly and put us in a much better position to make offers, get answers or simply have the space to make a decision. As a team, one could work with the other broker while the other quickly jumped on any questions about the property, and that kept us competitive.

We loved working with them and would highly recommend them to our friends and family!

We loved working with them!

Nadine and David are a truly effective team. They have very different skill sets that harmonize when joined to provide exceptional service overall. I could not be happier with how things evolved, progressed, and culminated with the sale.


I could not be happier!

We worked with Jason to sell our home in an unpredictable and difficult market. We found Jason to be professional in his conduct, practical in his approach to marketing and showing our home, and honest in his analysis of the market conditions. We plan to work with Jason again in the future.

We Plan To Work With Him Again!

Claudine is simply the best agent one could ask. We felt like we were her only clients: we called/text her any time of the day, and she got back to us within few minutes. She always goes above and beyond to answer our questions. He real estate knowledge is impressive. She is surrounded with many professionals and handy-mans one might need for estimate and repair. She walked us through every step of the way and visited us after we moved in. Thank you Claudine! We do not hesitate to refer her to our family and friends.

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