The plan was to put the house on the market on March 18, probably the worst time in the last decade. Two days earlier the governor declared shelter in place. And yet thanks to Geri's calm guidance and almost daily updates on what's allowed and isn't, and by April 15 we had 6 interested buyers and 3 solid offers. We closed on May 8!

From the very beginning with our work with Geri I was impressed with her organization skills and her sensitivity to our needs. She helped us navigate the needed changes to make the house more attractive to buyers, connected us to her vast networks of professionals, while still encouraging us to make the final decision of where we wanted to spend our money. She was on top of the different professionals making sure that the house was ready on time. Overall, we feel like we had a very good experience and happily recommend Geri to any of our friends who look at buying or selling a house.

Geri Stern has my highest praise and gratitude for helping me at a very sad episode in my life. A dear friend died unexpectedly and as the administrator of her estate, I was tasked with selling her home.
Over the years Geri has helped my family with numerous real estate endeavors and she has always worked tirelessly to ensure a wonderful outcome.
She is a splendid mix of professionalism and kindness. I was able to relax in the knowledge that Geri would take of everything, and she did - right down to the smallest of details!
My friend’s house sold very quickly and well above the asking price. Geri also helped me with all the complex issues that arise from a probate situation. She works closely with a team of contractors, gardeners, stagers, and cleaners who like her and enjoys the projects.
My friend’s family was thoroughly delighted with the way the house was repaired and presented for sale. It looked fabulous!
Geri is without exaggeration a brilliant and talented realtor. She has my deepest admiration and respect.

I'd owned a 4-plex for 33 years; it was time to sell, but I didn't know how to begin. I'd gotten many realtor solicitations, but Geri's got my attention and I contacted her. It was the best decision I could have made. She guided me gently but firmly through the prep process, listed the property for the amount I hoped for, and quickly got 21 offers, one of which was $300k over my asking price. Wow! She's extremely knowledgeable, very smart, always pleasant and cheerful, always available and reliable. Post-sale, she guided me through the 1031 exchange process and helped me buy a replacement property. She's continued as a friend. Highest recommendation."

We were lucky enough to connect with Geri when we were choosing a realtor to list our house for sale. It was obvious to us from the start that Geri was a knowledgeable and skilled realtor as evidenced by her extensive successful experience and sound judgment. Plus, she is a great person and has a good sense of humor! Geri offered very sound advice on preparing our house for sale. What stood out during the entire process was that Geri does an enormous amount of work to support her clients. She had great resources for getting work done on our house and yard. We were appreciative of her ability to keep everything on track while providing excellent communication and follow-through. We’re sure that the outcome wouldn’t have been as good with anyone else. Thanks again to Geri.

Geri is a Magician! Thank you very much for helping me to get through all the difficulties.
Without your effort and help, things will not be done so easily and quickly.
I will always appreciate and remember what you have done for me.

I have known Geri for almost 30 years and have worked with her multiple times over that time period. I have always found Geri to be knowledgeable and professional in her dealings with me. Her extensive experience in the East Bay market is very valuable and I would recommend her and her team for your real estate transactions.

Where do I start…… Carla and her team are wonderful. My husband and I and our 3 kids outgrew our current home. We needed to expand into our forever home. Moving is stressful and in the midst of a pandemic is an added layer of stress. With that said, Carla and her team worked their magic and alleviated the fears that come along with moving. Carla stuck by our side to find us a beautiful home to raise our family. She then turned around and quickly sold our old home for $90,000 over asking price. We are forever grateful for the love and care that went into finding us our forever home.

What started as a business introduction in 1984, has bloomed over the years to family. My husband, Michael and I were first introduced to Carla Della Zoppa years ago by his aunt and uncle, Marian and Louie Nicoli. We were expecting our first child and were looking to sell our home, in order to find a larger house. Marian and Louie were long-term El Cerrito residents, dating back to the 1920’s and were connected business owners in town. We trusted them to refer us to “the best of the best”. We were not disappointed. Carla was then, and still is today, professional, detailed, organized, on-task and a team player. For me personally she has sold 4 properties.

Over the years Michael and I referred our family and friends to Carla, when they were in need of a real estate professional. She has also sold the homes of my grandmother, my parents and two different aunts and uncles. My senior parents contracted with Carla in 2018 to sell their home of 60 years. This was an emotional move for my parents and signified a major life change. Carla was very respectful and sensitive to them and referred them to local contractors and businesses as they updated their home in preparation for sale. The home sold in less than two weeks to a young couple starting their family, who appreciated the love and care that my folks had put into it. Carla always puts her best foot forward when selling a property.

In this unthinkable year of 2020, Carla sold an investment property that I owned. She very skillfully navigated the restrictions and changes brought on by the pandemic. She was astute in the timing of my listing and in the current market pricing. The property sold in less than two weeks thanks to Carla’s expertise.

It is fair to say that I am lucky to have Carla as my trusted real estate resource. But more importantly, I am honored to call her “family”. She has been present at our weddings, baby showers, birthday parties and sadly, family funerals. She has my whole-hearted, 100% endorsement.

Thanks so much for assisting us with selling our home. Your professionalism was always on point. Thanks for taking such care with your recommendations to install a security system, to manage all the improvements, and to create a great video that I believe really helped to sell our home. After owning our home for over 27 years the prospect of deciding to sell was needless to say was fraught with emotion. You gave us such confidence throughout the process, Without your guidance and support, I am not sure we could ever have had such a successful experience. Since our sale, we have recommended you to two of our clients.

Geri is a "seasoned" (very experienced) realtor. She's done it all and seen it all. I have used her 4 times to sell and purchase homes for myself. The 4th and recent times were done long distances because I had moved to Florida and Geri helped me sell my family home in the bay area. It was a very emotional experience "letting go" of the family home where I was raised, but Geri was compassionate and took care of absolutely EVERYTHING. She is very resourceful and hooked me up with a great estate liquidator to sort all the contents of the family home, sell the valuables, and haul away the non-valuables. And all this was done long distance! Geri was very methodical in pricing the home to "sell." And what added to the challenge of "selling" the home was the COVID 19 outbreak and lockdowns. But she kept me updated every step of the way (progress of the home repairs and inspections etc. that she arranged) and in the end, the family home sold for over the asking price to a very lovely family who will appreciate this home as much as I did. A very happy ending for all.

It has been a pleasure working with you, I would highly recommend you to anyone looking for a reliable, professional trustworthy realtor.

The plan was to put the house on the market on March 18, probably the worst time in the last decade. Two days earlier the governor declared shelter in place. And yet thanks to Geri's calm guidance and almost daily updates on what's allowed and isn't, and by April 15 we had 6 interested buyers and 3 solid offers. We closed on May 8! From the very beginning with our work with Geri I was impressed with her organization skills and her sensitivity to our needs. She helped us navigate the needed changes to make the house more attractive to buyers, connected us to her vast networks of professionals, while still encouraging us to make the final decision of where we wanted to spend our money. She was on top of the different professionals making sure that the house was ready on time. Overall, we feel like we had a very good experience and happily recommend Geri to any of our friends who look at buying or selling a house.

There are a few good real estate brokers. We had always heard Carla Della Zoppa was a good broker so we hired her.

Selling our older home after loving and living in it for 32 years was difficult. We knew it was time though we were very reluctant sellers. Carla guided us with a loving and firm hand when needed through the very challenging and exhausting inspections, readying the property and setting the price. Compass provides an incredible service offering to front the fees for painting, repairs and staging - interest free – and we took advantage of this. The brochure, advertising and open houses were top quality. Our home was READY! It attracted many viewers, resulting in multiple offers above list price in a slower end of year market.

As I said at the beginning there are a few good Brokers and then there is Carla Della, Zoppa, an exceptional Broker! We could not have been happier with our choice of Broker and the end results.

Carla, we are in awe of your professionalism and will continue to recommend you highly.

I'd owned a 4-plex for 33 years; it was time to sell, but I didn't know how to begin. I'd gotten many realtor solicitations, but Geri's got my attention and I contacted her. It was the best decision I could have made. She guided me gently but firmly through the prep process, listed the property for the amount I hoped for, and quickly got 21 offers, one of which was $300k over my asking price. Wow! She's extremely knowledgeable, very smart, always pleasant and cheerful, always available and reliable. Post-sale, she guided me through the 1031 exchange process and helped me buy a replacement property. She's continued as a friend. Highest recommendation."

Carla helped us buy our first home, and we cannot thank her enough. There is a lot to navigate when buying a property in the Bay Area, but Carla was with us every step of the way, guiding us through the difficult decisions. She turned a stressful situation into one of the happiest milestones of our lives. Highly recommend Carla and her team!

I found myself as the trustee of my late Uncle’s trust with a property in El Cerrito to sell. It was a house that had been in the family for about 60 years. It had been maintained, but not updated.

I asked around for the name of broker’s who knew El Cerrito well. I was told that the “queen” of El Cerrito real estate was Geri Stern. I met Geri and immediately knew she would be the person I could trust to sell this family asset.

She had a plan for updating the house and putting it into a saleable condition. We had 13 offers, many over asking. She was with me every step of the way and kept me informed of everything. She arranged for the contractors, for financing the improvements, and essentially for everything.

I was very happy with the outcome, and she made the journey enjoyable and as painless as possible.

When we decided to sell our townhouse, we knew without a doubt we wanted Carla as our Realtor.

Carla had sold my mother’s house several years before and did an extraordinary job. It was an emotional time and her 25 years of experience helped facilitate the sell in a short time. Orchestrating contractors, staging and so much more.

Carla said she would sell our townhouse in two weeks and she did. Again, she oversaw and arranged for a minor kitchen remodel. Very effortless on our part, really going over and beyond the call of duty I felt when we ran into a snag with the plumber.

Her professionalism really shines, and she takes pride in providing excellent service. We were kept updated and posted the entire length of the listings. I felt this was one of her strong points. I would not hesitate to recommend Carla for your real estate needs!

I engaged Geri Stern to sell a house that was an asset in a Trust I was administering. I was not familiar with the house or with the neighborhood it is in, or the local market conditions. Geri quickly won my trust with her professional and efficient approach to evaluating the property and suggesting improvements to increase the selling price. She completely managed the renovations to the house. The improvements more than doubled the sale price of the house had we sold it “as is”. She kept to our budget and timeline throughout the entire process of renovating the house. She was cheerful, quick to respond to phone calls and emails and unflappable throughout.

Carla, we want to thank you for all your hard work in getting Fran's house updated and sold. You made the house beautiful again and ready for a new family.

You are amazing!

We just completed the sale of our family home in El Cerrito and I could not be happier. Geri knows her business. Her assessments and recommendations concerning the preparation and sale of the property were always accurate. She knows the market. Geri always accepted my decisions but if she disagreed with me or thought I could make a better decision, she informed me as to why she would make a different recommendation and how it might make a difference. After some thought, I did come around to take her advice on a couple of points and am glad I did. She led me through the process and bureaucratic maze expertly. Her experience instilled confidence in my decision making. Geri surrounds herself with an excellent team of sub-contractors who delivered on time and on budget. Finally, the bottom line is about money and I am convinced that Geri Stern got a better price for our property than any other Realtor could have done.

Carla was our agent when we bought our house and we couldn't have had better support! She was with us start to finish, first connecting us to a great mortgage broker so that we could be pre-approved before seriously looking at homes. Carla also helped us understand the Bay Area market and helped us manage our expectations for buying a home in a hot market. She worked tirelessly on our offers, accommodating our busy schedules that included lots of travel across time zones, to help us be competitive with other buyers and to meet short deadlines. We would not have been able to purchase our house without her wisdom, expertise, and persistence- she is the reason we are in a home we love in a great neighborhood!

Geri – Margaret and I are both so grateful for your support through this entire process. With all of the other demands related to our transition across the country taking so much of our time, you really shepherded the process along and brought us to a result that puts us in a great position to find a new home. If you keep a reference list, please do not hesitate to put us on it.

Carla is an amazing realtor. She worked diligently in selling our home. She truly knows the market and area. Her vision in getting the home prepared for market was top notch. Carla had every contact out there to prepare our home for market and made the process so easy. Her suggestions in preparing our home for market not only got us top dollar for our property, our home was beautiful for its new owner.

Not only did she sell our home she also helped us purchase our new home. Her attention to detail is remarkable. She would keep us up to date on her thoughts of properties we visited, what the good, bad and ugly were. She would not let us jump on just any property but helped us remain patient until we found our dream home that checked every requirement box we had.

Communication with Carla was great, she was always very responsive and easy to reach. We would absolutely recommend Carla as a realtor and would use her again in the future. We even joked we hope you’re still in the game in 30 years when it’s time to retire and downsize. Don’t hesitate, Carla will work hard for you. We can’t say enough about her.

I called around and talked with multiple agents, and Geri was by far the most responsive. She helped me buy a great property at a really good price. All my questions however obtuse, Geri was able to answer or find the answer to, and quickly! Some of my questions required calling city officials, who never returned my calls. (Typical!) Somehow when Geri made these calls she got through and got the answers. Don't ask me how she does it, but she's good at what she does, and she works hard for her clients. You would be lucky to have her represent you.

I wanted to take the time to write a review relating to the customer experience with my realtor, Carla Della Zoppa, who recently successfully concluded the sale of my home in El Cerrito, California.

Following back surgery last year, it became clear that it was time to leave my home in California of 44 years, and relocate to Wisconsin with my daughter. I involved my children in this real estate transaction to facilitate communications, both verbal and electronic, and to advise me during the process.

I want to compliment Carla with her patience and cheerful temperament. Her steady demeanor was exceedingly helpful to me during this stressful time. Additionally, she communicated clearly and openly with me and my children during the process of rehabilitating and “staging” my home in advance of showing. She did a superlative job of placing the property in the market to command the price I was hoping for.

She was attentive to my demands, was clear in her communications, and resolved all concerns any of us raised to my complete satisfaction.

She was especially accomplished in vetting and qualifying the numerous offers we received on the property, adding much value to our decision making process, and affording us confidence as we weighed the various offers.

Carla reflects well on her firm, and she deserves my compliments and this letter of commendation for a job well done.

If the walls of our childhood home could talk they would graciously murmur wonderful memories of birthday parties, anniversaries, Christmas’s, wedding showers, Scout meetings, poker nights and the infamous New Year’s Day open house.

We had 4 generations pass through the front door either visiting or residing over the span of 60yrs that we lived there.

With a recommendation to contact Geri Stern from our probate lawyer, our first impression was confidence in her service and commitment to honor our visions and expectations.

Geri presented us with Compass’s ability to help fund improvements and walked us through what she would do to make the house more appealing in the current market.

She acted as the Designer and Project Manager, which allowed us as the homeowners to be totally hands-off, but still in a position to approve or reject her decisions. Geri had her resources scheduled and working within one week and knew how to leverage all those who worked with her in meeting the schedule to get the property on the market as originally discussed.

When it was all done we were ecstatic with the results. The house looked beautiful and appealing.

Fast forward a few weeks, lots of signatures, the buyer’s financial obligations met and then the close of escrow, done.

Thank You, Geri, Compass and all the contractors, suppliers, and stagers for giving our old house a new life to make more memories for years to come.

Carla Della Zoppa is an experienced Realtor with decades of deep market knowledge in the East Bay. Her ability to tap into local vendors at the best prices and under tight time frames enabled our family to hit the market at the perfect time to sell and realize a sale price that was 38% over asking. Her understanding of the market is phenomenal, and her reputation is among the best in the region. Anyone looking to sell or buy a home should seriously consider working with Carla.

We want to thank you for your guidance in preparing the house for sale which resulted in 6 excellent offers. The most excellent offer was 23.5 % more than the listing price. We also want to thank Carla for analyzing the offers, negotiating with the offering agents and making suggestions to us
to choose the best offer. With the two of you helping us, the experience of selling the subject house has been a memorable one.

We appreciate your help in selling our house.

Thank you, Carla, for all your hard work and guidance in navigating the Berkeley Real Estate market. You have done a fantastic job transforming my family home into a show place. The house looked so different than the one I grew up in. The transformation made it easier to let the family home go. We couldn’t have sold the house without you and for such a good price.

Thanks for all your diligent work. We couldn’t be happier with the results!

You've been really fantastic to work with and we really appreciate all of your support during this very difficult period. My mom would have been thrilled to know how much everyone appreciated her house and all the care you took to present it to the public looking its best! You're an exceptional professional and we appreciate your service!

It was a real pleasure to work with you! Thank you for your advice, your guidance, and the referrals to contractors. You made it all go smoothly. We are more than pleased!

We have been so very happy to have Geri as our go-to realtor. She found us a wonderful home that we lived in for nine years. She worked very hard on our behalf and we found a perfect home. Fast forward nine years and we asked her to help sell this home. We saw more behind the scenes of how she has been so successful in this industry. She helped us get staging and followed a detailed process of many other small (but important) tasks to help get the most for our home. She exceeded every expectation. We got more than we had planned and everything was smooth. I highly recommend Geri Stern.

Just wanted to send an extra note of thanks for selling our Hercules house. A weight has been lifted and I’m grateful we got a great price. Thanks for helping, guiding and educating us along the way. I felt like we had an expert at our side. I’m sure we will see you soon.

After multiple contacts and meetings prior to our decision to sell our home, Geri met with us to help us navigate the system with which we were unfamiliar.

We were pleased that Geri was patient and caring while we made a difficult decision to sell our home of 45 years.

She was very skillful in coordinating multiple tasks, repairs, and other necessary items to prepare the house for sale.

Geri is a professional with multiple skills to guide you through a very complicated process.

Geri is a very caring and thoughtful Realtor that we would highly recommend.

Carla’s knowledge of the community & marketplace was excellent. She is very professional. Because of this, we achieved our maximum profitability on the sale of our home. The final negotiations and paperwork on our sale were seamless. We appreciate all the support she provided us and her commitment to us as her clients.

Geri Stern has been my realtor of choice for three different home sales over the last several years. Not only is Geri knowledgeable about real estate, but she is also a kind and compassionate person who understands the emotional stress which can be associated with the sale of a home. She understands that there is more to selling a house than the contract itself. I would not hesitate to use Geri again or to recommend her to others.

My wife and I are extremely pleased with how Carla Della Zoppa guided us in selling our home. Initially Carla placed the focus on getting our home in shape to sell, and to what extent we would be willing to go. She recommended great long-standing local sources that did excellent work! Carla utilized her experience to secure a bid that was amazing! We would highly recommend Carla if you are looking for a realtor that you will have complete confidence in.

Five years ago Geri Stern earned my gratitude for the way she handled the sale of my favorite aunt's house. My aunt had been in her home for 45 years but was determined to get her affairs in order before cancer took her life. Geri demonstrated sensitivity and compassion as she got the house ready for market and ultimately sold, all the while meeting tight deadlines and keeping costs within an estimated budget. She is emotionally invested in the decisions her clients make without being intrusive.

Two years ago when I decided to buy a house, I asked Geri to represent me. Having grown up in this area, I knew exactly which neighborhood appealed to me. Geri understood my growing frustration over a seven month search in a particularly brutal seller's market with limited inventory. With Geri's guidance, I had already lined up my financing so that I could move quickly when the time came and it did. Geri helped me structure an offer that the seller could not refuse and I bought my house. Before I moved into the house, I wanted to remodel the kitchen and family room. Geri recommended an outstanding contractor to do the renovation.

After I settled into my new house, I asked Geri to help me sell my old home. Assuring me that I had left a very light footprint there after 25 years, she arranged for a few cosmetic updates before holding the first open house and then surprised me with a report of having received multiple offers. She agreed with my decision to make a counter offer to the second highest bidder, who had a much shorter close of escrow. The buyer accepted and we closed the sale.

Two home sales and one home purchase later, I can reflect with hindsight on what worked so successfully each time. Geri's extensive experience in the east bay real estate market and her strong work ethic are a winning combination, but what really sets her apart is her enormous heart and her empathy for each client's particular situation and life stage. If life is not a rehearsal, neither is a home sale or purchase. Many of us will only have one opportunity to get it right and Geri makes sure that we do.

Selling my home of 20 years was a very emotionally difficult thing for me to do. I considered it more of a sanctuary than a mere house. It epitomized peace, quiet, and safety as I sat high on the street with a partial view of the bay. But, it was time to retire and move.

Given my attachment to my home, we could not have had a more experienced, knowledgeable, skillful, and professional real estate agent than Geri Stern. She was always on her game and carefully planned the listing. She communicated updates as frequently as we requested.

More importantly, she was very patient and considerate with my personality-type which pays attention to detail. My words of gratitude and appreciation are inadequate-Simply said, Geri is a top-notch Agent. If you need superb representation to list and sell your house, I highly recommend Geri Stern of Pacific Union.

She earned and deserves a 5 Star rating.

We were fortunate to have Geri as our Real Estate Agent when we were buying our home. Geri is very professional, easy to get along with, and very pleasant. What struck us most was Geri never pushed us in our dealings with her.

Cheerful, efficient, knowledgeable, cooperative, tireless, reliable = Carla Della Zoppa. I recommend her without reservation.

We lived and raised our children and a grandchild in our home for almost 42 years. Now we were empty nesters, and the house was way too large for us. We wanted to move and downsize. Carla had already within the last 10 years sold two houses in our neighborhood. I had saved her card on my refrigerator. We recommend Carla without hesitation. She walks her clients through the process step by step. When you reach out to her, she gets back to you almost immediately. Never are you in the dark about what needs to be done, or what’s happening now. She is honest and trustworthy to a fault. Carla is more than a realtor; she is a good friend. Her explanations are complete and concise. Never will she push or rush your decisions. Any questions are answered almost immediately and completely. When we started this process to the very day it closed escrow, Carla was right there by our side watching out for our best interests, and guiding us through what was an overwhelming process. Carla is not an ordinary real estate agent; Carla is an extraordinary realtor.

When it came time to sell my mother’s home in El Cerrito after 40 years, I was looking for a professional Realtor. Since I live out of town I needed a person I could communicate with and would handle all the details, like inspections and clean up needed to ready the home for sale. My search ended with Geri Stern. When I asked her "what do I need to do?" Her answer - "Nothing, I'll do it all". And she did, all the way to a successful sale. Thank you Geri!!

Dear Geri,

Thank you so much for guiding us through the process of selling our home. It was all new for us and we appreciated your honesty, support and understanding of our needs. The outcome was beyond what we expected and we have you to thank for it.

I ENTHUSIASTICALLY RECOMMEND GERI STERN AS A REAL ESTATE AGENT!

Dear Geri,

On behalf of my family and myself, I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for your help in the recent sale of our home. Your experience and professionalism made me feel confident and comfortable in leaving the sale of our family home in your hands.

Your knowledge as it relates to updated home decor, staging and painting as well as your team of professional contractors from plumbers to structural engineers that work with you, made this particular journey very helpful!!

Your assistance and persistence with the City of San Pablo was most helpful and your professional approach with City Officials made this project move smoothly.

This is the second home for which you have sold for my family and I and on each sale you were able to garner more than $100.000 over the asking price!!! THANK YOU!!

Again, I thank you for your tireless efforts, your experience and knowledge as well as your genuine concern for your clients. May we meet again very soon️
Best Regards

Geri – Margaret and I are both so grateful for your support through this entire process. With all of the other demands related to our transition across the country taking so much of our time, you really shepherded the process along and brought us to a result that puts us in a great position to find a new home. If you keep a reference list, please do not hesitate to put us on it.

Dear Geri;

I wish I had done this much, much sooner but I’m hoping late is better than never so here goes:
We were planning to sell my house in Richmond which was a beautiful house in a very nice neighborhood but the house had an unusual combination of features which made it a difficult property to present in a conventional and easily understood manner. What made sense to us was to present the swimming pool, patio and grounds as the centerpiece of a “little piece of tropical paradise in the city” where folks could entertain friends and family shortly after they moved in.

We saw the choice of an agent as the critical piece of the plan but it was going to have to be someone who understood and agreed with our vision as well as help it happen in a reasonable time frame and at reasonable cost.

Fortunately after just a few weeks of searching print and internet for sale offerings in our area we happened upon a property in our development which Geri was representing and all aspects of her presentation stood head and shoulders above the other ads we were looking at. In particular the staging, photography and other art work was top notch and quite compelling which were especially important in our case.

When we met Geri we found her intelligent, well organized and easy to work with. She explained things clearly and has a good organization behind her. She kept all the sales details such as inspections and disclosure on track while working with us to achieve our pool and entertainment centered vision. We were working with our own general contractor of long standing on bringing the property completely up to code. We were also working with a large home supply retailer to completely re-floor and re-carpet at the same time. Geri was able to provide the rest of the contracting and inspecting (such as painting) as needed and the whole effort proceeded with very few problems or delays of any kind. What few issues did arise came from the buyer’s agent self-described “procrastination” but Geri did a good job of “riding herd” on her to bring the deal to a rapid and very rewarding conclusion.

I’d not hesitate to call on Geri again should I have real estate to deal with and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend her to anyone who needs the same….

We lived and raised our children and a grandchild in our home for almost 42 years. Now we were empty nesters, and the house was way too large for us. We wanted to move and downsize. Carla had already within the last 10 years sold two houses in our neighborhood. I had saved her card on my refrigerator. We recommend Carla without hesitation. She walks her clients through the process step by step. When you reach out to her, she gets back to you almost immediately. Never are you in the dark about what needs to be done, or what’s happening now. She is honest and trustworthy to a fault. Carla is more than a realtor; she is a good friend. Her explanations are complete and concise. Never will she push or rush your decisions. Any questions are answered almost immediately and completely. When we started this process to the very day it closed escrow, Carla was right there by our side watching out for our best interests, and guiding us through what was an overwhelming process. Carla is not an ordinary real estate agent; Carla is an extraordinary realtor.

“Thank you Geri!

You made the process very easy….I am thankful that you took care of so many details for us. You really put a lot of work in with the repairs and remodel which in turn made it easier on us.”

We love Carla! She did an excellent job for us again! We highly recommend her.

Carla sold my parents’ house in 2001. She advised us how best to fix it up to appeal to buyers. We followed her suggestions and were rewarded with $50,000 over asking price. In 2015, different house, same result. Luck…possibly? I think not. Keen insight, hard work, and success. That’s what Carla Della Zoppa has twice done for me. She will get my business to sell the next house again.

Carla's knowledge of the community & marketplace was excellent. She is very professional. Because of this, we achieved our maximum profitability on the sale of our home. The final negotiations and paperwork on our sale were seamless. We appreciate all the support she provided us and her commitment to us as her clients.

Putting your home on the market is both stressful and exhilarating. From the moment we met with Geri, she guided us through a multitude of strategic and tactical choices. Whether it was staging, pricing, or other elements of list our home, Geri provided the “steady hand.” Most importantly, she navigated us through numerous offers and deftly negotiated to maximize our home’s value. Thank you Geri!

We were very pleased we chose Carla as our Realtor. She worked tirelessly on our behalf, and gave us excellent advice and suggestions to make our home more attractive for sale. Her guidance through the sale and closure was very professional. Carla gives 100%.

Many thanks to Geri for guiding us through the sale of our home in El Cerrito so we can move forward to our future home in Hercules. We sincerely appreciate all of the support you provided us during this anxiety-filled process; your professionalism, sensitivity to our concerns, and commitment to us as your clients was greatly appreciated.

Carla was the most competent, thorough and professional real estate agent I have ever worked with. I was a remote seller and she did everything to insure our home was presentable for the market and thus realized for me maximum profitability. Over and beyond the call of duty should be Carla’s mantra.

Dear Carla,

There are no words that can truly express my feelings of how appreciative I am for your handling the sale of my mother’s home. As you know, it was very difficult for me to even go to the house because of the pain and sorrow I felt as I reflected on my mother’s passing. There were times when I openly wept as I could not control my emotions. Being an only-child of a single parent, there were no family members to assist me in handling the great undertaking of preparing and selling my mom’s home. Fortunately, I met you and you were able to minimize my involvement to virtually nothing. Besides you contacting me for necessary authorizations, you handled everything. With the home having received little maintenance or repair in the prior 27 years, there was a lot to do. You put together an action plan for preparing and selling the home and you quickly went to work. I am still amazed at your willingness and ability to handle all of the details. You determined what changes and repairs were needed, obtained bids, hired contractors, oversaw each project, staged the home, brought it to market, and subsequently handled all of the negotiations and paperwork for sale. With the incredible amount of work you accomplished, somehow you made it appear seamless and effortless. I do not believe that there is a Realtor anywhere on Earth that would have or even could have done what you did for me. Before working with you, I had interviewed two other Realtors. One of them was very experienced and presented me with what I believe was a well-conceived sales plan. In retrospect, his plan did not come close to providing me with the service and support that you delivered. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. The extremely warm feelings that I received from our business relationship, and more importantly from our new friendship, will stay with me forever. Carla, if angels exist, you are certainly one of them.

It was so fun looking at houses with you. Jocelyn Straus, eight years old. Carla worked very hard and patiently with my family in a Seller’s market until we found the right home for us!

Dear Carla,

Couldn’t have sold either home without your help and support. We truly appreciate your input and apologize for anything that was said in sheer frustration. I would trust you to sell anything I have.

We feel fortunate to have had Geri as our Realtor. Through her professionalism, her excellent communication and her experience and market savvy, Geri made the stressful experience of moving as pleasant and simple as possible. Plus, she did a great job getting us a wonderful deal. Thanks Geri!

Geri was with me all the way. She found a new home for me and sold the home I lived in for 32 years all in 4 1/2 months. Needless to say there was a lot of anxiety and fear on my part. She patiently kept me updated daily and explained all the needed inspections, repairs, finances and paperwork. She was always positive, professional, and supportive, and maintained a great sense of humor. I totally trust her and would recommend her talents to everyone. Transition was as painless as it could be. Thank you Geri!

Our highest recommendations go out to Geri and Carla. Geri provided a professional demeanor in all aspects of our home buying and selling experience, but most importantly she provided moral support during the emotional and stressful period of time one encounters when selling a home and buying a new one. Geri was always a phone call away to tell us to “hang in there”. In the end, by following Geri’s advice on preparing our home for sale, we obtained a selling price that “blew our socks off”. In other words, we got much more for our house that we dreamed of. In the future, if we ever have to move, we will definitely call Geri because she provided such outstanding service. We also want to thank Carla who filled in during the busy holiday season to craft a professional offer that beat out a competing offer. Geri and Carla, you two are great! Keep up the good work.

Dorothy and I want to complement you and your staff for a job well done! Your professionalism and attention to detail was a pleasure to see! Thanks so much for a job well done.

This is the second time our family has used Geri’s expertise in assisting us in the sale of real estate property in the El Cerrito area. From the first day we met with Geri to the sale of our property, she provided us with excellent advice and reasonable expectations in the present real estate market in the El Cerrito area. Both times Geri’s advice and knowledge resulted in sales which exceeded our expectations both in price and in the length of time it took to sell the properties. Prior to putting these two properties on the market, they were both extensively renovated under Geri’s guidance. She did an outstanding job in planning, coordinating, and following-up with the projects to ensure nothing was overlooked and to be sure all work was done in accordance with our anticipated timeline. When all work was completed, she staged the properties to ensure their best presentation. We are very lucky to have found a true professional like Geri and would not ever consider using another real estate agent. We highly recommend Geri.

Carla used her years of knowledge to prepare the house for market. She organized a circle of contractors and handymen to do the work. She also held a lot of open houses to give the home as much exposure as necessary.

“Thanks again for all your help. You are the one and only real estate broker one should be with. I was lucky to have you.”

“Carla is a true professional. She is detailed, thorough, and a joy to work with. Carla is experienced, knowledgeable, and she sold my home very quickly. She made the experience pleasant and I highly recommend her. She is the best in the business.”

“I can’t say enough about wonderful Carla Della Zoppa. After my mother passed away, my brother, sister, and I were left with the daunting task of selling her home – where we had grown up and our mother had resided for 55 years. Carla helped us every step of the way, giving expert advice throughout. She told us exactly what needed to be done to prepare the house for selling; the house sold quickly in exactly the time frame she predicted from our first meeting. I would also add that her warmth and understanding made a difficult time easier to bear.”

“We were considering remodeling our kitchen before we put our house on the market. Our contractor said, ‘You should talk to a realtor first to see if a kitchen remodel would be worth your while.’ Into our life walks Carla Della Zoppa. From the moment we met her, we knew Carla would be exactly the type of realtor we needed. She was fully engaged in every aspect of the process. Carla instinctively facilitated issues that we wouldn’t have known to ask about. She really held our hand through the entire process and always had our best interests at heart. We knew she had many other clients, but her attentiveness and accessibility made us feel we were her only clients. We would gladly work with Carla again.”

“Upon the passing of my mother, I was forced to sell her residence. Geri Stern had come highly recommended to me. Upon meeting Geri, I was impressed with her knowledge of the real-estate market in the immediate area and her enthusiasm. She made suggestions of how to improve the condition of the house to make it more marketable and obtain the greatest market value. With some remodeling, repairs, and painting, the house looked fantastic. She had the house staged beautifully, and the house sold on the first showing for more than I had expected. She was instrumental in obtaining skilled workmen for all the repairs and remodeling needed. She is gifted in remodeling design and paint schemes, which brought out the character of the home. She monitored the home repairs, kept me apprised of the progress, and helped resolve any problems which surfaced. If you are looking for a professional, energetic, hard-working, take charge person, look no further, I didn’t.”

“We began in an awkward situation because my original realtor decided to bring Geri in as she was very familiar with the Berkeley housing market and my realtor was from San Francisco. My realtor unexpectedly resigned and I was stuck with Geri. Not knowing anything about her, I checked her out and discovered she had a very good reputation for getting results. I had many other realtors’ offer their services but I decided on sticking with Geri because at our initial meeting she was very straight forward, not trying to tip toe around the issues for fear of losing the account. Her honest appraisal of the property condition, current market knowledge and the house’s potential value caused me to take a step back and re-evaluate my expectations. The main point she stressed during our meeting was there is “as-is” and there is “AS-IS”. I initially resisted her ideas and insistence to spend money to fix up the property, but the end result was that she was 100% correct. The neighbors and passer-byes were constantly coming up and telling me how nice the house looked, and asking for a peek inside. The Property showed so well in the marketing that buyers packed the open houses even though it was a pouring rain storm. Her pricing strategy was unique as well, unconventional, but it worked! So many offers! $225k more than I had expected! Geri was also very understanding and respectful of the special circumstances, since this was the house that my parents had built I was selling, the house I grew up in. That was much appreciated.”

David and I are very grateful that you are our agent. We cannot thank you enough for helping us through this process from staging, listing, marketing and open house. Even you had to go down to City of Richmond to get the Certificate of Compliance for us. Your professionalism and expertise are greatly appreciated. Now, David and I can enjoy our retirement and family because of your help. Thinking of you always! Thank you very very much!!!

To whom it may concern: Carla Della Zoppa has recently sold my beautiful home in El Sobrante, CA. She is completely knowledgeable, professional and reliable. She understands the mountains of “legalize” and papers than have to be signed. She explains them in an understandable way. Carla knows just what needs to be done to get the best price for you. The people she suggests you hire for specific inspections and updating, are reliable, honest, fast, and good. She shows the house, and also knows some other very good realtors who might have clients for your home. She will work with them. I come from a real estate family, and I know what it takes to do this job. Carla is on time, available, and very pleasant to work with. If you wish to talk with me personally, Carla may give you my home phone. Sincerely,

What can I say about you, dear Carla, dear friend? You have now sold 2 homes for us! Both times you were such a pleasure to work with – you are a diligent agent, honest, open, and efficient and always do what you say you are going to do! Where do you get all that energy – Red Bull??!! Thank you again!

You’ve done an enormous amount of the work in preparing the house for sale, optimizing its attractive qualities, staging it, and maximizing its purchase price. I really want to thank you for that, and I am truly grateful. Given time and distance, I would never have been able to sell the house without your dedication and hard work. Without you, I could easily see the house selling for a fraction of what the trust received for it.

I can’t say enough about wonderful Carla Della Zoppa. After my mother passed away, my brother, sister, and I were left with the daunting task of selling her home – where we had grown up and our mother had resided for 55 years. Carla helped us every step of the way, giving expert advice throughout. She told us exactly what needed to be done to prepare the house for selling; the house sold quickly in exactly the time frame she predicted from our first meeting. I would also add that her warmth and understanding made a difficult time easier to bear.

Carla was fantastic! I was a first time home buyer and she took such good care of me, walking me through every step of the process. I would recommend her to anyone needing a real estate agent.

I’m so glad we chose Carla to list our Mother’s home. In the beginning we were so overwhelmed by how much was required to put the house on the market, we knew we needed someone that knew the area well. Carla’s knowledge of the area was extremely helpful and her professional point of view really helped us make the best decisions through all of the stages of selling the house. If you want someone who is always available to answer your questions, help with every phase of selling your home, and gets results, you need to call Carla.

Carla’s a great agent. She took great care of my husband and I, making sure that we would be happy with our purchase, which we are. Carla was always available when we had questions. We would highly recommend Carla to our friends and family. Thanks Carla!

Geri, it was fantastic working with you. We appreciate your skills in managing the upgrades, staging and marketing. We are very happy with the outcome and you certainly earned your commission!

Geri Stern was wonderful to work with. Her advice about timing was spot-on and she led me through the process of scheduling inspections and repairs; painting and floor refinishing; and finally staging. This allowed me to fully disclose everything positive and negative about my house while making it move-in ready. The end result was 16 offers all well over my asking price. I have nothing but praise for the guidance and hands-on help Geri provided. I was extremely happy with the end result, and highly recommend Geri as a realtor.

Dear Geri:

Thank you for taking the time and helping us with our acquisition of the Buckingham property. On behalf of my [husband/wife/company], I want to offer you our most sincere appreciation for your professional support and guidance. Your advice was extremely valuable and gave me new perspectives on available opportunities. Again, thank you so much for your help. I greatly appreciate the assistance you have provided us. Best Regards.

Dear Geri,

I can’t thank you enough for all of your patience and help with the house selling. You helped make it as smooth sailing as possible. Please put me on your list of most satisfied clients.

Carla is a true professional. She is detailed, thorough, and a joy to work with. Carla is experienced, knowledgeable, and she sold my home very quickly. She made the experience pleasant and I highly recommend her. She is the best in the business. Tom Farr – March 18, 2012. Thomas Farr – Lafayette

Thank you very much. My wife and I enjoyed working with you and assistance in closing the transaction in a timely manner. We appreciated your professionalism and your knowledge of the industry.

I’m still pinching myself, finding it hard to believe that, after the intense focus and work of moving and preparing the EC house for sale, it all came to a splendid close so quickly. Please know that I appreciate the part that your hard work, expertise, and support played in this sale, and I am very grateful. It was a pleasure working with you and with all the talented people you recommended. Irene Johansson – El Cerrito

Carla gets the job done! The details can at times seem endless. Carla was always there with a solution and results. Carla’s staging service was amazing. The house never looked better. Carla’s contractor referrals transformed the house into move-in condition and at a very reasonable cost. I would not hesitate to hire Carla again or refer her to others.

Choosing Carla to sell my El Cerrito Hills home was the best decision. My home sold within 3 weeks. Believe me, during a somewhat stressful time, Carla and/or her assistant Mary were always available. It was an exciting and enjoyable experience!

Dear Carla, Your knowledge of the market and your knowledge of how to market helped us get a great price in difficult times. And, all of your contractors were superb. We feel so fortunate that you represented us.

The service that I received from Carla was spectacular! She took a house that had been a rental for 45 years and rehabbed it with contractors she knew. They worked at very reasonable rates, and with her guidance and design knowledge, this resulted in a house that was stunning upon completion! It could not have been done without her knowledge and expertise. The house sold in a week for over asking price.

Carla was able to sell my house under some very difficult circumstances. She understands the market and works hard to sell the property in a very short time.

Carla Della Zoppa is the consummate real estate professional. Carla is capable, committed, and charismatic. She is to be commended for her extraordinary capability to handle every detail from initial listing to close of escrow. Carla and her talented team, including her able assistant Mary and her gifted staging designer Rondi are committed to doing their personal best for each client every step of the way. In addition, Carla is a charismatic individual, leading by example and facilitating cooperation among seller, buyers, tradespeople, other agents and the escrow company. The decision to sell my El Cerrito home of forty-one years was challenging. Once my decision was finalized, with Carla’s expert assistance, the selling process was smooth and the end result was a successful sale in a buyers’ market. Carla, kudos to you!

Thank you for helping us through the home buying process. As first-time buyers, it’s a bit daunting, but your guidance made the process very smooth.

You were a great help in preparing me for the sale of my home. I do feel good about the process and I am beginning to settle in at the shores. I have already recommended you to two friends in El Cerrito who are thinking about downsizing. I believe we were a good team.

Carla Della Zoppa is an extraordinary real estate agent. Her three greatest qualities are that she is ethical, compassionate and realistic. When listing a house or representing a buyer, she does what is morally right, shows her clients she cares about them and realistically guides them through the process. Carla follows a transaction with fervor from the start to the closing. She has a great team of people around her that respect her and give their best effort on her behalf. Her assistant, Mary, and her staging consultant, Rondi, are both assets on her team as well as all the other companies at her disposal to prepare a house for sale or habitation. Carla has a great reputation that she has earned from the over-the-top effort she puts in to every real estate transaction she handles. We trusted her implicitly in our two transactions, buying a new house and selling the old one. There is no better real estate agent than Carla Della Zoppa!

Hi Geri, It was a real pleasure having you as our agent. We were a little unsure at first because of our unusual situation, but you quickly won us over. Thanks to your connections we were able to get our new house ready to move into just in time and without breaking our budget.

Geri Stern proved to be a great choice in selecting a realtor to sell my house. She was always accessible by phone and quick to respond to emails. I particularly liked the way she gave me progress reports via email throughout the entire process. After having taken notice of her work ethic I felt comfortable enough to take a 3 week vacation overseas. She also went out of her way to try and keep my costs down during the fixing up phase prior to selling the home and was quite close to her original estimate on upgrade costs. Geri was extremely thorough in completing all of my requirements and obligations as a seller. She was also able to problem solve the unexpected. It was a pleasure working with her and I would highly recommend her to anyone especially in the El Cerrito area.

We highly recommend Geri Stern. She has many wonderful qualities that make a great realtor. From the outset she made sure she understood what we were looking for even as our preferences developed. Over the 10 months of house hunting, Geri was always in communication with us – updating us on what was coming on the market and available to go look at houses. She is very knowledgeable about El Cerrito and about the assessing the condition, potential problems, or improvements of these homes. Finally, and most importantly, we really felt that she was looking out for us as first time home buyers. Geri really cares.

Geri and her team were a pleasure to work with. We never dreamed she could pull off all the expectations we had to get our house ready and SOLD in the time frame she sent forth. It was a minor miracle and she calmed our fears whenever they arose. We would highly recommend Geri to anyone needing a Superior Realtor to get the job done…Thanks, Geri.

Over the last few years we received frequent letters & brochures from Geri offering her services if we were ever interested in selling our rental property in El Cerrito. Luckily, we had saved a few of them and when we decided it was time to put our property on the market we contacted Geri. We were going for an “as is sale” thinking we would be saving money in the long run. Our expectations for a sale, let alone a fast track sale, were very limited due to the current economic slump. In meeting Geri in person, we found her to be very warm, friendly and professional, and she proved to be very respectful of my input and personal “expertise.” From initial contact to the final signing of the documents, escrow and all, was within 3 months! We were astonished & delighted with the speed and knowledge in which Geri accomplished this feat! We had anticipated a long drawn out, not to mention, expensive period, that we would continue to make payments etc. on this “income property” and felt we would be lucky to get the price it was assessed at. With our blessing, Geri took complete control from day one, arranging everything from repairs, landscaping, inspections and staging of the home, as well as arranging for all paper work to be taken care of via secured e-mail, saving us the expense of time and money to make several trips from our home in Nevada City to El Cerrito, (approx. 260 miles round trip). Geri was right on target in every aspect of this sale and we are very happy and grateful for her expertise! Geri is delightful to work with and should we ever decide to sell/purchase another property, we would not hesitate to place ourselves in her very capable hands. Our thanks and gratitude to Geri.

Dear Geri, Thank you for your outstanding work in selling Dan’s house, your great skills and your great personality — Please feel free to use us a reference in any undertaking you will take.

Our experience with Carla and Security Pacific was extraordinary in today’s world of real estate! Carla was experienced, kept us informed and advised us on the best methods to prepare, stage and sell our home in a timely fashion. Carla was professional, organized, timely and thorough with every detail from start through closing escrow. We highly recommend Carla for future home sale opportunities.

Geri is the best! She will work tirelessly for you and with you. She is especially helpful after the sale. Her referrals for moving in made our transition period very manageable!

Our experience with Geri Stern was outstanding! Geri is an exceptional Realtor. She is smart, professional, hardworking, knowledgeable and helpful. Having her represent two of our properties was a pleasant undertaking during a stressful time. Both of our properties were sold in record time. We can’t thank Geri enough for all of her guidance and many little extras that she had provided us. We cannot recommend Geri highly enough. She most assuredly deserves the title of “The Best Real Estate Agent”.

I wanted to thank you for all your hard work in getting our California home sold. With the down turn in the real estate market, I was afraid that the process would be very painful and would take more than a year to complete. You were the best thing that ever happened to us! Your extensive expertise was very evident and your suggestions were right on the money. I am grateful that we followed your advice in pricing, staging, etc. I firmly believe that had we gone with an agent not of your caliber we would have been very sorry with the results. The entire process with you was painless and informative. I never in my wildest imagination expected to sell our home within 3 months and for over our asking price. Thanks again.

We appreciate all your hard work. You did an outstanding job! We will certainly use you again and would gladly recommend you to our friends and family!

It is truly impossible to put into words how wonderful, kind, patient, knowledgeable, focused and organized Carla is. My mother passed away very suddenly leaving me with the daunting task of settling her estate which included selling our family home. Since I live in Colorado this task seemed overwhelming to me, but with the assistance of Carla the home was repaired, staged and sold.

I would recommend anyone who is in the process of selecting a realtor that is trustworthy and honest, Carla is that person. I feel privileged to have been asked to put my thoughts down on paper, which is just another way to thank her for all she has done for me.

Carla was great to work with. Her straightforward approach to getting the job done was exactly what was needed. She moved our house in 2 weeks in a bad real estate market. Wish I would have called her sooner!

Carla did an excellent job guiding us through the process of selling our parents’ home. She gave us great advice on how to prepare the home and even hired and supervised contractors and workmen to do the necessary work. She provided us with the information we needed to properly price our property and then expertly marketed and negotiated the sale. We were able to sell our property for a good price in a difficult economic climate in less than a month! We appreciate her energy, communication skills, and expertise. Thanks, Carla!

Dear Geri, Thanks for all your help. It was a pleasure working with you. I’m so glad Larry told us about you. I just wish when we sell our home you could do it for us or I can find someone as good as you are. You really did a good job and you were a big help to me. I will be more than happy to recommend you. Thanks for all your help and friendship.

Even in the toughest market times, Carla was able to get top $ for our home. She always kept appointments, was always very professional, and had a great list of people to work on the house for a good price. She is a very honest person and has become a friend as well. I look forward to working with her again when we decide to sell another property! She knows the community well & knows her business! Neat gal!!

Geri clearly knows her business, her clients, and the market. Our property sold quickly and the process went very smoothly. Geri has developed so many resources that we were supported through every step of the process – planning, repair and construction, staging, and the sale. I recommend Geri highly if you want a professional, caring, and profitable experience.

Carla is very capable, highly professional and knowledgeable, well-informed, responsive and a pleasure to work with.

I’ve worked with lots of Real Estate agents over the years and Carla is truly one of the best. Her advice was spot on. She worked tirelessly to make sure that we made the best deal possible. I couldn’t recommend anyone more highly.

We are very pleased to provide a recommendation for Geri Stern. In a difficult market, and with a home that needed some work, we found Geri to be knowledgeable, resourceful, prompt, and possessing a superior level of knowledge regarding marketing & staging to achieve the best results. We thought she did a fabulous job, and you will, too!

Geri is the best realtor I’ve ever worked with. She is thorough and professional and very personable. She worked hard and got me a great value. I feel very comfortable recommending her to anyone.

Carla does a great job and will bring you a qualified buyer even if the market is down.

We were very pleased with the level of customer/client care, service, and communication throughout the home selling process. Not only did Carla explain all that needed to be done and keep us constantly updated, but she wisely planned out our improvements, repairs, and staging to aid us in our decision making.

I’ve known Geri for more than 15 years. She has always been there for me with questions and referrals always addressed in a timely manner. She is very professional, thorough and a savvy real estate agent. She kept me informed on all activity (long-distance – I live in Boston) and took care of coordinating contractors preparing my house for sale. My house in El Cerrito would not have sold as quickly had it not been for Geri’s “going the extra mile” for me. She is fun to work with and I have enjoyed the whole process of selling my house. Thank you!

At first, the thought of selling my parent’s house seemed like a very daunting task. Dolores and I were not sure where to start and then we contacted Carla. Based on her experience and advice, we quickly had a plan. The process was completed quickly, professionally and positively. The results were well beyond our expectations. It pays to deal with the best and Carla is most certainly the “Best”.

Geri Stern did a fabulous job getting my house ready for sale. She’s extremely knowledgeable, hard working on my behalf, and easy to work with. She knew exactly which items needed to be attended to in preparing my house for sale and how to make the house stand out. She is totally savvy about the local real estate market and her understanding of how to make the process go as smoothly as possible for both me and the buyer was evident every step of the way.

I found Geri to be straightforward and truly knowledgeable. One of the many things I valued about Geri is that she recommended pricing the house in a way that I understood and that made sense to me and was realistic. I am very grateful for Geri’s wisdom, hard work and competence. Every time a contractor needed to be met, Geri was there to handle the details and get all the information I wanted. If I were buying or selling another home in the east bay, Geri would be my top choice–she knows all sides of a sale and the local market and is a consummate professional.

This is the second property Carla has sold for us in the East Bay. On both occasions she excelled in prepping, staging, and working tirelessly for us. This included frequent open houses, innovative advertising ideas, and sound advice as we moved through the process to final closing. We couldn’t recommend her more highly, a true professional.

Geri Stern’s knowledge and experience are the reasons my house sold in 12 days in the slowing market of May, 2007. The purchase of a new place which Geri also handled for me was complicated by my rush into a bad deal. Geri extricated me from this, was professional under difficult circumstances and got me the place I wanted. I would recommend her to everyone I know and would use her again should I ever move.

Carla did an excellent job of preparing & staging my Mom’s 50 year old house before the actual listing. She knew what improvements would make the older home a viable and attractive piece of property in today’s competitive market. I would not hesitate to recommend Carla & her team to prospective sellers or buyers.

Congratulations, Geri! You did a great job on the house and I am so thankful for your hard work, personal grace, and excellent taste.

We were so pleased with Carla’s service. Very professional start to finish. She could not have done more given the difficulty of the present housing market.

Carla and her staff were so knowledgeable and efficient. They did a wonderful job in selling my home. I recommend them highly.

Selling our home of 30+ years was not easy. Geri guided us through the process with her knowledge and experience. She did this while still respecting our wishes and listening to our input. Geri is a very pleasant agent to work with. Combining this with her experience and knowledge, she is definitely a number one agent.

Carla is both a consummate professional and a caring individual. All facets of the sale from initial meeting to closing were perfectly carried out. She minimizes the potential problems for all parties. We could not recommend her more highly. The best and the brightest and the nicest.

Carla was very knowledgeable about the sales (real estate) market. Her professionalism and organizational skills are exceptional. Working with Carla was enjoyable and I would recommend her to anyone.

Carla gave careful attention to the preparation of the house. She was patient and understanding with our many questions. We were very pleased with the sale.

I would highly recommend Carla Della Zoppa. She works very hard to get you the best sale for your home. She was always very understanding of our situation and went out of her way to help us when we were working over long distance. If you choose to work with Carla, you can be confident that you are working with someone who is knowledgeable and good at what she does.

You made a long-distance chore painless. Thanks so much!

Carla sold our house in one week, but what impressed me most was all the work she put in getting our house ready. She worked closely with us for nearly three months organizing and overseeing work by several contractors. Carla was always available and had our best interest in mind. I honestly don’t know why anyone would choose someone else to sell their home. I actually really miss talking to her on a regular basis now the we have moved! Thanks.

I came to California in August 2006 to look for a house in or near El Cerrito. A friend suggested asking Geri Stern, with whom he had dealt in buying his own house, to act in my behalf. She found the right house in about ten days. Geri was tireless and meticulous in all our dealings, and it was a great pleasure to work with her. She continues to be of help in getting acquainted with my new neighborhood. I highly recommend her!

Our sincere gratitude to Carla for making the sale of my mother’s home a stress less event. Carla is efficient and professional in every aspect. The staging of the home was awesome. Her people did a wonderful job and made the house look like a warm inviting cottage. Every detail was taken care of with utmost care. The end result was that we received our asking price plus. We are very grateful to Carla.

Forever indebted and hugely appreciative I am writing this account of my experience with Geri Stern and Security Pacific Realty to be followed by my glowing recommendation; please feel free to skip directly to the recommendation below. I bought a home in Richmond in 1997 and rented it to my sister against the sage advice of those wiser than I. In an attempt to spare you the details and suffice it to say, it was a fiasco and quite a disheartening experience. I contacted Geri about 5 years ago when the going was getting tough with the rental and I wanted to sell the house; even though the situation was touchy and the terms were iffy, she was attentive, helpful and patient. I was ultimately strong armed by family to keep the house to shelter and continue to enable my sister. I reluctantly obliged and apologized to Geri for having wasted her time. I let her know though, that the time would come when I would sell the place and I would give her a call. I received at least a letter a week from eager east bay realtors who wanted to offer themselves and their experience and services to help me sell my rental should the occasion arise with promises of “full service” and “no hassles”. I kept Geri’s name and number on top of the pile. The time finally came to evict my sister and sell the house and I phoned up Geri, who, after a little reintroduction, remembered me and the house and was rather surprised that I had held onto her name and number and called her back after all these years. She had displayed a sincerity and professionalism upon our initial contact that I really didn’t take any of the other realtors’ offers seriously. Over the course of the 9 years I owned the house it had been abused and neglected by the tenant and the prospect of fixing it up to put it on the market was daunting to say the least. Geri never batted an eye, there was never even a moment’s hesitation; she just jumped right in. Let me remind you that the tenant was my sister, that I had to evict her, and that she had allowed the house to be run down almost to the point of being unrecognizable as the cute little home I had purchased for her to live in a short 9 years ago. Geri has a background in psychiatry, she was a psychiatric nurse before going into real estate, and this proved invaluable in getting my sister out of the home. I was an absent landlord living over 100 miles away, I rarely visited due to sibling issues and it was so depressing to see the condition in which the house was kept. Geri managed her and her exit beautifully. That was the easy part, there was $40,000 dollars’ worth of repairs that needed to be done, and absolutely every bit of it was orchestrated by Geri. I did nothing except sign the occasional bid and write the occasional check. She got the contractors in, bargained for the best prices, and oversaw it all. It was a huge undertaking and to this day I am amazed at how little I had to do and how minimally I was involved. It was truly a full service, no hassle operation. I was overwhelmed by the final product, absolutely in awe of the transformation. It was an incredible job done brilliantly and quickly and completely. Geri was there every day checking on the progress and making sure that everything was just so. I even got a phone call from my estranged ex-brother-in-law who saw the finished product and wanted to congratulate me on the fine job I had on fixing up the house his ex-wife had destroyed. I thanked home and explained that I had really done nothing except pay for the work, Geri had done it all. As for the “glowing recommendation” well, I just can’t recommend Geri Stern strongly enough. She was completely at my service, she did absolutely everything; I felt as though I was her only client and my house was her only project. She was available, professional, attentive, reliable, thorough, and invaluable at all levels of the renovation and sale of the place. I have no hesitation in saying she worked hard to earn her commission, and that she deserved every penny she made representing me in the sale of the home. I can’t imagine you could find any better service than what I have received over the past few months with this fine realtor/psychiatric RN. As for the sale, the bottom line, it sold quickly, smoothly, as and for more than the original asking price. I couldn’t be happier.

I can’t imagine what it would have been like to try to sell my house without Carla and her staff. With Carla’s advice, expertise, hard work, and heart, every snarl unsnarled and the whole complicated process went like a charm.

Geri, you performed a miracle. A minor miracle, perhaps, but a miracle just the same. A year ago, probably anyone could have done an adequate job as a real estate agent. However, in the current market to get a full price offer, to have sold and closed the house very quickly, and to have done so with an absolute minimum of hassle and problems requires a lot of experience and the right contacts. I’ll note a couple of high points: You had a knowledgeable and reliable floor man who was able to quickly assess the problems in the family room. Your previous experience with the buyer and his agent and knowing exactly what to say to them may well have been the difference between success and a much longer process. It was very much a pleasure working with you. I’m still feeling happy, even giddy, and I’m excited about finding another home in the southwest, something you’re also helping with. I just wish I had 5 or 6 homes for you to sell.

Geri, you did such an absolutely incredible job on figuring out what needed to be done to fix up and stage the home, we’d love to meet with you again. (In fact, in retrospect we realize that we never really gave you the profuse thanks and accolades for your work on our behalf since we were going through a lot of stuff at that time; but please accept our apologies and our enormous appreciation for your remarkable work.)

Thank you, Geri, we’re very happy. You really take care of your clients. You can use me for a reference anytime!

Carla has represented my interests most professionally as both a buyer and seller. She has guided me through some difficult transactions and has made it very easy as she helped navigate through what could have been a “muddled” escrow proceeding. Carla also has a very professional crew at her disposal to expedite the ease of transition, whether it be painting, flooring, carpentry, landscaping and staging.

Carla was helpful and professional in her dealing with us, we are both happy with her performance. She is no longer my agent, but I feel we have gained a friend. She went beyond our expectations.

Dear Geri;

I wanted to take this time to thank you, for both myself and my sister, in the sale of our father’s home in El Cerrito. Our father had recently passed away, and at the time we were dealing with not only the emotions of the situation, as well as the confusion of our next step, we both felt very fortunate to have had you handling the sale of his home. You took command of the details involving the proper contacts for the estate sale, the cleanup crew, to scheduling the remodel work. This to say the least, was invaluable. Since I live in Colorado, and could not be present for much of this work, your handling of this was flawless. You hit the projected dates, and the work all came in at the original estimates. All the work looked great, and really made a difference in the appearance of the home. We both feel you presented the home at its best, with the improvements you suggested, and the staging you provided. We feel we were able to receive top dollar for the property, more than even our best expectations, due mostly to your hard work. Our father, as we had told you, sold real estate in the El Cerrito area since 1974, and he was very active on the Board of Realtors, even serving as president for the Contra Costa board. He always had set a high standard for himself, as well as the realtors he worked with. So most important to us, we feel our father would have been very pleased with our choice for the realtor we had handle the sale of his home. We cannot thank you enough for a job well done and would highly recommend you to anyone considering doing business with you.

From the very beginning I can only say good things about Carla. She not only took care of everything, but gave 110% at everything she did. The selling of our house not only went with ease, but we also got an offer that exceeded our expectations. She did all of this with the integrity, honesty, and all the virtues of a true professional. I would recommend her any day.

The service was excellent and met my expectations of prompt, professional, courteous (and profitable!). That’s why I was a repeat customer!

Dear Carla,

Once again we would like to express our sincere, heartfelt gratitude to you and your staff for expertly remodeling, preparing, staging and selling our home in El Cerrito. At times the task seemed overwhelming, the hurdles and difficulties never ending and it looked like the sale from “Hell-side”. Your expertise and tenacity, positive energy and your willingness to cast obstacles aside, as well as your thoughtfulness in dealing with two overly sentimental old folks who had to separate from their home of 36 years, made everything possible and brought us to an unexpected fantastic final sale. We cannot thank you enough. You know, the entire Hillside community is very fond of you and is fully aware of your outstanding reputation in Real Estate. We are so lucky to have you as our agent and friend. Now our house here in Germany will always be your house as well. We thank you with all our heart.

I’ve known Carla since she was a superior student and accomplished speaker on my debate team. As a Realtor, she gets without any reservation, an A+. She detailed a sales plan for 626 Sonoma St., executed a brilliant “staging” of the house, kept all her deadlines and brought to me an offer no sane person could refuse. All calls/questions were promptly responded to by Carla or her superb office manager, Mary. I do not hesitate to name Carla and her staff to the Real Estate Hall of Fame.

We live in the Seattle area and were not looking forward to selling our old house in Richmond from long distance. Fortunately I had saved a flyer from Geri and Carla describing how they would arrange for any repairs and staging for the house, without charging us extra to coordinate the work. Geri was not only our realtor, but our de factor contractor, dealing with a number of companies that repaired, painted and carpeted our house. She also made recommendations on staging the house and removing a problem tree from the yard that helped us get a great offer on our little house. In addition, since our house was involved in a 1031 tax exchange, Geri was the liaison between us and the title company to make sure the extra paperwork got done. We greatly appreciate all the extra work Geri did to get our house sold; I know it saved us several trips down to the Bay Area.

Upon the passing of my mother, I chose Carla to sell the family home I grew up in and my parents owned for 55+ years. The process went flawlessly from her coordinating the necessary repairs and updates to the advertising and staging of the residence. I was always kept abreast of what was going on and the selling price exceeded the asking price. I couldn’t recommend the “Transition Team” more highly.

Carla – Thank you so much for your help in selling my Mother’s home. I can’t believe how smoothly it all went, especially with me living in Washington State. Your hard work and professionalism really paid off. Finally … a pleasure working with a realtor!

I can’t tell you how much I appreciated your services in selling 2628!! I have never seen someone work so hard and you surely did your best by me. I have already recommended that some friends of mine “call Carla” when they decide to sell and more will be coming, I know. Again, many thanks.

Carla’s real estate knowledge is unparalleled. Her professional & caring demeanor helped ease the stress associated with the sale of our family home. Thank you Carla for all your efforts in procuring a successful sale for my mother.

Carla is a complete joy to work with. She is enthusiastic, knowledgeable & thorough. I could not ask for a better advocate on my side. Thank you Carla, for doing a wonderful job!

Dear Carla,

Margot & I will not hesitate to recommend you to our friends. You are very professional, sincere and tend to the important details while keeping a personal friendly “CARMA”. We feel you stayed focused and gave your “ALL”. We appreciate these qualities. Keep up the good work.

Geri Stern is a consummate professional. During the selection process for an agent, she was well prepared and informative. Once selected, she initiated and coordinated all inspections, renovations & enhancements. Everything was done flawlessly and on time. I had reservations about the staging, but her staging was tasteful, beautifully done and greatly enhanced the value of the house. The sale went smoothly & the final price exceeded my expectations. If and when I sell my home, Geri will be my agent. Roy and Dione Henrickson – Point Richmond

Extremely happy with outcome; well organized and attentive to detail; fine job orchestrating all the components (landscaping, staging, repairs), excellent interior designer, very knowledgeable about the market and how best to maximize sales price.

Carla Della Zoppa conducted the sale of my parents’ home with efficiency, flexibility and professionalism. Carla listens to her clients and advises them as to how to achieve their goals. Carla knows the market well and uses her knowledge to her clients’ advantage. She does an excellent job.

Thank you for your professional, no-nonsense approach to selling our property. By trusting you to handle everything for us and taking your advice, we were able to detach emotionally and treat this as a business transaction. Your experience and professionalism were some of the many reasons we chose you to list our property.

As a daughter the most difficult was the passing of my mother and the designated executor to handle her things. Carla’s leadership and support carried me through my transition. With her help I was able to move to her property at Brickyard Way. She handled the selling & upgrade of my Berk Ave property. It sold for more than I dreamed of. She handled the upgrades & all paperwork. I love her assisting the Harris Family to move on.

Carla was amazing! As out-of-town sellers, it was important to have total confidence in a realtor. We found we could depend on Carla to handle things on a daily basis and she took charge of handling all repairs (& there was a lot) so we didn’t have to face it all ourselves—not knowing where to start or who to call. I thanked God for Carla every day!

Cheerful, efficient, knowledgeable, cooperative, tireless, reliable = Carla Della Zoppa. I recommend her without reservation.

We were very pleased we chose Carla as our Realtor. She worked tirelessly on our behalf, and gave us excellent advice and suggestions to make our home more attractive for sale. Her guidance through the sale and closure was very professional. Carla gives 100%.

Many thanks to Geri for guiding us through the sale of our home in El Cerrito so we can move forward to our future home in Hercules. We sincerely appreciate all of the support you provided us during this anxiety-filled process; your professionalism, sensitivity to our concerns, and commitment to us as your clients was greatly appreciated.

Carla was the most competent, thorough and professional real estate agent I have ever worked with. I was a remote seller and she did everything to insure our home was presentable for the market and thus realized for me maximum profitability. Over and beyond the call of duty should be Carla’s mantra.

Dear Carla,

There are no words that can truly express my feelings of how appreciative I am for your handling the sale of my mother’s home. As you know, it was very difficult for me to even go to the house because of the pain and sorrow I felt as I reflected on my mother’s passing. There were times when I openly wept as I could not control my emotions. Being an only-child of a single parent, there were no family members to assist me in handling the great undertaking of preparing and selling my mom’s home.

Fortunately, I met you and you were able to minimize my involvement to virtually nothing. Besides you contacting me for necessary authorizations, you handled everything. With the home having received little maintenance or repair in the prior 27 years, there was a lot to do. You put together an action plan for preparing and selling the home and you quickly went to work. I am still amazed at your willingness and ability to handle all of the details. You determined what changes and repairs were needed, obtained bids, hired contractors, oversaw each project, staged the home, brought it to market, and subsequently handled all of the negotiations and paperwork for sale. With the incredible amount of work you accomplished, somehow you made it appear seamless and effortless.

I do not believe that there is a Realtor anywhere on Earth that would have or even could have done what you did for me. Before working with you, I had interviewed two other Realtors. One of them was very experienced and presented me with what I believe was a well-conceived sales plan. In retrospect, his plan did not come close to providing me with the service and support that you delivered.

I thank you from the bottom of my heart. The extremely warm feelings that I received from our business relationship, and more importantly from our new friendship, will stay with me forever. Carla, if angels exist, you are certainly one of them.

Dear Geri,

Thank you for doing a great job in selling my house. You more than met my expectations. Your expertise, organization and knowledge made the transaction quite painless and successful. I’m glad I met you.

Geri Stern is the best Real Estate Agent that I have ever worked with. She took my run down property, one that other agents wanted to put up for sale in its “as is” condition for $250,000, and turned it into a beautiful home in a few months. She worked with contractors to repair or replace only those items that were really holding down the selling price. She had a fantastic working relationship with these contractors and was able to keep the repair prices well below that I would have paid if I were to try and contract the work out. She knows the approximate fair price for these repairs and made sure she got the best price. She was fun to work with and she kept me informed on the day-to-day progress (even though I lived in a different state) and offered great advice when problems did arise. She is extremely honest. If she saw a problem. She ordered an inspection by a professional and got a full report. She effortlessly handled all the paperwork, and disclosed everything to the potential Buyers. It cost me $21,000 in repairs and the final sales price was $397,000. I would say that Geri’s advice put a lot of extra money in my pocket. I would highly recommend her to anyone. You will not be disappointed.

It is my great pleasure to write a letter of recommendation for you relative to the efforts you have expended on my behalf in the 5 real estate transactions you have handled for me over the last ten years. In every case you have exceeded my expectations, not only in getting the properties at the best possible price during acquisition, but higher than our listing price during sales. You conducted each transaction with intense care and concern for our family life as the process was concluded. Your knowledge of the real estate market in your area as well as what to do for each property to maximize return was excellent and allowed us to achieve our sales or purchase price in each property you sold our acquired for us. I have and will recommend you without reservation as the absolute best person in your area to handle any real estate transaction for homes and our land. Your honesty and upfront approach is not only greatly appreciated, but really refreshing when compared to how so many of the agents we have encountered conducted themselves during the many transactions you have undertaken for us. Thank you and well done. There is no one that I know of that is any better than you in your field.

The “Dynamic Duo” of Baitman & Robin have nothing on” The Transition Team” of Carla Della Zoppa & Geri Stem. Trusting in Carla and following her advice, Carla spearheaded a quick, highly lucrative sale of our house in no time flat! Carla Della Zoppa & Geri Stern take the stress out of selling or buying. We recommend them highly.

Geri stayed on top of the latest listings and showed us only the homes that met our criteria until we finally found the right house we wanted. Even though we were particular in what we were looking for in a seller’s market, Geri was reassuring and patient in our search to make sure we were truly happy with our decision. She was very attentive to the details and made the whole experience much easier than we expected.

It was an absolute pleasure working with Carla to sell our property. She helped us navigate the rapidly changing marketplace and helped us achieve a tremendous outcome. Her detailed expertise and vast knowledge of the community and marketplace was invaluable. We consider Carla to be among the most professional individuals with whom we have worked and give her an unqualified, highly enthusiastic recommendation.

Dear Geri,
On behalf of my family and myself, I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for your help in the recent sale of our home. Your experience and professionalism made me feel confident and comfortable in leaving the sale of our family home in your hands.
Your knowledge as it relates to updated home decor, staging and painting as well as your team of professional contractors from plumbers to structural engineers that work with you, made this particular journey very helpful!!
Your assistance and persistence with the City of San Pablo was most helpful and your professional approach with City Officials made this project move smoothly.
This is the second home for which you have sold for my family and I and on each sale you were able to garner more than $100,000 over the asking price!!! THANK YOU!!
Again, I thank you for your tireless efforts, your experience, and knowledge as well as your genuine concern for your clients. May we meet again very soon️.

I live in the Dallas area and needed to sell my Mother’s home in El Cerrito. Our trust attorney, there, recommended Carla Della Zoppa…and I’m so very glad I took his advice.

Carla and her highly competent staff managed everything – from inspections, repair and cleanup, to staging and listing – all “from a distance.” Best of all, as a result of her guidance and coordination, I realized significantly more profit from the sale than I had hoped for (and much quicker than expected). Carla Della Zoppa is a superior Realtor who gets results the right way. Working with her was an absolute joy.

Earlier this year, I decided to sell my home of 23 years. I contacted Geri Stern (Pacific Union),who had advised me in the past and who had been patiently waiting for several years for me tomake up my mind. Now that everything has been settled, I can say in retrospect that I could not have chosen a better person to assist me. Not only did she make the process as painless as possible, in September escrow closed at a price I could never have imagined obtaining. Selling a home is an emotionally difficult process, especially if one has lived in a house for a long time. Geri’s input throughout this process, her patient, invaluable guidance, and her obvious knowledge and experience removed many of the obstacles and helped me navigate those that could not be avoided. Given the many issues and problems that inevitably arise when a house is prepared for sale, Geri provided the steady hand needed to bring the process to a successful conclusion. She was there when needed, helpful and gracious even when faced with unforeseen challenges, and always focused on the final goal. I recommend Geri Stern without reservation to anyone considering the sale or purchase of a home. She is not only exceptionally knowledgeable and competent, but will provide you with just the right level of emotional support. Geri will skillfully guide you through the process, explain issues clearly, and answer all questions you may have. She is always available, responsive, and approachable. You could not choose a better agent to assist you.

Hi Geri,
I wanted to thank you for your attention to detail, your good nature and positive attitude, and your great sales abilities! We really appreciate the way you have handled every aspect of our transaction. Thanks again!

Geri- Words can't express our thanks and gratitude for the countless hours you spent in helping us sell our beloved Annex home. Your attention to detail, awesome advice and suggestions, patience in dealing with crazed buyers and agents. You are a true expert in the real estate world and we are grateful for having had the opportunity to work with you.We hope you are doing well and hope you find time to rest as well. You are amazing and we continue to recommend you when we can.

From the moment I first talked to Carla on the phone (after my son made the initial contact through a friend's recommendation) I knew we could work together and that she would have my best interest at heart in the readying and sale of my house. I felt immediate confidence that she knew the area, her clients, and knew exactly what it would take to make the property desirable to a new home owner.

I worked with Carla to sell my parent's home. Carla is cheerful, dependable, knowledgeable, personable and easy to work with. She is remarkably good real estate broker with the highest standard of professional ethics. I give her my highest recommendation without reservation. And this is all true!

We recently sold our home of some 40 years with the help of Carla. I say help, but actually it was much more than that. Carla not only did all the paperwork things that are part and parcel of a property sale. But also suggested quality contractors to do the necessary repair work and site staging that helped us maximize our return. All of this while holding our hands, explaining every step and anguishing with us when it did not sell immediately. We take pleasure in giving Carla an A+ rating knowing that you will be well served and pleased with the results.

After the few first minutes of meeting/speaking with Carla Della Zoppa we knew we wanted her for our listing agent. She was very warm, friendly, fun, understanding, professional and knowledgeable about our area and selling our home. Our home was very old and in bad shape. Carla was instrumental in making sure we spent our money wisely to make our home worthy of selling at top dollar - which it did in an amazingly short time! We couldn't be more thrilled or impressed with Carla and what she accomplished not to mention how patient she was with all my questions and concerns. We have recommended her to other people that are thinking of selling, and we would use her again in a heartbeat if we hadn't moved out of state. After many years of planning to sell and move out of state we were really blessed to have met Carla and make that a reality.

Carla's keen sense of the market place, her attention to detail and her ability to find solutions to any and all issues exceeded my every expectation. She is a true professional with a host of top notch contacts. From the design to end product she led the transformation of our mother's home from 1950's vintage, in need of much work, to an up to date, beautiful, move in ready house. The work was completed in timely manner and within budget. She is a true professional, she is prompt and her positive outlook is infectious. Bottom line: Our home sold in record time over the asking price. I simply could not be happier with Carla's work and recommend without reservation!