Testimonials

Brian is a fantastic realtor. We have bought and sold three homes with Brian. He is genuine, thorough, empathetic to the stresses of buying and selling and his taste is impeccable. Just a real pleasure to work with.

Brian was referred to us by some friends he had worked with on two homes. They had a great experience, as we did. We thought it was funny that he discouraged us from the home we were initially looking at. And when he said he agreed with our final decision, we felt confident with his approval. He was very thorough and helpful in a number of areas, finding a contractor for us and rounding up inspectors. We were new to all this and Brian gave us every kind of helpful advice. He was personally interested and stayed with us, making sure we knew what we were getting into.

Our experience with Brian was great. My wife and I wanted to test the waters of the market because we were thinking about moving back to the east coast. But we were apprehensive because the housing market wasn’t doing well. Laura knew Brian from years ago when he was a commercial producer. Brian has a keen eye for architecture and recognizes good lines so he knows a gem when he sees one. And we had a gem. Brian thought we could get a good price for the house and in fact we did. He thought he could sell it in a day with minimal work on our end. Brian researched the house, which was designed by the architect Edward Flickett. He found out that the first owner was a composer for Disney so Brian developed an interesting marketing plan. He said we could start with a low price and sell fast, or higher price and it would take it longer, or try to bring both markets together with a price in the middle. The guy with the lower number would try to come up with more, and the higher guy with more money would try to outbid the others. Then Brian brought his creativity from his days as a commercial producer and for the first open house he hired a Cordon Blue Chef and made it a memorable event. We had 6 offers in a day. A bidding war ensued and it sold for well over the asking price! Brian really brings his experience as a producer to real estate. When doing a production there is no “no.” If something needs to be done and it seems impossible, you adapt and find a way to do it. I was an art director and my wife a producer. As an art director, I had done a number of things to the house and Brian added his creative input. He was best telling us what NOT to do – we were going to spend money on fixing the walkway and bigger projects like that, but he said people will overlook little flaws, and to focus on other things instead. He stopped us from wasting our cash on fixes that wouldn’t increase the sales price. Brian followed up all the way through to the end. Whenever something came up he had his army of people to call upon. Even after sale, he helped us rent a place for the summer. He won’t make money off of that—he was just being helpful. I am thinking about moving to New York and Brian is going to put us in touch with people there. I can’t think of a negative aspect of the whole process. We’ve recommended Brian to a number of friends and I will keep recommending him. Some people don’t want to listen or take his advice, he probably wouldn’t necessarily take on that property. He may not be the right fit for every property – he won’t just take it on to have a lot of listings. He feels a certain passion either for the property or the person.

Three years ago we started searching for a home. Brian was representing one of the houses we saw and we called him for the address. Instead of just giving us the address and sending us on our way, he said, “Why don’t you come to my office first?” We looked at his inventory and we were impressed that he redirected us, in a gentle, non-aggressive manner. After about a year I became pregnant and we put the house search on hold for a year. Brian kept us informed the entire time, checking in with updates on the market, new listings and keeping us interested. Brian has a professional, easy-going, non-confrontational manner. He was never pushy, but assertive in the best possible way! He showed us a lot of homes and there were many times I was ready to just jump in and go for it. He would educate and advise me to wait for what I really wanted, the right one. When we seriously started looking again, it took almost another year because we found a short sale. I must have spoken to him every day for that year. When it was time to sell our home, it was not easy. Brian was patient and persistent. He found a buyer in the first week, during the recession! Our house had a number of small repairs. I said my husband would take care of it, but Brian helped us find a handyman and we got it all taken care of. I referred him to my neighbor and he sold her home, too. Since then he has sold a number of homes in the Silver Lake area. He is just great and we became friends in the process. I am an interior designer and deal with trades-people all day. In three years, we did not have one problem with Brian. That’s amazing! I can’t say enough good things about Brian Ades.

Brian helped my wife and me buy a house. He helped us with securing the loan, viewing properties, making an offer, going through the inspections, and then with the back and forth with the sellers. Subsequently he helped me find tenants. For the rental, he showed the property, did the paperwork and helped choose good renters. There were various questions that arose and I knew I could always go to him. He was definitely fair with his commissions and worth it. With everything that comes up around my property, Brian is my first call.

My husband and I were first-time homebuyers and we had no clue what we were doing. We were doing it completely on our own at first—didn’t know how to find a good realtor. As with making any major purchase, you feel like someone is going to take advantage of you. We found Brian because we were looking at a condo he was representing. He had such a warm presence, not imposing, and so willing to be accommodating. We talked in detail and hit it off. I asked him if he could show us other properties. Patience is a big requirement for me—I read the fine print and ask hundreds of questions and a lot of people don’t like that. Brian was just incredible—so kind and patient with us. He explained everything. He helped us not only search for a home, but once we decided on a home, he helped us ask the right questions, and protected us from getting taken advantage of by the other side. I know realtors work for the commission, but I never once got that impression or pressure from Brian. Our deal didn’t require any follow up but Brian checked in on us as a realtor and as a friend to make sure everything was still good and we were fine in our new place. My husband and I have talked about this—if and when we sell our condo in five or six years we hope Brian is still a realtor because we will go back to him in a heartbeat. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. He was perfect.

Brian does a great job of marketing a property for sale. I’m a commercial real estate agent, and I’ve worked with him for two or three years now. I was getting letters all the time from realtors, but there was something about his initial letter that caught my eye. I started a dialog and he told me how he would market my property. When it was time, he did exactly what he said he would do and found suitable tenants for me. Brian is extremely competent, reliable and professional. Brian looks out for the client first—the sale is not his first concern. Brian always protects my interests. Based on my experience, I recommended him to my neighbor. Brian was patient, and when my neighbor was ready, they moved forward. Brian found a suitable buyer and the house is now in escrow!

Brian was my real estate agent and represented me in the process of buying a house. He was reachable 100% of the time, and immediately responsive if I reached out. Brian is very honest, thorough, and is amazingly good with all the details. There were a few tricky aspects to the deal. Brian guided the process and removed each issue as it arose. He was very adept at handling these situations. We are in constant contact about real estate issues, not just when going through the process. The relationship is ongoing. I absolutely recommend Brian.

We had a beautiful and unusual place that was not your standard sale. It was very idiosyncratic, with old septic tanks, etc. I talked to about five or six agents. They were calling me all the time, but Brian didn’t push me at all. He didn’t even come in the house on the first visit. We just sat in the garden and talked and he just got it. He said, “Enjoy the house while you have it and call me when you’re ready to talk.” I liked his attitude. He was very creative in marketing the house to the particular buyer who would be attracted to it. He had a great photographer shoot it and put on a lovely open house with a gourmet chef. He has a rare blend of business acumen and sensitivity. He didn’t want to be a shark with either us or the buyer. Brian has full integrity and is really above-board, and he really got me through the process emotionally. He was there for us.

We interviewed three or four different realtors before we hired Brian to sell our Laurel Canyon home. Brian was organized and professional, his pitch book was very comprehensive and he came highly recommended by several of our neighbors. Brian brought in contractors and got quotes for small cosmetic things that made the house more marketable. He brought in a photographer to take fantastic pictures, and helped us stage the house for a sale. He did a couple of private showings as well as an open house and within three or four days we had multiple offers above the asking price. Brian then helped us vet the offers and gave us professional guidance, telling us what to look for in good buyers, as well as how to manage counter offers. Throughout the process I could reach him any time of the day for any reason, and he was proactive about updating me by email, phone or in person. During escrow we talked all the time and he walked us through every step of that process. I still keep in touch with Brian because he’s a good guy and I really like him as a person. There really is nothing that I wish he would have done differently.

I am the trustee of a trust and when the trustor passed away it was my job to sell his house. I interviewed several realtors and hired Brian because he was smart, enthusiastic and had a great personality. Brian made the process easier than I could have imagined. He had amazing ideas how to market the property, he helped me set the price which was spot-on and we ended up selling it for a good bit more than the asking price. He always kept me informed and after the sale Brian tied up loose ends, making sure the utilities were switched off or switched over to the new owners. He made the process completely painless which I didn’t think was possible.

Brian went above and beyond the call of duty. I found out about Brian when he sent a flyer in the mail that caught my eye. I ended up talking to him as well as various other real estate agents. The others came off as snake oil salesmen, but I got a really good vibe from Brian. I liked what he had to say on the phone and when we met he didn’t make any promises—he told me the truth straight out. That is one thing I really like about Brian—he is honest. We were selling my mother’s house, which was not in the best shape. Brian gave me a price range, but it seemed low to me. He gave me a number of good suggestions for improvements to the property that would increase the value of the home. I still had a price in my mind that was above the market and above what Brian thought I could get, but Brian didn’t argue with me. He showed the house, and we had only one bite, which was quite low. We took it off the market and gave it another try eight months later. This time I let Brian come up with a price that was more in line with the market and I had made some improvements to the house. We had some good bids and we sold the house for quite a bit more than the original offer. I would recommend Brian for simple fact that based on our interaction he is a very honest man. Additionally, he got us an amazing price on a 100-year-old house.

Brian is the ultimate when it comes to realtors. I’m a realtor myself and have been for 35 years. For me to say all this about another realtor is big. I didn’t have a million dollar property. Brian deals with multi-million dollar properties as well as properties like mine, but he gave me the same level of service as if I had a more expensive place. Thanks to his excellent marketing, the property had multiple offers and sold for more than I was asking. I consider myself very fortunate to have found Brian! He sold a house that I inherited from my dad. I live in South Orange County and needed someone who knows LA. Brian knows how to incorporate what buyers enjoy about a particular neighborhood into the home’s description. His background in advertising really informs the ways he markets a property. He described the house better than I could have and did a great job setting up the open house. He is well known and respected by other realtors. 70 people came to the open house! As I learned more about Brian and his past as a commercial producer, as well as the level of people and companies he has worked with, I realized that I was working with someone who has special skills and is appreciated by many people. He was great about communicating with my tenant while the property was for sale. He was also great about getting back to me with feedback from open houses and other real estate agents. You want that communication to be there with your agent. I appreciated that he was always on time for his appointments. He also gives helpful advice, from the pricing of the property to how you should approach certain issues that may arise during the transaction. He suggested good people to work on the house. Mine was a tricky property on a steep hillside.