Michael Michalak – RE/MAX

I was referred to Michael by a friend when I was starting to look at condos in the downtown area and l couldn’t be happier.
Michael is extremely responsive and was willing to answer any of my questions I had regarding the home-​buying process as a first time (and somewhat clueless) buyer. He also takes the initiative and was efficient at finding listings that piqued my interest, and did all the work scheduling tours. Once I made an offer, Michael was always quick to provide helpful advice regarding negotiation, inspection concerns, and loan and insurance referrals.
On closing day, the paperwork got delayed at the title company, and I had to get to a really important meeting before some final documents were faxed back for me. Michael ended up going above and beyond the call of duty, and stayed for a couple extra hours to straighten everything out, really reducing my stress with having to leave early.
Michael definitely deserves his five star rating.

Michael helped us find our ideal place within our time-​frame and suits all our specifications. He is a good listener, very responsible and proactive, always on-​time and responsive to our requests. He assisted a great deal to smooth the communications between the seller agent, the lender, the lawyer, and all other parties involved to make this real estate transaction successful and as hassle-​free as possible. We truly appreciate his recommendations for prospective properties, and professional opinions that greatly eased our decision making process. We highly recommend Michael for any house-​seekers in Chicago area!

Michael deserves his 5-​star Unilocal rating and he really is as good as it gets.
I do not have a single criticism. As a first time apartment buyer, I had no idea what I was doing and Michael was there to walk me through every step of the process.
After even our initial meeting, I walked away impressed with his knowledge of the Chicago market and immediately trusted him to guide me in the right direction. Michael promptly replied to all emails, was professional /​friendly /​patient at all meetings, and buying an apartment was as painless as could be.
When it came to finding an inspector or insurance broker or mortgage broker or attorney, I asked Michael if he knew anybody and I ended up utilizing every one of his recommendations. He has got an all-​star team and they all provided the same quality of service that I came to expect when dealing with Michael himself.
There was truly no interaction or area that could have been improved upon. I would not dream of using anybody else in the future.

Michael didn’t specialize in the type of advice I needed but he quickly referred me to someone who could even though I wasn’t his client. Appreciate his advice.

We contacted Michael about selling our condo in the Wicker Park area. Our son was moving to Seattle for a year and we were not sure if we should sell or hold on and rent the unit. Michael was very prompt about pulling together some comp’s and also talked about the possibilities of our renting (instead of selling) the unit, since our son will likely be coming back to Chicago next year. In the end we elected to rent the unit. We will definitely use Michael when we decide to sell. I was very impressed with his professionalism and his awareness of what is happening in the Wicker Park/​Bucktown part of Chicago.

Buying our first home would not have been possible without Michael. I reached out to Michael after reading his excellent Unilocal reviews and he responded right away! He always worked around our schedule to set up showings and went above and beyond for us. He gave us his honest opinion while looking at properties and we really appreciated that. He set us up with a lender, a real estate attorney and an inspector that all did fantastic jobs. He did not pressure us to make a decision at all and explained everything in detail when we didn’t understand something. Buying a home can be so stressful and scary but Michael made it a very easy and simple process. He is a true professional that gets the job done! It was a pleasure working with Michael and we would give him 10 stars if we could! Thanks for all of the help, Michael!

As a new homebuyer, I can’t say enough great things about Michael and the hard work he put in to help me find my new home. He defies what you’d expect in a realtor– and in this case he was attentive, patient, and beyond knowledgeable in finding me the right place here in Chicago.
Even in my particular instance where it wasn’t your typical purchase and was a short sale, I’m glad I had Michael as my realtor. He helped me navigate and manage the process even through the bumps and bruises of a short sale, and explained every step of the way from start to finish. I couldn’t imagine working with anyone else as my realtor.
Most importantly, he’s a genuine and honest person who strives to work for you. I’ll recommend him to anybody and hope to continue working with him in the future.

I have a ton of respect for Michael’s business practice and I have referred him business whenever it makes sense. He has taught me a lot about how to interact with clients and referral sources and I hope to continue working with him for years to come.

As a first time buyer, Michael did a great job of walking me through the process and answering all of my questions in a timely and professional manner. He was quick to answer all emails, texts, or calls, he worked with my schedule for house hunting, and always kept the process moving towards closing. Michael also provided insight into the real estate market conditions and sound advice during price negotiations. I trusted his referrals for my mortgage broker, attorney, and home inspection and they were all extremely professional and helpful.
I definitely recommend Michael for anyone buying or selling a home in Chicago.

We live in Hawaii and wanted a second home in Chicago.
Michael went above and beyond to help make this deal happen and he was there every step of the way.
As an architect I know many realtors and can say that Michael is much more savvy, on a level above the rest.
All of our future purchases and sales in Chicago will all be with him.

Michael helped us sell our apartment for 21K more than we would’ve gotten if we had used Redfin. He was professional, kept us updated every week and is very prompt with all email correspondences. We will use him again for our next real estate transaction.

I am a 27-​year-​old, single, first-​time home buyer and there is absolutely no way I would have made it through this process with anyone other than Michael leading the way. I was working on a slightly shorter than ideal timeline and Michael made sure that everything moved along swiftly. He was extremely responsive and always worked with my schedule. He is also very knowledgeable about Chicago real estate. I used 100% of his recommended third parties (lender, inspector, attorney, etc.) and every single one was just as professional and helpful as Michael. I could not recommend Michael enough.

Michael did an A+ job! He helped my husband and I find our condo, and made the whole process seem effortless. Michael went out of his way and catered to our schedule. He was always available when we wanted to go house hunting. He has very informative when it came to making an offer on the property. He pulled all the comps in the surrounding area and guided us to making a qualifying offer that was accepted amongst all the other offers. I would highly recommend Michael to anyone looking for professional help.

As a fellow Remax Agent I am happy to have Michael as a resource when I have clients who need assistance buying or selling in the City of Chicago. He is one of the top 100 Remax agents in the Chicago area, which is a difficult achievement in a crowded playing field. He has accomplished this by having a great knowledge of his market and the highest degree of service and dedication to his clients. A true professional!

I just had the pleasure of working with Michael on another successful purchase transaction and our clients we’re thrilled with the outcome. His organization and communication skills truly set him apart from other realtors in Chicago. He is certainly someone I would recommend to anyone looking to buy/​sell in Chicago.

Being a mortgage lender I’ve been working with many real estate brokers. Michael, by far, stands above the crowd. Michael is a dedicated real estate broker who makes sure to listen to his client needs and does his best to match them with the right type of real estate to meet their individual needs. I highly recommend anyone looking to buy or sell a home to use Michael.

As a lender, my viewpoint and review of a Realtor might be different than a potential home buyer or a client looking to list their property with a Realtor however I feel that the resposiveness, professionalism and courtesy as well as respect of the efforts I put forward to make a transaction happen in a timely manner for our borrowers are defintely a reflection of how a Realtor would treat their client.
Mike was a pleasure to deal with and was quick and responsive to needs we had to put together a somewhat complex transaction for our borrower purchasing one of Mike’s listings, which is always appreciated on my end of the business. He routinely checked in on the progress of the loan we had in process in a professional and courteous way and to see if he could offer any assistance, again, always appreicated. I would absolutely refer and recommend Michael Michalak as an excellent Real Estate resource. Thanks Mike, it was a true pleasure working with you.

Michael is the zen master of real estate. He is calm, intelligent, confident and… more than I ever expected. I am not sure if people know how difficult it is to find a great barber. I used to go to Gabby’s on Clark St. until I moved and it has taken me three years to find another. When I first put my condo up for sale I used a different @gent and I was left with less than satisfying results. In terms of my analogy, I had asked for a trim with a clean taper and received a total buzz cut. Trust me when I say, I look scary bald and cutting my asking price became a weekly event. I understand you have to lower the price sometimes, but any idiot can give a house away so why bother with an agent. Well, I’ll tell you why… Michael.
Michael got me MY best price. He is not a miracle worker since sometimes it is the market and/​or the buyers. My buyer was a real piece of work. We negotiated a price simply enough, but the buyer was not willing to accept payment for the three minor repairs that were identified. These were more of a nuisance since I was out of state. Could I have done the work myself? Most definitely, but everyone is busy so working and going to class full-​time made it difficult to get back.
Michael helped me with everything and there was no task or problem he couldn’t resolve. He referred me to a competent lawyer and maintenance guy; he helped usher out my tenant; he called me with updates and details; he did it all and kept me well informed.
He was able to help me get through all the hiccups that arise when selling a home. As of now, I’ve bought two homes and sold one so I have limited experience, but I know great customer service and when an honest, hardworking person cares. I wish I could say more or at the very least say it better, but I will end with similar sentiments as others. Michael is great at providing the information and details needed for you to feel confident about selling or buying your home, helpful beyond compare and reassuringly calm. Michael is zen and will not disappoint.

My husband used Michael when he bought his first place in 2009 and we used him again when we bought our most recent place, which we closed 2 weeks ago.
Michael is very informative and provided us with reading materials so that we could be informed buyers. Most importantly, he was patient with my never-​ending questions.
I would use him again in the future.

Michael was tremendously helpful during the process of purchasing my first home. He was always available, he’s very knowledgable, and he helped me find and secure a terrific home. Even after the closing he has continued to offer advice and answer my questions.
I highly recommend working with Michael!