Cherie Carson & Elena Ronquillo – Red Oak Realty

I met Cherie and Elena more than five years ago via email and phone as they were representing a Buyer and I was the Lender helping the Buyer secure a loan to purchase a home. Cherie and Elena’s professionalism, responsiveness, attention to detail and care for their clients best interest really struck me as outstanding at that time. Being that I am a lender, I have worked with many Realtors over the years. Cherie and Elena are the best in my book.
Flash forward 5 years. When it came time for my wife and I to purchase a home and sell our old one, our decision was very easy, we knew we wanted to work with Cherie and Elena for both of our transactions. They are knowledgeable, thoughtful, considerate, positive and wonderful people. We found ourselves always smiling when we would look to see who was calling on our cellphones and saw the cheerful picture of Cherie or Elena.
Especially during this particularly crazy real estate market, it is absolutely crucial to work with Realtors that have the knowledge, expertise and required savviness and a great network to get the deal done for your best interest. It is much more than simply listing your home for sale or finding a home you like. That’s the easy part. There can be a tremendous amount of behind the scenes communication and intelligence gathering from other Realtors, Lenders, Appraisers, Inspectors, Contractors, Photographers, Stagers, and others involved in your transaction. In our opinion, this is where a Realtor can make or break a deal and this is where Cherie and Elena truly shine. They are the savviest of the savvy in such a nice way.
Take my advice from someone in the real estate lending industry that works with many Realtors, you will not find better for your real estate transaction. Cherie and Elena are a perfect team to represent you.

Cherie and Elena were awesome! They helped us buy our house 8 yrs ago and we were very impressed and chose to work with them again to sell the house. I cannot recommend them any higher. They are honest, ethical, considerate and made the process of selling our house as stress free as possible and kept us completely informed throughout the process.

Cherie is experienced, competent, and clearly loves her work. I love the little touches she does to help clients feel seen and cared for.

They’re simply the best. They know the area inside and out and fully understand (and clearly explain) the wacky nuances of buying in the East Bay. Cherie and Elena are patient, friendly, and smart. What more could you ask for? Thanks to the two of them, we are moving into our dream home tomorrow morning.

Upon the recommendation of a friend, my partner and I enlisted the services of Cherie and Elena in our search for a home in the East Bay. Given that we were living in San Francisco and weren’t completely familiar with the neighborhoods in Oakland and Berkeley, we really needed a realtor that could wisely advise us on safe, quaint, fun, and affordable neighborhoods.
From the moment we met Cherie and Elena during our intake meeting, we knew they were the team that would best represent us and our interests. And from that moment to the time we received our keys – and even beyond – they never failed to deliver. Cherie and Elena helped and guided us through every aspect of house hunting from finding places to visit, to taking us to broker tours, to helping us craft competitive bids, to negotiating the deal, to interfacing with the sellers and the sellers’ agents, and to helping us find trusted tradespeople to do some pre-​move in renovations. Their consistent positive approach, upbeat attitudes, and vast knowledge instilled in us a sense of calm as we waded through a very competitive and tumultuous real estate market.
But above and beyond all of that, Cherie and Elena are simply wonderful and caring people who clearly love their work and consistently look out for what’s in their clients’ best interest. Never were they pushy or impatient or exhibit any of the other negative aspects sometimes associated with realtors. My partner and I have already recommended Cherie and Elena’s services to close friends of ours (who they’ve already helped find a condo in Berkeley) and we would highly recommend them again.
I can’t think of a better team I’d want on my side through what can be a very difficult and stressful (and also, of course, joyous) time in one’s life.

As first time buyers in the highly competitive Bay Area, my partner and I were extremely nervous about our prospects. It’s hard to believe, but in just the last couple months our wildest hopes have been imagined and we live in a beautiful condo in our dream location. We owe this almost entirely to the guidance and support of Cherie and Elena, whom we feel very lucky to have had as our agents.
From the first meeting, they reassured us about the «whirlwind» of buying property and realistically eased our concerns while simultaneously educating us about all that it would entail. They quickly had an outline of the type of place we were looking for and we were seeing locations within the week. When we found a place we were interested, they dove right in, gathering all the documentation and preparing us for the terrifying deluge of forms and contacts (by the way, they are well established in the Bay Area and have a great network of people for all kinds of services).
Cherie guided us on a couple of matters we may not have thought of ourselves, and looking back, we can say this was the difference between a good agent and truly great one. Cherie and Elena gave us the extra push and support to do things we may not have done on our own or with a less supportive agent, and it is thanks to this level of support that we are now sitting in our dream location. Having Cherie and Elena by our side for any questions all the way down to the signing was a huge relief, too, during the crazy last few weeks.
Their support continued even after the signing, too, with a thoughtful picture card, advice on moving, and a gift basket welcoming us to our new home. Wonderful people who are knowledgeable, efficient and produce results – you can’t ask for better partners in your real estate search.

Finding the right home in the Bay Area, at a price you can live with, can be daunting!
However, despite the difficult criteria on our end (the need for a separate office and a garden, as well), we could feel Cherie and Elena at our side, patiently providing perspective and listening carefully… We were moved by the level of personal concern they had for helping us manifest the change. We cannot tell you how many times, when an agent at an open house asked who we were working with, and we answered «Cherie and Elena», that they responded in a way that clearly seemed to say, «You are in good hands».
As it worked out, it was a timely call from Cherie that made us homeowners. She had news of an amazing opportunity to bid on a property we liked, but were concerned that it would go well over asking. Our bid was successful! Once in contract, the closure went incredibly smoothly. Loan docs were pulsed to us via email, and Cherie and Elena were always available to answer questions and advise. We were thrilled to have keys within three weeks.
The true test always seems to be whether you would choose to repeat an experience.
To this, we can give a wholehearted, «Yes!» Characterized by constructive attitudes and dedicated, caring, high quality service, Cherie and Elena would remain our top choice.

Cherie and Elena were very helpful in getting us a house in very competitive Albany market.
They were always available when we needed to talk to them. We had many questions as a home buyer. They were prompt, resourceful and willing to spend time answering all of our questions.
They offer very high quality service. Highly recommended!

My wife and I were referred to Cherie and Elena by a friend to help us buy our first home.
We had interviewed three other real estate agents before deciding to go with Cherie and Elena. We chose them over the others because we felt they understood us the best and they have a deep knowledge of the areas we were looking (North Oakland, South/​West Berkeley, and Montclair). My wife and I didn’t have a huge budget to work with and we appreciated the respect that Cherie and Elena showed us as clients which we didn’t really feel with the other agents we interviewed.
Finding the house proved to be the easy part of the process. Cherie and Elena referred us to an excellent mortgage broker. We found a house we loved, put our offer in, and we were accepted.
The hard part, and where Cherie and Elena really came through for us, was supporting us through all the negotiations to get us to closing. This turned out to be very hard due to work that needed to be done on the house. We really appreciated how patient they were through this. They definitely talked me down from more than one ledge.
In the end, we have a great house in the location we want. Hats off to Cherie and Elena for making this happen!

When learning about our search expanding to the east bay, our SF realtors Mike Tekulsky and Ron Wong recommended these two wonderful ladies. Cherie and Elena are both great realtors with very complementary skills. Cherie is a wonderful, patient listener who takes careful note of every preference you may utter while Elena is very meticulous in her approach — ensuring none of us is losing track of the arduous process involved in buying a home.
Both my wife and I feel extremely fortunate to have worked with them in finding our new, dream home in the east bay. If the rest of the Red Oak team is half as good as they have been to us, suffice it to say you’re in wonderfully competent hands!

I have referred many clients who I felt I could not do the best job with to Cherie and Elena. I have always pleased with the results. We work in different parts of the East Bay and in different price points. They are fabulous with first time buyers.
I adore them and know that you will too.

I recently closed on a house, with the help of Red Oak Realtor Cherie Carson — who made our process incredibly smooth and comfortable.
I came to Cherie after working with a realtor that wasn’t showing us properties that matched our price range or living preferences. In our initial meeting, Cherie asked us a lot of questions, and as a result, showed us properties that really showed her understanding of our desires in regards to housing type, neighborhoods, price and amenities. With our low budget, we weren’t sure we would be able to find a home in a safe neighborhood — But Cherie was able to navigate us to a neighborhood we hadn’t known about — which fit us well.
Very early in our search, Cherie found us the house we ended up buying, and expertly helped us navigate what we knew would be a competitive multiple offer situation. We wound up being chosen by the seller, despite 5 other offers on the house.
She was very adept in showing us how to make our offer stand out, what price to come in at, and how package the offer to the seller.
We wound up closing and moving into our new home within a matter of 2 weeks of our offer being excepted. Needless to say, it was a whirlwind, and Cherie really held our hand through it all. She was incredibly patient with my endless questions, and kindly arranged an additional home viewing when my in-​laws came to town.
She went above and beyond to make the process as smooth as possible, even offering to introduce us to other couples she knew living in our area.
I love our new house, and would gladly work with or recommend Cherie again. She knows how to make sense of the information you give her, respects your parameters, and has the area knowledge to find wonderful gems in unexpected places.