Diane Hourany – Zephyr Real Estate

As first-​time buyers, we wanted someone knowledgeable, patient, responsive and competitive — someone who could hold our hands through buying in a market as hot and sharky as San Francisco. Diane was everything we wanted, needed and more, and we couldn’t be happier with her.
We were recommended Diane through another realtor who couldn’t take us at the time. We had already found a dream home and interviewed three other realtors to represent us as we put in our bid. Diane stuck out from the rest, and was proactive and involved even before we picked her. She was ALWAYS responsive, whether via email, over text or phone call through pre-​bid, post-​bid, during escrow and beyond.
Diane was very professional, even-​keeled and calm, and was able to talk me out of panic on several occasions. She worked closely with me and treated me like family. When there were problems, I knew I could count on Diane to solve those issues. She was honest and straightforward, and didn’t mislead or over-​promised on key deliverables. She worked well with other vendors (our financer, escrow company, etc.) and fought to get the best results for us. She went above and beyond in guiding us through the whole process and pointing out hidden nuances that only experienced realtors would know about. It was such a pleasure working with her and we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Diane to our friends and family.
Bought a Telegraph Hill condo in July 2015.

Simply put — use Diane to buy or sell your house! She is very professional, diligent, and thorough. Plus she is extremely interested in making sure you have a great experience and knows how to treat a client.
Our recent experience with Diane was as good as it gets and we will absolutely use her next time.

The best compliment I can give Diane is that I’ve called every time I’m thinking of buying real estate. She successfully guided me through the buying process twice now and I wouldn’t hesitate to call her again.
She put in my first place in SOMA and now she just helped us close on our new home in Miraloma Park. This last purchase was pretty complicated and required a lot of finesse and Diane handled it masterfully. I can’t say enough about her patience showing us several places and keeping us calm when we were sure we’d never get anything in this insane market. When we finally found our home, she took great pains to explain every step in the process and clearly outlined our options. During negotiations I never had any doubt that Diane completely represented our needs to the seller and her agent. In the end, she got us into the home where we’re going to build our family and for that I can’t thank her enough.
It may sound cliché, but Diane really does cares about her clients. She creates a great relationship built on integrity and trust that makes the home-​buying experience so much easier. Hopefully, this will be our last home but I know that if we ever decide to sell or buy again, Diane will be my first call.

We bought our first home in San Francisco about 1 month ago, and trusted Diane from day 1 of enlisting her expertise!
Having no clue what we were getting ourselves into (we knew the market was tough, but it was WAY more tough than we expected!), we were so happy to have her on our side every step of the way. It was evident that Diane’s priority was helping us get exactly what we wanted, with as few compromises as possible, no matter how long it took! She was kind, patient, and honest, but most importantly, she understood how huge this decision was for us, and she did everything she could to help us — putting together offers at the last minute, viewing properties we weren’t able to see, even helping us get things accomplished post-​sale.
I can’t recommend Diane enough — even though we know agents gain a lot by closing, too, we always knew our concerns and priorities were first and foremost. Having been in close contact with Diane quite often throughout this process, we not only have a solid resource in the real estate market, but we also have a friend.

The thought of buying property in San Francisco completely stressed me out. Once my wife and I got started with Diane though, she made it about as smooth and pleasant as it could be. On top of that she made some exceptionally smart calls on how to proceed through the process that I’m pretty sure are the only reasons we ended up with the house we wanted. Six stars.

I was referred to Diane by a friend and she was my agent when I bought my first home almost 8 years ago. I wasn’t 100% sure what I was looking for, but she took the time to work with me and help me figure it out. Once we found a place I wanted to put an offer on (a condo on the Panhandle), she did a great job of offering her advice, but also respecting my role as the buyer and carrying out my wishes, even if they were aggressive at times. Within six weeks of looking, I was in escrow at a great price.
Diane did a fantastic job of keeping in touch over the years and I could always count on her as a resource. I referred her to several friends and she always served them well. When it came time to sell our condo, I naturally went to Diane first.
At the time we were selling, we had moved out of the area. Diane went above and beyond to help coordinate with stagers, contractors, and inspectors to get our place in shape to sell. Again, she balanced our wishes with her recommendations to find the right strategy for pricing and preparing the place to sell. The results couldn’t have been better. We received 9 offers after marketing the property for two weeks and sold it for more than 20% over asking.
I highly recommend Diane to anyone looking to buy or sell in San Francisco whether it’s your first time or tenth. She knows the city, is well connected, and genuinely cares not just about the result, but that her clients are comfortable with the process from start to finish.

Buying your first place in San Francisco is like an Olympic sport. To emerge successfully from this crazy, confusing and sometimes convoluted market, you need a partner who has your back and treats you like a human being, not a transaction. Diane was that partner and was the only reason I was able to get my apartment.
I was supremely confident at first that I didn’t need an agent and could utilize online resources and my own street smarts to figure things out. Just find the apartment on Redfin, see it and buy it, right? I couldn’t have been more wrong and Diane is the only reason I was able to get an incredible apartment and a deal (yes I said deal and SF in the same sentence) on my apartment.
She’s thoughtful and really hustles. At no point did I ever feel pressure to find something that was anything less than exactly what I wanted and she is deeply connected in the market including with selling agents. Relationships matter. Finding a home (especially a first one) is an emotional whirlwind and Diane was always there to offer perspective, and solid guidance. Financing can be stressful too and she really came through when things got bumpy. She ran comps, dealt with my incessant calling and offered reassurance and expert advice when I needed it most. My only regret is that I waited so long to reach out to her and I’ve recommended her to all of my friends and colleagues, even who are just initially exploring the market and educating themselves.
Even more amazingly Diane continues to check in and reach out half a year later, reminding me about property taxes, offering relevant news and comps and being not only a wonderful and authentic broker, but just a great person too. Thank you Diane for helping me find a home in this crazy city!!!

My husband and I have known Diane for about 8 years, since the time we first considered buying. We decided not to buy back then since the market seemed crazy, but we stayed connected to Diane. Last month, when the market was even crazier, we found ourselves needing to buy quickly and a bit unexpectedly. Luckily, we knew who to call, and knew we had someone we could trust 100% for this rather scary process. For a process this important and personal, you need someone totally on your side. I can attest that she is; she wants the best outcome *for you*.
I am certain that we were able to succeed in purchasing mainly because of Diane’s deep knowledge of the market, years of experience, and creativity to put us in the best position when we weren’t exactly at the top of the crowd. We now know how crucial it is to have an experienced agent, and Diane provided indispensable advice and guidance. With a market like San Francisco, you need someone who not only knows neighborhoods, but understands the market, the process, has solid relations with other agents, and has the resources to pull in when needed.
In addition to her solid professionalism, however, she is wonderfully personable and I felt 100% trust that she had our best interest in mind. Really. She checked out the house we ultimately bought with as a discerning eye as we did, and gave her honest opinion when we really needed it. She supported us just as we needed, but was never pushy, ensuring we were comfortable and satisfied every step of the way.
As the biggest purchase in our lives, I am very grateful Diane was there for us. We love our house! I can’t recommend her enough. I would be happy to chat in person for anyone considering Diane.

Diane not only is the expert in her field, she is patient (god knows I am not the most patient person myself), thorough (she is more detailed oriented than me), persistent (she doesn’t give up easily) and most importantly, Diane conducts business with high integrity.
I am grateful Diane is a consummate professional who is passionate about her job and client. She guided me through every single step of the way, reassured me through out this daunting process, and got me the result that I wanted.
If you are thinking about selling or buying a place in the future, I highly recommend Diane as your realtor because she will get the job done for you. Diane is the one!

Diane was a joy to work with! She was very personable and really took the time to figure out what was important to us as first time home buyers. At the same time, she was extremely professional and tough on the external parties when she needed to be. Because she is so well connected, we were able to be the first people to view the unit in a building we had admired for some time. She also adds a personal touch to the extensive process that put us at ease even as we moved into our new home. Thanks Diane!

Diane made everything so easy! When we had to sell our condo because of a cross-​country move, Diane took a huge load off our shoulders by finding stagers, coordinating them with painters, and bringing our condo on the market in such a beautiful condition (and at just the right price) that we had an abundance of offers, and sold over our initial asking price.
We watched and marveled from 3,000 miles away as our condo was transformed, and Diane kept us abreast at key junctures through e-​mail and phone calls. I kept forgetting that we were selling because it required so little work on our part. Diane is a consummate professional and a delightful person, and we’re grateful for her skill and reliability. If you are looking for a realtor who is easy to work with, values her personal relationship with her clients, and proceeds in all decisions with prudence and integrity, Diane is the right agent for you.

Shortly after moving to San Francisco we decided to purchase a home here. Buying a home is challenging even for seasoned SF residence but for newbie’s like us it seemed overwhelming. I can’t say enough on how lucky we are to have had Diane’s help us in our search! She brought to the table not only wealth of knowledge and professionalism but also honesty, patience and commitment to finding us a home we loved.
We are currently in the process of looking for our next home and needles to say that Diane is our realtor! I would strongly recommend getting in touch with Diane if you thinking of buying or selling your home. You will not be disappointed!

Diane and I worked together as colleagues in the late 80s at a software company. I was impressed then by the level of commitment she brought to her management job in customer service department. When I ran into her again 10 years ago and discovered that she had become a real estate agent, I knew we were going to work together again. About 5 years ago, Diane both sold our apartment and helped us to buy our house. I cannot recommend Diane highly enough as a real estate agent – she is deeply trustworthy, completely customer service focused (goes above and beyond every call of duty), and is knowledgeable about all the aspects of real estate. She helped us navigate 36 (!) offers on our apartment AND land the one house out of 125 «look-​sees» that we put a bid on. Furthermore, even five years later, she is still finding ways to be helpful, even outside the parameters of real estate. She is a friend and agent for life.

Diane helped us navigate the San Francisco market as hesitant first-​time home buyers. She was more than patient with us as we ‘looked’ for quite some time. She is highly knowledgeable and is a wealth of information, as well as offers top-​notch customer service. She was there every step of the way when we finally did buy a home and handled as much of the process as she could to make things easier on us. I would highly recommend Diane and personally would never use anyone else!

My husband and I were first-​time home buyers about a year ago. We were extremely lucky to have an incredible realtor, Diane Hourany, working with us as a team to navigate through the home purchasing process. Frankly, if it were not because of Diane, we would probably still be searching and perhaps, losing out on every bid in this competitive housing market. Not only was Diane very professional, well-​connected and knowledgeable about the San Francisco market, she was also very honest, patient and pleasant to work with. She took the time to listen to our needs, helped us narrow down our true priorities and potential options, and finally, guided us through every step with the bidding and closing process. Her philosophy was to keep her client’s priorities and satisfaction ahead of everything else so never for once did we feel stressed out or pressured to buy anything. But as soon as we found our dream house, Diane quickly worked out a bidding strategy and pulled together an awesome presentation that ultimately helped us close the deal. Till this date, we still stay in close touch with Diane because we consider her a friend we trust and respect. I would have absolutely no hesitation in recommending her to my friends and relatives.