Testimonials
You made the process easier
I want to thank the three of you for your help in successfully selling our Cambridge Condo. The condo closed on schedule, July 29, and our share of the funds were wired to our account on Friday, July 30.I was very pleased with the entire selling process and with the service you provided us. This was especially appreciated since we live in California. I had assumed I would have to go back to Cambridge at least to assess the condition of the condo and arrange for any necessary work and probably one or more times. I know from past experience that this can be a pain. Instead you advised me on what should be done and arranged for contractors to do the work. You also took care of all of the other things that I was expecting I would have to do. Bottom line, you relieved me of work and worry. I cannot imagine how the process could have been any easier.
Conscientious, Knowledgeable and Caring
We are delighted to have the opportunity to comment on our rewarding experience
of working with John Petrowsky and Christian Jones, who helped us sell our residence on
Hamilton Street in 2004 and my deceased mother's on Memorial Drive in 2007.
Over the many years we have bought and sold our own homes, in Virginia, Maryland, Washington, DC, Massachusetts' North Shore, and Cambridge, we have never encountered such conscientious, knowledgeable and caring real estate brokers. Unlike others we have worked with, John and Christian have taken much time and effort to get to know the property and its owners, and worked diligently to take advantage of every opportunity to show and sell the property. John recommended an excellent lawyer to help us with the sales, as well as a reliable person to help clean both properties and haul away unwanted junk. We were more than pleased with the final prices for which both houses sold.
We did not have the opportunity to work as closely with Christian as with John, but John has become a warm personal friend whose values and opinion we will always cherish.
If asked to recommend a real estate broker, we would unhesitatingly put the team of John Petrowsky and Christian Jones at the top of the list.
The Perfect Real Estate Agent
John was the perfect real estate agent. He listened carefully to understand what I was looking for in a condo. When he showed me different properties, he didn't rush through our appointments. He noted what I considered to be positive features and continued the search building on his observations. John helped me negotiate my offer and provided assistance and feedback when I hired an architect and contractor. I appreciated the range of resources he provided and his "can-do" attitude.
Incredibly Fun to Work With
Christian was extremely patient with me and worked with me for the better half of
a year, looking at many properties in towns ranging from Charlestown to the South
End/Back Bay to Cambridge and beyond. He is incredibly fun to work with. He has a great
sense of humor and attitude about things. He is extraordinarily knowledgeable about all
sorts of structural issues that I would have never thought about. I trusted Christian
completely, and felt that he really thought about everything with the long (rather than
short) term in mind. He is awesome and I would (and do) recommend him to everyone.
John Was My Immediate Choice
Having known John during my professional career as a broker, when I transitioned to real estate development John was on the top my list for handling my sales. After a stint of trying to sell units on my own and struggling with finding buyers, John was my immediate choice to go to for help. John's professionalism, integrity, and personable demeanor led to the successful sale of all remaining units. John was a joy to work with and made the entire process easy. I would highly recommend his services.
Extraordinary Professionalism
Our experience with John and Christian was extraordinary. We've never experienced the level of professionalism they routinely displayed in any other real estate transaction. They not only exhibited this professionalism with us, the buyer and our lawyer/contractor but also with our tenants, who occupied the house during the process. We believe this was instrumental to bringing about a sale in a very tough market.
Every Detail Under Control
It was wonderful luck for us to have found John Petrowsky to sell our house. He
was kind, and most reassuring was his complete grasp of every detail of the process.
Everything unfolded just as he said with a minimum of inconvenience. He was fun to work
with too.
Problem Solvers
My husband had recently died and I dreaded the thought of preparing our house for sale and handling the sale itself. John Petrowsky with efficiency, intelligence, and charm took over every aspect and made a task I had dreaded into one that was minus all anxiety and was even enjoyable.
Our property in Cambridge included one unique feature. That made it difficult to value. John brilliantly decided to sell it by silent bids. An unusual idea. The result was that I received far more than I had anticipated. John is delightful and a joy to be around-- too bad he can't solve all of my problems.
Helped Us Through a Difficult Market
We are glad for this opportunity to share with others what our experience has been working with John Petrowsky and Christian Jones. They helped us to sell our condominium in Cambridge, MA and sold us the house we then bought in Watertown, MA.
We can't say enough to express our gratitude to them for their expertise and
knowledge, their support, and their professional ethics. They helped us to sell a
condominium we had that was an unusual piece of property. They recognized the virtues
and value of the property immediately and helped us to get through a difficult time in
the real estate market and to sell our place at a fair but extremely satisfying price.
We had approached other realtors, but we are so glad we chose to work with them.
Throughout the process, they helped us to understand the necessary ups and downs; they
gave us courage through the emotional stress, but most of all they facilitated a very
successful sale of our property, and they helped us to find the right property for us
to buy.
They were a pleasure to work with, very available, communicative and helpful developing strategies, and they worked well with other realtors to introduce and sell our property. We cannot recommend them highly enough.
Understanding Architectural Distinction
John and Christian as a team had an impressive understanding of my home's architectural distinction. They immediately saw beyond the square footage and amenities that had been the focus of other realtors in valuing the property. Their knowledge of architecture helped me to list and sell my Cambridge home quickly at a premium price. It was a pleasure to work with them.
The Patience to See the Sale Through
I worked successfully with Christian and John on both ends of the real estate
process - selling and buying. In both cases I received excellent guidance and support.
Selling my house was very quick. The reasons for that, I believe, were their strategies
for marketing it, from accurate pricing to advice on preparing the house for sale,
structuring showings and negotiating the purchase and sale. Buying was a much slower
process and Christian never became impatient even when I did. He was excellent at
evaluating the pros and cons of any property we viewed, assessing the work and the
costs that would be needed so that I could better understand the whole picture. Even
after the purchase he continued being an enormous resource and support.
Agents You Can Trust
We had the distinct pleasure of working with John and Christian on the purchase of our Cambridge home in 2007. Because this was not the first house we have bought or sold, we have had some experience with real estate agents. We only wish that we could have worked with John and Christian on all our previous transactions. As a team, they were conscientious, extremely responsive, kept their cool as the inevitable pressures mounted, and remained helpful, helpful, helpful until the end. As anyone who has bought or sold real estate understands, the financial interests of one's broker are not always 100% aligned with one's own financial interests. What was so remarkable about John and Christian is that they did not let this gap open up. They advised us at each step to do what was in OUR best interest, even if it was not necessarily in theirs. The remarkable result is that we trusted them without question, and will happily entrust them with our next transaction. This won't be too soon, however, because we are so thrilled with our house
Completely Satisfied
I have worked with John Petrowsky over a number of years on four different real estate transactions in Cambridge, and have been completely satisfied every time.
Sold in Under Three Weeks
John Petrowsky sold our Cambridge home in 2008. We were impressed with
everything he did - the photographs, the advertising, the open house, and his
co-workers who also brought prospective buyers to the house. But we were most impressed
by his consideration for us during a period when the house was on the market, a time
that by its nature is difficult. Our house sold in less than three weeks.
Relaxed, Friendly and Flexible
Searching for a long time in a difficult market, John and Christian guided us through with complete expertise, generosity and professionalism. We were always happy to hear from and see them, even when looking at homes that we didn't pursue, because every relaxed, friendly conversation helped us learn more about the Cambridge real estate market. We never felt even an ounce of pressure from them and remain extremely grateful for that. They internalized our concerns and desires, responded flexibly when we refined our criteria, and remained patient even when we lost patience with ourselves. When we found the property we wanted they took us step by step with a strategy that allowed us to secure our home. Once we're finished settling in, John and Christian are among the first guests we'd like to invite over to share our new home.
We Know Cambridge
John and Christian represented us in the purchase of our home in Cambridge. Their knowledge of the market is detailed and impressive, their advice is sensitive and insightful, and their negotiating skills are creative and effective. Indeed, without John & Christian, we'd have never closed the deal. If you're looking for extraordinary professionalism and a high level of personal service, look no further.
Cool, Calm and Collected
I worked with Christian Jones on the purchase of my condo in Arlington. I was selling another property at the same time with a different broker, and both transactions had different turbulent issues. I ended up turning to Christian with questions on both transactions because he is trustworthy and professional. He could problem-solve quickly, efficiently, and rationally. He could break down an issue and explain it to me in such detail that he helped me understand how the whole process flows. For instance, he could explain how different times of the sale were going to be more stressful than others, and he would let me know what to expect before things happened.
For the property that I purchased, there were quite a few issues with the purchase and sale agreement, and things became quite tense, but Christian was cool, calm and collected, even helping me laugh to help ease the tension. When I needed a strong partner, he was right there standing up for me as his client. I would highly recommend Christian to anyone who needs a real estate partner. I would use him again in a heartbeat. (He also recommended a wonderful lawyer and a very good mortgage broker.)
Perfectly Prepared
We had an extremely difficult housing search, with many constraints on the type of house we wanted, making it hard to find a house we wanted in Cambridge. When the right house finally came on the market, Christian and John were perfectly prepared, and guided us through negotiations quickly and expertly to secure the house for a price we could afford