About Hanna and Tim Kerns

Hannah and Tim were excellent to work with. They explained how they thought everything would go at our initial meeting and they were 100% spot on. I needed them to handle everything and they went above and beyond! Only regret is that I don't have more work for them as they were a pleasure to deal with!

Hanna is great! We had a bunch of fun checking out fixer-uppers and in the end she helped me close on the cutest pink Victorian dream house. She is the perfect mix of professional and personable. She always responded to my emails and calls quickly and with all the info I needed to make decisions. I felt that she had my best interest at heart and wanted to find the right house that I could genuinely afford and be happy with. I've already sent friends her way when they start talking about buying houses, and I'd recommend her to anyone looking for a smart, fun agent who is on top of things. Thanks Hanna!

Hanna is an excellent realtor. She went above and beyond the call of duty. I was pursuing a 'problematic' listing, and she knew exactly what to do at every juncture of difficulty. She helped me with the city, with the tax office, the IRS, the seller and her agent, etc. Every time we reached an obstacle, Hanna swept in and had the solutions to fix it and move the deal along. As a first time buyer I was comforted and encouraged by all that Hanna brought to the table. I found an amazing property and did not give up, thanks to my realtor. I would highly recommend Hanna to anyone serious about making a great home purchase. She delivers!

Hanna and Tim Kerns delivered entirely on what I was looking for in my home, neighborhood, and community in Berkeley. After many years living in New York City and Washington, DC, I moved to the Bay Area in 2022, still hoping to have a walkable and transit-oriented lifestyle (+ bike, of course) in one of Berkeley's beautiful neighborhoods. They took the time to listen to me, and after a few short months and many long weekends of their time, we found my dream home in North Berkeley's Gourmet Ghetto. I could not have asked for better agents, and I strongly endorse them both for their thorough understanding of a dynamic market and Berkeley and other Bay Area communities, which gave me confidence in my decision.

I was a client of Hanna's during the Spring/Summer of 2012. I was simultaneously in the process of selling my house while looking for a new one which is complicated enough, compounded that I was looking for a fantastic place in the Bay under $275K! Hanna was consistently patient and available to show me whatever house I was interested in, no matter how random or wacky the property was. She even went through all the trouble of helping me place a bid only to have me turn around and withdraw it! She also has a keen eye for things about a property that might end up costing a lot of money - like tiny bamboo coming up around a yard, cracks in a foundation, uneven floors - and does not get fooled by cosmetic makeovers that sometimes hide the real damage! She never once made me feel inferior for not understanding 'the process' and instead repeatedly explained everything to me, and assured me that everything would work out, which it did. In the end I put my faith in her and underbid (yikes!) on a property in Alameda - which I got! She definitely knows the market, and doesn't put any pressure on the client to do anything they are wary of doing. I highly recommend her!

My wife and I recently bought our first house in Oakland with Hanna. We moved from the East coast last year so we knew little about the market out here. Hanna was awesome! She was very honest with us about expectations while still being positive and optimistic. She is funny, friendly and makes you feel like you're old friends but is also very efficient and clearly knows a ton about the industry and the local market. Hanna told us her goal is to make one offer and she didn't disappoint. Thanks to Hanna's guidance we got the first house we put an offer on, beating out a bunch of other offers and we weren't even the highest bidder! She also has great recommendations for plenty of other services in the area- construction, kitchen remodeling, windows, etc. Highly recommend using Hanna!

Hanna was a great agent to work with when we decided to buy our first home in Oakland in fall 2014. She is incredibly easy to reach and quick to respond - phone, text, email, and in person, whatever was most convenient for us. We were impressed with her knowledge of the different neighborhoods, and her ability to manage tons of coordination with the listing agent, escrow people, and others once our offer was accepted. She's continued to be a great source of help and information as we get to know our new neighborhood. Would definitely recommend Hanna to anyone looking for a new home in the area.

Great experience working with Hanna! Hanna was an amazing resource in the intimidating Berkeley/Oakland real estate market, which is a rough place for first time home buyers.  She truly understands the various East Bay neighborhoods and how they affect prices and bidding, and had great instincts for which houses would end up in our price range.  I really felt that she was deeply invested in doing what was best for us at every step of the process. Hanna puts all her energy into her work, she is genuine, kind, and funny, and has a core of iron when it comes to getting stuff done for her clients. We're glad she was on our team. She worked very hard for us through a grueling and unusual 6 month purchase process to get us into our first home. At every step she was informed, resourceful, and made sure we were educated about the process. She was always communicative and easy to reach, even at odd hours. Hanna helped keep us calm and focused when things weren't going as planned, and turned unpleasant surprises -- like an unexpected issue found on final inspection -- into negotiation points to make sure we got a fair deal. I'm certain that if it were not for Hanna, we would not have been able to buy our unique house. I would work with her again in a heartbeat, and recommend her highly to anyone starting the home buying process.

Hanna and Tim were sooo helpful. Their knowledge of all areas of real estate amazed me. They were in close communication with me. They had great ideas. They were affirming of my ideas. They were sensitive to my concerns. They are a great team and I am so grateful that they were mine. If I had any other property in the area I would sure call on them again. They are honest and trustworthy. They have such a friendly manner and respect each other too. I will miss them.

Working with my agent, April & Doug is awesome. Both are working tirelessly even after hours. They are fully dedicated to give me honest opinions not only for their benefit. Generally Red oak teem are great people. Thank you so much Mehreteab Araya

Hanna, Tim, and Declan were fantastic to work with. They patiently explained each step of the process to us and always responded to our questions and concerns immediately. From remodeling, supporting us with our extended storage needs, and coordinating transactions remotely, we were reassured that they were there taking care of everything. We are grateful for their service and would highly recommend this wonderful team to our friends and family.

Fabulous!  She helped us navigate a purchase with a not-especially-motivated seller so that we got the house we wanted, for a price that made sense (AMAZING in this market).  She also made sure we were well taken care of all along the way and well informed every step.  If/when its time to sell or purchase anew, Hanna will definitely be our first call!

Always available and helpful with practical advice.

Here's the thing that sets Hanna apart from other realtors: she is a REAL PERSON. What ever do I mean by that? Here's what I mean by that. She has an actual personality and sense of humor. There is more to Hanna than just BUYING (and/or SELLING). In short you can TRUST her because of how genuine she is. We went through a very long and protracted negotiation process. She hung with us the entire time, and provided excellent counsel throughout. She got tough (with the seller's agent) when needed, and talked us back off the ledge more than once. In short, Hanna is awesome. We would recommend her to anyone.Which reminds me, we need to have her over for a drink ....

Hanna took every opportunity to go above and beyond for us over ten months of searching for our first home in a very tough market.  At our first meeting, Hanna took two hours out of her Sunday evening to meet with us, ask us about our dream home, our concessions and deal breakers, and generally get to know us so that she could be our best advocate.Hanna was with us every step of the way, accommodating our schedules to see houses mid-week and after work when necessary, thinking creatively about how to make our offers more competitive (besides just raising the price), and flagging concerns about a house or a contract term that we would have missed.  Hanna seems to know everyone -- listing agents, lenders, contractors, inspectors -- and she reached out to her friends and colleagues to help us book short notice inspections and get feedback on our offers.  Whenever we lost an offer, Hanna was there with encouragement and more ideas for the next round.  She kept telling us that in this market, we needed to keep our eye out for poor marketing, and she was right!  We got into contract for a house we love, in a neighborhood we love (and never thought we could afford), thanks to her expert eye.  Then seller delayed COE with little notice, and Hanna continued to be our tireless advocate during a stressful three weeks of negotiations with seller's agent.  With Hanna's help, we finally got to close of escrow and move-in.  We can't say enough about the fantastic service we've received from Hanna and her team at Red Oak, and we'll definitely be recommending Hanna to everyone we know.

Hanna's an amazing realtor. She stuck with us during a particularly crazy off-market transaction, which included several unexpected twists and turns (some of which we were responsible for, but others were completely out of our control). Throughout it all, Hanna remained composed, a source of wisdom, and overall a force for reducing chaos. We joked with Hanna, in prior home purchases, we really didn't understand what value real estate agents bring to the home buying process. However, we now know, when things go sideways and a deal starts to feel vulnerable, that's when you can clearly see the value working with someone like Hanna, who's talented, smart, and persistent, is absolutely essential to making a deal happen. Overall, Hanna was a wonderful fit for us and was such a pro. We'll certainly be back the next time we're in the market!

I have worked on two transactions with Hanna (as a buyer and seller) and in both cases she provided excellent advice and service.  Direct and to the point, she managed our expectations, spoke realistically about options, and provided prompt feedback.In addition to transaction help, she did an excellent job of getting my home ready for sale (I was really busy at the time and had to rely on her to help with the contractors)

Hanna and Tim are literal miracle workers and true professionals. As first time home buyers, we were extremely overwhelmed with the prospect of buying in this insane market. Hanna and Tim made everything easy to understand, digestible, and kept the optimism going throughout our search. Once we found a home that we fell in love with, they worked around the clock to get a preemptive offer in, and eventually accepted! The whole process was completely seamless and shockingly easy, because they guided us through the whole process in a gentle, calm, honest, and direct way. We cannot recommend them enough - they make dreams come true!

Hanna took every opportunity to go above and beyond for us over ten months of searching for our first home in a very tough market. At our first meeting, Hanna took two hours out of her Sunday evening to meet with us, ask us about our dream home, our concessions and deal breakers, and generally get to know us so that she could be our best advocate.Hanna was with us every step of the way, accommodating our schedules to see houses mid-week and after work when necessary, thinking creatively about how to make our offers more competitive (besides just raising the price), and flagging concerns about a house or a contract term that we would have missed. Hanna seems to know everyone -- listing agents, lenders, contractors, inspectors -- and she reached out to her friends and colleagues to help us book short notice inspections and get feedback on our offers. Whenever we lost an offer, Hanna was there with encouragement and more ideas for the next round. She kept telling us that in this market, we needed to keep our eye out for poor marketing, and she was right! We got into contract for a house we love, in a neighborhood we love (and never thought we could afford), thanks to her expert eye. Then seller delayed COE with little notice, and Hanna continued to be our tireless advocate during a stressful three weeks of negotiations with seller's agent. With Hanna's help, we finally got to close of escrow and move-in. We can't say enough about the fantastic service we've received from Hanna and her team at Red Oak, and we'll definitely be recommending Hanna to everyone we know.

Hanna is an excellent realtor. She went above and beyond the call of duty.I was pursuing a 'problematic' listing, and she knew exactly what to do at every juncture of difficulty.She helped me with the city, with the tax office, the IRS, the seller and her agent, etc. Every time we reached an obstacle, Hanna swept in and had the solutions to fix it and move the deal along.As a first time buyer I was comforted and encouraged by all that Hanna brought to the table.I found an amazing property and did not give up, thanks to my realtor.I would highly recommend Hanna to anyone serious about making a great home purchase. She delivers!

I've been through a lot of stress the last 2 years. This was my first time selling a property...and a property that isn't even mine (I'm POA for my sister)...so there were a lot of unknowns for me. When I met Tim and Hanna they asked me how I'd like things to transact. I said "painless as possible". My initial thought was to sell "as is" because I didn't want any more stress and hassle. In a very professional way, they easily convinced me it would be worthwhile investing money to make the property a more attractive sale. They are not only very nice people to work with, but they also delivered on painless. No negatives I can think of, only positives. I would recommend them to anyone. I am very glad they were referred to me.

Great service. Personable and knowledgeable realtor.

Working with Hanna and Tim was an outstanding experience from beginning to end. From our very first interaction through to the final sale, they demonstrated a level of professionalism, expertise, and genuine care that made the entire process smooth and reassuring. What stood out immediately was their deep familiarity with every step of the process. At each stage they clearly knew what needed to happen next and guided me through it with confidence and clarity. Just as important was their strong knowledge of the local market, which clearly informed their strategy and recommendations. Their understanding of pricing, timing, and buyer behavior in the area proved invaluable throughout the process. They also made excellent use of modern technology to present and market the property effectively. Professional photography, virtual tours, drone footage, and strong digital marketing ensured the property was showcased at its best and reached the widest possible audience. It was clear they understood how to combine traditional real estate expertise with modern tools to maximize interest. As an out-of-town landlord, I initially wondered whether distance might create challenges during the sale. In reality, it was never an issue. Hanna and Tim effectively became my trusted eyes on the ground. They kept a close watch on everything related to the property and coordinated renovations and improvements where needed, all at no extra charge, helping ensure the property was presented in the best possible condition. Their proactive approach made the entire process feel effortless from afar. They were also constantly looking for ways to help me save money wherever possible, carefully considering options and helping avoid unnecessary expenses. Communication was excellent throughout the entire process. They were responsive across multiple channels and always polite, practical, and solution-oriented. Thanks to their expertise and strategy, my property sold quickly and above the asking price. Hanna and Tim truly represent the gold standard that all realtors should aspire to. I would recommend them without hesitation to anyone looking for knowledgeable, trustworthy professionals. Hanna & Tim - thank you so much!

Working with Hanna & Tim was outstanding. As an out-of-town owner, the process felt effortless. Their expertise, local knowledge, tech-savvy approach, and remodeling skills ensured everything ran smoothly. Excellent communication and strategy led to a quick sale above asking. Totally recommend!