Andrew Rosenthal – Berkshire Hathaway

He helped me find a place in Logan Square, which in these times can be very difficult, made it very easy for me, will recommend in the future!

Andy helped me find a rental property in very short order. He was patient and provided great service. We saw many properties and i was pretty particular. Even still, he gave me honest advice and didn’t push me at all. I recommend him to all my friends who are looking to buy, rent or lease out apartments in the city and everyone agrees that he is a high quality agent. Always has the customers best interest in mind, which is VERY hard to find in the real estate world. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

I have worked with Andy on multiple projects. He helped me buy my first investment property which has been very successful. Andy gave great advice and was prompt responding to me when I had a question. Best of all I didn’t feel pressured to buy every «good» deal. I took my time until I found the right fit which has worked out great.

To clarify more inconsistencies, the property I put an offer on in Old Town was not a multi-​offer situation as the business owner claims (see images for proof); when I look at the sale of the property, it was sold in March 2015 — 6 months after I terminated our agreement. If it was a multi-​offer situation, it would’ve been picked up in 2014 and the realtor would have mentioned it to me at the time, which he did not. What’s funny is that I’m looking at the old texts and don’t see any mention of reimbursement for the inspection or multi-​offer situation (see images for inconsistent statements). Business owners need to understand how to own up to their actions, instead of trying to find ways to cover their tracks and find someone else to blame.
As the buyer and end consumer, we are always entitled to walk away from any situation. I chose to walk away, but did not have the support I was looking for from my realtor; only comments were ‘it’s not worth it to walk away now, it’s not worth losing the appraisal and inspection money over’. I walked because the building was over 30 years old and the sellers agreed to a 10k credit before we went into attorney review, but after going into the review, they changed their minds and would only agree to a 5k credit. I had nothing to lose, so I chose to walk away and find something better. For a quarter million dollars, I think anything is worth walking away from if it doesn’t feel right. Thanks for reading; if you have any questions, feel free to reach out and I’ll gladly fill in any gaps. Happy house hunting!
Best,
Charlie

As a newcomer to Chicago, I wasn’t very familiar with the different neighborhoods, but Andy’s expertise has proven to be invaluable when he helped me find the perfect condo. Andy is extremely knowledgeable and after our first meeting, I knew immediately that I made the right decision to hire him. Andy is the definition of professional and I always felt like he went above and beyond to get me the best price. He delivered on everything he said he would do and he’s definitely a man of his word, which is tough to come by as I’ve dealt with some unreliable realtors in the past. Andy kept me in the loop with constant updates and he was always quick to help answer my questions, even on the weekends! I could not be happier with the end result and I would definitely recommend Mr. Rosenthal to anyone that needs a professional Realtor that has the expertise and knowledge to find the perfect home in Chicago, whether renting or buying.

Andrew Rosenthal of Berkshire Hathaway Realty continues to voice his insecurities and falsify information during our interactions over a year ago. He changed the name of his Unilocal Business to a fictional ‘South Park Properties’, but Unilocal has since updated the business to the correct name. Some people react differently to criticism, tells a lot about one’s character and you can get a sense for that here. Please see a complete outline of my experience with him in the approved Zillow review below:
I initially started my condo search at the beginning of July 2014 by inquiring about a couple properties on Zillow, which is where I was first contacted by Andrew Rosenthal. As this was my first home-​buying experience, I was looking for someone with the expertise to guide me through the process.

With that said, Andrew was the broker I chose to aid me in the process. Andy was very personable and nice, as far as nice guys go, however, his rudimentary experience in real estate made the process extremely difficult for a first time buyer. He seemed more interested in making the sale than looking out for my best interests; rushing me into buying and hanging on every word the seller said, making my point of negotiation obsolete, as well as being concerned that the sellers were in ‘panic mode’ because they were about to lose their earnest money on a new purchase.

I put two offers in close to list price; the feedback received was that they were great deals and that I wouldn’t find anything better in Chicago, not even attempting to negotiate or bring the price down. An offer was put in at a River North location in the beginning of September. I don’t want to get into all the details, but the deal fell apart during attorney review because the seller would not agree to a closing credit for a possible upcoming special assessment that was mentioned by the building manager (they initially had agreed to either a credit or escrow the funds before going into attorney review). After the deal collapsed because they would not agree to the special assessment credit, Andrew felt that I was being unfair to the sellers because they had already put earnest money into a new property and that they were rushing to assist my purchase. This didn’t make sense to me because I thought I was his client, not the sellers. Furthermore, after letting him know that it was in both of our best interests to part ways, he went on a long-​winded rant that made me further appreciate my decision to end our business relationship. I’ve now partnered with a new and more experienced team, and am in the midst of closing.
Another red flag was the lender he works with and recommended from BOA; his lender told me to initiate the appraisal as soon as possible, even before the home inspection and attorney review were complete so I took his advice and would have lost out on the $ 350 cost, however, I notified my bank and thankfully, they took care of the charge for me. He also did not really give much insight into other incentives, such as a first time homebuyer credit, which I received with my new lender through the Welcome Home Illinois Incentive (look it up!). Again, just not very thorough or helpful in the process for a first time buyer.

I’m writing this review as a point of constructive feedback for Andrew to progress his career, as well as others to proceed with caution. We learn from our mistakes, and I certainly want all readers to learn from mine. Take your time and find the right place for you, this is a potential 30 year commitment so think about the road ahead of you; if you have any questions, concerns, or comments, feel free to reach out and I’d be more than happy to share my experience with you.

12÷10÷14 Follow Up (see response from agent on Zillow):
Thank you for the response, Andrew. Just for more clarity, they did not fix everything on the inspection report, biggest being the plumbing issue in the bathroom where the faucet would greatly decrease in pressure from cold to hot water due to galvanized piping, and you told me to hire my own contractor to take a look. Correct me if I’m wrong, but a 230k selling price from a 240k listing price does not quite equate to 10%. Best of luck to you as well —

12÷14÷14 Follow Up (see response from agent on Zillow): It has come to my attention that you continue to text my old number with rude and arrogant remarks, which was ported over to my father three weeks ago. A simple thank you per your statement comes in one text with two words, as opposed to seven, saying I’m at fault for walking. We have not been in communication since September (at least I haven’t responded), so please discontinue your messages and demonstrate a little more professionalism, it would be much appreciated. I apologize that things didn’t work out between us. For all other readers and potential buyers, please check out my other review and good luck on the search!
Best,
Charlie