We were so happy to find Bill when we began our East Bay housing search in earnest this past summer. He turned out to be kind, calm, and graced with a no-pressure attitude, qualities that seem to be rare among real estate agents these days. The housing search and escrow process is stressful all by itself, and it really helps to work with someone who comes at it with a serene and upbeat disposition (and who does a great job insulating you from selling agents who are his polar opposite in that regard). He's also confident in his abilities: when we met him in late June he estimated that he'd be able to find us a great place for us before the summer was out. I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical of that statement at the time--the housing market was red-hot, and we'd just lost a bid (prepared by a different agent) that went for well over 20% above asking. We were digging in for a protracted search. But in the end his prediction was fulfilled, and we ended up in an excellent Oakland neighborhood in a home that's perfect for us. And I think we got a great deal on it too.We also appreciated Bill's deep knowledge about the region (he showed us areas of the East Bay we were unaware of yet fit our criteria), ability to handle disappointment (we pulled out of contract on a place that wasn't going to work for us, and we just dusted off & carried on), and especially his skillful handling of a particularly feisty seller & agent combo for the house we did end up closing on. We recommend him to anyone searching for a home in the east bay--when looking for a home, there a number of things to be concerned with, but Bill won't be one of them.