ROB ALLEN | LONG & FOSTER REAL ESTATE

I never thought that I would have anything nice to say about a real estate agent, but Rob has entirely changed my thinking! We just completed the sale of my mom's house after she died earlier this year. No one in my family lives in the area and the house needed a fair amount of work before it was ready to go on the market. So I decided that I needed to hire an agent who would be willing to supervise the work. I came down to Virginia and interviewed five agents, looking for someone I could work with. Rob was my choice. He clearly had the temperament I was looking for, and made clear that he was prepared to go to work. And go to work he did! He found contractors; followed up with the estate sale people who had some leftover tasks undone; supervised all the painting, repairs, floor refinishing, carpet installation, plumbing, electrical and landscaping work; met delivery people; sent a dented appliance back; and did a thousand other things. He even installed a toilet seat! Everything was done on budget and on schedule. He made contractors whose work did not meet with his approval come back and do it over, and was not satisfied until everything looked terrific. He kept me informed every step of the way, and I needed to come down during the process only to make decisions that would be easier for me to make in person. Meanwhile, Rob was busy keeping close tabs on the real estate market in my mom's neighborhood so that, once all the work was done, we could be comfortable pricing the house. We elected to start slightly higher than what a similar house, a couple of streets over, had sold for a few weeks earlier. We listed the house on the day after Labor Day and, by Friday, after a bit of a bidding competition, we had our buyer at $5000 above our asking price! Rob then turned his attention to getting me through the closing process, answering all my questions and listening patiently to my nervous whining. Everything went off without a hitch and I could not be more grateful! There is no question in my mind that Rob's work was worth every penny that he earned on this sale. He was clearly the hero of this transaction, and now stands as the first and only member of my Real Estate Hall of Fame.

I really liked working with him. He was really easy going and knew his stuff. He wasn?t pushy at all. He?s a smart guy and didn?t feel like your typical realtor. I would definitely work with him again if we were in the market to buy. I would go to him first.

I spoke with several other agents, but Rob is top of the line. I was trying to make a decision about what to do about a move. You get a strong feeling of genuine concern for the client and their needs from Rob and that concern overrides his desire for a sale. He would rather have a happy client without making a sale than make a sale the client isn't completely happy with. He wants to do what is best for his client. He has a great deal of integrity. He helped me decide that now is not necessarily the right time for me to move without trying to make a sale. He is very knowledgeable and is very good at helping his clients make the right decisions. He is fantastic and I would highly recommend him.