Testimonials

excellent wonderful greatest experience buying a home very caring to our needs

Absolutely wonderful to work with Shirley Bahler, and I am saddened that we have moved out of the area and won’t likely get a chance to work with her again. I would recommend her in a heartbeat to anyone that is looking to buy or sell on the Cape. Her compassion, patience and understanding of the cape market allowed us the ability to sell in a timely fashion and hold on to a house (out of state) that we really loved!

Colleen is very professional and personal at the same time. If she did not have the answers to my questions, she knew where to get them, and was very timely in having them answered. She got me the deal of a lifetime on a brand new home that I’m in love with- because of her and her associates, I’m living the dream!

I was very satisfied with the purchase, and also the way crystal was very professional, kind, answer all my questions, she give the time I needed when I needed, she really has good personality. Thank you very much it was nice to work with her.

Sabina was wonderful! My fiancé and I were first time home buyers and we didn’t know
everything about the process. Sabina was very patient with us and explained all the
steps of home buying. When we found the townhome we decided to purchase, she
negotiated a fair contract and price for us. We saw A LOT of places and Sabina was
great about it. She really made the home buying experience a lot less stressful. My
fiancé and I 100% would recommend her to anyone!

Sabina is very knowledgeable and dedicated to helping you! Sabina takes that extra mile to
make sure you are happy! Sabina help me to find the right townhouse in a wonderful location.
The townhouse was roomy with a fireplace, basement and two car garage. With some care into
the townhouse, I was able to put the townhouse back on the market. She was able to sell it
immediately. I would recommend Sabina to everyone! -Gail

We can’t speak highly enough of our experience with the Colleen Waldoch team at HomeSmart. This is the second time we used Colleen and again she did not disappoint.

She is always calm, listening carefully, very trustworthy, and responsive in a professional way . We received multiple offers the first day the home went on the market, thanks in large part to Colleen’s incredible work.

She and her team brought in a fabulous photographer and videographer to showcase our property online which attracted serious buyers. Her team was wonderful in keeping the transaction moving along and close in a timely manner. It was truly a five star experience, and will use her and her team again in the future.

B. Lehmann  May  2022

I had a lot of questions and I often asked for clarification. My emails and phone calls were immediately returned. I put off this process for a long time because I thought it would be too much work – my experience was just the opposite.

Colleen was proactive and responsive throughout the process – professional, and always pleasant and helpful,

I just wanted to send a note to let you know how much we appreciate everything Sally has done for us. When we originally made contact with her she was very quick to get in touch with us via email and a phone call. Unfortunately our timeframe for buying our secondary home has been pushed back, but Sally still took time to meet with us while we were in town. She was passionate about sharing her knowledge about Venice with us and we really appreciate it.

Colleen is honest, conscientious, hard working, excellent communicator – just a wonderful professional to work with!

Dec 2019

Sabina was fantastic. We bought a fixer and had trouble with the tenant vacating the house along
with utility issues and she was on the phone and had everything handled for us. She went above and
beyond!

What made our experience great? Colleen!!! A true professional with a heart of gold. She did it all for us and went above and beyond to make sure our sale went smoothly for us. Even when the road got bumpy (closing date was delayed) she stayed with us and helped us with the builder!

Colleen Waldoch is an outstanding real estate agent! I was able to get a lot of work done in a short period of time with her amazing attention to detail and efficient utilization of time. She has her homework done well in advance and although she is an assertive saleswomen she never makes the client feel like they are being pushed into anything. My experience with her was a solid 10 and I know a lot about real estate. Going forward , if I have any Real estate needs, Colleen Waldoch is the one I will choose.

Sincerely,

James Beatty,CRNA

Colleen’s personality is so friendly and she made us feel comfortable right away. Even when we got overwhelmed and completely changed gears from looking at houses to condos, Colleen never waivered from being patient and supportive. She listened to us and quickly got a feel for what we were looking for. Her help all the way through the buying process was great, and she went above and beyond with the final details and closing since we were back in NY.

Before moving to the Cape and buying our house in East Sandwich with the help of Shirley Bahler, my husband and I owned and sold four homes. So we have worked with a fair number of realtors over the years. But we can easily say that Shirley is by far the best real estate agent we have ever had the pleasure to work with. This is even more amazing considering that we did not even know Shirley when we first started working with her. We found her through her web site…but as soon as we started talking to Shirley, we could tell there was something very special about her. Shirley took the time to truly listen to what we were looking for. She asked lots of questions and gave us honest feedback. She prepared extensively for the days she took us out to look at properties and researched every property she showed us. Because she was so organized and knowledgeable about the area, she was able to work within our time frame and price range and help us find a home in East Sandwich with deeded pond rights that is also only minutes from the ocean!

After interviewing several realtors my brother and I chose Sally to list our father’s home after his passing. From start to finish Sally was very responsive, kind, and a constant professional. Quite honestly she went above and beyond the call of duty! My brother and I live out of state so that can be difficult to keep up with things going on. Sally was also our eyes and ears! Under the circumstances, this was a very pleasant experience. I would recommend Sally to anyone and everyone!

Dear Shirley,
Our thanks and appreciation are long overdue for the excellent job that you did in handling the sale of our former home in Centerville. Your expertise, knowledge, winning manner, integrity, positive suggestions, all add up to the winning team that you are. To the above list of sincere complements, I must add that your rapid response to all of my various phone calls and questions enhanced my already strong confident assurance that the Lord sent you our way to get the sale done and complete in such a pleasant manner. Pastor Richard

Sabina is the sweetest most patient realtor. Buying a first home is very scary she made it so smooth
and worked with me so well. I recommend calling her first for your home search!

Dear Shirley,

Just a short, belated note to thank you for your professionalism and follow-through in helping us find the waterfront home we purchased this fall.  As we have told you, you were the only realtor we contacted (and there were many over the past several years!) who was willing to work with us until the right place came on the market.

Having had property on the Cape for 20 years, we knew the area and what we wanted pretty well.  We were more interested in finding the right place than finding something right away.  We had been going to open houses last winter and spring to get an idea of what was out there and met you at one of the open houses.  The house you were showing was not of interest, but you talked to us and offered to put us on your e-mail list of waterfront homes.  You dutifully sent us updates every week for months until the house we bought came up. We had talked to many Realtors over the years, asking them to notify us when something of interest came up and telling them we were looking for the right place and weren’t in a hurry.  Most, if we heard from them at all, called with a few of their own listings, and then lost interest after a few weeks and never followed through, and at least once we were disappointed to find that something that might have suited had sold without us knowing about it. You, unlike many others, showed us properties that were listed by other agencies, and informed us as soon as possibilities came up. You were the only one who did what we asked, and therefore we were more than happy to have you show us the house! As a result, we were the first people to see the house we eventually bought!

You were also extremely thorough and helpful in taking us through the negotiations and closing.  You even impressed our lawyer’s paralegal with your attention to detail and caught some details that had been missed by us!  We found you very pleasant, non-pushy and easy to work with.  Thanks so much for your service.  We are recommending you to some friends who are looking for Cape property and will continue to do so.  Hope to see you around!  Richard & Jeanne

When I asked the sellers in an “after sale survey” what was the single most important reason they selected me to assist them in the sale of their home, they replied “Attention to detail and the amount of time and thought put into the presentation and market research. It made it very easy to comprehend the correct listing price.” They also said they would recommend me “in a heartbeat” and “Shirley, we all agree it was the most pleasant experience and WE thank you!

Colleen handled us with extreme patience while we slowly decided what type of house and what what location we would like to be. Then she helped us find the perfect home for my wife and I. We were pleased with her advice throughout the buying process and would highly recommend her to any friends of ours meeting the service of a realtor. She is a gem!

Shirley,
Oh my gosh, where do I begin? You were a pleasure to deal with and went above and beyond our expected vision! You made a difficult situation almost a pleasure. If you ever need a reference, please don’t hesitate to use us. Thanks again.

Colleen is amazing! She goes above and beyond for her clients. She is professional, honest and caring. She treated us like family. Working with her was a pleasure. In my opinion she deserves the realtor of the year award 🥇!!!!

Two words: Above and beyond. Colleen always exceeds expectations. We made 2 purchases with Colleen and as out of town buyers having her on our side made all the difference in the world. Excellent at communicating and following up on every detail. Much more than an agent Colleen has become a very good friend.

Sabina is an excellent realtor! She help find my new home in a very short time!

Dear Shirley,

Steve and I want to thank you for representing us as a buyer’s agent in our recent purchase of a home on the Cape. We had not purchased real estate in over thirty years and the process is quite different now. We appreciated the fact that you listened to our description of what we were looking for and set up viewings so that none of our time was wasted. Your knowledge of the Cape and its neighborhoods was very valuable in helping us find the right piece of property as quickly as we did.

Being able to contact you anytime with questions and concerns and having you looking out for our best interest made the experience as stress free as possible. We felt that you dealt with us and our attorney professionally and promptly right through the closing and look forward to the updates you send us now on sales in our area. As you know, this was an extremely difficult time in our lives due to a death in our family and having you in our corner was very reassuring.  Steve and Pat

I communicated with Colleen 7 mo before we purchased it in Florida. We are from Northern Illinois. Colleen was also a resident in Illinois and understood our quest for looking toward warmer climate. Colleen sent new listings via email emails on a consistent basis, which made our hunt a little easier. When we arrived for the winter she was very helpful in locating various listings that we might be interested in. After a short search we decided on a new build. Colleen held our hands the entire way

My husband and I bought our 1st house with Sally in June 2018. She is absolutely wonderful to work with….always pleasant, courteous, and strives to make sure you make the right choice. She is honest and not at all pushy. We’re both 100% satisfied and highly recommend Sally for your home buying needs!

Sabina was very knowledgeable and professional. She went above and beyond. Great realtor!

Colleen is wonderful! Very patient with us, always gave us good advice. Really good at helping us find a good fit in a house. Would absolutely recommend her to anyone on both ends of home buying.

Crystal was very efficient throughout our purchasing experience. She has great organizational skills, and guided us right through the transaction very smoothly. She is a great listener and very knowledgeable about the realestate market in Venice . Her technology skills were a bonus. She’s friendly, positive , honest and very prompt in communicating. I highly recommend working with Crystal for your realestate needs.

Colleen went above and beyond the call of duty for this transaction!! We purchased during the Corona period and Colleen had to show us properties virtually on many occasions. Because we were out of state she had several visits she would normally not have had including letting contractors in, doing two walk thru’s virtually and giving advice. Thank you Colleen for a Job well done!

My agent Crystal have my respect she went out of her way to make sure I was at ease through out this process with her on my side I wouldn’t mind doing it again on the weekends if I had a question a thought she was available she help me find the perfect home and I can’t say thank you enough for how you treated me and my family you are a hard worker great at what you do thank you for being there for me and my family.

Professional, completely accommodative and knowledgeable. Sabina sold my house after the
first showing and was available to answer questions and guide me through all the steps
necessary to make my move easy. -Maggie

Sabina Rozak is an amazing realtor. She helped me look at home after home until I found the perfect
one for myself and my daughter. She is very knowledgeable about many aspects pertaining to each
home I looked at which was very useful when purchasing for the first time. I had a great time
throughout the whole experience. She is highly recommended and I would use her again in a
heartbeat.

Sally recently helped us with the purchase of our new home in Venice and we can’t say enough about how wonderful she was.

She helped us via phone calls, emails, and texting while we looked at homes from Ohio and then each time we came to Venice to look at homes, she was very accommodating; never making us feel like we were taking up too much of her time. She listened to what we wanted, even when we changed our minds several times.

During the closing process, she stayed on top of everything and ensured that everything went smoothly. I’ve already recommended Sally to a friend that is interested in looking in the Venice area.

Colleen was very helpful in all ways ready do answer my concerns, very pleasant to have as my agent.

Colleen was very familiar with the property development we bought our second home in and walked us through the process. When we were not able to be on-site, Colleen was there to communicate for us. Always willing to lend a helping hand with things to make for a smooth transition. Joey Welsh

From start to finish Jason made our home selling experience such a positive one – we never doubted his ability to help negotiate our home. Jason made the whole process of selling our home so much easier and helped us get top dollar in this very competitive market. He is prompt in response, detailed in contract and negotiation, upfront in all issues, and most of all honest. Working with him, there were no surprises. His skills and professionalism are very customer-oriented and exceeded our highest expectations. The more we worked with him the more we felt comfortable and confident with him as our real estate agent.  I would recommend him to anyone who wants his/her best interest represented in the stressful real estate negotiation environment whether it is selling or buying. Knowing that he is looking after your best interest your mind is at ease and you can focus on what is more important in your life; your family.

Shirley,

Jeanie and I want to thank you for the wonderful job you did helping us find a home. You are without a doubt the most thorough and knowledgeable Realtor we have ever met. Please feel free to use us as references. Also, we will recommend you to any friends or relatives in the future.. Looking forward to seeing you socially.

Over the decades we have purchased and sold many homes. As you might imagine, the level of service we received from the various realtors has varied greatly. From the very start working with you has been exceptional. This has been the first home we have ever purchased remotely and, had it not been for you, it could have been a difficult experience. Thanks to your proactive positive guidance and actions we truly have purchased “Sunshine from Sally”. From the beginning you did all of the leg work to find our Florida dream home. When we flew in there was no time wasted because you had already visited lots of potential places that fulfilled our desires and sent us photos and critiques. You even picked us up and returned us to the airport. You narrowed the field down to a small number of top options. They were so on target that we only looked at the first two and fell in love with the first one. The purchase process was also smooth. While we sat in Indiana, you did all of the local things typically associated with buying a home for us. Home inspections, visits to take pictures in answer to questions we had, taking care of the things the finance company required, and more. We have never experienced the unheard of level of service after the sale that we have with you. Because of other commitments we have not yet been able to return to Florida to take care of a few things in our new condo like new interior paint, fixing minor air conditioning issues, and a couple other things needed to complete our vision. You volunteered to be our feet on the street and eyes on the prize by keeping a spare key and coordinating contractor access in our absence. That’s a big responsibility! Thanks to your bulldog like attention to detail, you have kept the contractors to their highest level of attention to their commitments. You are small but mighty. THANK YOU, Thank You, thank you! We so appreciate everything you have done and continue to do for us.

Sabina was truly wonderful to work with. She was very knowledgeable, helpful and patient. I
would recommend her to anyone buying and/or selling a home. We are very thankful we had
her as our realtor and would work with her again! -lana alajjouri

It was my pleasure to have recently worked with one of your agents, Sally Green, in Aug and September. After the death of my father, Sally was very supportive to my sister and I, helping us get the house ready for sale (and coming behind us to make it even that much more presentable). When Sally was done with it, it looked fantastic. Perhaps even better then I had ever seen it since it was built 30 years earlier! Further, when my wife and I left the house, we could not finish the laundry as we needed to get an early start to the traveling day. Sally volunteered to finish that for us as well! Going above and beyond, she was even our eyes and ears on the property since my sister and I live in Maryland and could not be there in Venice for the showings and sale of the house. She opened the house to allow a charity to come collect some items we were donating, since the charity could not schedule a pickup until after we had left Florida. She even frequently checked the mailbox and forwarded us any important mail as well as a UPS box that was delivered! That is what I call excellent customer service! And of course, Sally was an excellent guide though the process. She was professional, friendly, and helped us through a difficult situation in an even more difficult time. I would highly recommend Sally to anyone selling their home in Venice, and would not hesitate to use her again in the future! We very much appreciated her being our selling agent! Please pass along our thanks to Sally, once again.

My wife and I sold our Virginia home then started looking for new home in the Sarasota Florida area. A friend suggested we talk with Crystal and glad we did. We made a few trips to Florida but mostly worked remote. On our first trip, Crystal took us to Venice and surrounding areas. Beautiful area with great homes but we decided we wanted to be closer to friends and family. We had to head back north but Crystal got to work and arranged several virtual tours in the Lakewood Ranch area. She found a fabulous condo that is walking distance to town center. She walked the property, giving us a virtual tour which sold us. We had such confidence in her abilities that we submitted our bid based upon her virtual tour and recommendations and have not regretted our decision once. We love our new home and highly recommend Crystal Saly to our friends looking for a home in southern Florida.

We have dealt with Shirley since 2003. We would not consider anyone else. Shirley is always on point as far as pricing and marketability. She cares about her clients and works tirelessly until the property is sold. As far as we are concerned, she is the best in the business. She has found us two houses and sold three for us. We refer people to her any time someone mentions selling their home. Our {Dennis} home went on the market with 6 showings in three hours the first day and we received 3 offers and the next day another offer came in. Shirley’s strategy was spot on. She is terrific at what she does. She does her homework. Our attorney told us that we have the best realtor in the business. She said that Shirley anticipates what paperwork is needed and is always one step ahead of them. Shirley is always very knowledgeable, and she is very professional.