John Flaniken's Testimonials

What My Santa Cruz Real Estate Clients Say About Me

Couldn't ask more from a Realtor, John is a real pro. He is not in it for the one sale; he's in it for the long haul. My 5th experience with John as my Realtor, every sale has been an earthshaking great deal. When he says Knowledge, INTEGRITY (HUGE) and Experience it rings true in every aspect. Some Realtors would sell you anything. John makes sure it’s a good fit for you, not just money in his pocket. John not only has made me a huge amount of money, he's steered me away from potential pitfalls which shows me he does business like I do, and he cares about his clients… return business is everything. Best Realtor in Santa Cruz, bar none!

— Martin Brazil

What are the three things you want from an realtor? Results, results, results.
I listed with John, in a few days he had a buyer, in a few more days we had a full price offer, and closed under 30 days. All reports and inspections were handled by John, as I was out of the area. In short, what can be an excrutiating and frustrating experience was made into a smooth and professional transaction. I was very pleased with the result.

— Keith James

We both felt that John conducted himself with great professionalism, integrity, and clear and timely communication. We will be recommending him to our friends. He is respected and appreciated.

— Jeff Rebbeck and Emily Quatman

During the last 3 months John helped us purchase two properties in Santa Cruz.  His responsiveness among all of his other positive qualities (knowledge, expertise, integrity, and patience) is what impresses us and helps the most.  We both have busy schedules, often traveling and working from different time zones. John makes it very easy for us by always getting back within hours on any question we may have so the process of fact finding, bidding, negotiating and purchasing is a piece of cake.  John is also valuable with his pool of resources - we enjoyed working with the title company, contractor, & architect he introduced us too.  It has been a great pleasure working with John.  We have and would continue to highly recommend him without reservations.

— Doug Lin and Florence Koh

We enjoyed every aspect of working with John to purchase property. He offers wise counsel, suggests options, is direct, highly responsive, and unfailingly professional. Great sense of humor too.

— Lisa and Jeff Kirk

John Flaniken and his team at Sell Santa Cruz did a great job marketing and selling our house in Salinas.  They developed an excellent virtual tour which really highlighted the best features of our home.  John worked well with the buyer's agent and everything went smoothly and rapidly during escrow.  It has been our best experience with a realtor ever!

— Belinda Platts and David Miltz

There is no way John could have improved his service. He and his Team were fantastic and I am not sure we could have sold our home without him. His professionalism was unbelievable. His problem solving was superb. He gave us many options and had or found answers to every question I had. He was never pushy but told us his opinions. When we decided to sell "as-is" instead of renovating the home as he suggested, he worked his butt off to find an investor. I work with a lot of real estate professionals in my business and he performed at the top of my list (which is considerable).

— Joseph Neri

John Flaniken is an exceptional, knowledgeable and dedicated Realtor. John and his Sell Santa Cruz team made the homeownership process far easier than I anticipated. This was because he has keen comprehension of: the real estate industry, Santa Cruz County & Central Coast market dynamics, and applicable regulations/procedures for various transaction types.  I can’t say enough about John’s responsiveness and collaboration in helping me buy a home in Aptos. Moreover, he’s a genuinely compassionate guy. Bottom line: If you are seeking a Realtor who will listen to your requirements, provide sound guidance, implement a strategic plan for selling or buying a home, and champion your interests, John Flaniken is the professional you have to engage.

  
̶   BE Kinchen

My wife and I just purchased a new home in Hollister with the help of the most qualified agent/broker we have ever worked with. Working with John Flaniken and his team at Sell Santa Cruz was a great home buying experience. John always responded to calls and messaging without delay and was available any time we called on him. John's knowledge of real estate is second to none and he knows the entire area very well, definitely not just Santa Cruz. His assessments and information were invaluable in making this life changing decision. Throughout the whole process, from first calling John to closing on our new home, we never felt any pressure what so ever from John and he rose to ever challenge. To go along with John's consistancy, his integrity and attention to detail were incredible. My wife and I would highly recommend choosing him and his team to work for you.

— Randy Hilbig

My aunt had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. As the executor of her estate it was my job to find a Realtor to get her home sold. My aunt’s home was on a ½-acre lot two blocks from the beach. We had been told the property could be split but our family had not investigated. My daughter told me to speak with John Flaniken and I’m glad we did. By our first appointment, John had researched the possibilities of a lot split and evaluated the fair market value based on the division. After listing the property, John immediately contacted home builders who were looking for property like my aunt’s. Within 3 weeks we had four offers and sold for $51,000 more than list price. With John’s help, my aunt has the resources to live comfortably.

— Jeanne Prior

I had a very challenging property to sell. Other agents had spent months marketing my land without any results. After speaking with John, I was confident that my property could be sold in a reasonable timeframe—we just needed a more proactive Realtor. Within 35 days of listing my property, John had generated 3 offers; two offers over list price. We closed 30 days later and I owe it all to John Flaniken & American Dream Realty. I recommend John to all my friends and family.

— Peggy Humphries

I am a very happy 1st time home owner thanks to my excellent & knowledgeable Realtor, John Flaniken, with American Dream Realty. My purchase was a tricky one because the home I wanted was foreclosed, red tagged & I had just enough cash to close (red tags are cash only transactions). Not only did John expertly help me through every step & answer all my questions but he was able to put together an offer so rock solid that the bank chose my offer over parties offering more cash!! Within one week of my offer the bank had chosen my offer & by the end of the second week we had closed escrow. I highly recommend John for his expertise, honesty, dedication, vast knowledge & all around great guy to work with. Thank you so much.

— Valerie Sky

Our home had been listed with another agent. While he was marketing our home we rarely heard from him, only a couple buyers came by each week, and most importantly, we didn’t see an offer in 4 months. When our listing expired, a friend recommended John Flaniken so we set up an interview. After meeting John it was clear that not all Realtors are the same. Instead of telling us what we wanted to hear, John spoke honestly about today’s challenging real estate market, discussing his proactive approach to finding potential buyers and how to price our home correctly. Thanks to John, my family is living 4 blocks from the beach.

— James Livingston

Besides the results John gets for his clients, I appreciate his integrity, organization and negotiating skills. Once, a buyer cancelled an offer on one of John’s listings because they couldn’t get financing. Instead of accepting the cancellation, John contacted the buyer’s agent and convinced her to call me for a second opinion on her client’s financial situation. It wasn’t easy, but after 20 days we obtained financing for the buyer and the transaction closed. I’m not sure if John’s sellers know how lucky they are—if it hadn’t been for John, their home would still be for sale. If you want someone to find creative solutions to selling your home, talk to John.

— Valerie Valdez, Mortgage Consultant