Client Reviews

Here is a letter I wrote David Zabarte thanking him for the wonderful job he did for us:

Thank you very much for what I consider one of the best jobs of representing a client I have seen in my 35 year real estate career.

When my wife and I told friends and family that we were selling our house, they knew I was an experienced real estate professional who has done literally thousands of deals in my career. Many asked if I was going to list our own house.

“No," I explained, “Even though I am a licensed real estate broker, selling houses is not my expertise so instead I am hiring the best local professional I can find.".

I could tell from the facial expression on many of their faces that they didn’t understand. Like many people, they viewed paying a commission a big dollar outlay that should be minimized.

I don’t look at that way at all. My perspective is totally different: whom do you want working for you: some discount brokerage guy who works in an office cube hundreds of miles away or a local expert who understands the nuances of your market? I often wonder if the guys who pick the discount broker also bid out their surgery and go with the cheapest surgeon.

After living in my house in the East Bay for sixteen years, I knew first hand picking local experts made a huge difference as I had observed some of my former neighbors who were moving selected their aunt or former Little League coach as their real estate agents and then, in my opinion, left tens of thousands of dollars on the table when they sold the house because that particular agent, although triple nice, didn’t understand the subtlety of selling houses in our particular subdivision. I am pretty sure these agents analyzed the market by lumping all the houses in a given zip code together and compared one to another. This is Zillow’s approach and it can yield very misleading results. While that approach might work some places, it was not an accurate way to evaluate pricing iin our sub-market.

I wanted a knowledgable local real expert but I struggled finding the right team of agents to hire.

I considered the high volume agents but in looking at their history of sales, I concluded that the reason they did so much business was because they under-priced the property. They committed what I consider one of the cardinal sins of client representation: doing what’s easy for them instead of what’s right for the client. In short, these high volume agent teams were as bad getting the best price and terms as the zip code lumping agents.

I was really floundering with my selection as our move date approached. Finally, I asked of my former associates with whom I used to work who had sold his house and moved out of the area. He was an experienced real estate professional, but, like me, in the commercial/industrial field. He knew good real estate people nonetheless so I valued his opinion. His answer on whom I should talk to was surprising: not the guys who represented him but the team who represented his Buyer. This team, of course, was you!

He was very impressed by your knowledge of the local market, your ability to negotiate, your thorough preparation, and your follow-through. At the end of our successful transaction, I felt the same way.

On our particular deal, what really impressed me was how you represented us. When we agreed out our listing price which we both thought was a bit of a stretch on the top end of the market, it would have been easy for you to sell our house for the listing price. My wife and I would have been happy with that result. However, you coaxed a significantly higher offer from one of your colleagues in your own office that was so much higher that you not only paid for your share of the commission, you put extra money in our pocket.

In other words, if I had listed the my own house and sold it myself, I would have been worse off financially than having used your team. Wow!

In summary, if you want to get the team of the best local professionals in the East Bay, you can’t do better than David Zabarte and Simon Watson. They will work hard on your behalf to get you the best result possible when selling or buying property.

I've been a long time lurker of Yelp and like many have found fabulous places to eat and surprisingly a great dentist. Not until now have I found something on Yelp that has made me convert from the casual lurker to a participant. As I started my journey as a first time homebuyer using a VA loan I knew that finding an agent who would be familiar with this type of loan would be tough since the nearest major military base is 45 minutes away. From what I knew about VA loans they're not so desirable to work with because of the special conditions associated, everything from a house being in an almost pristine condition to seller's paying certain closing costs.The most important thing to us in a realtor is communication and that they work as a full time realtor. I put together a few questions, including a realtor's experience with VA loans, and emailed everyone on my list the same day. If it took someone over 24 hours to respond to me, then they were automatically out. This is the service and communication that I provide to everyone I deal with so I personally felt it was fair to expect the same. You could be the best realtor but communication and response time was absolutely essential to us. With that said I only received 3 responses, David was the only one who responded within an hour of receipt of my email. Something I appreciated after the first few emails was how honest he was with my questions. I liked the fact that some of the tough questions he answered as it was and not as someone feeding me an answer that I wanted to hear. I had my financing set up prior to searching for a realtor and later on decided to go with his preferred lender (Pat and Tiffani at Mason McDuffie). They are incredible, especially for those using VA loans because they do all underwriting in house which enables them to close a VA loan in 30 days. I loved the fact that he made suggestions and explained why it would be best to go that route and then left it at that. At no time did I ever feel as if I was being pressured into a direction that I didn't want to go. All through email, while I was overseas, I was able to establish a good feel for who he was and was able to line up a few homes to see the day after I returned.David's flexibility and responsiveness was absolutely amazing. He was able to show us a house within hours of me emailing him an MLS. When we were ready to put in an offer, he contacted the seller's agent to present our offer to him and his clients in person. The one thing that absolutely impressed me was how knowledgeable and diligent he was. We had an appraisal come in far lower than we all expected. David immediately went to work on writing up an appeal that was submitted to the appraiser the same day. As a result, our appraisal was adjusted up $45,000. Yes, $45,000, that was not a typo. He kept us abreast on everything that was going on while we were in escrow. If we ever had a question, big or small, we always received a response within a matter of hours. Buying a house is definitely one of the few major financial transactions you'll make in life and it is essential that you have someone who knows the real estate industry. I recommend David to everyone I know and will definitely go back to him in the future.

Second time working with David, just as great as the first!

I worked with David two years ago when my husband and I were purchasing our first home with a VA loan. Working with him on selling this home was just as great as when we purchased it! David is thorough, knowledgeable, and goes above and beyond when you need it. Seriously, have you ever known a realtor to come to your house at 10:00 p.m. when a stolen car gets driven through your yard and fence...three days after it went on the market?! David did! Even helped the police get the photos they needed before the car was towed away. No joke, this actually happened.

Within minutes of meeting David and his partner Simon, you will feel like they are not just great realtors, but great friends. You will get honest advice. You will get the best information out there. You will get through the stress of buying/selling a home knowing they have your back.

With the challenge I gave David on my most recent transaction, I can only hope he and Simon take me on as a client again when I get ready to purchase another home. Please David & Simon, I promise not to have another stolen car crash into my house! Hopefully...

Stop looking for a realtor, you found him. Call David.

My wife and I met David many years ago when looking at a home in the Bay Area that he was showing. He was very knowledgeable, patient and spent a lot of time informing us as new home buyers about the market and process.Later we successfully purchased a home with him through a short-sale process. The short-sale process had several things about it that were time sensitive and others that needed to be nudged along. He was attentive and responsive at taking our calls and returning emails and calls quickly with the answers we needed. Everything was done properly and all the paperwork went through fine. We got a great price on the home and it worked out great.Now many years later David helped us sell the home. My family had relocated out-of-state to care for a sick family member. I knew that our home was in good hands with David, who helped us by leading the work onsite to prepare the home for sale, dealing with the contractors, cleaners, inspectors and other vendors, since we were unable to be there because of the distance we'd need to travel and covid restrictions.Working with David got us a great deal over asking price from a highly qualified buyer. He helped us understand among the multiple offers what the details of each were so we could make a decision and select the best one for us to help expedite the whole process. If you need to buy or sell a home you're in great hands with David.

I have nothing but GREAT things to say about David.

When my wife and I decided to move to Contra Costa County and buy our first home, we thought we would try and leverage technology and use Redfin. Their App is fantastic, and we liked the idea of getting a commission rebate. However, our Redfin experience was less than stellar, and we decided to go with a traditional real estate agent.

We found David on Yelp, and we were impressed by his multiple 5-star reviews. I called him and explained our situation - I work in commercial real estate lending, my wife and I both knew what we want in a house, and we just needed somebody to get us the keys and write up the contract. He seemed to really understand that, and I appreciated it.

David (along with his partner, Simon) took the time to meet with us and get a sense of what we were looking for. They showed us a half dozen houses (most of which we picked out), and they always got us in quickly. I didn't feel like they were pushing any houses on us, which was a real concern of ours.

When we finally found the house we wanted, David was great about putting together an offer quickly. We knew the sellers had purposefully set a low price, so we expected multiple offers. Because we were getting an FHA loan, we were concerned that we wouldn't be competitive against other bidders. David knew where we could make our offer more attractive (such as shortening the inspection periods) without risking a serious problem down the road.

When our offer was finally accepted, we felt so relieved - but then, the fun started. One of the best parts of working with David is that you get "two for the price of one". Once our offer was accepted, David's partner Simon Watson stepped up to guide us through the rest of the process. And even then, if Simon was ever unavailable, David was always ready to take our call.

I can wholeheartedly recommend David if you are looking to buy a home in Contra Costa County! The process was smooth, and I had a great time working with them.

Who knew that buying a home could be so easy?I recently purchased my ideal home. Without David Zaberte, it would still be only a dream. Honestly, I never thought I would be able to afford what I wanted, where I wanted it, but David made it happen! David is very professional as well as personable. He gets to know the individual; what they want, what they can afford and still live a reasonable lifestyle. He genuinely wants to help people find HOMES, not just buy houses. His business model is based on respect and honesty. His consideration for all parties involved, buyer and seller, is the quality that sealed the deal, even though there were other bids on the house. He also believes in doing what a realtor SHOULD do; taking care of all of the details so the buyer doesn't have to worry about anything. I came to really appreciate his business philosophy, as we conducted the entire transaction right in the middle of the mortgage crisis!After a thorough analysis of my finances and my lifestyle, David determined my price range (much better than I had expected!) and locations that would work for me. We found the perfect house (and I really mean that!) within two weeks. With, I might add, no compromises.Even though the mortgage meltdown put up some seemingly impossible hurdles, David masterfully navigated our way through the purchase. All I had to do was sign papers and move in. Amazingly, from the first time I walked into the house until I received the keys was just 25 days! I couldn't be more pleased with David's work and give him my heartiest recommendation. Thanks, David!

Handling my mother's estate while living 300 miles away I was very intent on finding a real estate agent I could easily work with. David exceeded all expectations - he has tremendous depth of knowledge in the real estate industry as well as connections in the community with the vast number of people needed to prepare the home for sale and show it in a way to attract the most potential buyers. He was very thorough at every step in the process- was super responsive when I emailed called or texted him. Above all he was thoughtful and kind. I highly recommend David Zabarte to anyone looking for a real estate agent.

I first wrote a review for David and Simon back in 2015 when my wife and I purchased our home in Concord. It was our first buying experience and we couldn't have asked for better guides through the process. So, when it came time to sell this summer, there wasn't any question that we would recruit them for another important "first".

To paint the picture, our 2nd daughter had just been born and we had decided to relocate on a very short timeline, so needless to say we were embarking on what would be probably one of the most stressful stretches of our lives. Just as they had done previously with the buying process, they made the process as smooth as it could be. David was responsive to our questions and made sure that we understood the ins and outs of the selling process. Simon was always there for inspections and we never had to worry whether something would get done or not. They always made time in their busy schedules to work around whatever we had going on, whether that was a sleeping toddler or.....a toddler who wouldn't sleep.

As if it weren't enough that they met our needs, they did so despite some challenging "obstacles", namely the buyer's agent who pulled some things that were questionable at best. David in particular had to deal with some pretty appalling behavior, to be honest, and he did so with composure and patience, which was much appreciated during this chaotic time for us. Just as an example, he had to navigate a situation where our buyers (I can only imagine at the suggestion of their agent) were holding a $5k deposit hostage over a garage door opener, a lack of understanding as to how a Nest thermostat works (which we left for them), and a fabricated "kitchen leak" that was "discovered" 5 days after they had moved in. Anyway, all that is to say that David went the extra mile to deal with that, and much, much more, to make this experience as easy as possible for us.

If you are looking to buy or sell in the East Bay, I would recommend David and Simon to anyone and everyone. You know you're getting quality and you can rest easy knowing you have a team that has the knowledge and drive to get things done. Thank you David and Simon!

Energetic, experienced, proactive, honest, responsible, detail-oriented ... David Zabarte is all of these and more. I can say this with confidence as we worked with David on both a property sale and on a property purchase. I briefly worked with two prior agents and they didn't meet my standard.A 5 star maximum rating, doesn't capture the praise that David deserves. We have a great house and I can honestly say that we have more money because of him. What more needs to be said? I can go on and on about his attention to detail, his personal involvement in all aspects of the real estate process (negotiation, inspections, disclosures, finance, title etc) and his ability to simply make it happen. In retrospect, I think the best thing about David and what makes him truly exceptional is the fact that he ultimately wants and is willing to work crazy hard for what's best for you...he's even willing to tell you when you're wrong (in his respectful and professional opinion hahaha) for your own good.David and I didn't agree on everything because we both have our heartfelt opinions. I admit that I'm not the easiest person to get along with (I'm demanding and I have ego for days), but I thank my lucky stars that David was able to put up with me. I'm even more thankful that on many key points, I actually chose to listen to David in order to get the best possible outcome for myself and my family.On a final note, David is willing to go above and beyond what's required. For example, he freely shares his broad knowledge and experience of working in Contra Costa County -- this includes sharing / referring some fabulous connections for contractors and tradesmen. I think David's passion for his profession comes from the fact that real estate can be crazy, stressful, uncertain, and costly and that David is able to help/guide/coach his sometimes crazy clients though a very difficult but rewarding process. With so much at stake (especially hundreds of thousands of dollars) I am so glad that I placed my trust in David.So I actually found David through Yelp -- given this, can I just give the guy 10 stars and call it a day?

It was a pleasure to work with David on the sale of my home. He continually demonstrated knowledge about market dynamics, pricing strategy to attract the right people, and all the details that go into making the process smooth for everyone. I really appreciated his guidance through the selling process. His impeccable marketing materials, and ability to represent my home in the best possible way was fantastic. I can’t thank David enough for his outstanding negotiation skills which helped me sell the home way over the listed price!

David helped me as my buyers agent and was very professional and patient throughout the whole process. He's the kind of agent you want on your side.

We had the pleasure of working with David in our search for a new home, and we couldn't be happier with the experience. From the moment we met David, his professionalism and knowledge of the local market was evident.

David took the time to understand our needs and preferences, guiding us through each step of the process. He was responsive to our questions and concerns, always making himself available to show us properties and provide valuable insights.

What impressed us most was David's attention to detail and commitment to finding us the perfect home. He not only listened to what we were looking for but also offered valuable advice that helped us make informed decisions.

We highly recommend David to anyone looking to buy or sell a home. His professionalism, knowledge, and genuine care for his clients make him an exceptional real estate agent

David really helped my wife and I buy our first home. He understood what we were looking for, gave us viable options, and didn't waste our time trying to sell us on anything we didn't want. Even after closing, he would check in with us and make sure everything was good. Overall great experience from the staff at Keller-Williams.

David was our buyers agent when we purchased our first home. He was able to promptly, and seemingly at the craziest times of day able to reply, answer our questions, and get us going where we needed to be. With his help we were able to position ourselves really well and were able to purchase quickly for the exact thing we needed. If there's one thing I can say is that he went above and beyond throughout the whole process, is unbelievably friendly, and I couldn't have imagined going through this process without him.

David was my buyers agent for a VA loan, and was amazing from start to finish. He was very knowledgeable and experienced with every detail that a VA loan required. He handled all the communication between the sellers agent and provided honest and timely reports back to me. Very professional, responsive, friendly, and in general made the home buying process a stress free experience. I cannot recommend David highly enough and will be working with him again for my next purchase.

My husband and I met David in 2021 while we were in the planning process of wanting to sell our home. We spent the year meeting with David several times over the year while working on home renovations. We finally got everything set and ready to list our home in October 2022. David got our home listed on the 5th and we accepted an offer on the 12th, one week to be exact. We finally sold our home on Halloween and we're impressed with how quickly everything happened, thanks to David. David is a pleasure to work with and is very professional, friendly, a great listener and very reliable. I highly recommend David to anyone who has real estate needs.

Excellent,Professional,Engaging,Attentive,and Knowledgeable.
David is a bundle of energy. A positive influence to guide you through the selling process. I found him to be engaging,thoughtful,precise, friendly and prompt. Attributes I very much appreciate. The selling and staging process for my home went smoothly. All questions were answered thoroughly and promptly.
I was in a separate location and all communications between us were handled quickly and accurately.
David was just fun and easy to work with. I would recommend him to anyone.He is especially good with seniors who at times need the details repeated and re-repeated.

With Trust and Appreciation,
Carol Stienke.

We were very happy with David's professionalism and expertise in helping us sell our home. He guided us in the prepping of our home for sale and shared his knowledge of the big real estate picture with data and market analysis that helped us feel confident in listing price etc. He was very responsive and made what can be a very emotional experience into a very positive experience.
Positive
Responsiveness, Professionalism

David Zabarte and Simon Watson helped my family buy our first home last year. They were so wonderful to work with! We appreciated all of their patience while we asked many, many questions (sometimes the same ones over and over!). They were incredibly fast - as soon as we would send a link for a house of interest, they were already in contact with the agent to get more info. They were thorough - they looked into all of the details (the house, the neighborhood, the schools, etc) to make sure we had all of the information necessary in order to make such a big decision. All of their recommendations (from lenders to home inspectors) were incredibly professional and also great to work with. I truly believe they helped us find our dream home (which is even more apparent now that we have been stuck/safe at home in quarantine over the past few months!). But if for any reason we ever need to sell or buy, we will absolutely be calling David and Simon :)

David and Simon went above and beyond with the sale of my condo. They got multiple offers in no time and we closed above our asking price. They are true professionals with a very apparent passion for their profession. If you are looking for an agent, look not further.

David helped me sell a house in 2016 and was beyond helpful with navigating my first time selling of a home. He answered everything I asked in quick time and was a pleasure to work with through the process. We just bought a new home last week and the partnership between David and Simon is spot on because they always have you covered and once again I was beyind pleased with my interaction with David through the buying process.

My wife and I were first time home buyers and as those who have been there before know it can be a bit intimidating and overwhelming. David was there to answer any questions we had even before we started looking for houses. This allowed us to make smart and informed decisions when it came time to buy. I would highly recommend David as he is informed, trustworthy, and dependable. Thank you David for your help with our home buying experience!

This review is LONG overdue....About a year and a half ago, we started our house hunt. We were living in the South Bay at the time, and we weren't familiar with the market. I had been working with another Real Estate Agent that we randomly met and at the time he/she seem really great and knowledgable about the East Bay market, but during our first weekend driving around... we were realizing that he/she was not familiar with the WC/PH/Con area that we had wanted to buy a house in, so I found David on yelp. He had a lot a great reviews, but because we were first time home buyers and already worried that our first experience had not gone as well as I had hoped, I asked my out of state RE friend to chat with him to see if he was knowledgeable and a good fit to work with me. She was really impressed of what she also read on yelp and how professional he was on the phone and proactive he described he was for his clients. So we set up a coffee meeting....he was willing to meet us in SF where we worked and he already looked into the house that we were considering putting an offer on.David was already familiar with the selling agent and the mortgage broker we were considering, which is important in this crazy bay area market. I definitely recommend to people to make sure your RE team is familiar with the market you are looking at.After our offer was accepted, we worked his partner Simon. They have an awesome team of preferred inspection companies. Everyone was so nice to deal with, reasonably priced, and so quick to respond!We were EXTREMELY happy that we ended up working with David and his team. When we are ready to buy / upgrade to another home, we will definitely use David again!

David and his team was great! I had looked over 3 years to buy a home, until I met David and Simon (his partner) was that possible . They really took the time to listen to what we were looking for, in our budget and area. They helped with all the inspections, closing paperwork etc. Even checked in on us after ee moved in. They are reliable and trustworthy, am recommending them to all my home hunting friends. Thank you David and Simon!

Thanks to David and Simon with Rabbit Realty, me and my wife got into the condo of our dreams on the border of Concord and Walnut Creek. The Bay Area is an extremely tough market to break into as a first time buyer, and with their coaching we were able to score our place with the first offer. Their experience, knowledge, and tact is unparalleled with any other realtor I've come across. Working in real estate marketing I've met countless realtors, but few I've worked with have the same set of skills and foresight as David and Simon. If you're ready to make an offer look no further than Rabbit Realty. They'll make you a homeowner in no time!

David and Simon are the best to work with, but not only they know what they are doing but they will always going extra miles for you to get the best result.

Recommend it !

David Zabarte was absolutely wonderful to work with. He was always available for any questions or concerns that I had during our selling process. He gave me the right advise at the right time and was always willing to help. He is very knowledgeable and knows what he is doing!!! If you are looking for someone who is easy to work with and dependable, David is your guy!! Thanks David!!!

Thanks a million to David and Simon for taking on the semi-Herculean task of helping me prep my mom's condo for sale. I live in Oregon and my mom's condo is in Walnut Creek, so there was a lot of phone/text/email correspondence needed, especially given that the condo had many much needed repairs to take care of. I could not have asked for better communication throughout the entire process. And the choice of staging really gave it the extra push to get the sale done quickly and smoothly. A+ service, excellent people. It's a no-brainer to work with these guys if you're selling or buying in the east bay!

I recently sold my house (first time seller) in Concord and David was GREAT. My questions were answered right away and David never hesitated to return calls, emails or texts. The process was very smooth and I felt very confident due to David's vast knowledge of the whole process. It was especially helpful how the offers we had were broken down (by David and his partner Simon) in order to help me understand not to just concentrate on the buyers price offer!My wife and I wish we could use David for our new purchase out of state! I've recommended David to several friends and coworkers and If you ever need a realtor don't hesitate to use David!!!

Just sold our house in Concord through these guys (Simon and David). They made a very difficult time as easy as they could and guided us with advice based on their lengthy experience when it was necessary. Ultimately we would have liked more for our property (who wouldn't?) but in the end the sale went off without a hitch and a lot of the credit is due to David and Simon. Good people.

Buying and selling a home are some of the most important (and stressful!) events in one's adult life and we were told when we was getting ready to sell our home that there are two kinds of brokers - those who will list your home, and those who will sell your home. We are so fortunate that David Zabarte and his partner Simon Watson were definitely brokers who were going to sell our home! From the first moment we met David, we were impressed with his energy, his detailed knowledge of the market in our area, and his professionalism. Our home was extensively photographed, and a video tour made of the exterior and interior (including a bird's eye view drone video). Since we decided to stage our home ourselves, David gave us really thorough and excellent advice on how to set up our house interior to show to its best advantage. Because of David's and Simon's efforts, we had a quick offer and a quick sale. We could not be more pleased and we recommend David in the highest possible terms, without exception or qualification. And most importantly, we feel he has become not just our broker, but our friend!

I would just like to share my experience working with David to purchase our home in Pleasant Hill. Choose David and the Rabbit Team if you are looking for people who have excellent people skills with a lot of experience working in this field.
David was so helpful in consulting with on the various issues of home buying from details of what to look out for in particular neighborhoods to caveats there may be with particular properties (being honestly discerning for your benefit). He worked very effectively and respectfully with the other local realtors. It was sincerely a pleasure to do business with people who you would just as soon sit down to dinner with. They are an honest and professional team I would recommend without reservation. Also, I would like to note that the short close time was extremely efficient and David was always available to assist us through the process and to answer any questions we had.

When we started the process of searching for our new house, I had a predetermined idea of who would help with each part of the process. After a less than stellar experience with the first mortgage broker I was referred to, David put me in contact with a much more qualified team. I believe David's reputation, and relationships helped us close on the house we absolutely loved, and it was the first house we wrote an offer on!!!

I undervalued the importance of this, but in a sellers market, having an agent, and loan broker who the seller's agent has confidence in is huge. With the team assembled, our loan broker, and David were able to get our offer accepted. He offered us support, and reassurance at every turn. David is genuine, smart, funny, and overall a pleasure to work with. If you're in the market for a home, call him and follow his lead. Highly highly recommend!

Simon Watson and David Zabarte - "The Rabbit Team" represented the sale of my home. The marketing was top notch from aerial/walk-through videos and having digital presence which was important to me when deciding on representation for my home. Having the digital presence helps with providing the property a competitive edge to capture busy working professionals or buyers out of state unable to attend an open house.

When choosing an agent it's crucial to find someone who will work well with you and that your personalities click. In essence, you are choosing your own team; ideally that individual will go up to bat and knock it out of the park. The Rabbit Team are the dynamic dual. See my review for Simon Watson on Yelp.

It was my first home sale and I had so many questions. They didn't mind all of my questions and took the time to go into the details with me. David took the time to review his pricing strategies with me prior to representation to ensure we could be in agreement with the strategy before moving forward. It aligned with what I had in mind too so that worked out well. David was also very accommodating and open to hearing what was important to me.

We received offers after the first weekend of open house. Home was priced competitively and sold above list quickly.

Thank you David and Simon, Rabbit Team!

I really enjoyed working with David. His insights on properties and transactions were spot on. He's a very friendly and knowledgeable agent with his finger on the pulse of the local market.

David and Simon thank you for helping me to sale my house in pleasant hill CA you did a grate job on marketing my house and smooth transaction even when I was in Germany you did keep in contact with me at all the time and have the transaction to move forward all the time I recommend you to any one is in the market looking for a house in contra costa.
Thanks again.

I found David here on Yelp and gave him a call in a work capacity to ask his opinion and tap into his knowledge of the City of Oakley real estate market. David not only read through a long confusing email with attachments - he responded within an hour and helped me understand the answer. David is a fine example of thoughtful customer service and the utmost professional courtesy.Thank you David.

David and Simon were great to work with. They're both very knowledgeable and straightforward. I was very impressed with how streamlined the buying experience was in such a hot market. Within three days of calling David, I had a loan pre-approval and a strong offer for the place I was interested in. I would recommend David for anyone who's serious about buying real state. He moves fast and knows exactly what it takes to get things done.

I originally found David on YELP because of the great reviews, and I was not disappointed. He and Simon helped us with a sale and a purchase. They were professional, reliable, friendly, and all around great to work with. I will use them again for any future real estate needs!

David was super with us and our first home purchase.
I am pretty sure I emailed him and his partner Simon about 477,001 times in the short 5 weeks it took us to find and make offer and purchase our house.
He has great insight, offers his opinion when asked and never let us down.
He goes the extra mile to make our offer as attractive as possible, hand delivered the offer, and constantly updated once it's out of his hands.
Despite my inclination to panic over everything, this was an amazingly pain free process.

We had the unfortunate pairing with a terrible agent when we were thinking about buying a few years back, I was leery and thought agents were only interested in making the deal. David renewed my trust and I truly believe that his reputation is more valuable to him than cashing in or pushing the wrong property.

If you're shopping around for an agent David is your guy. Just don't ask him to help paint :p

We just had a great experience with David and Simon selling our home. To put things concisely, they have a very high level integrity and deep professional knowledge and skill.

Our home sold for more than asking in a very, very short time frame, and it was mainly due to their expertise and marketing. We know this to be a fact because a very similar home up the street clearly positioned themselves wrong with another professional, and we witnessed their long process involving price reductions (and it still hasn't closed.)

I am very happy we found Rabbit Realty. Definitely give these guys a call.

David and Simon were a huge help to my family in finding a house in Walnut Creek. I had read reviews and they didn't disappoint. We initially spent timing reviewing the important things that mattered to us to help us narrow the search. They spent time reviewing listings, recommending houses and going with us on numerous searches during our time-sensitive search.I found them especially helping negotiating and finalizing the deal in this competitive marketplace.

David helped my wife and I find our 1st home back in April. Our budget was tight but David was there 100%, even when things got ugly with the lenders. What I like most about David is how personable he is, he is friendly, loves to get to know you and will always be up front with you. David was very good at passing on a boat load of knowledge that we needed to make the absolute best decisions as 1st time buyers. My mistake was choosing a lender prior to talking to David. The lenders messed up several times extending the time needed to be approved for the loan which almost cost us the house. Please speak with David because he knows many reliable people in the industry that can help reduce time and the headaches of mistakes being made... much like the headache i placed upon myself. You live and learn and I can tell you without a doubt that David will be the only Realtor I contact in the future when I choose to sell this current home I am in and when I buy my next. Thank you David and I hope others will use you for thier next home purchase!

As stressful as having one foot in two states can be, David really made us feel comfortable that things were being handled while we were away. Prior to us moving (months and years), we added a lot of improvements to our home- but even so, David saw where things could still be improved to help the sale. We did as much as possible, until time ran out and we had to move. David has some good contacts and really helped us complete what needed to be done before showing the home. In fact, he had our house staged- which improved the show ability of the house by a large factor (even though I thought I was the bomb in decorating- consider me humbled). As David says, "Now your home is just a product"- I had to take my attachments out of it (tough to do!). He put the house up for sale at the price we agreed upon, and within less than a week we had multiple offers above asking. We were -and are- so grateful!

My wife and I recently worked with David and Simon to buy our first home. David was very knowledgable and trustworthy. We always felt like he was giving us all the information. David helped us with almost all of the paperwork. Which anyone who has bought a home will tell you is a daunting task. I really appreciated that he took the time to explain each document and answer any questions that we had. Another thing that I really appreciated was the communication between David and Simon, they were able to easily step in where the other left off without any questions. We would recommend these guys to anyone who values knowledge, integrity, and urgency.

I contacted David for advice regarding selling my place in Moraga. He responded quickly and professionally and actually advised me NOT to sell if I didn't have to based on my situation. With honesty like that, its easy to see how David earned all these 5-star reviews!

David is an awesome team member with Simon Watson. David stepped in when Simon went out of town and took the lead by advocating for me (the buyer) to negotiate great terms with the seller. He was very professional in his work verbally and in his writing. I highly recommend David Zabarte.

When we wanted to buy our first home, we chose David as our realtor. He took our needs personally, investing a lot of time and effort in making sure that he showed us a options that really fit what we needed. He showed us all sorts of different places in different neighborhoods, giving us options we didn't even know we had. It was a crazy time for us, and he went way beyond the call to make sure we were really happy in a great place that suited us. We still live there and now we're a family with one kid and one more on the way. We feel at home, and David helped put us there. I would (and have) recommend him to anyone looking for a home!

Our situation changed and we did not end up going through David, but I wanted to echo the reviews here. Our interactions with him were friendly and pleasant, and he was patient and great taking time to explain things. I would have absolutely no hesitation recommending him to someone in need of his services.

We did our research and based on the reviews and comments we saw for David we decided to go with him as our realtor. From the beginning it was clear he was very professional and knowledgeable about the area and industry. He made the whole process very easy and fluid. I highly recommend David and will do just that as I try to recruit my friends to the area :)

I recently worked with David Zabarte to sell one of our houses and highly recommend his services. He was very dynamic and easy to work with. Both my wife and I work full-time and have two young children. David was very flexible in meeting with us and worked around our busy schedules. My wife and I are also very detail oriented and tend to ask a lot of questions. David was excellent in getting us the information we requested and very informative on guiding us through the process as this was our first sale. From our initial sit down to talk about possibly selling to the day we closed David was an excellent Realtor and made us feel comfortable and professionally represented. I have used several different relaters over the years, but now have found my guy. I feel like I have not only gained a Realtor but also made a good friend. If you're looking to buy or sell a property look no further David Zabarte is your guy.

As someone who moved here and NO knowledge of the CA law I was skeptical upon choosing a realtor. I have to express what a wonderfully seamless experience I had by dealing with David. Due to illness it was put in a position to sell and hopefully in a quick and orderly fashion. David took care of ever detail without as much as a blip on a radar. Not only did David handle every detail. As far going above and beyond, he did it. He is truly a professional. He sold my home for more than I anticipated. A true professional who followed up, created a calendar that allowed me to plan and it was my best Realtor experience ever and I have bought and sold just About 20 properties in the last 20 Yeats. In addition to his responsible and mature handling of the business end he was personable. His demeanor was professional and when coupled with his "human side " that made things just that much easier. If and when I return to CA I would utilize DAVID. At no time did I feel like I was not his only client. If you are looking to be his only client, He made me and my family feel comfortable and present options when there were ones and if there were questions he was great to respond quickly. This man rocks. He really did do all of the things he could possibly do. And for me it many times comes to the dollars and cents, but the rate was even great. So if are buying or selling David is the man with the plan. I would have paid more without the blink of an eye if he would have asked even at the closing table. That's how impressed I was with him.

What can I say about David that hasn't been said before? Anyone who has ever worked with David will tell you, HE IS THE BEST! (that needs to be in bold with several underlines)We started out with another agent, and being first time home buyers we didn't know a lot about the process, however it didn't take us long to figure out we weren't in very good hands. Buying a home can be a long and often frustrating and occasionally discouraging process. If you expect to make it to the other end of this bumpy road with the occasional dark tunnel you need to have a realtor who you trust, someone who can shine light on the things you don't understand and tell you when it's time to take a detour. You need to be able to trust in your realtor to help you through what can be a very stressful process, if we didn't fully trust David to take care of us we wouldn't be the proud homeowners we are today!We didn't have the easiest budget to work with, we didn't have the easiest loan to work with, we didn't have the most convenient areas we were looking in and David never made us feel that we weren't at the top of his priority list. The property we got into contract on was a headache from the very beginning, it wasn't your typical sale, but David navigated us through until the very end calm and reassuring all the way! I could go on and on about how great David is to work with, but I'll be honest it's all been said before..we found David here on Yelp and the glowing reviews can't begin to do him justice! He really is THE BEST! I will recommend him to my family and friends and anyone else who asks because I can't imagine them going through this process with anyone else! Thanks again David!!!!

This review is long over due!!! David is the best realtors in the bay area. I've worked with several other realtors during my first purchase of a home and my experience was terrible. But when my wife found David on yelp our expierence went from bad to great. David is a really nice person that is easy to get along with. He looks for what's best for his clients, he treats you like family he works around your schedule. If it wasn't for him my wife and i would not own a home. we are very great full for finding David because there is no other realtor like him. If we ever think about purchasing another home or if we know of anybody that needs a realtor we will recommend David 100% of the time. thanks David for all that you did for us.

You want David to be your realtor. Period. If you're cruising Yelp looking for recommendations, stop right here. You've found your guy. My husband and I just bought our first home, and it could not have been an easier process. I was fully expecting to cry at some point from the stress, but all I really did was drift off into peaceful sleep each night because I knew David had it handled. He is extremely knowledgeable, savvy, and a genuinely good guy. He was with us every step of the way, from inspections to signing title papers. Being first time home buyers we had a lot of questions, and David always took the time to explain what we were signing, what it meant, and where we should go from there. That level of care and commitment eased our minds because we knew we had someone who was genuinely looking out for us. I swear, that man can type a paragraph via his phone like lightning! Sometimes it seemed that no sooner had I sent the question in an email that I had a response back.We are all moved into our house now and could not be happier. If you're looking for a home, contact David. You won't be disappointed.

David is the real article. Thorough, thoughtful and well prepared to assist a discerning buyer with finding good value in a market where there is really not a lot of good value. He even has an excellent eye for structural defaults and knows exactly what the market will bear in terms of resale, where to improve so equity can be taken back out and even the elusive art of matching right buyer to right property. He is much more than the normal perception of the realtor as a commissioned salesperson who only opens doors. Can be trusted - how rare is that?

After two bad recommedations for realtors from friends, I turned to trusty yelp and found David. There are seriously a bunch of bad realtors out there that do not listen to their clients, do not return phone calls or emails, and just dont care. David is the exact opposite of those people. He is a genuine and relatable person, which I find important when working with someone. When I first contacted him, I had a lenghty conversation with him on the phone, as I had some questions before we started our house search. He spent the time to answer my questions and was able to recommend some places to get started to look at mortgages. Two months later when we had eveything in order, I contacted him again and we began our search. He remained on top of everything, even when he went on vacaton. He reponds quickly to emails and phone calls. I dont know how he does it, especially since I am a lenghty over- emailer. He is there every step of the way to answer questions and to fight for his clients. We ran in to a situation in which our mortgage company kept giving us conflicting information about our close date and he coordinated with that company and the title company to try and get us in to the house on time, and it thanfully worked out. We were both completely satisfied and more, and would not hesitate to recommend David to anyone we know that is looking for a house, and we would use him again in the future if we decide to sell or buy again.

This is a good man with a passion for his clients and his industry! David is ready to listen, investigate, and get the job done. This industry needs agents like David with a passion for his work, and the satisfaction of his clients.

I'm not surprised to see that my realitor is so well reviewed. Buying my home was a challenging process for me because I bought a short sale. David had been so patient and not a pushy sales type of person, and I really appreciated that he would take me out to see homes and not try to "sell" me on any of them. He would point out the areas of the homes that represented a good resale value, and things about the houses that might make it harder on resale. We had been looking at homes in several parts of Concord, and I really had my mind set on being out in Dana Estates area but then a home came available right on the border of Walnut Creek and Concord that I could easily ride my bike to work from, and the house was in good condition, BUT it was a short sale that had an auction date set for 1 week from when we saw it. David got my offer accepted and the auction date got pushed back and I eventually got to move into my house. Thanks to David's thorough preparation of my expectations I managed to hold my emotions together through the challenging escrow period. What I didn't realize was going to be so hard was keeping myself sober to the idea that the escrow could fall apart if the seller's bank didn't keep pushing back the auction date until we could close. David was such a pro... I really feel grateful to have someone like him that I could trust with such a big purchase. Since my house was purchased I've seen him work just as hard to help a work buddy of mine get into another house that was also a short sale that was even more of a challenge than mine was. I'm impressed that someone can continue to do a job where there are elements that come up that are out of your control that can mean all of your effort doesn't get you paid because when I work on a car, I find the problem, I fix the problem, I get paid. I didn't realize that there was so much involved in buying a home other than that a realitor just opened the door and collected a lot of money. After my experience I have much more respect for the job that David does, and I'm proud to have made such a good friend. Thanks David! --Sean

To anyone out there looking for a realtor, David is the one! David was able by his expertise to get our family into a great home that was keeping within our budget. In these crazy times that the market has been, David stayed on top of all issues that arose and at a remarkable time frame we were able to purchase the home of our choice!It is very apparent that David not only enjoys his work and has a passion for it and because of his knowledge in the industry is able to accomplishwhat needs to get done.

David is a fabulous agent. I can't really add anything the other Yelpers have already said. He was on top of every little thing and made the purchase of a short sale home as smooth as possible, despite all of the red tape involved. He also fought for us to get a 3% buyer's credit which they denied at first, and then decided to give us. Great job David!

I bought my house two years ago and I am STILL talking about what an amazing job David did! He got me into the place I wanted, for the price I was willing to pay. Oh, and that was against 5 other bidders! And did I mention that the market was in melt-down? In short, the guy was amazing!

David handled everything so well that I had little more to do than pick the house and sign the papers. He is professional, honest and understands what it takes to make your dream of home-ownership a reality.

Thanks again, David!

David is a remarkable realtor. Honest, professional and extremely deligent. His knowledge of CoCo has no boundaries. I urge any of you that are frustrated with your current realtor, to run.... HURRY! To David Zabarte.

What can I say? In short, David Zabarte is an educated, intelligent, able, assiduous proffessional. For the past year and a half my wife and I have been working with David to help us navigate the treacherous waters of the current housing situation. Not an easy task given those conditions as well as the finicky nature of our preferences, however David was more than up for the task. David was our fourth agent in our search for a house in the Bay Area and after meeting him once, we knew he was our man. He has intimate knowledge of the East Bay and Bay Area in general which expands beyond what could be reasonably expected. His imtimate knowledge of Short Sales, Foreclosures, lending requirements and communications were all put into use to help clear the many hurdles we encountered on our home purchase.We decided to purchase a home on a Short Sale, knowing well what it meant. The process took over 5 months to complete, sucking up large volumes of time and effort from all parties involved. We almost lost the house to foreclosure, strict lending requirements and flaky bank negotiators, but we prevailed in thanks largely due to the effort of David. We could not have done this without him.The current housing situation is fraught with peril. Merciless tides of despair and hopeless await those without help. You need a strong ship and steadfast captain to sail these waters. David is this and much more.

Anyone who's had the opportunity to close with David knows you're not just getting a realtor with valuable local knowledge of the Contra Costa (Walnut Creek/Pleasant Hill/Concord/Martinez) area, you're getting someone who makes it his mission to see you get what you want house/location/price-wise when you want it, no easy feat given our busy schedules. David took us on numerous trips through the areas we were interested in, took our on-the-spot emails about places we explored on our own, and guided us through the process of making an offer, fielded calls from the bank, the seller and everyone in between, ultimately keeping everything on track to closing.

My family and I finally decided to move last year. I had met David about a month prior through a mutual friend, and learned that he was a realtor. Since it had been over a decade since we last bought a house, we had lost contact with our other realtor, so we decided to meet with David, and see if we'd fit.The first thing we noticed was that he is 100% passionate about the buying and selling of real estate. We sat around our kitchen table for 3 hours getting a much needed education. My wife and I knew immediately that David was the guy. He guided us through every step of the way, and made the process as painless as possible, and even though they say there are ALWAYS roadblocks, and unexpected 'gotchas' with selling and buying a house, it all went incredibly smooth.We're so happy to be in our new home, in our new town, but should we ever decide to move again, we'll absolutely use David. I would recommend him to anyone.Thanks David!

I use multiple Realtor's throughout the Bay Area, and I am extremely happy to add Mr. Z. to the top of my list. His skills and work ethic made my last sale completely effortless. He was precise on all aspects of the property, and his attention to detail throughout the sale was spot on! I look forward to more dealings with David

In a couple weeks we get to move into our new Walnut Creek home! When my husband and I started seriously looking to buy our first home, we never imagined that it would happen so quickly, smoothly and that we would find such a beautiful place. I think that a lot of that had to do with all the hard work that our realtor, David Zabarte, put into the process. David is professional, but fun to work with and made this stressfull experience a little more enjoyable. Looking for a house takes a lot of time and I stress the importance of working with someone with oppinions you trust and who you enjoy being with. When we finally found the house that we were ready to put on offer on, David stayed up late with us to get the offer in quickly. Because of his hard work late into the night, we got the offer in and accepted before a competing offer came in the next day. David was great at organizing the loan, inspections, explaining the piles of paperwork we had to sign through that month and we got the keys to our house in about a month from the time we made the offer. If you are thinking of buying a house I would recommend you meet with David and find out what he can do for you. He got us the home we were looking for in record time (for way under asking price), so what else can I ask for!

Patient, thorough, friendly, energetic, and hard-working..These are just a few of the wonderful things I have to say about David!My husband and I first considered buying a house 2 years ago, and for the next couple of years, David took us out on too many trips to count, throughout all the burbs we were considering (San Leandro, Castro Valley, Oakland, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek etc.)Each outing, he would help point out the pros and cons of each place and area, often telling us important details (good school district, close to good shopping etc.) and adding his personal experiences if he had lived in the area before. This was a huge plus, as neither my husband nor I had considerable experience living in Northern California outside San Francisco. It was a real bonus to hear a "local's" detailed perspective on Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek, and Oakland.Not only did he show us our requested picks, but he selected homes in our price range that were truly "us" as well. An important skill!When we finally found "THE" house, it was reassuring to have David on our team, as he explained all the small details and went over the contract in depth. He took care of arranging the inspection and set us up with contractors as needed.All in all, I can't express how lucky we were to have David with us for the purchase of our first home. The process is SO stressful, but David was helpful and reassuring. He was always there for us!!Thanks David!!