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  4.9  
1021 reviewsacross 50 different locations, showing 12.
Seller review
A Gifted Communicator, Impeccable Attention To Detail and Unassuming Demon Auctioneer
over 8 years ago
A Gifted Communicator, Impeccable Attention To Detail and Unassuming Demon Auctioneer

My wife and I recently sold our pretty little garden apartment with Costa Karabatsos at Hocking Stuart St Kilda and we are happy to recommend him to any prospective selling vendor. Disarmingly youthful ( but not a man child by any means ) Costa is all at once credible , good humored and knowledgeable . Costa instantly impressed us with his extensive local area feel, accurate quick maths (who does that?) and later his winning auctioneer skills, he seemed to possess an almost photographic memory resulting in detailed recall . At our appraisal , in tandem with Director and StKilda Real Estate Celebrity Statesman Mr John Manning ( see John’s review) in a kind of two-headed charming monster partnership , Costa seemed to file enough memories and remember enough details on demand for the both of the two men combined ( lol no disrespect intended) that basically put them miles ahead of their local counterparts . Showing the same “easy-going” and “ no pressure “ flexibility when negotiating their commissions and marketing packages that not only seemed un-“sales-like” (read as No Cringe ) but actually made my wife and I feel like VIPs despite our precious little listing being the most inexpensive in their glorious Red Book and helped us quickly realize that Costas confident presentation, open honest delivery style and a skill for concise communication (taking all the notes, the first with an answer ) knew we wanted our prospective buyers dealing with this guy. The approachable pair proved to have broad rapport and appeal right across the whole age demographic of our buying range , Costa understood our joy living here and how to communicate that to buyers. Our campaign performed well above average and had big numbers at our opens. All buyers came on the Auction day. Costa worked the bidders like a matador from his introduction, he controlled the pace and the subsequent bidding frenzy took us 16% above reserve and exceeded our expectations to champagne and high-five status!

Costa Karabatsos

Costa Karabatsos

  4.9   (151 reviews)
Seller review
Pleasure From First Meeting Through To Settlement
over 8 years ago
Pleasure From First Meeting Through To Settlement

John Manning was absolutely charming , knowledgeable and “low pressure” from the moment my wife and Inopened our door to Hocking Stuart for an appraisal on our East StKilda garden apartment. When you are considering a selling agency it’s nice to have The Director turn up to appraise your property. With a solid two decades of experience under his belt , and a non-pushy approach to winning our listing ( including an unprecedented flexibility when negotiating his commission and when tailoring our marketing strategy to our budget.) John was instantly a head above the competition by making us feel at ease and reflect an understanding what we love about the property, how it is placed on the market in the area and most importantly how to convey that in our campaign to reach our buyer range (and how to really bring genuine well qualified bidders on our auction day . ) When our property performed well above average during our campaign, we knew we were onto a winner with John . Always available to us , although our beautiful little place was probably one of the smallest in The Red Book ( and comparatively insignificant compared to the featured multi million dollar listings they handle with the same charm) but John, paired in classic “good-cop/good-cop” combination with personable and fresh faced auctioneer Costa Karabatsos -(Kudos to Costa too, see Costa’s review) made us feel like VIP clients. They remained contactable, continually giving us tons of progress reports after each open and answering all my calls and questions. John and Costa facilitated with finesse the runaway bidding war that took place on the most formidable of inclement Melbourne Autumn days . Bucketing down rain till the hammer with five groups competing to own ..which resulted in the best possible outcome - Thanks, John . .thanks for that fabled , triumphant “champagne and high five “ sale (16% above our auction reserve! ) Five Stars to John Manning at StKilda HS for exceeding all our expectations.

John Manning

John Manning

  4.8   (147 reviews)
Seller review
Highly recommended!
over 8 years ago
Highly recommended!

Costa deserves 10/10 for his dedication and commitment to the sale of my property. Even when faced with some unusual challenges during the campaign he overcame the issues and kept focused on the end result, which was excellent. I highly recommend Costa. Tim

Costa Karabatsos

Costa Karabatsos

  4.9   (151 reviews)
Seller review
Friendly and great communication
over 8 years ago
Friendly and great communication

John was wonderful all the way through from first visit to our house to after the successful sale. We had many conversations which were always pleasant and while John maintained a professional manner we found him friendly and relatable. Communication was so important. It was a really nice experience selling our house.

John Manning

John Manning

  4.8   (147 reviews)
Seller review
Friendly and calm
over 8 years ago
Friendly and calm

We enjoyed Costa's enthusiasm and organisation when selling our home. The communication was so friendly....we kind of miss him now. He seemed totally committed and was always at the other end of the phone when we had questions. We were happy with the result and can now go shopping for a new house. We wish him all the best in a very long career ahead that he seems to love.

Costa Karabatsos

Costa Karabatsos

  4.9   (151 reviews)
Seller review
Great result, professional and on the ball!
over 8 years ago
Great result, professional and on the ball!

We couldn’t have been happier with the service and the result we got for the sale of our apartment with Sam and Julian. We had a number of agents through to look at our property and we chose Sam and Julian based on a recommendation from a friend (who had an outstanding result with them for their 3 bedroom St Kilda east apartment) and because we were so impressed by their strategic and positive approach. Where other agents were bemoaning the changes to the laws around valuing properties and price estimates, Sam and Julian were talking strategically about how they work within the laws and deliver great results for their vendors. I appreciated their optimism and enthusiasm for their work. We never felt any pressure from Sam or Julian to sign with them but when we called to say we were ready to go, they made themselves immediately available to us and acted swiftly to help us get the campaign underway. Their support team including assistant, copy writer, photographers and conveyancer, were equally as on the ball. Every exchange was friendly and professional. Sam and Julian had a decisive strategy for our oversized one bedroom apartment and delivered a result for us that we were thrilled with and that was right within what they estimated we could get for the apartment. The apartment was bought by a couple in the demographic that they had advised would likely be interested too - which makes me feel like they really know the market. During the campaign Sam and Julian were attentive and thorough. They met with leads outside of advertised open times and kept us well informed and managed our expectations well. Even though our apartment was much more modest than some of the other properties they had listed, we felt they really cared about getting us the best possible result. And they negotiated well on the auction day to ensure that we did.

Julian Cannata

Julian Cannata

  4.9   (242 reviews)
Seller review
Great result, terrific experience!
over 8 years ago
Great result, terrific experience!

We couldn’t have been happier with the service and the result we got for the sale of our apartment with Sam and Julian. We had a number of agents through to look at our property and we chose Sam and Julian based on a recommendation from a friend (who had an outstanding result with them for their 3 bedroom St Kilda east apartment) and because we were so impressed by their strategic and positive approach. Where other agents were bemoaning the changes to the laws around valuing properties and price estimates, Sam and Julian were talking strategically about how they work within the laws and deliver great results for their vendors. I appreciated their optimism and enthusiasm for their work. We never felt any pressure from Sam or Julian to sign with them but when we called to say we were ready to go, they made themselves immediately available to us and acted swiftly to help us get the campaign underway. Their support team including assistant, copy writer, photographers and conveyancer, were equally as on the ball. Every exchange was friendly and professional. Sam and Julian had a decisive strategy for our oversized one bedroom apartment and delivered a result for us that we were thrilled with and that was right within what they estimated we could get for the apartment. The apartment was bought by a couple in the demographic that they had advised would likely be interested too - which makes me feel like they really know the market. During the campaign Sam and Julian were attentive and thorough. They met with leads outside of advertised open times and kept us well informed and managed our expectations well. Even though our apartment was much more modest than some of the other properties they had listed, we felt they really cared about getting us the best possible result. And they negotiated well on the auction day to ensure that we did.

Sam Inan

Sam Inan

  4.9   (337 reviews)
Seller review
Great & Diligent Agent
over 8 years ago
Great & Diligent Agent

Julian Cannata has been very honest & straight forward throughout the process of selling our property. He kept us constantly informed. The communication back & forth was regular – by phone & email. I liked how we would receive a report through our email that enabled us to see the actual comments that people made during inspections. I felt we worked as a team & that Julian & Sam worked well as a team in selling our property. I felt there was a whole team behind the scenes that supported the process, so as a company, I recommend Hocking Stuart St Kilda! Thanks again so much Julian, we are so happy with the result, & I am happy to recommend you to others.

Julian Cannata

Julian Cannata

  4.9   (242 reviews)
Seller review
Great & Honest Agent
over 8 years ago
Great & Honest Agent

It is with pleasure that I write a review for Sam Inan. He has been very honest & straight forward about the property that we were selling. Spot on with valuing it. Kept us constantly informed. The communication back & forth was regular – by phone & email. I felt we worked as a team. Sam’s Executive Assistant Lyndsey Hollywood was also great to work with & no doubt she is an asset working with Sam. I really felt there was a whole team behind the scenes that supported the process, so as a company, I recommend Hocking Stuart St Kilda! Thanks again so much Sam, we are so happy with the result, & I am happy to recommend you to others.

Sam Inan

Sam Inan

  4.9   (337 reviews)
Buyer review
Super efficient and a top bloke!
over 8 years ago
Super efficient and a top bloke!

Julian is efficient, patient, helpful, respectful and very knowledgeable. He is always willing to assist with any query we may have. Lovely guy too!

Julian Cannata

Julian Cannata

  4.9   (242 reviews)
Seller review
Excellent Hardworking Agent
over 8 years ago
Excellent Hardworking Agent

From the moment I met Sam were impressed with his enthusiasm and knowledge Sam is friendly, honest and efficient always keeping us up to date with our campaign. His communication skills are second to none. Would definitely recommend Sam - a very professional agent !I

Sam Inan

Sam Inan

  4.9   (337 reviews)
Seller review
Great Agent
over 8 years ago
Great Agent

Right from the start I had confidence in John because he communicated so well and often. At every stage of the process of property preparation for auction, the legal paperwork and the lead up to auction day, he kept me in the loop. Even though the property did not sell at auction he assured me it would sell very soon, and it did. He negotiated a price with a buyer that suited all, and very efficiently sent through the paperwork within 30 minutes. He is a busy man, but I felt he was working for me, as his attention to detail was admirable. Thanks John.

John Manning

John Manning

  4.8   (147 reviews)
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