Credentials
LICENSE
Real Estate - Illinois - # 475.124181
Specialties
- Buyer's Agent
- Listing Agent
- Luxury Specialist
- Relocation
Awards
Contact Information
Location
548 West Webster AvenueChicago, IL, 60614
ZillowVERIFIEDI had the pleasure of working with Maria Kernahan as our buyer's broker, and I can't recommend her highly enough. Our search spanned Chicago and the North Shore suburbs aEUR" where I grew up in aEUR" and she adapted quickly as our criteria evolved. Maria never missed a beat. She was consistently responsive, quickly recalibrating her recommendations each time she learned more about our interests, and always kept us focused on our priorities. What set Maria apart was the quality of her guidance. She didn't flood us with options; she was thoughtful and strategic, pointing us toward properties that genuinely fit our needs with specific understanding of the communities and market. Her deep market experience was evident at every turn aEUR" from how she framed our offer to how she navigated the negotiation aEUR" and ultimately she helped us secure our first-choice home within our budget, and in a highly competitive environment. If you're looking for a broker who combines real expertise with genuine care for her clients, Maria is the person to call.
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria was exceptional throughout our entire condo search and purchase process in Chicago. From the very beginning, she took the time to truly get to know us and understand what type of home and lifestyle would be the best fit. Since we were out of town and unfamiliar with the Chicago market, we relied heavily on her expertiseaEUR"not only for identifying the right properties, but also for guiding us on neighborhoods, pricing, convenience, and overall value. One of the things we appreciated most was Marias ability to help us rethink what we originally thought we wanted. We initially believed a house in the suburbs was the right choice, but through thoughtful conversations and her deep understanding of both the market and our long-term needs, she skillfully pivoted us toward a more vibrant city lifestyle that will support us far better in the years ahead. That insight and guidance made an enormous difference for us. We also encountered a very unusual situation during the process, and Maria handled it with such professionalism, creativity, and calm that the outcome actually turned out even better than we expected. She was always responsive, proactive, patient, and incredibly dedicated. At every step, she went above and beyond to help us find our dream home. We truly could not have done this without her, and we would recommend her without hesitation to anyone looking to buy in Chicago.
ZillowVERIFIEDOutstanding command of the market, strong and fair negotiator, led me to the right properties. Showed great patience and was willing to put in the effort in a chaotic sellers market.
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria did a very good job responding to our needs. She searched for properties that met our needs and we found the one that was really a good fit for us.
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria did an excellent job of showing us the type of apartments that were available in the area. Was very helpful making us understand the nuances of a coop. She did a very thorough job.
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria was wonderful to work with! She was a great communicator. She negotiated on our behalf and we will love to work with her again. We had a great experience. We would recommend working with her. Thank you
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria is very knowledgeable when it comes to Chicago real estate! She was very patient with me during my journey looking for a place for almost 2 years! Cannot recommend her enough!
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria is amazing!! We contacted her almost 2 years ago to start our process of finding our forever home in the suburbs of Chicago. She feels like family at this point! We really got to know each other and she really understands what we wanted in a home and what location was ideal for us. She always had our best interests in mind and we trust her completely to find the best investment and opportunity for us in this challenging market. This was the biggest purchase of our lives and we got exactly what we wanted with Maria on our team. We're sad we won't spend nearly every weekend together searching for our home, but we so appreciate everything she did for us!
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria is very professional and was extremely helpful throughout the entire process. She went beyond the call of duty from staging our apt to addressing the buyers requests. She had thoughtful and constructive advice during our negotiation as well. I'd recommend her to anybody looking to sell or buy in the city of Chicago as well as the suburbs.
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria was fabulous to work with. She was the consummate professional and essential to finding our new home. She knew all the key players in the industry, which made a complicated process as simple and straightforward as could be. I recommend her wholeheartedly.
ZillowVERIFIEDI would not be writing this from my dream home if it weren't for Maria! The homebuying process is overwhelming, especially for first-time home buyers in the middle of a pandemic. Maria moved mountains to make this as easy as possible for us. What initially impressed me about Maria was her knowledge of the North Shore, literally down to knowing which blocks make good buys. Then I was impressed by her holistic understanding of houses, from construction, design principles, and vision for renovations. What we benefited from the most though was her innate ability as a connector of people; whether was recommendations to a mortgage lender, attorney, inspector, specific contractor, movers, or anything else we needed along the way. She even went above and beyond to connect us with other clients looking to give away gardening tools...which we need because she found us a big backyard! Even though we bought a home in a crazy market (multiple offer situations, escalation clauses, above asking as the norm), we never felt pressured...in fact, it was often Maria who talked us off the ledge from earlier purchases that she knew didn't fit our vision. And that is why I get to write this from my dream home. Thank you Maria!!
ZillowVERIFIEDGreat recommending local contractors and followed up even after sale was complete. Also a wonderful eye for style and detail. Was concerned that the purchase would be right for us - both now and when we want to sell later.
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria has an amazing talent for quickly understanding what we were looking for and showing us listings that met our criteria. She provided excellent advice, was impeccably organized and efficient, and expertly guided us through a complicated closing. We could not recommend her more highly.
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria and her team are the ultimate professionals. They kept the process moving along and were with us every step of the way. From start to finish, Maria gave us market insight, suggestions and explanations to sell our home as efficiently as possible, while still maintaining a price we were comfortable with. Highly recommended.
ZillowVERIFIEDWe used Maria when buying our first home. She was amazing. We had pretty much no clue what we were doing and she was a huge help guiding us through the process, killer at the negotiations, and following up on everything during and after the process. She also had great recommendations for people to use for the various elements, since we were new to the area. Everyone she recommended ended up being great. When we decided to sell our home 3 years later, we decided to again use her, since she had done such a great job. We were moving out of state otherwise we wouldve used her to buy the new house as well. And we really wished we could have, she was miles better than the one we used. We were out of town for the majority of the selling process and she handled everything, including a bunch of stuff that was way beyond her job description, like collecting our mail! Incredibly tlong review; bottom line is that Maria is phenomenal to work with and does a killer job for you. Id use her every time if I could.
ZillowVERIFIEDI needed a long time to decide what I wanted to buy - studio? 1 bedroom? 2? And even longer to decide where - downtown? northwest side? near the lake? As in 18 months! I met with Will and Maria at the outset and Will became my principal point of contact. He was - and is - a *saint*! In 2019, when you could still ride in cars with your real estate agent, he took me hither and yon to see places. I suspended the search about 6 months later with a plan to start looking again in the spring. And then COVID-19 struck ... After a brief period of total shock and dismay (about COVID) , I decided to get back out there and Will was ready to go. Seriously, I cannot thank him enough for bearing with me as I zigzagged from the south Loop to Edgewater to the northwest side to Buena Park ... Now I'm in my own, fabulous, home and it feels wonderful! A huge thank you to both Will and Maria for helping me every step of the way. If you want impeccable service, this is it!
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria is an outstanding realtor. Her knowledge of Chicago neighborhoods, market quirks and building/architecture is top notch. She has helped us buy and rent within the last five years and will use her again!!
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria is a pleasure to work with, knowledgeable about the Chicago market and super responsive to any questions. I would chose her again for any of my real estate needs.
ZillowVERIFIEDSolid 5-stars all across the board for Maria Kernahan. Great to work with, amazing attention to detail, and goes the extra distance. Buying or selling a co-op can be difficult to navigate, and from the minute I signed on the dotted line, Maria handled the all of the open houses, had a printed brochure to give out to those attending. She kept in touch with me virtually 24/7, with important details, questions and I feel like she had only my best interests in mind. A lot of realtors will say that, but Maria proved it from start to finish. She sold the apartment quickly, and was able to find only the serious buyers. If I ever buy or sell another apartment, Maria is on speed-dial.
ZillowVERIFIEDBeing a first time homeowner, I had a LOT of questions. Maria took the time to walk me through the process and answer all my questions. She was super responsive, very knowledgeable of the Chicago real estate market and was just a pleasure to work with. Highly recommend!!
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria listed our house in Wilmette and it literally sold twice within a week. We were moving out of state and were relocated by my husband's company which meant that there was a ton of extra paper work plus additional inspections. It also meant that the listing agent's commission was discounted. This made no difference to Maria. She worked just as hard as if she was making full commission without the extra hassle. As an aside, Maria recently helped my daughter find a great rental downtown. She got no compensation for this and spent a good half day showing her apartments. I know when it comes time for my daughter to buy in the city, Maria will be her Realtor. She's an expert on the northshore as well as downtown Chicago.
ZillowVERIFIEDWhen Maria came on board to sell the family house, we knew immediately that we were in good hands. She understood all the positive aspects of the home and property and was able to convey every bit of that to prospective buyers. She kept us informed of all activity and was completely thorough in completing all the necessary paperwork. We had complete confidence in Maria throughout the entire process and would highly recommend her to anyone.
ZillowVERIFIEDThis really was a perfect experience. Maria is super knowledable about different neighborhoods and comparable prices. She is easy to work with and a lot of fun. Anyone would be lucky to have her help them find a house or other type of real estate. Maria has represented us looking for a loft in Chicago to purchase. I would give her 5 stars all the way around!!
ZillowVERIFIEDWe used Maria as our agent in selling our house in Winnetka. She was very knowledgeable about the area's market. We were extremely pleased with her following up on the work she was doing, and always getting back us promptly when we had questions - and we had lots of questions. Two characteristics stood out: responsiveness and working with the buyers to get us a great deal. We will use her again.
ZillowVERIFIEDI have worked with Maria last 3 years. Most recently, Maria helped us identify and rehab an investment property; including identifying a tenant. She has extensive local knowledge and connections with the local village as well as surveyors and contractors. We were able to close, update and rent the home in less than 2 months. She also provided fabulous ideas in updating the kitchen and bathrooms!
ZillowVERIFIEDI have completed 5 transactions with Maria over the last half a dozen years and her judgment is impeccable. She understands where the market will clear, what represents value and knows how to get the transaction done.
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria helped us purchase our house on a relocation to greater Chicago and then helped us sell the same house five years later when we had to relocate out of Illinois. Her knowledge of the North Shore and all its suburbs are extremely helpful when looking for homes. She has good sense for what a person, couple, or family are looking for in their home, and she is able to guide the process naturally and efficiently. Her knowledge of the closing process in Illinois makes getting to a final contract easier than it might otherwise be. Maria really love her work and it comes through in everything she does - we recommended her services to multiples of our friends over the years.
ZillowVERIFIEDMaria is smart, funny and knows the real estate business inside and out. It's too bad she helped us a find a home we absolutely love, because I want to work with her again!
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