Agents, representation and process.

Both are licensed by the California Department of Real Estate. A salesperson works under a broker's license. A broker has completed additional education and experience requirements and passed a separate examination, and can operate independently or supervise others.

Steve Thielsen has held a California real estate license since November 2007 and a broker license since April 2016, DRE 01836182.

SourceCalifornia Department of Real Estate ↗ (opens in a new tab)

California requires that the agency relationship be disclosed in writing: who represents the buyer, who represents the seller, and whether one broker represents both. Dual agency is legal in California with informed written consent from both parties.

Understand which relationship applies to you before you discuss price, motivation or strategy with anyone.

SourceCalifornia Department of Real Estate ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Yes. California requires it as soon as practicable and no later than your offer, and in practice agents ask for it before showing homes. It states the services, the term and how your agent is compensated; for an individual buyer the initial term is capped at three months and cannot renew automatically. Compensation and the other terms are negotiable.

Read the term and the cancellation provisions. A short initial term is a reasonable request if you are still deciding.

SourceCalifornia Civil Code 1670.50 · Buyer-broker representation agreements ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Use the California Department of Real Estate public license lookup. It shows license status, license type, expiration, the responsible broker and any disciplinary information DRE currently displays.

It takes about a minute and it is worth doing for anyone you are considering working with.

SourceCalifornia Department of Real Estate ↗ (opens in a new tab)

How they will price the property and on what evidence, what they will do in the first two weeks, how they handle inspection findings and negotiation, how often and by what method they will communicate, what the total cost is, and what they would advise against.

The answer to the last question is usually the most revealing.

General informationNo single public source governs this. It depends on the property and the contract, and this page is general information, not advice for your situation. Confirm specifics with the appropriate professional.

The property, the timing and the decision in front of you. That means the address, what you know about its condition and history, what you are trying to accomplish and by when, and what has been getting in the way. It is not a listing presentation.

If the answer is that now is not the right time to transact, that is a legitimate outcome of the conversation.

General informationNo single public source governs this. It depends on the property and the contract, and this page is general information, not advice for your situation. Confirm specifics with the appropriate professional.

Yes. Buyer representation covers property selection, construction-informed review of condition, coordination of the inspectors and specialists you choose, offer strategy and negotiation through closing, with the same construction-aware approach applied to what you are buying rather than what you are selling.

The buyer page covers what that looks like in practice.

General informationNo single public source governs this. It depends on the property and the contract, and this page is general information, not advice for your situation. Confirm specifics with the appropriate professional.

Homes and historic residences, country property and acreage, small multifamily, and multi-structure ranch property across Sonoma County and Marin, with particular depth where construction, permitting or property condition is central to the outcome.

Property types and transaction history on this site are being reconciled against MLS records before final publication.

General informationNo single public source governs this. It depends on the property and the contract, and this page is general information, not advice for your situation. Confirm specifics with the appropriate professional.

Because an automated estimate for an unusual property is misleading, and unusual property, acreage and mixed uses are exactly what an algorithm reads worst. A valuation here means a considered opinion supported by comparable sales, condition and the current market, delivered by a person.

The valuation page explains what is provided and what is not.

General informationNo single public source governs this. It depends on the property and the contract, and this page is general information, not advice for your situation. Confirm specifics with the appropriate professional.

A live listing feed is a separate integration with its own agreements, costs and compliance requirements, and it has not been added. The search page explains how to describe what you are looking for so a search can be set up properly.

This is a current decision rather than a technical limitation.

SourceBAREIS MLS (multiple listing service) ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Federal and California law prohibit discrimination in housing on the basis of protected characteristics. In practice it means this site does not rank neighborhoods or schools, does not describe areas in terms of who lives there, and does not steer buyers toward or away from areas.

Area guides here present sourced facts and official tools so visitors can reach their own conclusions.

SourceHUD · fair housing ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Every sourced figure carries the date it was reviewed. The area guides and this answer library were last reviewed August 14, 2026, market figures reflect the July 2026 BAREIS county summary, and answers link to the governing public source wherever one exists so you can check it yourself.

Agency rules, tax provisions and hazard maps change. Confirm anything material with the responsible agency before relying on it.

General informationNo single public source governs this. It depends on the property and the contract, and this page is general information, not advice for your situation. Confirm specifics with the appropriate professional.