Reviews
How do you choose who you are going to work with? Let get close to your family? Handle your largest asset? You are putting a lot of trust into the realtor that you hire. When you hire us, you don’t hire a person, you hire a team. It takes a team to be able to 100% support you and give what you need, when you need it– and that is what you deserve. The very best. People who are willing take the punches and shield you from disruption. A team that will guide and support you every step of way to ensure that you move with less hassle. There are always obstacles in the roads and we will be there as your shock absorbers so you don’t feel the bumps. Don’t just take our word for it –here are a few words from some folks that have worked with our team:
Steve Flanagan
Kelly, It has truly been a privilege to collaborate with you on the sale of my mother’s home. I chose to work with you after a decade of watching your expertise in selling homes in my Eichler neighborhood, where your thoughtful staging and understanding of both the architectural style and potential buyers consistently led to quick sales at record-setting prices. Even though my mom’s house wasn’t an Eichler, I knew you would stage and photograph it in a way that highlighted its strong features and attracted the right buyers. The photography, along with your targeted postcard mailers, resulted in multiple cash offers—well above asking—and, once again, you set a record.What I hadn’t anticipated was the level of time and effort you and your team invested in preparing the home. From selecting and purchasing new light fixtures, electrical switches, and plumbing fixtures to coordinating with your trusted contractors—painters, electricians, plumbers—you took care of every detail. You ensured the property was perfectly polished for photography and the open house, and your exceptional service continued even after the sale, addressing inspector-related improvements with the same care and attention.You and your team far exceeded my expectations, securing multiple cash offers and a sale price $75,000 over our asking price—when our asking price itself would have set a record! From the first open house to closing in just 11 days—who else could achieve that but Kelly Laule?Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for your passion, dedication, and for making this business transaction such a personal, rewarding, and pleasurable experience, as well as for helping to give my mom the resources to live out her life comfortably and without financial constraints!
The Leonhardt-Koehly Family
It is never an easy decision to sell a cherished childhood home and even harder to sell it because our father designed and built it. The architectural style was mid-century modern and reminiscent of an Eichler with exception that it was built on the top of a hill with stunning views of the O.C. We knew that our parent’s home was very unique and needed a special realty team to handle it. Over the past few years we had attended many open houses, and one realty company and team stood out from the rest, Kelly Laule and Jill Annen at Better Living So Cal. They specialized in selling mid-century modern, had a superb track record in getting top dollar for their listings and their open houses were like attending a rockin’ party!It was so easy working with Kelly and Jill-from start to finish they helped us with every aspect of getting the house ready to sell-every craftsman and repair company that they had recommended did a stellar job.Towards the end of this process, I was sorting through items of my parents and found a box filled with realtor flyers. To my amazement there was a decade worth of flyers from Better Living So Cal realty company! Finding it confirmed that we had made the perfect choice with Kelly and Jill. These beautiful ladies are the hardest working team in the business. They invested their whole heart and soul into selling our parent’s home and we will always truly be grateful to them.
Jim and Pam Gobright
Kelly has always been on our radar for 2 decades as local champion for Mid Century modern and specifically Eichlers. She was key in getting our neighborhood designated a local historic district for the city of Orange and is famous for her vision when it comes to upgrading and marketing Eichlers.
Being long time owners there we several things that needed to be done both before and after the sale but right away Kelly and Jill took charge. They had our home upgraded, staged, marketed and ready for sale in under two weeks. We heard our open house was one of the better neighborhood parties in recent months! Once we were in Escrow they moved swiftly and efficiently thru the process of aligning ours and our buyers requirements to insure we closed within 30 days.
It was not easy to move on from our family home of 26 years. Kelly and her team we’re our therapists, cheerleaders, executive directors, and ultimately our friends. Their integrity, empathy and passion were evident throughout our time working together. We highly recommend Betterlivingsocal for your real estate needs.
Laura and Joe Hogya
Working with Jill Annen and her partner Kelly Laule from Better SoCal Living was an absolute dream. As a mom of two little ones, with both my husband and I working full-time, the thought of navigating the real estate market was incredibly daunting. But Jill and Kelly made the entire process feel seamless and stress-free.
From our first meeting, their transparency and open communication were evident. They were honest and forthcoming, always keeping us informed in a timely manner and answering our endless questions. They possess an incredible depth of knowledge about the market and the intricacies of real estate, which meant we never had to question the process—we knew we were in expert hands.
What truly set Jill and Kelly apart was their ability to be fierce advocates, ready to go to bat for us at every turn, while maintaining a balanced and ethical approach. They understood the emotional rollercoaster of buying a home and were incredibly patient and supportive. They essentially held our hand the whole way, keeping calm and collected when we, understandably, couldn’t.
The juggle of work, kids, and house hunting was insane, but Jill and Kelly were so helpful and made us feel completely at ease. They took so much off our plate, allowing us to focus on our family and this transition.
If you’re looking for realtors who are knowledgeable, trustworthy, and genuinely care about their clients, I highly recommend Better SoCal Living. They made what could have been an incredibly stressful experience, a truly positive one.
Danielle McCue
I cannot say enough positive things about Kelly and the rest of the Better Living Socal Group. Not only is Kelly a total Boss Babe, but also an ally and advisor, and helped me navigate this very stressful and emotional process. She was always available to address my questions and concerns with patience (even during the holidays, hello!). Kelly’s knowledge of mid-century modern style homes is endless – the gal knows her stuff! If you want a passionate, enthusiastic realtor who really cares, I recommend Kelly and Better Living Socal Group in a heartbeat!
Jenna and Sabas Flores
As first time sellers, my husband and I put our trust and faith in Kelly and Jill and we were rewarded 100 fold! They had a plan for us that they formed and executed with amazing professionalism. Kelly and Jill were creative and very communicative. Their work was performed on time and yet flexible when we needed them to be. They negotiated for the best selling price and made our first time selling experience fantastically smooth and simple. They are the best!
Beth Mendoza
Our family are beyond pleased with Better Living SoCal
Reality. Jill and Kelly were so much help with our mother’s house after her passing. They always kept us informed on what we needed to do to get fast results. Their open house drew large crowds which resulted in a quick sale, and for more than the asking price. I would recommend these ladies with Better Living SoCal Reality to sell their house to family and friends.
Jared and Brandi Sippel
Charles Degele
Kelly and Jill helped turn this normally hectic and stressful process into a very manageable experience. They have an obvious love and passion for their work which is reflected by their confidence and dedication to their client.
It’s tempting to believe that all realtors are interchangeable, especially in a strong sellers market, however there are several factors that can make a difference to the final accepted offer as well as minimize the the overwhelming feelings that come with selling and moving from your home. Kelly and Jill took control and guided us effortlessly from start to finish, handling all the details along the way. Here are some reasons we feel we received extra value from selecting Better Living Socal; They gave recommendations on ways to prepare our home prior to listing for maximum impact to sellers. They had contractors available for minor needed repairs. They had a home inspection done before listing the house to allow us time to take care of any needed repairs as well as avoid any surprises that could interfere with a pending offer. They extended there marketing to areas where they have seen a trend of buyers moving into our market which introduced them to an area they may not be familiar with. They had a reasonably priced moving company which they coordinated perfectly with their furniture staging company as well as their cleaning crew. They guided us through through the process of selecting an offer and were able to work with the buyers to allow us a smooth transition out of the house to coordinate with the end of the school year. They provided us a timeline of events associated with the listing and sale which eliminated any last minute surprises. They were always easy to contact by email or text and were quick to reply.
Encountering unnecessary stressors in a major life events like selling a house, even if the outcome were to turn out satisfactory, should not be a compromise someone is willing to make. My advice, choose this team and let their experience lead the way.
Melody Hsu
Mike Barton
Kelly represented me recently when I sold my Eichler home. A home I had loved for 21 years. The sale process was an emotional rollercoaster for me because that home was more than a house to me…it was part of me. Kelly guided me through the sale from pre-sale to after-sale with compassion and understanding. Because of her keen business sense and strategies Kelly was able to get a price for the house that I never imagined possible! I was very happy with the outcome and it was a joy working with Kelly, as well. I highly recommend Kelly and Better Living SoCal if you want to sell your house at a high price and want a smooth sales process.
Josh and Nancy Mosquiera
After Sale:
Kelly and Jill are a fantastic team! They are dynamic, they are professional and they are super knowledgeable.
Every one of their contacts is gold. They set it all up and make the process smooth and simple. They never came at us with problems, only solutions.
And they’re just the most encouraging professionals we could have hoped to work with on the sale of our house. They made the process of selling simple and actually enjoyable!
We were able to sell at a great price and have super professional help every step of the way. Thank you Kelly and Jill!!
Casey Lesher
No one should consider any other agent when selling their MCM home….I’m a top agent and even I hired Kelly Laule to rep me on my purchase and sell!!
Tom and Sarah Yi
If you’re looking for a traditional realtor who will work hard to get you an acceptable competitive market rate for your home, don’t go with Kelly Laule. If you want the requisite corporate marketing materials and a typical open house, don’t go with Kelly Laule. If you want that courteous, dime-a-dozen, professional, 9-to-5 realtor, don’t go with Kelly Laule.
Now, if you want someone who is quirky, unconventional, feisty, and fear-averse, and who thinks out of the box, throws typical practices out the window, fights for you, makes the uncomfortable calls, pushes the limits, makes sure she is present at every single step from walkthrough to viewings, and summons magic to bring you the deal of a lifetime, then considering giving Kelly Laule a jingle, even if you love your home and don’t want to move. There may be a deal too good to pass up!
We met Kelly at a neighbor’s open house in 2015 shortly after we purchased our dream loft. She had staged such a unique open house experience from delicious food to live musicians and had the energy of a lifelong best friend that it was impossible to forget her, so we kept her in our pocket for the future and we’re thrilled we did.
There are many good realtors out there who get the job done, but there are very few who will go above and beyond to give you more and get you more than you could have imagined. She is worth every percent of the sale.
Late night calls, help with coordinating handyman services, beautiful and creative marketing materials, killer social media campaign, phenomenal photos and video, and a cleaning crew and junk removers after we moved out — Kelly handled all the details and made us feel taken care of so that we could just focus on our move to New York City. Of course it made it easier for her that we were the most amazing clients who did our own deep cleaning and didn’t require staging, but she has an incredible eye and knows what sells and how to get the most money for your home. The microscopic tweaks with her unicorn paintbrush helped transform our loft from a home into a work of art.
There were some tears and there was some heartbreak because selling a home is a roller coaster journey, but we’re grateful that we had Kelly with us the entire way. We gave her a dream number that seemed crazy, but she went above that and more, getting us $190K more than the most recent comparable sale. It was so hard to say goodbye to our beloved and beautiful loft but that number helped us feel more at peace with parting with it and we know the new couple will absolutely love it as well.
Give Kelly L-A-U-L-E a call today! Oh, and if leaving your windows open without screens will be a problem because of those annoying mosquitoes, she’ll even throw in a bug zapper!
Jenna and Sabas Flores
As first time sellers, my husband and I put our trust and faith in Kelly and Jill and we were rewarded 100 fold! They had a plan for us that they formed and executed with amazing professionalism. Kelly and Jill were creative and very communicative. Their work was performed on time and yet flexible when we needed them to be. They negotiated for the best selling price and made our first time selling experience fantastically smooth and simple. They are the best!
Martin Roach
Kelly, we never would have been able to do this again without you! This is the 3rd house that you have sold for us and you always make everything so easy for us. We never could have packed just our clothes and moved to Texas for our new job in 3 days without you. You made our house look stunning, got us a great price for our house fast, and then packed up our entire life and shipped it to Texas and unpacked….all without us having to coordinate anything. This was so stressful having to move so quickly, buy a home where we were going, starting a new career, the loss of our 13 years old dog when we got here… and the list goes on. You literally went so far above and beyond, we can’t thank you enough. Thank you for setting us up with our realtor in Texas, Elliott was also amazing…You are TRULY so well connected with the highest class realtors. We can’t wait to have you out here.
Steven and Ashley Collins
How do we love Kelly and her team at Better Living SoCal… let us count the ways! Right off the bat we felt very fortunate to have Kelly represent the sale of our home. After choosing to sell, the potential for stress was big – but Kelly and her team quickly & completely took it out of the equation! To say that we felt we were in good hands is an understatement. Kelly’s tenacity and level of engagement made us feel completely confident that the job would get done, and done right. The amount of knowledge and the connections Kelly provided (shout out to Team Sosi!) were invaluable. On a personal level, Kelly and her team are so easy to work with! The upbeat attitude, positive energy and witty banter has added the element of fun to the whole process! Not to mention top notch and consistent communication! Without a single doubt, we give Kelly and Better Living SoCal a solid 5 stars ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Feeling extremely blessed to have had the pleasure of working with everyone – we love you guys!
Forever Grateful
Nate and Ryan
We had to sell our house very quickly due to a job transfer. Kelly and her team did a great job with marketing and videos. With her social media reach, we had multiple offers before our listing even went live, including a few over-asking offers sight unseen. Kelly suggested we hold off reviewing any offers for a week so people had the opportunity to view the house. With 8 offers in the week, Kelly did a great job negotiating the counters. Our house sold quickly and at record price for our neighborhood. We have referred her and her team our co-workers and friends that have all had the same experience with Better Living Socal too!
Jim and Mary Righter
We made the right choice in choosing Kelly and Jill at BetterLivingSocal.com. As they made us feel very confident that our home would sell for the price we wanted compared to other brokers in a reasonable time. The communication and presence have been awesome. We feel anyone who chooses Kelly and Jill will not be disappointed. After 38 years in the same home they have limited our major stress factor. You won’t be disappointed.
Steve and Barbara Wise
Dear Kelly,
Thank you for being our selling agent. When we decided to list our home of 33 years to move to Colorado to be close to our daughter, you were the person we knew we wanted to list our house with. We knew you from our neighborhood, and knew that you were an expert in Eichler homes. We had toured many neighborhood homes that you had sold. What we didn’t know, was that you would treat us not just like friends, but like family. From the very beginning of the process, you put no pressure on us to list with you, or to list our home at all. When we contacted you, we were just contemplating listing our home. We had not even decided for sure. You explained how you could help, and how you would be there through the process. You came to our home and we talked about our ideas, you listened and made us feel comfortable that, if we did decide to sell, you would be there beside us throughout the process. You explained the things that a real estate agent should do for a client and things to make sure we asked for, even if we didn’t list with you. We are so very glad that we did chose you as our agent!
All of the professionals you work with, the movers, the landscapers, the lender, your colleague, Jill, and the escrow company, have been top notch.
When our offer on the Colorado house was accepted, we couldn’t wait to call and tell you, and you were as excited as we were!
Thank you for being such a trusted partner in this stressful and complex process. Thank you for helping keep us grounded and talking us through things when it felt like the wheels were falling off the wagon. Thank you for taking such great care of us. We would highly recommend you to anyone looking to sell or buy a home.
Your clients and friends, Steve and Barbara Wise
P.S. We hope you will take us up on our invitation to come visit us in Colorado!
Colby and Ali Morita
Morita testimonial: Kelly and her team are amazing! We have bought and sold three houses with Kelly and every single experience has been great. Selling and buying houses can be stressful and daunting, but Kelly & her team are in constant communication with us easing our worries. For our last sale Kelly & Jill had our best interest at heart, were patient and fought for us to get the best deal which was way above the asking price (and a neighborhood record at that)! They are reliable, punctual, kind, professional and fun…you feel like you’re working with friends. They made our transition to our new house less stressful by hiring movers who not only were quick and efficient, but also put together intricate bunk beds for our daughters. When you work with Kelly & her team they are all about the details and I feel like that makes all the difference. We really appreciate all that they have done for us and our family.
Connie and Carl Selin
After living in our family home for over fifty five years and reaching into our eighties, we decided to downsize. It seemed a daunting task of packing up a lifetime of memories.
A friend suggested I call Kelly Laule of Better Living Socal with a very positive recommendation.
Kelly and her team of professionals immediately put us at ease by giving us options for every facet of the move. After an assessment of our whole property, she had a plan to best prepare our house for the market and help us pack and move very efficiently.
All this was accomplished during the outbreak of the COVID virus. This presented her with unknown obstacles scheduling everything.Due to her skills and diligence, our home sold over our asking price in just a few days time.
We now consider her a good friend.
Tom L.
I had already moved back to the east coast when I decided to put my home on the market and Kelly did an amazing job from the start of the sales. Her communication was great and she was always available when I called. I would highly recommend her as a broker, not just because she got a record price for my unit, but also because she made the experience painless and enjoyable!