Meet some of my clients
>Happy folks<
“Tina is the perfect expression of client-centricity, independence and professionalism.”
Paul Y Liu, London Business School SLOAN student
Testimonials
After selling my apartment in the leafy suburbs of Crouch End, I was in a hurry to find a REAL open plan loft apartment within a 10 minute walk of my offices in Shoreditch. No easy feat. However, Tina came up with a not-even-on-the-market-yet stunning, open plan loft apartment for one of the most desirable roads in the whole area. She then negotiated the price and dealt with various parties involved to bring my transaction to a close swiftly and easily. I saved a considerable su of money both in time and hassle as well as directly off the asking price. Tina really understands the price/quality correlation, and has a fantastic eye for design and space. I always recommend Tina should anyone need assistance with finding a home in London.
Jordan Gross“When my own flat search took a year without any results, I was delighted to be introduced to Tina’s services. It was suddenly so easy, so painless and saved me so much time. Thank you for finding me my perfect home. I was impressed with the speed in which Tina managed to find and secure this property. I would have never seen it as it had not yet come on the market. Her relationship with the agents and great negotiation skills are truly impressive. As a first time buyer I was so relieved to have Tina pull in her solicitor and mortgage advisor. Saving me money off the purchase price was definitely an asset, yet going through a smooth process was even more valuable to me.”
Austin AdamsWe were living in North London and wanted to move right into the centre of town. Our budget was tight but Tina took on the challenge. Finding a home with Tina was quick, fun and effortless. We only needed to see one property and it’s everything we wanted and more. Five years later, we’re still very happy in our home.
Geoff Cummins“We can recommend Tina’s services to anyone looking to rent a flat in London. We couldn’t be more pleased with our new home.”
Mr and Mrs Craigshaw“When we moved to London from Paris we found a mediocre flat through an estate agent. After a glowing recommendation we engaged Tina’s services and truly received a fantastic service in our next flat search in London. We never believed we could move further into the centre and find something so unique and bijoux like for such great value. The location and management of the flat was first class. It has been our dream flat. Had it not been for an acting job offer in New York, we would have wanted to stay in it for as long as possible. Thank you for such a positive experience.”
Chris Montage“Finding a suitable accommodation in London, and dealing with all the formalities has been my biggest worry when I moved to London. Tina not only helped find a flat that suits my requirements and budget, but also a good-value for money. Her dedicated efforts, knowledge of property market and prompt response made it happen smoothly.
I would recommend Tina’s services to anyone searching for a flat in London.”
Aadil AL-Saadi“Tina is very hard working, considerable and kind person. Thanks to her, we were able to move in to a beautiful flat quickly after arriving in London. We ended up saving money and time considerably, and it was a really good start of my new life in London.”
Makiko Tada“My husband and I arrived in London from Australia on a Thursday. The next day Tina picked us up and took us to see the flats she had shortlisted and provided lots of local knowledge about the areas. By the end of that day we had put down a deposit for the flat we liked and Tina also negotiated the rent down by 30 pounds per week. We moved into our flat the following Saturday with Tina’s help and she also set up all our utilities accounts. Tina is so warm, lovely, and helpful. She made settling into London a smoother, easier, and quicker process. We had heard lots of horror stories about trying to find a flat in London and were really glad that we used Tina’s services.
Thank you for everything!”
Jenny Yang, Sunly Hout“Tina is very good in understanding your accommodation needs. Before arriving, she may request you to do some paperwork that you may think unnecessary, but she knows very well her job. In the end, doing this paperwork beforehand will really make the whole process much faster. The system that she has designed really works. I visited several flats in one day, all of them had different characteristics, but at the same time, they were also fitting to my different needs, so they were real choices.
I arrived in London four days before Christmas. A very difficult time to start the search. Naturally, there was a high risk of not being able to finish all the paperwork due to the holiday season. Tina took care of all the things that one needs to do, including the negotiation part and reading the contract. She is on your side, pushing for a better deal, after choosing your accommodation. Incredibly enough, three days after I arrived to London, I got an apartment, with all the paperwork done.
Tina does not only find you a flat according to your requirements, but also helps you settle in a very smooth way. She provides you with any other information that you may need and is always looking to help you in the best possible way. When I was still at home, she requested me to stop searching on my own, so she really does it hassle-free. Tina helps you with transportation, to find temporary accommodation, and tells you about the things that one needs to take care of when renting a flat.
I do recommend her services to future LBS incoming students.”
Paul Chang“When our friends told us to contact Tina we didn’t think our rent budget was big enough for Tina to get involved. After few weeks of looking we went back to Berlin frustrated and want to give up our dream of living in London for a year.
Our friend made us to give Tina a call. She was so nice and understanding. She asked us to find another person and share a bigger flat. We did and now live in a nice area and a bright flat.
Thank you Tina.”
Martina and Stefan“While I lived in London before, I had some experience of flat finding. But this time, for family reasons I had to remain in Japan until right before the programme commencement. Also, I was not particularly familiar with areas around LBS. Tina was a great help – after one Skype chat and a couple of e-mail exchanges, I visited London, saw 7-8 flats on her recommendation list, and decided my flat, all of which was done just in one day! Working with my agent like Tina who knows London property market and negotiates hard with estate agents was really encouraging.”
Ichiro Ouchi“I used Tina’s home-finding service for my move from the US to London to attend the LBS 2016 Sloan Fellowship programme. I had a fantastic experience with Tina and would highly recommend her. Most importantly for me, Tina transformed a stressful, daunting task — moving to another country with zero knowledge of the London market or leasing process, at the same time I was busy preparing to leave my job and start at LBS — into an easy, stress-free, and very satisfying experience. Tina takes time to get to know her clients before proposing potential rentals, making sure to understand their preferences and what matters most to them, and her personal touch comes through in the results she gets. She is a quick study, and I was impressed by how successful she was at finding candidate properties that reflected my preferences. The process is very efficient; Tina does extensive research and arranges your tour ahead of time. You need merely to show up, spend a very efficient day touring several properties, and choose one by the end of the day. In my case, we toured several properties, identified a first choice, and had an offer on accepted by late afternoon. Tina helped to handle the paperwork and details and made the process run smoothly. It was clear that the agents we were dealing with on all the properties knew and respected Tina. When I arrived in London to move into my new home, Tina was there to make sure all went well. Also very importantly, Tina’s service does not end with the signing of the lease; she is very generous toward her clients and remains available as a resource throughout your stay in London. In short, using Tina’s service turned a housing search I was very apprehensive about into an easy, engaging and enjoyable experience, found the perfect match for me, and was an absolute bargain.”
Richard Anderson“When Luigi got a job with a fashion house in London we were happy but dreaded all the relocation problems. A friend recommended Tina and we got on from the first ‘Ciao’. (It helps that she speaks fluent Italian). Tina lined up some great apartments but unfortunately Luigi got head hunted by a bigger fashion house here in Milan and we had to call off the search. If we ever make it to London, Tina is the first person we will call. Grazie mille cara. Bacio.”
Sasha and Luigi“In July 2016 I applied for the Sloan Masters in Leadership and Strategy program at London Business School and at the end of August I obtained confirmation of my acceptance of the program. To do so, in about a hundred days I would have to be in London for the Early Enrollment Event and start classes on January 9, 2017.Unfortunately during this period I had many counter-times such as: the process of my dual citizenship (Portuguese), Which forced me to apply for an overtime student visa and a bank strike between September 6 and October 6, which hurt me, among others, in the schedule of payments of the program.
For this reason I only traveled to London on December 12, without having considered anything about the property I would rent to spend the whole year of 2017. Fortunately, on December 14th I read an email from London Business School recommending the services of Tina Bernstein, a real estate expert in London who works on the tenant’s side.
Tina was a fantastic professional! We met on the 15th for a chat and on the 19th she took me to see the options according to the briefing I had given her. We then saw five apartments and the same day I opted for one of them. Tina acted with high effectiveness and efficiency, so I paid the deposit and signed the contract on the 20th and made the move to the flat on the 21st. That is, between meeting her and moving in, it only took one week! This for me was fantastic! After all, time is money. The cost-benefit of Tina’s service gets paid very fast !! I highly recommend her, especially because Sloan Fellows have very little time and many things to do and the London real estate market is quite complex. .”
Rone Hildebrandt de Melo“Living in Switzerland for the past few years, my husband was being relocated to Hong Kong. Due to personal problems in the family we needed to be in London for a year or so. It was left to me to look for a flat to rent. Not knowing the market we got a recommendation from a friend (thank you Tanya) and contacted Tina. She was very thoughtful and understanding but mostly impressed us with her speed and efficiency of everything. Originally wanting to live in Notting Hill, West London, she managed to find us a brilliant property nearby but for far less rent than we were willing to pay. Most of all I appreciated her help in what is a very sensitive time for us. Thank you Tina”
Mr & Mrs Abrahim“Tina is my personal agent who helped me find my apartment in London. I must express my great thanks to Tina’s professional and warm-heart. Without Tina, I may not find my apartment in London only in one day.
Tina explain her role to me very clearly first time she contacted me. I know Tina from the reference from my mates of London Business School. There is not this kind of personal agent service in China. I am a little sceptical about the ability of Tina at beginning. Because it is already December. I only stay in London for 2 days to find my apartment in December. Tina introduced what she do and what she is good at. Then she asked me some very specific questions to make sure she truly understand what kind of apartment I want. Also, when I mentioned I want an apartment in Baker Street, she said she would find some apartment in Baker Street for me to choose.
But she told me when I know more about London, I will know there is also a lot of areas that are better than Baker Street to live. So I accepted her advice and agreed to see some other apartments.
Tina is very professional, keeping promise, considerable and thoughtful. In the middle of December, we meet each other for the first time. She prepared 6-7 apartments for me choose. Some are on Baker Street, some not; some are in my price budget, some are under it; some are exactly the same with my specific requirements, some are a little different, but she thinks it will be better for me. I almost accepted all her advice. Especially, when she bring me to an apartment with duplicate floor which I requested. The design is exactly what I want. The ceiling is very high, with wood structure. She clearly remembered that I mentioned my daughter would like this kind of castle apartment. So decided to choose this apartment at the first glance of it. But Tina did not just end the process. She also suggested me to see all the apartment she prepared for me. This suggestion make me feel she is not just an agent, she is a friend who is thinking all the way for you.
Tina is very considerable about my urgent time arrangement. I only have one day to look at the apartment. Then she arranged it within one day, especially, she made it happen on a weekend. I know it is very difficult to handle so much landlords or agents on weekends.
When I moved into the new apartment, Tina accompanied me all around. I came from China by myself. Her being there with me made me feel not lonely. She brought me to the nearest supermarket, show me how to checkout automatically. After moving into the apartment, I got some problem on opening a bank account, having a local phone number etc. No matter what I ask her, she always explain to me and help me with patience. I know she does not have to do that. But she does.
So I highly recommend you to find help from Tina, if you are not familiar with London, with finding an apartment. Especially you have specific requirements on the apartment you want to find, Tina is the best choice I think.”
Charisma Liu“Tina is a real gift and to have her on my side, made my search and my life so easy, and still does.
She took the time to understand my needs and wishes and also has an extremely good sense for people and styles. I knew from the beginning that I could rely on her and would be successful with my search. That I don`t need to worry about my move at all.
We had scheduled one day to see various flats and I have to say that just every flat she showed me was great (6 different ones). So I had the absolute luxury to chose an apartment according to my gut feeling. For a market like London, this is special.
Tina knows the market by heart and the people acting in it. She finds apartments that are special.
She negotiated and discussed everything with the landlord and helped me in every matter to set up in London. And she is still there for me, when I have an issue with the apartment or some other stuff related to it.
I am highly grateful that I worked with her and that I could benefit from her expertise.
If I would look for another apartment in London, I will definitively work with her again. I can only recommend Tina highly. She will make your life easier and will find you special, unique places.”
“Finding a flat was a bit of a challenge for me, given my absence of knowledge of the London estate market and the very little amount of time I could dedicate to that activity. Following a recommendation from the LBS staff, I decided to give a mandate to Tina to search for me. This decision revealed to be a great one. In total, I did not spend more than one day to get a fantastic flat in a nice area close to LBS.
After the viewing – Tina had pre-selected and shortlisted 6 flats – Tina put a lot of efforts to take care of everything to ensure I would get the one flat I had chosen. This included providing my file to the agent, pushing my application forward as the flat rental was under fierce competition, reducing the number of documents and evidences to be produced, negotiating the price and the terms of the agreement with the estate agent and with the landlord, decreasing administration and other fees, reviewing the contract and have it updated (several times), providing all the necessary support and explanations at each step of the process, taking care of the check-in inventory and relieving me from other administrative tasks. I flew into London a few days before the programme started and had the pleasure to meet Tina again to get my keys. All the rest was sorted.
In short, Tina found an exceptional flat at a good price, and she also spared me the hassle of apartment hunting and administrative matter for a very reasonable fee. During that time, I could fully concentrate on finishing my work mandate in the best conditions and on preparing other aspects of my arrival for the Sloan Programme.
Based on this experience, I can only highly recommend Tina’s highly professional services. Not only Tina will save you time, effort and even money, she will get an exceptional place ticking all the boxes. And furthermore, she is also a wonderful person to know and to talk to.”
Kim Nguyen Minh Hoang“I moved to London last year for my job, which didn’t leave much time to look for a flat. I had never lived in London before, so decided to use Tina’s services. After an initial chat, she understood which area would suit me best and what kind of flat I was looking for. A couple of days later, she took me to view 5-6 flats and at the end of the day I had found the perfect flat for me! Tina took over all negotiations. All I had to do is move in! Thrown in was a little introductory tour of the area, with some hot tips for french foodies like me. I immediately felt at home! It was a great relief to have Tina take care of my flat search. It saved me a lot of time and stress. I was incredibly happy in the flat and the area I lived in! Great, professional service, I would highly recommend!!”
Claire Dysli“Tina was an absolute delight to work with. A friend and I moved to London permanently and were looking for accommodation at/around London Business School. After reaching out to Tina, we had a preliminary discussion where she assessed our living needs both efficiently and comprehensively. Upon our arrival into London, we met with Tina, who showed us a shortlisted selection of apartments which she had personally visited in the prior weeks on our behalf. Each of the apartments met (most of) our criteria, and Tina (in her initiative) had even looked for places which fell slightly outside our specifications. This proved fortuitous, as the place we ended up renting (a perfect two bedroom in St John’s Wood for a very reasonable price) has been just perfect!
Tina was honest, engaging and lovely person. Eager to help, genuine and always accessible, I would recommend Colourliving to anyone moving to London. Her fees were very reasonable and well worth it.”
Jonathan Wong“Tina took the time to understand what I was looking for, so when I arrived in London, she had options ready for me to view on day one. I selected one and moved in a week later. She helped me through the complicated application process and signing the contract with the rental agents. Additionally, she helped me set up all the utilities and gave great advice on internet, cell phones…she even found me a man with a van to move some furniture I had purchased. Moving can be stressful, but Tina takes all the anxiety out of the process. The investment was well worth it, especially when I hear about the nightmares my classmates went through when renting apartments!”
Heather McDonald“Moving with family (wife and three children under 12) to London is very challenging; you have to deal with high uncertainty. In this process, to have Tina’s support makes everything simpler. She has a great talent to understand your requirements and preferences. Then she deals to find enough options to show you for accommodation and gives you the confidence to decide. Tina moves in a good and fast way through the whole process (that is not simple, because of all the stakeholders) to achieve the right accommodation within the requested move-in time. But this is only one aspect of her role. During all the process she gives all the support that you need. Among other things, Tina offers to find you suitable accommodation for the first days, then she helps you with buying the basics that you will need to settle into the final home. In our case, she also arranged the transfer car from the airport and provided her own car to move all the bags from the first to the final location. She even lend us a mobile phone so that we were contactable during the process of negotiation with the agent. I mentioned these things because it is proof of how available Tina is to help you during all of the process, far beyond what one expects.
Indeed, Tina gives a complete service that exceeds expectations. Furthermore, she establishes a warm relationship with all the family helping to create a suitable environment for the process.
To summarize, to work with Tina is, from my point of view, the best decision that you can take.”
Jorge Vita HaeusslerThank you Tina for all your hard work and for all the laughs. If we or anyone we know ever move to London, your number will be on speed dial.”
Charles Fenton“Moving is stressful activity. Finding a new place to live makes it doubly so. Add to it constraints of budget, location and a couple of picky and spoilt people and you have yourself an explosive mix guaranteed to reduce your lifespan by a few years. BUT surprisingly that was not how it turned out because into this situation stepped in Tina.
One Skype call and not only here was someone who was fully empathetic to our concerns but who really understood what we wanted. On top of it some simple insightful suggestions from her and we have saved ourselves month’s worth of rent by adapting our plan. It sounded too good to be true and needless to say we arrived in London circumspect. I was very impressed. Everything Tina showed us was based on and complimented what we had discussed about our needs, wants, wishes and lifestyle. She had understood not just our instructions but she had understood us and our lifestyle. She had input into why one place she showed was better than the other or how it fit us differently than the other. And it was not about ticking boxes on a checklist, it was about who we were that she had understood and was trying to compliment (pretty successfully).
The experience did not just end with the search. She went above and beyond in assisting us with the move and suggestions including physically doing the running on our behalf. Anyone looking to rent or buy, forget about running after real estate agents and talk to Tina. A home finder (and I also believe a home maker) she is.”
Anupam Agnihotri,“Imagine that you are going to school in a new country and you give not a thought to your accommodation until after you arrive. Tina provided exceptional service in finding the perfect flat in London for me and my dog. The day after I landed, Tina drove us around to look at several pre-screened flats; I selected one in an area that I had previously ruled out as being too expensive. However, Tina’s negotiating power is formidable. In two days, I had signed a lease, and moved in to my new place exactly 7 days after I landed, which saved me a huge amount of money on short-term accommodation. Tina not only is familiar with all the contract details; she has strong negotiating power with the agents. She went the extra mile to help with setting up utilities, and finding a driver to help us move in to our new home. I highly recommend Tina to anyone looking to find accommodation in London.”
Jeanmarie Donovan“Working with Tina was great both for time and for sanity. Moving with children in the middle of the Winter and with little time to start is a challenge. Tina made it easy and painless (almost).
We started with a call from our home country to do a briefing, this call in itself is a great start because she was able to understand our family’s needs. She then helped set up transportation from the airport, find us a temporary home so we would not all stay in a small hotel room while we searched and picked us up to see the flats. All the flats we saw met the specifications from the brief and I was very pleasantly surprised by the quality of the properties you could get. Much higher than those I had seen on the internet.
With Tina’s help we were moving into our new place on Saturday, less than one week later and she handled all the paperwork and set up with the realtors-owner.
I would highly recommend hiring Tina for your move, it allows you to focus on the more important aspects of your move. Even today, almost a month into the program I have classmates that still have not found suitable accommodation and it becomes a distraction.”
Alejandra Corona“My partner and I used Tina’s services when we bought our first house last November. We found the property ourselves but she assisted us throughout the process, right up until completion. She kept in touch with the estate agent, our mortgage broker, and the seller. We encountered some difficult situations in the process, due to one of parties not being entirely open about some issues. Being new to the process of buying a house, Tina patiently made us aware of the important issues, the options we had and she helped us with finding a truly helpful and efficient solicitor. She also handled all negotiations for us, which was invaluable, especially given that the seller was a professional landlord. Despite a rocky start, we completed on the house purchase in under six weeks and could not be happier with how things turned out. We would highly recommend her services for anyone looking to buy in the complex and confusing London property market.”
Casper Hoedemaekers“I’ve never been to London and heard many bad stories how foreign students get exploited when looking for flats. My parents arranged for Tina to help me with accommodation. I wanted a studio somewhere safe and though my budget was restrictive, Tina managed to find me a small but well located studio near the university. Tina also helped me with lots of advice and good tips what to do and not to do in London.”
Ling Kuang“Thank you for looking after our daughter and finding her a beautiful flat in central London. You came highly recommended and we couldn’t be happier. She loves her studio, feels safe in the area and has already made some friends nearby. Money well spend in every way.”
Stephen Mullen“Relocating to a foreign country can be a daunting experience especially for someone who is not familiar with how the rental market works and the complexities of dealing with agents which may not necessarily have their interests fully aligned with yours. Moreover London’s property market moves very fast, so it can be a challenging undertaking for a foreigner. But engaging Tina as my home finder was the best decision for me. It was the most restful, fruitful and enjoyable experience. She takes a personal interest to understand what I really wanted. I could share freely with her about my lifestyle, my likes/dislikes. I could tell from all the units that she had shortlisted for me that she truly understood my needs and desires.
What I truly appreciate about Tina is that she is for you and seeks the best out for you. She makes sure that you are well settled into your living here in London and is always at hand to share tips (on utilities, water, broadband) with you when you ask her because it gives her great joy and delight to see her customers having a place they can call home. It is an absolute blessing to have Tina help me out with my accommodation.”
Esther Wenmin,“Tina is the perfect expression of client-centricity, independence and professionalism.
To me, her value far exceeds her professional fees. She looked into every bit of my family’s needs – even those unanticipated. She freed me from researching into local housing legislations and engaging in protracted rental negotiations.
As such, I managed to focus on the demands of my LBS Sloan preparations. Her work is simply amazing. I reserve my highest recommendation for her! Drop me a line if you need a reference.”
Paul Y Liu“Tina was highly recommended by Sloan alumni and after our first contact I was assured she would be a great resource for us, a family with time constraints to come to London and with little knowledge of the local real estate market dynamics.
The service provided by Tina was spectacular and exceeded our expectations. Caring and available, Tina selected us fantastic properties, in line with our desire and budget. Extremely professional, Tina took care of all the details of the flat we chose; from price negotiating, documentation, contractual review, our moving in coordination and post-moving related issues.
In addition, she is an incredible person, accessible and transparent, easy to relate to and always accessible via phone or messages.
Thus, I recommend Tina’s services to those who seek speed, peace, and want to save time and money.
If you have any doubt about Tina’s work, feel free to contact me.”
“My company has send me to London for one or two years and I was worried how to find nice and not overpriced accommodation. Many people warned me about London prices and real estate agents. I had the choice of using a relocation agent, but in the end I opted for a different pay package so it was left to me to finance my own place.
I was so happy to be recommended to Tina’s services. She’s nothing like a relocation agent (which I’ve used before). She put my fears to rest and looked after me at every stage of the process. I couldn’t believe how easy she makes it and how quickly I was able to concentrate on my new role in a new city and country. The best part is that I have access to Tina for the duration of my tenancy agreement which puts my mind to rest as I’ve already encountered problems with my broadband provider. I would highly recommend anyone relocating to London to get in touch with Tina.
Thank you for all your help.”
Krisztina Horvac“Tina worked miracles in an incredibly short space of time to find a much better home for me than I thought was possible in a great area in London. Even second and third choice alternatives she found were great options. Beyond that, she sorted absolutely everything end-to-end, from contracts to check-in, so that I only had to turn up on moving day.
For reducing the headache of finding a home in London, I can’t recommend Tina enough.”
James Fairweather“Tina came highly recommended. Although I studied English and Business studies in Madrid and came for an internship to London, the idea of finding a good flat seemed impossible to me. I shared with two friends before but now, moving full time to London made me want my own apartment.
My budget was not high so I was extra happy when Tina found me my little studio. It’s perfect. Muchas gracias.”
Sofia Albel“I was dreading finding a home for my daughter in London. All I was told is that it’s a somewhat dodgy industry. I was recommended to Tina and couldn’t have been happier! She is fierce, competent, proactive and honest. It was easy and painless. We only had to be in London for a few days and went on holidays knowing that Claire would come back to a great little studio.”
Jeff Dorrey,
“Tina made a huge challenge (moving with my wife and two teenagers) much easier. The communication with her was excellent. She perfectly understood our needs.
We were checking some real state websites before talking to her, so our expectations were not too high considering our budget. However, Tina found us a wonderful garden flat in Hampstead with 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. It`s just perfect for our family.
Since my wife was very anxious about finding a house, we came to London in November to check the flats that Tina picked for us. In one day we saw all of them and made our choice. Therefore when we moved in December, Tina organized everything, including the transportation from the airport, for us to go directly to the flat, which was great.
Tina is a very honest, nice and efficient person. I do recommend her services to anyone moving to London.”
Adriano Romano“As you can probably imagine, moving abroad to an entirely new country where you know no one can be a very stressful situation. Fortunately, I was introduced to Tina by the staff at LBS and I couldn’t be happier.
She made the entire process a piece of cake. We spoke a couple of weeks before my arrival on what type of unit I was looking for. Once I arrived, Tina took me to several locations and by the end of the day I had the perfect place to call home!
Additionally, Tina helped setup the utilities, council tax and other things to get me settled in from day 1. I would definitely recommend Tina to anyone looking for a place in London!”
Ismail Sayeeduddin