Best Realtors in Hercules, CA (2026 Guide)
By Matthew Martinez
Hercules is a city of about 26,000 people on San Pablo Bay in west Contra Costa County, along Interstate 80 between Pinole and Rodeo. Much of its housing was built in planned neighborhoods with homeowners associations, so a Hercules agent should be able to explain HOA documents, condo and townhome costs and hazard disclosures as well as price.
This guide is published by Diamond Real Estate Group, one of the brokerages listed. Our broker is listed first; other agents are in alphabetical order. The order is not a ranking, and inclusion is not an endorsement.
How we chose the agents in this guide
Each agent below met three checks in October 2026:
- A current California license. We opened each agent’s record on the California Department of Real Estate (DRE) public lookup and confirmed the name, license type (salesperson or broker) and "Licensed" status. We left out anyone whose record showed no responsible broker, a suspension or an expired license, or whose responsible broker did not match the brokerage on their profile.
- A named brokerage. Each agent’s DRE record shows the responsible broker they work under, and it matches the brokerage on their profile.
- A public profile that names Hercules. We opened each agent’s brokerage profile and confirmed it names Hercules or a Hercules office.
We did not rank agents, and we did not consider sales volume, reviews or awards. Licenses and affiliations change, so verify the license yourself before you sign anything, and interview more than one agent.
Hercules housing in numbers
| Census measure (ACS 2024 5-year) | Hercules |
|---|---|
| Population | 26,302 |
| Median value of owner-occupied homes | $769,400 |
| Median household income | $129,397 |
| Persons per household | 2.8 |
| Mean travel time to work | 37.6 minutes |
Source: Census Reporter profile of Hercules, CA, using U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates.
The Census Bureau’s five-year median owner-occupied value for Hercules was about $770,000, and the mean commute was over 37 minutes, reflecting trips along I-80 and to San Francisco and Oakland. These are survey estimates collected over five years, not current sale prices. To price a specific home, an agent should pull recent sales of similar homes in the same neighborhood or HOA.
Hercules settings: planned neighborhoods, condos and the waterfront
Hercules neighborhoods range from hillside single-family tracts to townhomes and condos, plus newer homes near the waterfront. Many come with an HOA, and some with additional assessments. Our guides to Hercules housing settings, condo and townhome ownership costs and older-home records and inspections cover those questions. Nearby Pinole has its own guide. For more detail, see our Hercules real estate guide.
Costs and rules specific to a Hercules purchase
- Transfer tax. The Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder charges the county documentary transfer tax at $0.55 per $500 of value. The Recorder’s page lists separate city taxes only for El Cerrito and Richmond, not Hercules. On a $770,000 sale, the county tax is about $847. Who pays is negotiable; confirm the figure on your escrow estimate.
- HOA documents and assessments. Review the HOA’s budget, reserve study, rules and any special assessments during escrow, and check the property tax bill for any special district charges. Our Hercules local homeownership budget guide explains what to request.
- Fire hazard zones and AB 38. Hillside parts of west county may carry State Fire Marshal Fire Hazard Severity Zone designations. In High and Very High zones, sellers may need to provide AB 38 defensible space documentation.
- Other hazards. The natural hazard disclosure report shows whether an address is in a mapped fault, landslide or flood zone, which matters near the shoreline and on slopes.
Hercules agents with verified licenses
Matthew Martinez, Diamond Real Estate Group (publisher of this guide)
Matthew Martinez is the Founder, CEO and Managing Broker of Diamond Real Estate Group. He is based in Sonoma County; contact him to discuss a purchase or sale in Hercules. Contact Matthew · Broker #01869679 · Diamond Group Estates Inc DBA Diamond Real Estate Group, DRE #02163490
| Agent | Brokerage | License | Areas named on profile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lisa Chilton | Coldwell Banker Realty, Berkeley office | Salesperson #02155460 | Pinole, San Pablo, El Sobrante, Richmond, Rodeo, Hercules, Crockett and other Bay Area cities |
| Mohan Karki | RE/MAX Regency, Hercules office | Salesperson #02118988 | Hercules, Berkeley, El Sobrante, Richmond, El Cerrito |
| Simii Kaurr | RE/MAX Regency, Hercules office | Salesperson #02080810 | Hercules |
| Fredis Lara | RE/MAX Regency, Hercules office | Salesperson #02163972 | Hercules |
| Karlene Lopez-Piedra | Coldwell Banker Realty, Berkeley office | Salesperson #01980076 | Richmond, San Pablo, El Cerrito, El Sobrante, Pinole, Hercules and other cities |
| Viktor Manrique | RE/MAX Regency, Hercules office | Salesperson #01224855 | Hercules office; San Francisco Bay Area |
| Aminta Maynard | RE/MAX Regency, Hercules office | Salesperson #01486950 | Hercules |
| Jaime Tijero | RE/MAX Regency, Hercules office | Salesperson #02045444 DRE record name: Hernandez-Tijero, Jaime. | Hercules, Berkeley, Alamo, Fremont, San Jose |
RE/MAX Regency agents work from the office at 1375 Sycamore Ave, Suite 150F, in Hercules and are licensed under VMRW (DRE #01937237), the responsible broker shown on each record. Coldwell Banker Realty agents are licensed under NRT West, Inc. (DRE #01908304); they work from the Berkeley office and name Hercules as an area served. Some DRE records list a legal name that differs from the name the agent uses professionally (Talwinder Kaur, Victor Manuel Manrique, Aminta Enid Maynard and Jaime Hernandez-Tijero); in each case the license number shown on the profile matches the record we linked.
How to vet a Hercules agent
- Ask how they review HOA documents. Ask how they check budgets, reserves, rules and pending assessments before you remove contingencies.
- Ask about property tax bill extras. Ask them to pull the current tax bill so you can see any special assessments in addition to the base tax.
- Ask for comparables from the same neighborhood. A hillside single-family home, a townhome and a newer waterfront home should not be priced from the same sales.
- Ask about commute and transit plans. Ask how they compare locations by I-80 access and current transit options.
- Ask about hazard disclosures. For homes near the shoreline or on slopes, ask what the natural hazard report shows and when to get insurance quotes.
- Verify the license yourself. Look up the agent on the DRE site and confirm the responsible broker matches the brokerage they name.
Hercules questions we hear
Does Hercules have its own transfer tax?
The Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder’s transfer tax page lists city taxes only for El Cerrito and Richmond, so a Hercules sale typically shows the county tax of $0.55 per $500. Confirm the figure on your escrow estimate.
Do most Hercules homes have an HOA?
Many do, because much of the city was built as planned neighborhoods, but not all. Ask for the HOA documents or confirmation that none applies before you finalize an offer.
How do I check a Hercules agent’s license?
Search the name or license number on the DRE public lookup. The record shows license type, status and responsible broker. Every agent in our table links to the record we checked.
Should I interview more than one Hercules agent?
Yes. Interview at least two or three, ask each for recent sales near the homes you are considering, and compare how they explain HOA, tax bill and hazard questions for that address.
Sources & notes
- California DRE public license lookup (individual records linked in the table)
- Census Reporter: Hercules, CA (U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 5-year estimates)
- RE/MAX agent search for Hercules, CA and RE/MAX Regency office page
- Coldwell Banker Realty agent profiles linked in the table
- Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder: documentary transfer tax
- State Fire Marshal: Fire Hazard Severity Zones
- License records checked October 2026 on the California DRE public lookup. Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.
Related: Hercules real estate guide · Hercules home valuation · Contra Costa County agents guide · 20 tips for choosing a real estate agent
License-status update: the linked California DRE public records were checked November 2, 2026 and showed "Licensed." Public profile research retains the dates stated above. Names on DRE records may differ from public profile names; verify status and brokerage before selecting an agent.
