Best Realtors in El Cerrito, CA (2026 Guide)
By Matthew Martinez
El Cerrito is a city of about 26,000 people in west Contra Costa County, on the hills above San Pablo Avenue between Albany and Richmond, with two BART stations. Much of its housing is older, and it is one of two Contra Costa cities with its own transfer tax, so an El Cerrito agent should be able to explain the city tax, its rebate and older-home records 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.
- 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 El Cerrito. We opened each agent’s brokerage profile and confirmed it names El Cerrito.
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.
El Cerrito housing in numbers
| Census measure (ACS 2024 5-year) | El Cerrito |
|---|---|
| Population | 25,994 |
| Median value of owner-occupied homes | $1,124,400 |
| Median household income | $127,876 |
| Persons per household | 2.4 |
| Mean travel time to work | 33.3 minutes |
Source: Census Reporter profile of El Cerrito, CA, using U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates.
The Census Bureau’s five-year median owner-occupied value for El Cerrito was about $1.1 million. 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 at a similar elevation and distance from BART.
El Cerrito settings: the hills, the flats and San Pablo Avenue
El Cerrito runs from the flats along San Pablo Avenue and the BART line up into hillside streets with bay views, next to unincorporated Kensington and the city of Richmond. Many homes date from before 1960, and condos and townhomes cluster near San Pablo Avenue. Our guides to El Cerrito housing settings, older-home records and inspections and condo and townhome ownership costs cover those questions. For more detail, see our El Cerrito real estate guide.
Costs and rules specific to an El Cerrito purchase
- County transfer tax. The Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder charges the county documentary transfer tax at $0.55 per $500 of value.
- City transfer tax. El Cerrito adds its own real property transfer tax of $12 per $1,000 of value under Municipal Code Chapter 4.64, which the Clerk-Recorder collects at recording. On a $1,100,000 sale, the city tax is about $13,200 and the county tax about $1,210. The code makes buyer and seller jointly liable; who pays is negotiable, so confirm the split on your escrow estimate.
- Transfer tax rebate. Section 4.64.080 allows a rebate of up to one-third of the city tax for qualifying seismic upgrades, rooftop solar, EV charging, energy efficiency or stormwater work completed within a year before or after the transfer. Ask your agent to factor planned work into timing.
- Rental registry. If you plan to rent out the home or a unit, El Cerrito’s rent registry (Chapter 10.100) requires landlords to report rents for covered units each year.
- Older homes and hazards. Ask for permit history and consider foundation and sewer lateral inspections. The natural hazard disclosure report shows whether an address is in a mapped fault or landslide zone, and hillside addresses may carry Fire Hazard Severity Zone designations that trigger AB 38 documentation.
El Cerrito 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 El Cerrito. Contact Matthew · Broker #01869679 · Diamond Group Estates Inc DBA Diamond Real Estate Group, DRE #02163490
| Agent | Brokerage | License | Areas named on profile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Angel | Coldwell Banker Realty, Berkeley office | Salesperson #02115053 | Albany, Berkeley, Oakland, Alameda, El Cerrito, Richmond |
| Laurie Capitelli | Red Oak Realty | Broker #00634236 | Berkeley, El Cerrito |
| Sandy Cruz | Red Oak Realty | Salesperson #02141001 | Oakland, Berkeley, El Cerrito |
| Bobbie Giarratana | Coldwell Banker Realty, Berkeley office | Salesperson #01259754 | Albany, Berkeley, Kensington, El Cerrito, Oakland |
| Rudy Gonzales | Red Oak Realty | Salesperson #01960333 | El Cerrito, Richmond, Oakland, Berkeley |
| Mohan Karki | RE/MAX Regency, Hercules office | Salesperson #02118988 | Berkeley, El Sobrante, Richmond, El Cerrito, Hercules |
| Angel Lax | CENTURY 21 Masters | Salesperson #02184996 | Castro Valley, San Leandro, Oakland, Richmond, El Cerrito and other East Bay cities |
| Karlene Lopez-Piedra | Coldwell Banker Realty, Berkeley office | Salesperson #01980076 | Oakland, Richmond, San Pablo, El Cerrito, Albany, Berkeley, El Sobrante, Pinole, Hercules and other cities |
| Alison Matsuhara | RE/MAX Accord, Walnut Creek office | Salesperson #01432223 | Berkeley, Oakland, Walnut Creek, Alameda, El Cerrito |
| Catherine Stern | Red Oak Realty | Salesperson #01325681 | Albany, Berkeley, North Oakland, El Cerrito, Kensington |
| Chris Stortenbecker | Coldwell Banker Realty, Berkeley office | Salesperson #02188254 | Berkeley, Oakland, Emeryville, El Cerrito, Kensington, Richmond |
| Herman Sun | Red Oak Realty | Broker #01005880 | Albany, El Cerrito, Kensington, Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond |
Coldwell Banker Realty agents above are licensed under NRT West, Inc. (DRE #01908304) and work from the Berkeley office. Red Oak Realty agents are licensed under Red Oak Realty (DRE #00619098); Laurie Capitelli and Herman Sun hold broker licenses and work as broker associates. Mohan Karki is licensed under VMRW (DRE #01937237), which the DRE lists as doing business as RE/MAX Regency in Hercules. Alison Matsuhara is licensed under S&J Stadtler Inc (DRE #01491373), which operates RE/MAX Accord. Angel Lax’s CENTURY 21 Masters profile matches a DRE record under the responsible broker Full Realty Services Inc (DRE #01849354). Some DRE records list a legal name that differs from the name the agent uses professionally (for example, Lawrence Capitelli, Christopher Angel, Rudolph Gonzales and Huainan Herman Sun). None of the agents above works from an office inside El Cerrito; their profiles name El Cerrito as an area served.
How to vet an El Cerrito agent
- Ask for a net sheet with the city tax. Ask the agent to show the El Cerrito and county transfer taxes and how they propose to split them.
- Ask about the rebate. If you plan seismic, solar or efficiency work, ask how they would time it to qualify for the city’s one-third rebate.
- Ask how they review older homes. Ask which inspections they recommend (foundation, sewer lateral, electrical) and how they compare permit records with what was built.
- Ask for comparables from the same elevation. A hillside view home and a home in the flats near San Pablo Avenue should not be priced from the same sales.
- For condos, ask about HOA documents. Ask how they review budgets, reserves and assessments before contingencies expire.
- Verify the license yourself. Look up the agent on the DRE site and confirm the responsible broker matches the brokerage they name.
El Cerrito questions we hear
Does El Cerrito have its own transfer tax?
Yes. El Cerrito charges $12 per $1,000 of value under Chapter 4.64, in addition to the county tax of $0.55 per $500. The Clerk-Recorder collects both at recording.
Can part of the El Cerrito transfer tax be refunded?
Up to one-third of the city tax can be rebated for qualifying seismic, solar, EV charging, efficiency or stormwater work finished within a year before or after the sale, under section 4.64.080. Check the current requirements with the City before you rely on it.
Is Kensington part of El Cerrito?
No. Kensington is an unincorporated community next to El Cerrito and follows Contra Costa County rules; the El Cerrito city transfer tax does not apply there.
How do I check an El Cerrito 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 El Cerrito agent?
Yes. Interview at least two or three, ask each for recent sales near the homes you are considering, and compare how they explain the transfer tax, older-home inspections and HOA questions.
Sources & notes
- California DRE public license lookup (individual records linked in the table)
- Census Reporter: El Cerrito, CA (U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 5-year estimates)
- Coldwell Banker Realty, Red Oak Realty, RE/MAX and CENTURY 21 Masters agent profiles linked in the table
- Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder: documentary transfer tax and City of El Cerrito transfer tax
- El Cerrito Municipal Code: Chapter 4.64, Real Property Transfer Tax and Chapter 10.100, rent registry (via GoCodebook)
- 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: El Cerrito real estate guide · El Cerrito 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.
