1% Broker, Realtors

As you can see from my (and everybody else’s) rating is 5 stars. Hugh and his team are the best at what they do. Talk to them and you will learn you don’t have to pay traditional prices to get top professional service. Thanks, Hugh!
Ben Nichols

We’ve used Hugh to buy two houses now. I’m on no hurry to move again, but if I do, I can say absolutely that I will use him. Five stars without reservation!

Hugh Borax at 1% Broker was incredible. Incredibly thorough, incredibly patient, incredibly helpful and incredibly kind. Our transaction was a little unusual and Hugh helped me and my husband navigate through the complicated process with knowledge and grace.
His words and advice made all the difference and we were able to buy what we wanted despite an extremely competitive market.
Hugh is extremely responsive, extremely reliable and extremely professional. Can’t recommend him highly enough!

My husband and I recently bought our first home and worked with Alan Austin and Hugh Borax and they were AMAZING! I was a little worried to go with a discount broker at first, but the service Alan and Hugh provided as top of the line. My husband and I found the house on our own from Zillow and attended the open house. From there Alan and Hugh guided us ever step of the way. I especially like how they were always available by phone, email, or text and happy to talk to me after work late in the evenings and on weekends. I rarely give 5 star reviews, but they truly deserve it.

This is the 3^rd time we’ve worked with One Percent Broker. All 3 times, the level of service is OUTSTANDING! The first 2 times, we worked with Hugh, and this last time, we worked with Alan.
In case you are not familiar with the model, in real estate, buyers typically have a broker that represents you. In a traditional model, the buyer’s broker will set up appointments, take you around to different places, and show them to you. But the buyer’s broker does not get paid unless there is a purchase that goes through. So the buyer’s broker may do a lot of work and spend a lot of time making appointments and taking you around to different homes, all with a high risk that you may never find something you like and they never get paid for any of that work. That is where 1% Broker is different and the genius of the model:
I don’t actually need someone to drive me around to see different properties — I can drive myself fairly well. In terms of seeing the properties, I need to go myself anyway, is there much benefit of having someone else accompany me? In terms of finding the properties, my wife and I would be searching the listings anyway, and beyond the typical websites, 1% broker also gives you MLS access, which is where the properties are actually listed. So in the 1% Broker model, I am getting paid to do all these things that I would have done anyway.
But what sets this firm apart from any others is what happens once you find a property you like. Then, they become like a full-​service broker, writing your offer and guiding you through the escrow process. Not just any full-​service broker. From this point on, they are a phenomenal full-​service broker. Perhaps it’s because they do not have the baggage and frustration from taking around a bunch of clients to property viewings and not getting any compensation for it. Or perhaps it’s because they’re just really, really good people and very very good at what they do, which is guide buyers through the offer process and escrow process.
In our last purchase, Alan was outstanding! Throughout the whole process, Alan was very attentive and informative. He obviously knew a lot about real estate, and had tons of knowledge and perspective. But one of the things I most respected was that when we came across something that he wasn’t 100% sure about, he didn’t try and just B.S. his way through it. He gave us his opinion and said he would double check with his legal resources. Ultimately, he ended up being right, but I very much appreciated him making the extra efforts to find out for sure and help protect us!
I also appreciate how available Alan was. We had actually already been in negotiations on another property when we ended up deciding on this one instead. Alan never made us feel like we were being difficult or that we were creating extra work for him. He was always extremely supportive, and fully understood our reservations with such a big purchase. We ended up letting him know we were interested in this new property on Saturday, and he worked diligently through the weekend, getting our offer submitted, having discussions with the listing agent, and actually helping us work out a deal such that we had a signed purchase contract by Sunday night, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS A MULTIPLE OFFER SITUATION!!!
As we went through the process, I had told Alan that it would be very inconvenient for us if escrow closed after a certain date. Even after all our contingencies had been removed, he still worked very diligently in contacting our loan officer, talking to the escrow office and communicating with us to try and achieve the closing date we wanted. At that point, we had no more contingencies and he could have just sat back and waited for the deal to close and collected his commission. I *never* felt like he stopped advocating for us, even up through even *after* the close of escrow!
Ultimately, if you have an idea what you’re looking for, and are willing to drive yourself to various property viewings, and willing to set up your own viewing appointments, you should absolutely consider using 1% Broker to represent you. You’ll get paid a significant amount for doing things you probably would have done anyway (looking up listing, going to visit the properties), but once you find the place you like, you have an outstanding team behind you that is probably better than most full-​service brokerage teams!

This review is long overdue!!! When we were looking to buy a home, both my husband and I were looking for a realtor who is knowledgeable, honest, and definitely not too pushy. Committing to purchase a home is already a huge step so we were looking for someone who can support us through the process and not be a headache to deal with. Hugh and Alan were wonderful to work with. They both have many years of experience so they are experts in their field. Alan was our direct contact. He is an excellent and efficient communicator who responded to all our questions promptly. He guided us through the entire process. He presented us with the facts and gave us time to make our own decision. We will definitely use 1% Broker, Realtors for our next sale/​purchase. Highly recommended!!!

Lauri Trapp at 1% Broker did a fantastic job helping my wife and me buy our first home. We would have been happy with her work at standard prices, so getting the rebate was icing on the cake.
As a first-​time buyer, I had lots of questions and felt the need to double check everything. Lauri was very patient throughout. The negotiating process took a few rounds of back-​and-​forth, and she was very helpful with that too. Finally, she provided us with good suggestions for inspectors, insurance company, etc.
Highly recommended!

My wife and I were first time home buyers and Lauri was extremely knowledgeable and easy to work with. She has tons of experience and gave very helpful advice and recommendations every step of the way. She stayed on top of the buying process with the sellers the whole way through and was very thorough. Through her services and recommendations we were able to get great timing on a mortgage for a really good rate — we combined that with the rebate and the house we wanted was so much more affordable. We were in very good hands and we saved a lot of time, headaches, and money. Can you save headaches? I don’t know. That’s probably not how headaches work. Anyway, Lauri is great and I hope you buy or sell something and live happily ever after.

This review has been overdue for sometime. We started working with one percent brokers and Lauri early 2014. They were recommended by a friend and to be honest my first attraction was the rebate option that was provided .
By the end it was the people like Lauri that made all the difference in the buying experience
Our first meeting with Lauri was in Burbank for a condo. She was veRy pleasant and patient with us. As first time home buyers we were confused about what we really liked and wanted.
As time went on, Lauri got a great feel of what we liked. The best part of working with Lauri was that she was always so patient. She was never pushy and knew that we were finding it hard to make our mind.
She also offered great support during times that we were outbid always encouraging us.
After a year of us not finding our dream home it was the initiative of Lauri that led us to finding our dream home in burbank.
Lauri took tremendous initiative finding the place before it was even listed. She stood by us through the entire process even though our seller put us through lot of bumps
Her professional and caring way of working with us is something we will always cherish
Highly recommend one percent brokers not just for the rebate but the tremendous caring realtors like Lauri that help you through the process. The rebate is a great financial help at closing.
Thanks Lauri and one percent brokers

Kathleen Tomajan was my agent on my recent house purchase. Highly recommended! I worked with many agents in the past, but no one was as honest, professional, knowledgeable and patient as Kathleen. My best interest was her number one priority throughout the entire process. She is super detailed and organized which made this purchase experience so much better than previous times. Thanks again Kathleen for everything! you are the best!

I worked with Alan during early 2014 and he was outstanding. Being a first time howebuyer I always had questions and alan was just a phone call away. He is so dedicated that he worked over the thanksgiving weekend and help us close the deal. I am extremely pleased with the service and would recommend it to family and friends.

This review is truly long overdue. I had the pleasure of working with Alan and One Percent Broker Realtors in late 2012 during the purchase of my first home. I’d probably gone through 2 or 3 real estate agents prior to working with Alan and found them to be pretty much useless from a home «search» standpoint. I would routinely be the one finding (i.e. Redfin, Trulia, Zillow, MLS, etc.) and suggesting homes for them to take me to and thought «…isn’t this your job»…I mean that’s why am I paying you 3% or so right?
Luckily Unilocal came through… and I found One Percent Brokers and was immediately connected with Alan who was extremely helpful and supportive throughout the process. I really appreciated his laid back approach and truly felt that he had my best interests in mind. The service level and thoughtfulness of Alan made my home buying experience pretty much painless (minus the stress of realizing «I’M ACTUALLY BUYING A HOME»…aka BIGGEST purchase of my life stress that was going through my head). So thank you Alan. If everything I’ve written hasn’t made it clear… you WANT to work with these guys if you are thinking or are in the process of buying a home. Needless to say, if I’m buying or selling a home in the near future I’m definitely going to give Alan /​One Percent Brokers a call.
Quick Notes —
— I used the 1.5% option instead of the 1% which enabled Alan to take me to see homes I was interested in… well worth it!

Alan was extremely helpful and flexible throughout our home buying process. As first time home buyers, we knew little to nothing going into this. He helped us get through everything from showings/​open houses all the way through close. He was very accessible and flexible with our work schedules. We will be using Alan and One Percent Brokers again!

John and Hugh were absolutely outstanding to work with throughout the process of selling our home in the South Bay. My husband and I had previously not had very good experiences with realtors, and so we were pretty uneasy going into the process of searching for a realtor. We originally contacted One Percent Brokers to buy a house in the LA/​Culver area, but were immediately so impressed by their professionalism that we decided to ask them to sell our home, too.
We are so grateful to have found John, Hugh and team, and are still shocked to have only paid them 1.5%. We definitely believe that we got the best realtors in town, and at a discount! John and Hugh pay very close attention to detail and they did not make a single mistake throughout the process. Also, they use docusign which is something that I never heard of, but made our lives so much easier throughout the home selling process. No more trying to get to the nearest fax/​scanner to return signatures throughout the day.
John and Hugh were there for us every step of the way and we always felt like we were using a full service broker team, and we actually really enjoyed talking to them. We worked closely with John throughout the process and he consistently impressed us. He remembered everything that we said, he didn’t pressure us, he was respectful, sharp, experienced he was available to us anytime that was convenient with our odd hours, and was always right on point, and it also helps that he got us waaaay over asking on our home! We could not be happier with the entire process and would recommend them to anyone! If you go with One Percent Brokers, you will be so happy that you did!

I had just moved to the LA area and my husband was going to be joining me in six months. We had initially planned on renting but with the low rates, we decided it made sense to buy. Being a first timer in LA, I decided to turn to Unilocal to find a broker and I’m so glad I did — we feel truly lucky to have found Alan and 1% Broker.
Alan is a consummate professional with a deep understanding of how the LA real estate market works, and his years of experience really pays off for the buyer. We had found a place that we liked and the buyer had accepted our offer. However, Alan urged us to add a Sewer Line Inspection to make sure we wouldn’t be surprised with any unexpected costs in the future. During the sewer scope, the plumbing professional found damages adding up to $ 25,000! We were able to get out of the deal and Alan saved us from years of future regret.
The next home we found was our dream home and Alan worked with us closely to put together a competitive offer. Since my husband and I were in two different locations, Alan was always available for countless three-​way conference calls to answer all of our questions and help us make informed decisions every step of the way. Alan fought for us to the very end, making sure the seller upheld their end of the deal.
We highly recommend Alan and 1% Broker. LA is a tricky place to buy and you need somebody who’s intelligent, experienced, and easy to work with and Alan is all that and more.

Buying a home can be stressful, complex, expensive, and sometimes fruitless. However, buying a home with Hugh and his team was the exact opposite — easy, a little less expensive, and finally, after a few bidding wars, rewarding. We feel quite lucky to have been able to work with him.
Hugh was professional, organized, efficient, and an excellent negotiator when dealing with other agents and contractors. He was also very helpful and realistic through the entire process, and we felt sure that he was always acting in our best interest.
We were very pleased with every aspect of working with Hugh, and would undoubtedly work with him again if we weren’t set on staying in our current house forever (the one Hugh got us)! We recommend him without reservations to all of our house hunting friends.

We used One Percent Broker for both the purchase and later sale of our house. We could not be happier with them on both occasions (2 years apart).
Most recently, Hugh and John made it easy for us to sell our place very quickly for well over asking price (though the heated market clearly played a big role). They walked us through the right time to list for maximum exposure, took great photos, wrote an attractive blurb for the listing, scheduled and advertised the open house to attract interest. After the open house, they skillfully navigated through multiple offers and counter-​offers until we had the best offer in hand. They finalized the sale quickly and smoothly. At all stages, they were available to answer questions and discuss strategy.
We received the highest level of personal service and the benefit of a seasoned agent who knows how to maximize your sale in a buyers or sellers market. For us, the result was feeling well taken care of and getting a better price than we had hoped. In addition to the great price they negotiated for us, we also paid them less than we would have paid another agent. How’s that for a great deal! A+ service for the best price in town.
Our only regret in selling our place and moving to another area is that we won’t be able to use One Percent Broker for our next purchase!

Alan is a fabulous professional, responsive, experienced, motivated and collaborative agent! You couldn’t ask for more! It was fortunate to have him help us in finding our first home and we couldn’t be more pleased.

Buying a house can get frustrating, overwhelming and confusing. Finding the right agent is the key!
My husband and I recommended him to a couple good friends of ours already, and will continue to do so to family and friends we know who want to buy a home in the LA area.
Alan is extremely knowledgeable and patient. I remember the first time we met him we were already impressed with his positive attitude, care, and great energy. We had so many questions to ask him and we wanted to know the whole process at once. He was very patient in answering all of our questions. I learned so much from him, he took the time to explain and guide us through each step. He has been with us through every step of this process; he also helped us with contact information for mortgage brokers to inspectors and beyond. Alan made the process very clear and easy. All the paper work can be done by DocuSign on the net which is very convenient. When you are not around your computer you can sign it on your smart phone. Alan always made sure we understood each document and were comfortable with the next step before we sign them.
When we found the house that we absolutely love, he helped us put down the offer right on that day even though it was weekend! The offer package is clearer and convincing.
The most important part is he only get 1% and rebates the rest of buyer’s commission (other agent usually gets 2.5%) from you. We were able to save the rest of the money to pay off the closing costs, which is fantastic.
We closed a few weeks ago! But Alan continued to answer questions and kept in touch to make sure all is well. I cannot say enough good things about him! Trust me; once you meet him you will know what I’m talking about.

I read all of the positive reviews on Angieslist and on Unilocal so decided to give Hugh a call to discuss the possibility of listing our house in Culver City. Hugh connected me with Alan Austin and Alan arranged to meet up with us a few hours later at a local café. Alan was really professional and spent a long time explaining the process, helping us weigh the options of selling versus holding onto our house. I usually like to interview a lot of different people /​get a lot of bids for jobs but we were so impressed with Alan’s professionalism, honesty, and knowledge base that we decided to go with him.
Alan did an amazing job helping us sell our house! He went above and beyond in giving us honest recommendations regarding pricing (including comps and other insight to justify his position), negotiating, and finding and coordinating contractors (stagers, general contractors, chimney inspections, appraisers, termite companies). Since we live about an hour away and have 2 little girls his assistance in taking care of all of the details, even cleaning up «gifts» from the neighborhood cats left in the backyard!, was awesome.
We ended up accepting a bid from a couple that had a VA loan so there were a lot of delays and details but Alan was proactive in representing us well and pushing things along. He walked us through all of the complicated paperwork and lingo and, best of all, Alan saved us thousands of dollars versus other agents!
Knowledgeable, friendly, professional, flexible, easy to work with and contact, affordable, we couldn’t ask for more.
I’d definitely work with Alan again to buy or sell a house!

First time home buyers here who were lucky enough to work with Alan from One Percent Broker. We used their ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ option (will explain what this is later) and SAVED ourselves some hard-​earned money while getting GREAT service at the SAME TIME. Who said there’s no free lunch to be had?
One Percent provides two types of service (and because as a first time home buyer it was confusing to me, I’m going to try to simplify this here):
— 1%: They get 1% and rebates the rest of buyer’s commission (usually 2.5%) to you. You have to source for the home yourself, and when you’ve found the place for you, contact them to help you make offers and navigate the escrow maze.
— ⁵⁰⁄₅₀: What we used. Essentially they split the buyer’s commission with you.
This is similar to what Redfin does, except this is MUCH MUCH MUCH better. You get a very capable and personal broker attached to you, whereas at Redfin, you get a capable agent to help you with the offer, but the most of the time, it’s some other junior agent showing you the home. You find homes you want to see on a website, and he/​she will organize seeing the home with you, offering advise during the showing, etc, everything an ordinary broker will do.
This couldn’t have been an easier process for us with the proliferation of online Real Estate websites, we had no difficulty finding potential homes at all.
Very long story short (er), after seeing our new home; Alan helped us put together a strong offer, navigate a complex escrow process involving 2 appraisals. He worked with the listing agent and lending broker to dispute our first very low-​ball appraisal.
PERSONAL service and LOWER costs all in one. This truly is the next evolution of real estate biz made possible by technology