Ileana Barns-Slavin

"This letter is written to recognize and recommend Ileana Barns-Slavin's outstanding service, professionalism, and most important, her New Canaan's real estate market expertise. In the recent sale of our house, she with the upmost integrity and confidentiality provided us an efficient service. She was instrumental in guiding us through the selling of our house. She listened carefully and never pressured us to do anything we weren?t prepared to do. She gently educated us about all the steps involved on a property sale. It was a pleasure working with Ileana whose personal ability, attention to details and enthusiasm was able to put everyone at ease. Ileana was always available to quickly respond to questions, whether in person, via mobile phone, or e-mail not only from us but from other realtors, potential buyers or lawyers. She is dedicated to and passionate about her job. She has gone way above and beyond the call of duty. No matter what we asked of Ileana she went out of her way to make sure we had all the knowledge we need and received immediately. She has been much more like a partner not just a broker. Top Qualities: High Integrity, Knowledge, Great Results, On Time.
Patricia and Mads Navarro Gundersen (New Canaan)

"My numerous real estate experiences have not been positive until my most recent transaction, which was a unique challenge - a seven million dollar house, only 70 % complete on. The timing and circumstances required not only an agent of exceptional skill and diligence, but one with the capability to create marketing tools and develop resources independently. Also required were the talent and credibility to present a fairly high end sale that was complex and expensive for the buyer. Ileana Barns-Slavin met that challenge and sold the property within three months of her retention. As I was in Europe for most of that time, I was able to depend on Ileana to manage all aspects of the project and to consummate the transaction during my absence. Having been a business executive and corporate project manager for most of her career, there was no dimension of this commission that was not well within Ileana?s capabilities. In particular, Ileana?s marketing of the property was without peer, and given the extraordinary nature of the property, there was no surprise when Ileana both listed and sold the property herself. I would recommend Ileana to anyone who would insist on the highest quality representation delivered on the most professional basis.
E.Jachmann (New Canaan)

"To sell 266 Michigan Road (2012) we hired Ileana Barns- Slavin . The chateau was still unfinished. Understandable, the property was now more difficult to sell. Brokers were hesitant to show the house as it was more difficult and time consuming for them to present and sell an unfinished home than some new and/or finished homes. Ileana took the challenge and created a marketing campaign spiced with great broker and public events that pulled in top architects, landscape and interior designers. Her attention to detail coupled with her ability to pull together support resources during the entire marketing and negotiation processes was excellent. In addition to the exposure to the international markets via Ileana?s affiliation with William Raveis, the customized, detailed property website that she created, designed and implemented was essential and extremely important. Understanding in detail what the property had to offer, the history, as well as design vision, functionality, materials and systems were keys to market it and find the buyer. For example, Ileana worked with an architect to create visuals of several finished rooms/areas --- at that time an unknown concept in real estate. Especially impressive was that of a two-level library with a spiral staircase to the wine cellar and cigar room. She listed 266 Michigan, marketed it and found the buyer. You will not find a harder working broker, who has the ability to get deals done!"
T.H. (New Canaan)

"After working with Ileana on the sale of 266 Michigan, we hired Ileana again to sell our primary residence. She did so successfully in a difficult market environment. Ileana is an innovator, resourceful, intelligent, extremely hard working with great attention to detail. It is without hesitation that I recommend Ileana to sell a property. I would use her again without hesitation. You will not find a harder working broker, who has the ability to get deals done! "
T.H. (Wilton)

"Ileana Barns -Slavin recently sold our house in Stamford Connecticut. There were many problems with the property. Anything that could get in the way or go wrong with a sale seemed to do so. Ileana however was up to all of the challenges. She dealt with and oversaw obtaining the necessary permits and finding proper contractors to remedy each problem. The hours she worked where as if at our disposal. Always upbeat and optimistic, and always available, she met each of these challenges successfully. A delight to work with Ileana that became more a friend than a real estate agent. Anyone who is looking to buy, sell or rent a property could not find someone more qualified or competent to handle their affairs. I cannot praise her too highly or thank her enough."
Fred Wyatt (Stamford)

"We recently had the pleasure of working with Ileana Barns-Slavin while looking for a condo in New Canaan, CT. Ileana showed us many options and when we found the one we loved, she worked tirelessly to get us into it. Ileana is an extremely knowledgeable agent and doesn't take no for an answer when trying to get her clients what they want. We cannot thank her enough for all the hard work she put into getting us our new home. It was truly a wonderful experience working with Ileana and we hope to work with her again in the future."
R.B. and S.F. (New Canaan)

"We never expected to sell the ?house of our dreams? in such short notice. Due to a Professional Opportunity we decided to relocate from New Canaan. We were dealing with the worst Real Estate Market in years and with one of the worst winters ever. Ileana came and immediately we knew she was the "different one". Her drive and skill were immediately put to the test. She sold the house, dealt with all kind of hurdles such as balancing the tenant?s wants and needs with the buyer?s and ours as well. She also followed very strict guidelines from the Relocation Company. She gets involved in every aspect of the process, from staging to inspections. We were not longer in CT and she not only took care of the house and it?s belongings, she was always going back to make sure everything was still perfect! We were extremely pleased with the way the handled all the transaction. A true and hard to find Professional!"
Beatriz & Jeroen van Erven (New Canaan)

"Ileana is a fantastic realtor. I had the privilege to work with Ileana on both the purchase of my first home as well as five years later the sale of that same home in Wilton. My experience both as buyer and a seller have been amazing, and I could not have asked for a better agent to guide me through the process. In both circumstances, my expectations were well exceeded and I was able to get everything I was asking for, including an exceptionally fast sale just in time for my wedding. Ileana was very responsive and guided me through every step of the process with patience and great attention to all the necessary details. I never felt lost or confused even as a first time buyer/seller. I believe that Ileana has the personal commitment to her clients that is unmatched in the industry. I highly recommend working with Ileana, as I would not hesitate to work with her again. Thank you Ileana for your dedication and commitment to your clients."
Alex T. (Wilton)

Ileana did a fantastic job as our real estate agent for both selling our condo in Norwalk and buying our house in Wilton this summer. She is incredibly professional and provided information and detail to make us both feel good and confident about the numerous selling and buying decisions we needed to make. She is also a pleasure to work with and would literally work day and night to get things done. We will be recommending her to people we know as a extremely efficient and thorough real estate agent who helped sell our condo in about 6 weeks and helped us fine a home we love. Thank you so much Ileana!!" -
D.T. and D.W. (Wilton)

"Ileana was our agent during our hunt for a home in the town of Greenwich. At the time we lived in a small NYC apartment, and with the pending arrival of our first baby, we needed a home as soon as possible. She was organized, tireless, frank, analytical, and very detail-oriented ? all of which we came to greatly appreciate. Every meeting she prepared a bound booklet of homes with all the details of the houses we would see that day, as well as a summary chart comparing prices, square footage, etc. Not wanting to rush into such a big purchase, we were insistent on seeing many homes before making a final decision, and Ileana kindly accommodated. There was one Sunday where she showed us 15 homes in one day! We also came to highly value her opinion. If we asked Ileana what she thought, she would tell us in a frank manner, without falsely sugar-coating poor workmanship or a sub-optimal location. Finally, when it came time for the final price negotiations, Ileana approached the process as a shrewd negotiator and true advocate for us. She was armed with many details, including other home sales in the area, averages, price trends, and the finances of the other party. She overlooked nothing and was always available to us as we worked through the closing details. We closed the deal with both a price and a home that were much to our satisfaction. Ileana is a kind person and a true professional, who certain has the best interests of her clients at heart. We are now happily settled into a home we love, and we heartily recommend her services."
Gabriel Bissio (Greenwich)

"There is no doubt that we would not have sold our home without Ileana. Her mastery of statistics, combined with an incredible intuition and understanding of the needs of her clients and potential buyers, is a winning combination. She was able to sell our condo in less than two weeks in a building with over five almost identical (and lower priced!) units. We wouldn't hesitate to recommend her to anyone."
Amanda A. (Norwalk)

"Ileana Slavin provides an excellent service. We listed our home with her after six months on the market with a different agent. We had had little interest and no offers, but Ileana came in with a game plan. She helped us stage our home and set the right price. Ileana took brilliant pictures of each room and set up a beautiful website that really showcased the house. We had 17 showings and received two offers in the first two weeks. She was an excellent negotiator and very helpful at each step in the process. Ileana is a true professional and we highly recommend her."
J & R D'Andraia (Norwalk)

"We recently rented our Ridgefield home out and hired Ileana to manage the process for us. This was the third time we?ve worked with Ileana, which should tell you something about how confident we are in her services. On the first two occasions (at the nadir of the housing market in 2010), Ileana helped us (a) to sell our Norwalk house within a couple of weeks and well above the price we expected to garner and (b) purchase our Ridgefield dream home (which we are now in 2014 leaving temporarily, due to an international work assignment). Here are just a few attributes that lead us to recommend her and keep coming back to her in the future:
Professional: Ileana has a process she takes her clients through, explaining it to them in advance and taking the stress out of major life events. She is highly dependable, punctual, and no-nonsense, and expects the same from her fellow agents on the other side of the table and from customers. If you are being wishy-washy with your criteria, she will get at what you really mean. As she should, dealing with transactions that are often (but not always) in the millions of dollars. She brings her ?A? game every time.
Marketer: Ileana brought her experience in corporate marketing to the real-estate business many years ago. She helped to stage our homes without making it a daunting task, and knows instinctively what the selling (or renting) points to emphasize are. She worked with us to put marketing collateral together but took charge with what is probably the most important part: the listings themselves and the websites for our homes. At the time we had never felt so proud of our homes, and know now that this marketing work alone probably made the difference in the successful sales/rental results.
Expert Consultant: Ileana puts the ?agent? in real-estate agent. Like a sports agent, she advises her client all along the way (and, by the way, 24/7). She knows the area, the other agents and has an extensive network of service providers (e.g. attorneys, inspectors, flooring contractors etc.). Most importantly, she has probably gone through a hundred times more negotiations of any type than any of her clients. She knows not only what to look for in homes, but how to handle negotiations that can make a difference of tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.
?Aggressively realistic?: she?ll try to achieve the best deal for you given your own personal circumstances (for example, how quickly you need to move on the property) and, critically, on the market situation. In each of our three experiences noted above, we not only came out ahead of where we expected to land but did so faster than expected -- entirely due to Ileana?s down-to-the minute assessment of a highly volatile local market. She also called us out on unrealistic expectations, in her own charming way.
Fun: we spent a lot of time with Ileana over the years, particularly in searching for a new home in 2010, the one experience when we were not pressed for time and when we ? entirely of our own doing -- viewed over 50 homes in the Wilton/Ridgefield/Weston area. You get past the small talk quickly after that amount of time and either connect with someone or don?t. I wonder now whether we did not ourselves drag out that process and fail to decide sooner on a home because we so enjoyed Ileana?s company on those many drives through Connecticut, house visits, coffee breaks, and chit chat about the area and its natives. Ileana has a wonderful sense of humor, a worldly outlook, and a deep connection to family. Ileana bonded with our 4 year-old daughter and made her part of the home-buying process (without, thankfully, empowering her in any way). You get the feeling that Ileana truly loves her work and her clients. Your transaction is more than just another job for her.

With some realtors you get the sense it?s a part-time job, a supplement to the spouse?s income, or a fallback career. Not so with Ileana. She is the real deal."
E. Schneider (Ridgefield)