I can’t recommend James highly enough. Buying my first home was a huge and scary experience, especially being based in Auckland while searching in Christchurch. James went above and beyond to make the process easy and manageable. While I was in Auckland, he personally viewed properties for me and video called me via WhatsApp so I could see the houses in real time. This gave me confidence to narrow down options without travelling for every viewing. When I travelled to Christchurch for two days, James had around 14 suitable properties lined up. He organised everything so well that my short trip was extremely productive and economical, ultimately leading me to the home I chose to make an offer on, which was accepted! James was incredibly supportive throughout the process, gave great advice, explained things clearly and made what could have been an overwhelming transaction much easier to understand. As a first-home buyer, that reassurance was invaluable. The only thing I would have appreciated was more encouragement to consider negotiating the purchase price. In the excitement of finding a home and having my offer accepted, I overlooked this and paid the full asking price. Looking back, I wish James had prompted me to consider whether there was room to negotiate. That said, this was a very small part of an otherwise exceptional experience. Even after settlement, James went the extra mile by doing a walk-through to ensure everything was in order and working as it should. This showed how committed he was to looking after me, not just getting the sale across the line. James was professional, responsive, knowledgeable, genuinely supportive and incredibly generous with his time. He made a daunting process much less stressful, and I’m extremely grateful for everything he did. I would absolutely recommend James to anyone looking to buy.

I was checking out a house on Worcester st, Linwood, Thinking. "This just might be a go"? We hadn't even sold our own house. we were still hurting, as we had previously listed two utterly miserable-disastrous, "failed sale campaigns" with Raine and Horne of St Martins. Never-the-less, This was the first time I had meet James Ellis from Harcourts Holmwood. A quiet, thoughtful type Englishman, relatively new to Christchurch NZ, He knew the details of the house, There were others interested,so be quick. I arranged to show my partner Kate asap. I introduced Kate to James and that was it, Kate fall for James, She decided he would be the one to help us, sell our house. Forget Worcester st. she said, NO "I want James to sell ours". Next we were introduced to Michael Fisher, We both enjoyed meeting him, You could tell, he was perfect as wing-man for James.Wise, experienced, meticulous and considered. James and Michael explained how the Holmwood office worked "as a team" throughout the process, along with Chris Kilkelly office Manager the "voice of reason", they suggested we go to auction, we did, Auctioneer Dan Pengelly visited our home twice, chatted about what we loved about the house, what the sales strategy would be. He got the vibe, hes jolly good fun and obviously enjoys what he does, He also has beautiful eggs. De-clutter, clean, tidy, open Homes,trade caravans, photos, videos, Trade me listing, the works. We went to auction and nothing? Oh no, not again. Everyone was disappointed of course, Yet the Holmwood boys remained positive. WTF ? Deadlines next. , multi offer "Yippee" , well above Cv. GR8 job team. Thank you everyone @ Holmwood. It got a little tricky, but James seamlessly negotiated his way through the issues with the teams support. Well done We haven't found our replacement home yet, James has been working hard taking us to open homes and looking out for properties etc, Kate loves James., and so do our pets. Cheers Brian

We had a good experience working with James Ellis. From the beginning, he really listened to what we were looking for and took the time to understand our requirements, making the whole process easier and much more efficient. He was incredibly helpful, always providing valuable additional information on the properties we were interested in which gave us greater confidence in making informed decisions. If there was something he didn't know, he was always happy to investigate further, contacting the vendor's agent promptly and keeping us updated. He was friendly, approachable, and professional at all times, and was very accommodating in working around our schedule for viewings and discussions. We never felt pressured, and always appreciated his willingness to go the extra mile to ensure we had all the information we needed. We highly recommend him to anyone looking for a knowledgeable, responsive, and genuine real estate agent.

James was friendly informative and quick to get me information to help complete the deal