Janet has been a South County resident for over 27 years. Prior to her move here, she resided in Stamford, Connecticut. While living in the New York Metropolitan area, she honed her sales skills as a representative for the Polo/Ralph Lauren menswear line in their corporate headquarters in Manhattan. Her 10+ years of experience at Ralph Lauren provide a natural segue into real estate sales. Janet's appreciation of our coastline, paired with her love of South County living, makes Mott & Chace Sotheby's International Realty a great fit for her real estate sales career. You will be impressed with Janet's dedicated and dynamic work ethic on your behalf during any type of real estate transaction.
Testimonials
My husband and I absolutely loved working with Janet. She is extremely professional, personable and helpful. She always responded immediately to our calls and questions with needed guidance. We feel she went above and beyond with the somewhat complicated sale of our Narragansett home. She was always there with words of encouragement. We will highly recommend her to anyone who needs real estate services. She is quite deserving of employee recognition as she is number one in our book and was greatly appreciated. Thank you Janet.
John & Marie; Narragansett, RI
The time between an accepted offer and the closing can be stressful. Janet Kermes was there every step of the way. She helped us to buy our beach house and being that we were not local, she took over the arrangements for a lot of the details. Janet was always available and responsive. She is smart and energetic and remained our voice of reason when we needed that. We are now happy homeowners in the beautiful Pier area of Narragansett. Thank you Janet! I highly recommend you.
Linda S.; Narragansett, RI
Janet was a pleasure to work with. We sold our house from overseas and hence we needed someone who was an excellent communicator and who was willing to go above and beyond what a typical real estate agent does. Janet returned all of our calls and emails on time which often meant working late at night and early mornings. Janet helped us with staging our home and also organizing contractors to do some of the repairs that needed to be completed in order for us to sell. Janet was 100% committed from the start to the very end. She was professional and honest. Working with Janet was like working with a good friend! Janet has a lot of experience and knows how to match buyers to sellers.
Tracey B.; Narragansett, RI
Janet went above and beyond. She truly cares about client satisfaction and did everything necessary to handle problems that arose so that it was not an issue for her client.
Karen P.; Narragansett, RI
Janet's service is terrific. She is passionate about what she does and goes the extra mile to help make things happen. She is smart, nice and a hard worker. We bought and sold a house through Janet and refer her without hesitation.
Linda S.; Narragansett, RI
Excellent, best realtor ever, very knowledgeable and completely professional. She listed the house with a beautiful picture presentation of the property and did an excellent job negotiating the final agreed upon price with the buyer.
Jim F.; Charlestown, RI
Janet Kermes's advice and assistance throughout the process of selling our home was invaluable. Without doubt, it was more than serendipity that the first person to see the house bought it on the spot. Janet's guidance with regard to preparing the house for sale reflected her extensive knowledge and broad experience. At every step in the process of advertising, displaying and showing the house, Janet was timely and especially well-informed. She answered questions before we thought to ask them. Her consistently positive attitude combined with her professional demeanor allayed our anxiety and reduced our stress level. Janet Kermes merits our highest praise and strongest recommendation.
Virginia & Bob Stiepock; South Kingstown, RI
I can't say enough great things about Janet. I have bought and sold a home with her. She's smart, flexible and tenacious. I can't say enough good things about her exceptional work.
Helena Foulkes; Providence, RI
We have purchased a home with Janet Kermes, and we have sold a home with Janet Kermes. Both of these homes are in Narragansett. Janet knows the area incredibly well, and she knows how to get things done. Her professionalism and her attention to detail are exemplary. The purchase of our current home was a challenging transaction, and Janet helped us each step of the way. We ran into setback, construction and legal issues during the deal - Janet helped us find the right answers and the right people to get us into our dream property. The sale of our second home/investment property in Narragansett incurred some road blocks. We were almost to closing when the buyers backed out. Within six days, we were back under contract for more money and less hassles. That deal closed effortlessly thanks to Janet's assistance. Janet's enthusiasm and her good humor make her a joy to work with. Janet understands the first and second home markets in South County as well as the investment property market. We highly recommend her services.
Michele & Jim Gilbert; Narragansett, RI
Janet was a pleasure to work with and a tremendous partner in helping us close the deal on our vacation home in Narragansett. She worked tenaciously on our behalf, was always the consummate professional, and was consistently available to talk with for just about anything. We feel very lucky to have met Janet and couldn't have been happier with the way things went. We couldn't recommend her highly enough.
Jim & Mimi Mortko; Rosyln Harbor, NY
A close friend of ours recommended Janet Kermes to us when we were selling our Narragansett home. At our first meeting, we knew she was a perfect fit for us. Janet's confidence and knowledge of the Narragansett market instantly put us at ease. Selling a family home is an emotional time but Janet made it seem so easy. Our home sold within days of listing it, eliminating the stresses of ongoing showings and negotiating. Thank you Janet!
Paul & Janet; Narragansett, RI
Janet is one of the nicest people I have met. Her knowledge of Narragansett real estate is astounding. She was right on the mark in pricing our home and sold it quickly. Very professional and very informative. Couldn't ask for a better real estate person.
Nancy Moreau; Narragansett, RI
We recently purchased a home in Narragansett, RI. This is only the second home that we have ever purchased so we needed a tremendous amount of guidance. Janet Kermes made us feel extremely comfortable from the beginning of the process, through the closing. She advocated for us every step of the way. She always had our best interest at heart. I would highly recommend Janet to anyone looking to purchase a home.
Lynne Ahn; Narragansett, RI
We - I and my wife - just recently purchased a beautiful house in Narragansett, RI. Our real estate agent was Janet Kermes. Thanks to Janet’s knowledge, experience, dedication, judgment and guidance, as well as her great feel and action attitude, we sailed through the typically challenging task of purchasing a house. Janet had given us numerous references for bankers, home inspections and contractors, which resulted with great rate ($$) and future improvements a breeze. All in all: a 5 star service, and very pleasant to work with. We recommend Janet’s real estate services to anybody. Thank you Janet!
Hank & Lucyna Szczepanek; Upton, MA
I have worked with realtors for the last 25 years, and Janet is hands-down the best realtor I have done business with. She is extremely knowledgeable, very intelligent, pays close attention to details, and is an excellent negotiator. I cannot say anything better then the above.
Billy Baxter; Narragansett, RI
Thanks so much for all your help with the selling of our home in Sand Hill Cove. We thought that selling a rental property with leases attached would be difficult, but what at first seemed like a huge undertaking ended up going smoothly and seamlessly with your expert guidence. Your knowledge of the market and smart pricing resulted in a quick sale for us. You are a pleasure to work with. Many thanks! And also thank you for helping us find a great lot in South Kingstown for our next home. It is a beautiful location and we are very excited to start building!P.S. We have already referred you to some good friends looking to sell their home in Narragansett. Best of luck!
Larry Legault; Attleboro, MA
What a pleasure it was teaming with Janet Kermes to sell our home in South County Hills. Our process had a few bumps along the way that Janet addressed professionally, patiently, and effectively. Janet's positive attitude made what could have been a very trying time into an almost pleasant one. When we are ready to purchase another home in South County, RI, Janet will be the agent we call without a doubt!
Brenda Burns; South Kingstown, RI
Selling a property from out of state is difficult, but Janet did a great job of seeing that everything went smoothly.
Zelma Carey; Wakefield, RI
We used Janet Kermes to purchase our home in Narragansett, Rhode Island. We cannot say enough good things about her professionalism, her integrity and her ability to solve complex problems. Janet showed us many homes in Narragansett, including several which were not yet on the market. She understands South County, Rhode Island. She knows the land and property values, and she knows how to get to the closing table. Our transaction at times was difficult, and Janet helped through every challenging step. She was an adept negotiator - we cannot stress that enough. Janet truly understands how emotional purchasing a new home can be. Her insight and perspective were of immense value to our family. She knows everyone in the real estate world - other agents, inspectors, contractors and bankers. Janet referred us to an amazing insurance broker as well, who helped us find insurance for our close-to-beach property. Without her referral, we probably would have grossly overpaid for homeowners' insurance. Kind, honest, responsive, exceptionally friendly and thorough are words I can use to describe Janet and the outstanding service she offers. We were lucky to work with her, and we are thrilled with our new home.
Michele McGovern Gilbert; Narragansett, RI
Janet did a terrific job selling our family home in Narragansett. We live out of state and she was easily able to adapt to our needs. Janet has an extensive network of professionals she connected us with from the beginning of our listing to the close. She also went above and beyond by meeting them at our house when we were not able to be there. She stayed current with the changing local real estate market and shared the information readily with us. She provided excellent communication by being quickly responsive to both phone calls and email. Janet is personable and professional, I recommend her highly.
Carolyn Penkrat; Marblehead, MA
In a very slow Narragansett market for large homes along the water I want to thank you for first doing an excellent job marketing the house and then finding a buyer who came close to meeting our price expectations that you had help set at the start. Thanks again for a great job in a very tough market.
Jim
Janet sold my house at 362 Ocean Road in Narragansett within 6 months of listing it. It was on the market for nearly 2 years with someone else before I signed on with Janet Kermes. She had a marketing plan that worked and secured an offer within the price range we had agreed to at the start.
Jim Stone; Narragansett, RI
I can't thank you enough for all your support throughout our search for a home. You made this undertaking easy and fun, taking the edge off all the rough spots and I don't think I would have realized this dream without you.
Amy & Carl; Narragansett, RI
I found Janet Kermes very helpful and informative. She has gone out of her way so many times to help me in the past with the purchase of my house. She made every house such fun. At the closing she presented me with a canvas bag of goodies, not to mention a wonderful framed picture. She has become a good friend. You have a valued Realtor in Janet. I highly recommend Janet and your company to anyone who may ask me.
Lisa; Narragansett, RI
I'm writing to let you know how wonderful Janet Kermes has been as our Realtor over the past several years as we have searched for a home in Narragansett. We met Janet at an open house almost 2 years ago, at which point she carefully listened to what we were looking for our family. That summer, she helped us try to negotiate a purchase, and even when it wasn't working out, doggedly pursued the transaction on our behalf. Since then, she has shown us many properties between Bonnet Shores and Point Judith, both homes that were on the market and homes that she thought we might like that we might be able to consider. Coming from Boston with 2 small children, we also appreciate that Janet has called us judiciously when properties come on the market, encouraging us to make a trip only when she knew something was really worthwhile. This winter, Janet helped us find the home we had been waiting for. We had planned to come to RI to look at a different property with her, and since we were making the trip asked if it would be OK to check out the property we had planned to rent for this summer. When we saw the house, Chris and I immediately hoped that the owner might accept an offer for sale knowing that it had previously been on the market with another firm. Janet contacted the seller to ask if he would entertain offers, then helped us put together the offer, acting as an intermediary between us and the seller. Of course, we were all thrilled when the offer was accepted. In the short time between the P&S and closing, Janet worked tirelessly to make sure the inspections and remediation’s went as smoothly as possible, arranging and attending many meetings on our behalf that we were unable to conduct from Boston...we feel that she fairly represented each side in this process, prompting my husband to comment, I think Janet is holding this deal together with sweat and scotch tape! Even after the closing, Janet has helped us to arrange to clean the property, set up utilities, and obtain appropriate documentation. She has been lovely to work with from start to finish, both incredibly personable and consummately professional.Â
Mary Beth & Chris Gordon; Boston, MA
I am writing this letter to express my appreciation for the outstanding performance of Janet Kermes with the sale of my home. I have been a mortgage banker in the luxury home market for over 20 years, working with realtors throughout the country and have never experienced such unprecedented service. Janet went over and above to ensure that the transaction closed within 30 days and was able to negotiate almost asking price (unheard of in this market.) She worked diligently to ensure that all conditions were met. Since this was our second home, I was unable to attend to the many tasks required when selling a home. Janet handled everything without a hitch. We intend to purchase another home in the near future and will not hesitate to use Janet. Janet is extremely knowledgeable and professional. Finally, as Senior Vice President for a large mortgage banking operation, I would be honored to work side by side with such an individual, who would be a valuable asset to any corporation. I have bought and sold a few homes in RI within the last 10 years and have never worked with anyone as professional and dedicated as Janet.
Joseph A. Antonios; Naugatuck, CT
In the world today we are quick to criticize and complain about services we have rendered. My husband and I would like to take this opportunity to commend one of your agents for her professionalism and dedication to her job. Tom and I decided that we were going to sell our house by ourselves. During this process we were contacted by your realtor Janet Kermes. She had some buyers that were interested in our home. Although Janet represented the other couple her dedication and informative wealth of knowledge made the whole process go smoothly. I can't express to you enough how much Janet went above and beyond her responsibilities to ensure that her clients and my husband and I were kept apprise of all the pieces needed to complete a very complex puzzle. The closing went off without a glitch and both parties were very pleased with the final result. It is rare in today's society to come across a person who is so knowledgeable and conscientious about her job performance. Thank you for hiring a person with all of these needed resources. Janet possesses those rare intrinsic skills that people recognize and to which they respond to. She is a tremendous asset to your company which I am sure you are aware of. Janet would have our highest recommendation with complete confidence and without reservation in any future property transactions we or any of our family/friends would have. If we can be of any further assistance please do not hesitate to contact us. Thank you for your time.
Jennifer & Tom Sinotte; Narragansett, RI
I am writing to comment on the extraordinary service I have received from two of your agents, the team of Janet Kermes and Gladys Barbosa. I met Gladys and Janet over a year ago when I had just about given up on finding the right home for me in Narragansett. I met Gladys & Janet at a listing in Bonnet Shores and while that home was not right for me, I elected to continue working with them as I immediately felt a connection with how they envisioned my future home. Over the period of almost a year, Gladys and Janet both patiently discussed properties with me and showed me a number of interesting ones. This fall, we came across the right one and Janet led the closing of my home purchase. While the final negotiations were intense, Janet represented herself and me impeccably. Her integrity and communication skills are unparalleled. Her ability to remain calm in tense situations is commendable and her urgency to get it done means Janet is always willing to go above and beyond, even doing tasks that - in my case - the other agent should have completed. I certainly believe something sets them apart from other local agencies and that something most certainly is the people -although I can only speak for Gladys and Janet - I know they represent the best of the best. As realtors, professionals and now as the friends they have become. My kudos to you for assembling this fantastic pair under your firm's nameplate.
Melissa Kollitides; Narragansett, RI
Thank you for the wonderful closing gifts... We know how lucky we were to sell the house so quickly. We also know how lucky we were to have you as our agent. Your thoughtfulness and calm manner made us feel we were in good hands. All your suggestions were right on the money. Thanks again and keep in touch!
Carol & David; White Plains, NY
My wife Mary and I recently concluded a successful sale of our 20+ year vacation home at 510 Ocean Road and an adjoining building lot through the efforts and professional talent of Janet Kermes. Janet was originally recommended to us by a close personal family friend who herself enjoyed an extensive executive career in a major international non-profit organization. Janet proved to be an energetic, creative, articulate adviser to us. She is an exhaustive communicator, always fully engaged with her clients ideas, concerns, and feelings. When problems arise (as they always do) she is relentless in developing a solution that works for all the parties involved. (Janet always seems to know someone to call who specializes in correcting impediments many people have not imagined could arise in their real estate transaction!) Janet has our unqualified endorsement as a customer oriented, success motivated, real estate agent.
Frank & Mary Reining; Narragansett, RI
Janet is terrific to work with. She helped us sell a house in a difficult market. She was creative, patient, tenacious and, ultimately, very successful. She has also helped us look at numerous homes and assisted a purchase. Her knowledge of the market, both the properties and the people, is exceptional. I would highly recommend working with her.
Bill Foulkes; Saunderstown, RI
Janet Kermes is a 5 Star real estate agent with hard work, availability, personality, outstanding knowledge of the real estate she presents and ability to get along with everyone. I would recommend her without reservation.
Clark Sammartino; Narragansett, RI
I was a seller and Janet's client was a buyer. We were very impressed with her and trusted her to represent us as well as the buyer. She went above and beyond the call to negotiate a fair deal for both of us. She personally handled many jobs and requirements to make the process easier for us. Both buyer and seller were happy with the results. I would highly recommend her services.
Bob Smerkel; Narragansett, RI
We had a fantastic experience working with Janet. We worked together for about two years, because we were looking for something very specific. She was incredibly patient with us, understood exactly what we were looking for, and was great at sending us only options that she knew we'd be interested in. Once we found our perfect house, Janet made the buying process - which is usually very daunting, easy and understandable. She made great recommendations for contractors, and mortgage brokers, and gave us great advice throughout the process. We would highly recommend working with her!
- Haxton; Perryville, RI
I had searched for properties in Narragansett on my own for a while, not wanting to commit to an agent and felt that I knew the area well having previously lived there. After meeting Janet at one of her listings, I came away impressed with her insight, perspective, and patience with a first time buyer. Throughout the process, she was extremely responsive, had terrific contacts from contractors to engineers, and truly covered all the bases. I found the perfect property without stretching my budget. Would not have been as smooth a process without Janet's help.
Fabio; Narragansett, RI
Janet is smart, energetic, responsive and effective. She has an excellent sense of timing and moved when our project needed to move and held back when that was appropriate, too. She communicated with the owner clearly and concisely and therefore inspired confidence that when the owner communicated to her a view or position, that was precisely what was communicated to the other party's broker. Likewise, you could rely on her reports of actions and conversations as being accurate. She was thoughtful and patient in discussions of strategy and negotiating positions. Janet exercised initiative and good judgment when the property needed to be shown or otherwise marketed or contractors or regulatory or other interested persons needed to be contacted or scheduled. Throughout the process she was pleasant and accessible. She has a stable of contacts, contractors and other experts that she ably brings to bear as needed. We were delighted with the outcome (sale at the asking price) and recommend her highly.
Narragansett Seller
Gladys and Janet are a remarkable team! I sold a modest beach house in Narragansett and yet they treated me as if I were the seller of a huge oceanfront mansion. I live out of state, so selling a home in that case can be even more difficult. Gladys and Janet helped with all sorts of things--from finding painters, carpet stretchers and handymen--to rearranging some furniture! Not only were they efficient and professional, but genuinely caring and kind. I would recommend them highly to anyone looking to buy or sell real estate in Rhode Island.
Anne Carroll Decker, Ph.D.; West Hartford, CT
I am so sorry for the lateness of this letter. I would like to thank you for all that you did for my mother and me; without you two, I can only imagine the harder times that we would be suffering through right now. You two worked with us through the hardest times we have ever gone through and helped get us our house sold in what seemed like impossible times in the housing market. You were dedicated to us as our Realtors, and I will never forget how much you helped us. You pulled off a miracle, but I know it was more hard work and dedication than it was simple luck. I will never forget what you did for us, and there are no other Realtors on this planet I would recommend over either of you. Thank you and I wish you the greatest success and more.
Alexander Fanning; Narragansett, RI
Now that the dust has settled, it's time to look back and sing our praises. From the 'get go' you have been a source of professional expertise which sets you apart from others. Here are your notable strengths:
Accessibility - you were reachable all the time, anywhere, regardless of how jammed your schedule was.
Insightful - you provided helpful tips on how best to present the property for sale.
Patient - throughout the easement process you calmed my worst fears - of a conspiracy to derail the sale.
Sensitive - with your experience with the various relationships between families within the compound.
In the End you were our 'anchor to windward' - the steady hand that kept the focus on the final closing. A job well done! Warm regards
Helen, Elizabeth, and Hillary; Narragansett, RI
