Find the right place for .
Stay in the city. Cross the bridge. Go further north. I'm a buyer's advisor for the corridor from San Francisco through Marin into Wine Country — for people whose next chapter looks different from their last one. Sellers, I work both ends of the move.
Based in Petaluma. Working from the Golden Gate to Wine Country.
- Compass
- California DRE #02119451
- Buyer & seller representation
- San Francisco → Marin → Wine Country
- 18+ sales · $54M+ closed · Los Angeles
Start with the life. Then find the house.
Most buyers start with a number and a Zillow tab. The better starting point is a harder question: what are you optimizing for? Proximity to work, or distance from it. Schools. Land. A shorter Tuesday. A bigger Saturday. Whether the city is still giving you more than it costs you.
Working together, we get specific about those tradeoffs before touring anything — what your budget actually buys in each market, what you'd gain and give up by crossing the bridge, and which compromises you'll stop noticing in a year versus the ones that will quietly drive you out of the house.
Then the search gets easy, because we're only looking at homes that fit the life. I only show you what's worth your time — and when it's time to offer, I negotiate like it's my own money.
A particular kind of buyer finds me: someone whose situation changed faster than their plans did. A good year, a company event, equity that finally became real. Money that arrives all at once tends to ask a bigger question than which house — it asks which life. That's a good problem, and it deserves better than a rushed answer. I work alongside your financial and tax advisors, keep the search quiet when discretion matters, and make sure the first big purchase of the next chapter is the right one.
One corridor. Four different lives.
San Francisco, Marin, Sonoma, and Napa sit within an hour of each other and offer four different answers to the same question: how do you want to live? Most of my work happens when someone is moving between them.
The center of gravity — work, culture, restaurants, the airport, all of it walkable. Flats, condos, and view homes in a market that rewards decisiveness and punishes hesitation. The question here is rarely whether the city is worth it. It's how much of it you need.
Ten minutes past the bridge the trees get taller and the pace changes. Space, schools, trailheads, and a commute you can actually live with. The classic move for people leaving the city without leaving it behind — Sausalito through Novato, and the towns between.
More on MarinLand, character, and a genuinely different rhythm. Petaluma's historic blocks, the Sonoma plaza, west county acreage. Your money buys more here — more property, more quiet, more distance — and the community is one you join, not one you visit.
More on SonomaWine Country at its most polished: walkable towns, estates, vineyards, and everything between. Some people buy here for weekends and end up staying for good. The market is smaller and more particular than it looks, which is exactly why guidance matters.
Not sure which fits? That's usually where the conversation starts.
A good sale starts before the home goes live.
Most of what determines your outcome is decided in the weeks before the listing appears: what you fix, what you skip, how you price, and how the home is introduced to buyers. Often a sale here is one half of a bigger move — into the city, out of it, or further north. I handle both ends.
A comparable-sale review plus the condition, setting, and buyer pool that an algorithm misses.
A focused plan for repairs, presentation, photography, and launch — without defaulting to unnecessary work.
A coordinated story, distribution plan, showing strategy, and feedback loop from day one.
From first conversation to closing
- 01Property and goals review
We walk the property together — or the decision, if you're not there yet — and get honest about timing and what a good outcome looks like.
- 02Pricing and preparation options
A written pricing review with real comparables, plus a prioritized list of what's worth doing before launch.
- 03Creative, launch, and buyer outreach
Photography, film, positioning, and a distribution plan aimed at the buyers most likely to pay for this home.
- 04Offer analysis, negotiation, and escrow
Side-by-side offer comparison beyond headline price, then close coordination through closing.
“Wilke helped us sell our house in Glassell Park. He was the consummate professional — very responsive. It was the smoothest sales transaction we've been involved in.”
“Wilke had an innate and uncanny understanding of exactly what we wanted and needed in a home. As first-time home buyers we were overwhelmed, but Wilke held our hand through the process, fiercely advocated for us when necessary, and gave us space when we needed to think. We couldn't have found our dream home without him.”
“Wilke took the time to really understand what we were looking for and only showed us houses he thought would be a good fit. When the time came to make an offer, he made sure we were comfortable with every step and worked hard to secure us our dream house. We love our house so much we're never leaving.”
Experience earned in competitive markets.
Before the North Bay, I built my practice in Los Angeles — Topanga, Malibu, Silver Lake, the Westside — some of the most competitive, presentation-driven markets in the country. That discipline came north with me.
- 783 Paseo MiramarPacific Palisades$8,150,000
- 27311 Winding WayMalibu$7,950,000
- 4124 Dundee DriveLos Feliz$4,500,000
- 31518 Anacapa View DriveMalibu$4,500,000
- 21344 Colina DriveTopanga$2,902,623
- 2633 Coal Canyon RoadMalibu$2,900,000
- 2303 Tuna Canyon RoadTopanga$2,500,000
- 1111 Canyon TrailTopanga$2,300,000
- 984 Indiana AvenueVenice$2,225,000
- 2516 Ivanhoe DriveSilver Lake$2,125,000
- 20939 Hillside DriveTopanga$2,000,000
- 20792 Medley LaneTopanga$1,946,395
- 2455 Lake View AvenueSilver Lake$1,900,000
- 3582 Kelton AvenueWest Los Angeles$1,895,000
- 22450 Philiprimm StreetWoodland Hills$1,825,000
- 2621 Topanga Skyline DriveTopanga$1,800,000
- 6336 Weidlake DriveHollywood Hills$1,690,000
- 19591 Bowers DriveTopanga$1,560,000
Active listings
Current listings I represent — the same preparation, launch, and negotiation your home would get.
3 bed · 2 bath · 1,827 sqft · 0.24 ac
Your home deserves more than a listing.
Real artifacts, not adjectives. This is what a launch with me actually produces.
Stills and short-form video shot for how the home actually lives, not just how it measures.
One page that names the buyer, the story, and the sequence of the first two weeks.
Compass network exposure, targeted digital placement, and print where it still matters locally.
You hear what buyers and agents actually said, every week, and we adjust with it.
The Marin + Sonoma Pre-Market Seller Plan
A concise checklist for deciding what to fix, what to skip, how to think about timing, and what information to gather before choosing a list price. More useful than an “instant home value” for a distinctive North Bay property.
- Goals, timing, occupancy, and decision-makers
- Property records and material facts to assemble
- Pre-list inspection options
- Repair and staging prioritization framework
- Pricing-review inputs
- Photography and launch timeline
- Offer comparison worksheet beyond headline price
- Questions to ask any listing agent
Real estate is a decision about how you want to live.
I'm Wilke Itzin, a Compass real estate agent working the corridor from San Francisco through Marin into Sonoma and Napa. I live in Petaluma. I've made the move my clients are considering.
The house is the visible part of the decision. Underneath it are the real questions — about work, family, money, time, and what the next five years should feel like. My job is to understand the person and the property, then make sure the transaction serves the life and not the other way around.
I grew up in Los Angeles — born in Silver Lake, raised in Malibu and Topanga — and built my practice in some of the most competitive markets in California before moving my family north. I've also spent years building companies of my own, which taught me how people actually behave in the middle of a big transition — a new role, an exit, a family, a change of pace. Most moves along this corridor happen inside one, and increasingly they happen quickly, when the resources for the next chapter arrive before the plan for it does. I've been on both sides of that.
The practice itself is personal and direct. I take on a limited number of clients, do the work myself, and tell you the truth — including when the right answer is to wait.
Straight answers before we talk
Do you work with buyers?
Yes — buyer representation is the core of my practice, across San Francisco, Marin, Sonoma, and Napa. The corridor question comes up most here: which market fits, what your budget buys in each, and what you're really trading when you cross the bridge. We settle that before we tour anything.
My financial picture recently changed. Where do I start?
Slower than you think. A sudden ability to buy is not a reason to buy suddenly. We start with the life question, loop in your financial and tax advisors where it's useful, and only then look at property. If discretion matters, the search stays quiet.
Can you help me decide between staying in the city and moving north?
That decision is the center of my practice. We'll talk through commute, schools, space, cost, and pace honestly — including the option of not moving at all. I'd rather you make the right call than a transaction.
How do you determine a recommended list price?
I start with closed and pending comparables, then adjust for what the data can't see: condition, setting, light, layout, and which buyers are active for this kind of home right now. You get a written range and my reasoning, not a single number from a model.
What should I repair before selling?
Usually less than you think, and rarely nothing. We prioritize the items that change a buyer's first impression or remove an objection during inspection, and we skip work that won't return its cost.
When should I contact an agent?
Earlier than feels necessary. Two to three months before you'd like to be on the market gives us time to plan preparation, photography, and timing without rushing.
Can you help if I'm still deciding whether to sell?
Yes. A pricing review is useful even if the answer is "not yet." There's no obligation, and I'll tell you honestly if waiting is the better move.
Which parts of Marin and Sonoma do you serve?
Marin County from Sausalito through Novato, and Sonoma County with a focus on Petaluma, Sonoma, and the surrounding areas. If your home is outside that, ask — I'll tell you if I'm the right fit or refer you to someone who is.
What happens in a pricing review?
I look at the property, its records, and the local comparables, then we talk through a pricing range, preparation priorities, and a realistic timeline. It's a conversation, not an appraisal and not an automated estimate.
Start with the decision, not a sales pitch.
Buying, selling, or still working out which — tell me where you are and what you're weighing. I'll come back with the most useful next step, which is sometimes just a better question.