Tom Rochford
Tom started his commercial real estate career in 1974. He worked five years for the federal government in New York City and four more in San Francisco. His accomplishments during his years with the federal government were varied and extensive. They included simple as well as complex real estate and construction projects throughout the US, Canada, Europe, and the Pacific. Tom left federal employment in 1981 and began a successful real estate consulting practice. That practice (providing expert advice on construction and real estate matters) grew to hundreds of clients throughout the U.S., Europe, and the Far East during its first ten years and continues today.
In 1989 the San Francisco Bay area was rocked by the Loma Prieta earthquake. Tom’s Lafayette residence suffered extensive structural damage forcing him to relocate his family to nearby Moraga while he reconstructed his home and negotiated with his homeowner’s insurance company, his mortgage holder, FEMA, SBA and various legal, engineering and construction firms involved in the claims process.
During that time one of the first people he met turned out to be a custom home builder, named Peter Branagh. Peter focused on designing and building quality custom homes. Homes which reminded Tom of colonial Williamsburg and his East Coast roots. Traditional Colonial style homes were uncommon for Northern California builders in 1989 and Tom and Peter’s mutual appreciation of these homes forged a lifelong friendship and business collaboration between the two. Tom obtained his California real estate broker license, created Tom Rochford Real Estate Company and became Peter Branagh’s exclusive real estate broker and agent. Over the years Tom helped Peter grow his development business from two or three custom homes per year to ten or more per year. Their most recent collaboration was Hidden Oaks, a 21 luxury home subdivision in Lafayette. That subdivision took almost twelve years (2000 to 2012) from concept to completion and was the last project they worked on together. That neighborhood remains a living testament to the outstanding design, quality and community Tom and Peter together were able to create. Tragically, Peter and his wife, Mona met their untimely demise when Peter’s plane crashed in 2012.
Tom Rochford Real Estate Company is a full-service real estate brokerage for residential and commercial properties. Tom’s desire to use all his skills lead him naturally to love projects involving new construction or extensive repair and alterations. Some of his oldest clients and friends are builders and developers of real estate projects. In recent years Tom was instrumental in developing and leasing a ground-up 12,000 square foot construction project for an FBI office in Ponce, Puerto Rico.
Tom’s extensive real estate and construction background make him uniquely qualified and well prepared to skillfully represent Buyers, Sellers, Landlords, and Tenants on a variety of property transactions – vacant land, office buildings, condominiums, multi-family projects, and single-family homes. Tom especially enjoys projects that involve complex contractual matters because it allows him to utilize the full range of his experience and expertise. Through the years Tom has represented thousands of residential and commercial clients and has completed hundreds of millions of dollars in transactions, but the thing he is most proud of his business partner Brian. Brian is Tom’s eldest son and upon graduating from college in 2002 he surprised Tom and announced that he would like to join the family real estate business.
Brian has been instrumental in expanding the business to include residential property management. He also continues to expand our residential buyer/seller clientele. Tom and Brian continue to serve residential property owners throughout the Bay area as well as commercial investor clients throughout California and the US.
In 1989 the San Francisco Bay area was rocked by the Loma Prieta earthquake. Tom’s Lafayette residence suffered extensive structural damage forcing him to relocate his family to nearby Moraga while he reconstructed his home and negotiated with his homeowner’s insurance company, his mortgage holder, FEMA, SBA and various legal, engineering and construction firms involved in the claims process.
During that time one of the first people he met turned out to be a custom home builder, named Peter Branagh. Peter focused on designing and building quality custom homes. Homes which reminded Tom of colonial Williamsburg and his East Coast roots. Traditional Colonial style homes were uncommon for Northern California builders in 1989 and Tom and Peter’s mutual appreciation of these homes forged a lifelong friendship and business collaboration between the two. Tom obtained his California real estate broker license, created Tom Rochford Real Estate Company and became Peter Branagh’s exclusive real estate broker and agent. Over the years Tom helped Peter grow his development business from two or three custom homes per year to ten or more per year. Their most recent collaboration was Hidden Oaks, a 21 luxury home subdivision in Lafayette. That subdivision took almost twelve years (2000 to 2012) from concept to completion and was the last project they worked on together. That neighborhood remains a living testament to the outstanding design, quality and community Tom and Peter together were able to create. Tragically, Peter and his wife, Mona met their untimely demise when Peter’s plane crashed in 2012.
Tom Rochford Real Estate Company is a full-service real estate brokerage for residential and commercial properties. Tom’s desire to use all his skills lead him naturally to love projects involving new construction or extensive repair and alterations. Some of his oldest clients and friends are builders and developers of real estate projects. In recent years Tom was instrumental in developing and leasing a ground-up 12,000 square foot construction project for an FBI office in Ponce, Puerto Rico.
Tom’s extensive real estate and construction background make him uniquely qualified and well prepared to skillfully represent Buyers, Sellers, Landlords, and Tenants on a variety of property transactions – vacant land, office buildings, condominiums, multi-family projects, and single-family homes. Tom especially enjoys projects that involve complex contractual matters because it allows him to utilize the full range of his experience and expertise. Through the years Tom has represented thousands of residential and commercial clients and has completed hundreds of millions of dollars in transactions, but the thing he is most proud of his business partner Brian. Brian is Tom’s eldest son and upon graduating from college in 2002 he surprised Tom and announced that he would like to join the family real estate business.
Brian has been instrumental in expanding the business to include residential property management. He also continues to expand our residential buyer/seller clientele. Tom and Brian continue to serve residential property owners throughout the Bay area as well as commercial investor clients throughout California and the US.