RE/MAX Parkside - Beckie Stephens, Managing Broker

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*This review applies specifically to MALCOLM MAUGHAN (Realtor/Managing Broker) : 360-791-6006* My husband and I first contacted Malcolm when we received PCS orders for Joint Base Lewis-McChord from Fort Hood, TX. He had a property listed on craigslist (a personal listing for rent) that we were interested in. After describing our situation (we were embarking on our last duty station and looking to adopt dogs, making an apartment unfeasible and requiring the space of a single-family home), Malcolm suggested we consider purchasing a home (we had no intention of leaving Washing after separating from the Army, we had great credit ratings, low debt:credit ratios, and some cash on hand). We were very young and had never considered purchasing a home, but after Malcolm took the time to lay our options out for us, it made perfect sense. A no-brainer. Malcolm began by sending us listings that fit our very general requirements. After sifting through the obvious NOs, Malcolm drove here and there visiting various homes while we were still in Texas to send us a slew of additonal pictures. He was never pushy, never rushed us, and took the time to understand our needs and desires. At times my husband and I felt overwhelmed with the house-hunting process, but Malcolm's patience combined with his knowledge and experience completely put us at ease. Had we been in the hands of anybody else during this entire process it is very possible we could have ended up with a home that was all wrong for us. He talked us out of a dream home that had failing siding that was not installed to code that could have cost us tens of thousands in damages (his prior career was in civil engineering; that edge was worth its weight in gold). He talked us out of a quaint, fantastical cottage on a green belt after warning us of its resale/rental potential (not good). He taught me how to put on my poker face while viewing a home with the owner present (a negotiation tactic that could have ended in the seller's favor... Oops!) By the time we finally made it to Washington Malcolm had nailed down a solid handful of serious contenders. In the end, we purchased a newer home (which Malcolm advised would be easier to maintain and less likely for big-ticket items to fail all at once) in a quiet, gated community surrounded by three private lakes and 16 miles of hiking trails surrounded by a green belt (we are a very outdoorsy family with three dogs and a young son). We had looked at several other more expensive homes but they just didn't "fit", and Malcolm recognized that, and so we moved on. Malcolm's goal was to get us into our new home within the first 30 days or sooner so as to minimize the overall amount of time we would be spending in a hotel. When that wasn't possible (the previous owners were in Alaska), he devised a genius idea to rent our future home from the previous owners until the deal went through. That ultimately lead to us living in a hotel for a mere 11 days before we were in our forever home. We began this entire process from Texas in mid-November and closed before the new year. Additionally, Malcolm's wife Rosemary is a loan officer with The Legacy Group, which made the finance aspect of the buying process a piece of cake. They were able to hold our hands and walk us through the entire process with little to no frustration or confusion. It was an absolutely wonderful first-time home buying experience. Malcolm remains a good friend to this day and we always carry his card in our wallet, as trustworthy and smart realtors are a rarity in today's housing market.