Stu Clifton

"I am very happy to provide you with a review of Victoria Coster. She was excellent in how she perfo … Read More Read Less

"It is with a heavy heart that I write this review, as I really did not want my situation to come to … Read More this, but none the less this is where me and my wife are at. We are both first time home buyers who recently just closed on a house with Michael schwarzweller, "Mike", and we are now suffering the consequences of this. While we were eager to potentially get our first home in the Triangle area, we also had expressed to Mike that we were not in a major hurry to do so, as making a rushed decision would leave us in not the best situation. Alas, a fantastic looking opportunity from the outside fooled us as first time home buyers. We let down our guard on a lot of issues, because Mike had assured us that he specialized in dealing with first time buyers like us, and we trusted Mike and his recommendations foolishly. Mike and his team had fiduciary duties to protect our interests, and they ultimately failed. We told Mike specifically that we wanted a house with no mold or structural damage, and that these two details were major deal breakers for us on any house. We noticed the floors were soft in the kitchen of our home and Mike assured us it was merely the age of the house and the house "settling". Mikes "pro" inspector recommendation also assured us on this same truth. As first-time home buyers, my wife and I decided to listen to them and trust both of their opinions. We also were never recommended a termite inspection, a re-inspection of the attic (which the home inspector missed) asbestos remediation, and several other things which a real estate agent who specializes in first time home buyers should be doing. Because of Mike's inspector recommendations, our ignorance as first time buyers, and Mike's at best negligence, we are now tens of thousands of dollars into a house that needs fixing, which we were told that was "move in ready." We dumped our life savings into getting this house to have a starter home for our growing family, and a second inspection AFTER close revealed the entire host of issues that we are contending with if want a home. I have been in contact with the Caul group since our discovery of these problems, and they have been responsive but not helpful. There has been no remediation to adequately make this situation right. We are upside down in this house, and this was supposed to be a major stepping stone for our family, but it has turned into nothing but a consuming struggle, which we now have to deal with while expecting a baby at any point now. We now have to deal with structural, mold, fire, potential termites, attic and roofing issues, loose HVAC ductwork in the crawlspace, and a bunch of other stuff in this supposedly "livable" house, that mike was confident in. I severely regret how much trust I placed in Mike and inadvertently the Caul group in this transaction, and now we are paying the price for it. Don't make the same mistake that my family made." Read Less

"As first-time home buyers, my husband and I decided to trust Michael Schwarzweller, “Mike,” and Caul … Read More Group Residential to guide us in purchasing a home, and this ended up being a devastating decision. We made it clear to Mike that we were in no rush to buy a home and would only pay to break our apartment lease if we found a home that was exactly what we were looking for. We made Mike aware that we were unwilling to purchase a home with major foundational issues, mold issues (I am pregnant and have asthma), or any other very costly damage. Knowing this, Mike assured us that the soft, sagging floors were just the home “settling”, that the spots of organic growth in the closet were just mildew that needed to wiped off, and that the heat definitely wasn’t broken- even though I raised the concern that the indoor temperature just felt like the AC was off when we went to “test” the heat. Mike portrayed so much confidence in the quality of the home that my husband and I offered 25k over asking in order to make a competitive offer. We had the home inspection done by the inspector that Mike assured us he had all of his clients use, claiming this inspector was extremely competent, affordable, and efficient. The inspector ended up being grossly incompetent, missing significant structural damage, fire damage, evidence of termites, major mold issues, asbestos, broken HVAC, several items that were not up to code, roofing issues, and more (we did not become aware of this until after the purchase). These were areas of material concern that we had made Mike aware of and were trusting him to bring up during the inspection (which he insisted on representing us at instead of us being there). Additionally, Mike failed to inform us that we should get a termite inspection, or have any other specialized inspections (well, septic, insect, HVAC, asbestos, mold, radon, ect). If anything, he rushed us through the process and made it appear that these additional inspections would be an unnecessary waste of money and time. Sadly, we did not know any better and trusted him as first-time buyers. Once we purchased the home, upon the concern of family members who thought the floors felt very unstable, we got an additional home inspection. This inspection revealed extensive damage, so much so that the house is unlivable and needs several tens of thousands of dollars of repairs. We feel that Mike either intentionally manipulated us to push the sale through and earn a commission, or was just grossly incompetent. When we reached out to Caul Group Residential, they were unapologetic and didn’t have any desire to make the situation right. As a result of trusting Mike and Caul Group Residential to guide us as first time home buyers, we are left in a devastating situation- expecting a baby any month now, yet unable to live in the home that we poured our entire life savings into because it is in such disrepair and locked into paying a mortgage that does not remotely reflect the homes value. We are sorely disappointed with our experience with Caul Group Residential, and pray that they are not able to harm other home buyers the way they harmed us through their extreme neglect." Read Less

"I have never taken to social media, but I have no choice after what I’ve seen happen here. A young c … Read More Read Less

"I worked with Victoria and there are no words to explain how amazing she was during the process. As … Read More Read Less

"Victoria was amazing! She helped us become first-time homeowners and was always super responsive whe … Read More Read Less

"We got to work with Bryson and he helped us throughout the entire process of purchasing our first ho … Read More Read Less

"Working with Melissa has been wonderful! From day one she made me feel supported, informed and genui … Read More Read Less

"Emily Brown exemplifies the best traits that a Realtor can have. which is why she is ranked so high … Read More Read Less

"We recently had the pleasure of working with Minda, from Caul Group Residential, as our realtor duri … Read More Read Less

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