Mason-McDuffie

I had a wonderful experience working with Pauline Shah at Mason-​McDuffie. With Pauline’s guidance, my husband and I were able to purchase our first home for us and our two boys! Pauline is very response. At times I would wonder if she ever slept. :-) She answered all our questions and made sure that my husband and I understood the homebuying process.
If we ever do decide to buy another home, Pauline and her team would be our FIRST and ONLY choice. Thank you Pauline!

My wife and I had a wonderful experience working with Pauline Shah and her team (Alisa, Carly and many others behind the scenes I’m sure). We purchased a new construction home, which was quite the experience I must say. With new construction homes, there is no fixed closing date and everything is a moving target. But throughout the entire process, Pauline was on top of things and she and her team made sure that documents were received and processed in a timely manner. If we had gone with another lender, I would not have had the confidence that we would receive our keys prior to the holiday season — but with MMcD and Pauline, we did! It was the greatest Christmas\Holiday gift we could have possibly received. Pauline was informative, responsive, and always available by phone for any questions we had. I would definitely recommend her and her team.

I had a great experience working with Pauline Shah at Mason-​McDuffie. She made the whole mortgage application process as smooth as possible. We bought a new construction house, which means there is no fixed closing date, but Pauline was always on top of the process and always gathered the documents that were expiring or any documents that might be needed, so there are no surprises at the end. She would make it a point of always keeping us in the loop and always was there to answer all our questions.
I would definitely recommend her and would definitely work with her again.

Yikes, what a dumpster fire this was…
For anyone considering the CalHFA program… don’t…The program was never explained to me… so while I was out there like a moron bidding on homes, I was never going to be qualified anyway. They want you to either be debt free, or, maybe a car payment only. The debt to income ratio % is much lower than an FHA loan… Mason McDuffie did not bother to check anything and I lost 2 homes in total… lost $ 34 in a bank fee (which they said twice they would refund me and did not bother), and also lost the $ 300 you have to pay CalHFA up front… they get to keep your money no matter what.
It was also never explained to me that even though the CalHFA program is down payment assistance, you need to front the earnest money… that’s when I lost the first home.
The 2^nd home was lost at the 11^th hour… final document… I was buying things for my new home and so was the seller… everything fell apart… why? Because my dent to income was too high for the CalHFA program…
Unfortunately in a market like this, lenders seem to forget manners, education, and business ethics. They are so busy counting the money they are making, they forget to take care of their customers… I guess they did not learn any lessons in the last crash… and we ALL know another one is coming… maybe it will take a bunch of them getting laid off again to realize they need to treat people better on good times? Doubtful…
If anyone wants a real lender that actually walks you through everything, please message me… I don’t want to make this review about him or his company… this is about the poor service Mason McDuffie seems to pride themselves on.
I was very upset to say the least… I can live without the $ 334 I lost, and can also understand when you do not meet qualifications… but I do not like a company that are money hungry people that don’t care about clients or repeat business and cannot even offer a simple apology for their mistakes… Apologies are free people… it’s ok to give one now and then. It’s also ok to do your job up front and let people know if they are fully qualified up front.
So yeah, you guessed it, I will never use this company again… I am not even mad anymore… more disappointed that they are a «dime a dozen» type of company… but I did find one that really cares about clients, because they know you can get even more of their business in the future.

I had a great experience working with Karen Creagmile at Mason-​McDuffie. She made the whole mortgage application process as painless as possible and was very thorough in answering questions that I had about the process and the loan. She was also very responsive to calls and emails and did a good job of keeping me posted on the status of the loan. Would definitely use them again!

I recently purchased a new home and Mason McDuffie was one of the preferred lenders. Jonas Champion was our loan officer and I couldn’t have asked for anyone better! The level of service he provided was outstanding. He was extremely communicative throughout the entire loan process, always answered/​returned phone calls and emails, and very personable. I highly recommend M/​M and particularly Jonas to anyone in the market for a home financing!

Jesus Renteria was beyond rude at times during the process. Telling me «drop my attitude» at times because of my frustration with him for not clearly listening to me and my situation. The under writer Arliss Wells kept changing the approval stipulations as I would meet them and also like Jesus obviously doesn’t care what the borrower ask or says. This felt as if I was receiving discriminatory treatment because of the fact that I am black and young. They questioned every dollar as if it was drug money or some sort of illegal activity and made me feel as if my business was not welcome. I will be contacting my attorney and the state attorney’s office because this type of treatment is unlawful. I would recommend taking your business else where.

Karin Moscato was so unbelievably rude to us during the pre-​qualification process. I had gotten her name from my realtor, and he was horrified and so apologetic when I called him and let him know how Karin had talked to me. After she started the process, she called me at one point to discuss the application and actually laughed at me. I ended up hanging up and never speaking to her again. I could not believe how unprofessional and immature she was.
I’m a 41 year-​old teacher with two graduate degrees in my field (I’m a professor of English). I’m not an idiot. I don’t expect to be talked to like I’m an ignorant child.
My poor realtor was mortified and instantly recommended a different loan officer.

I recently refinance my home with Pauline Shah who was referred to me by a close friend. Pauline is very knowledgeable, super friendly, responsive and very professional. She takes care of all the details and keeps you well informed along the way. Pauline is awesome and the list just goes on and on. If you’re looking to refinance or buying a home, I would highly recommend Pauline Shah at Mason-​McDuffie!

So our experience with the company was great. Our Senior Broker was Debbie Sundlie. She did an amazing job handling our paperwork and everything that went into getting our house. We had the VA loan and Debbie handled everything perfectly and worked very hard to get what we wanted. I would recommend this place and Debbie to anyone needing a broker.
The title company sent a notary to our house. The notary seemed as if he was having trouble communicating because of a language barrier. Debbie took care of that and walked us through the paperwork. We were able to buy a house with no big issues at all. Something I thought was going to be the most painful process, Debbie made sure it went smooth. Thank you Debbie and to the Mason McDuffie team for making our first home purchase a success!

My husband and I just purchased a new home in Brentwood, and we were helped out with our loans by Jonas Champion. He was great to work with! He paid very close attention to detail as far as our interest rate, all the fees, and the best possible loan that would work for our family. He was very personable, was always available to answer questions or explain things so we could clearly understand what the process. I would highly recommend Jonas Champion as your Loan Officer!!!

My husband and I just purchased our first home through Mason McDuffie Mortgage. Jonas Champion is not only very personable, he carefully guided us through this very confusing process. Jonas made the entire experience much less intimating and we feel like we received the best possible rate on our mortgage! We wholeheartedly recommend this company, Jonas!

My husband and I recently purchased our first home through Mason-​McDuffie and we couldn’t have been happier with the experience. Our loan officer Jennifer Mize-​Claunch was amazing! She was friendly, responsive and very knowledgeable. She took the time to explain each step of the process before and during, which was important to us as first time buyers. She made sure we had all our documentation lined up so that we didn’t run into hassles during the underwriting stage. She even worked with us to get the most competitive interest rate. If you’re buying a home or looking to refinance, I would highly recommend Jennifer and the team at Mason-​McDuffie!

My wife and I actually found Jesse R. from Mason McDuffie by accident after a disappointment through another avenue for a home loan. My wife found his number online and called him at 6:30pm, assuming she’d just leave a message. He actually answered!
From that point on, he was committed to finding the right loan for us. We were in escrow about a week later! Jesse went above and beyond to make us feel secure as first time buyers. I was anticipating a very stressful and complicated process going in, but I was absolutely wrong!
We are officially homeowners! Jesse helped to make this milestone in our lives a pleasant one!

Pauline Shah was referred to me by my realtor after I went through a bad experience with another lender. She was able to close my loan in a matter of 17 days from start to finish. She is smart, attentive, hard– working, organized, very experienced and easy to reach anytime of the day or night. As a first time home buyer I needed somebody who can explain the process to me in layman terms and put me at ease. She definitely did that and more. I highly recommend her.

Jonas is knowledgable, friendly and extremely professional. He takes care of all the details and keeps you well informed along the way. He is upfront and explains things carefully. I have a lot of experience with lenders and wish I had known about his services the 20+ years I sold real estate.

Christie Craig was a gem to work with on the refi of my home in Oakland. I met her over a couple of years ago through our cycling club. I knew she worked in the industry but she never tried sell me on a loan which I thought was nice. On one ride, I mentioned that I was looking to refi and she said she would love to help me out. The process went very quickly and she explained all the details. ! She was super professional and knowledgeable. Returned all my calls and kept me up todate on the payoff date, title, underwriting and closing. What I thought would be a nerve racking experience was a great one! If you are needing a loan or refi, please contact Christie! She is great!

Melinda was my loan officer for my home loan a few months ago. I used a CalHFA first time buyers program along with a FHA loan on a HUD home. The closing process was long and delayed as a result of the seller (and escrow!!!) delays, but we eventually closed thanks to Melinda and the Mason McDuffie team. Throughout the whole process, Melinda was very responsive and prompt in returning emails and calls, even when some of those in hind-​site were merely reassuring me that i will eventually close. 5 stars for Melinda!

As a first time home buyer, the whole process of buying a home is extremely daunting and quite stressful. However, I could not ask for a better advocate in the home-​buying process than the one I found in Greg Heffron at Mason-​McDuffie. My credit union utilized Mason-​McDuffie to help out in the mortgage process and Greg was the loan officer assigned to my file.
Over the course of a year, he has seen me through the whole process, working with one agent for a few offers that did not work out, and working extremely closely with my new agent when I jumped ship and decided to work with a traditional real estate agent. His follow-​through has been top notch, and he has provided quick turnaround for documents and approval letters that we’ve needed for the offers we’ve put in; and even one step further and actually called the listing agent each time. Honestly, I couldn’t have asked for anything better!
At the end of the day, though, for circumstances beyond Greg’s control, we were not able to use Mason-​McDuffie to finance the loan. My agent and I were both really bummed, but if things were different, I wouldn’t hesitate for a moment to use Greg. He went above and beyond multiple times, and is a star in my book.

We have refinanced and most recently purchased a new home through Jonas. He truly looks out for his customers, locks in the best rates and is always willing to answer questions.
He is very professional, super accommodating and kid friendly. He even arranged our refi signing at our house to make it easier on the kids. I can’t say enough good things about Jonas.
If your looking for a painless refi or loan process call Jonas!