Testimonials
Karen Douglas – Vice President / Mortgage Broker at Stonecastle Land & Home Financial
Amanda M.
I was referred to Karen and team by a friend who had a great experience working with her for his home purchase the year prior. He had nothing but great things to say, so I scheduled a call with Karen when I wanted to get my own home buying process started. After our initial call, I felt much more knowledgeable about the financial portion of the home buying process, and knew that I wanted to go with Karen. She walked me through the process and let me know what was needed and what to expect.
Once I found my real estate agent, I put her in contact with Karen as well so they could align on how quickly we could move if I did find a property I was interested in. My agent recommended I get fully underwritten in advance because of the highly competitive market on the peninsula, and Karen made it happen.
When I found the property that really felt like home and I wanted to submit a competitive offer on, Karen worked closely with my real estate agent so that we could offer a 15 day close. Karen also called me during the offer process to help me understand the financial implications of contingencies (or lack thereof when the seller countered and asked me to remove the appraisal contingency), so that I could understand what kind of money I would need to come up with if the property did not appraise for purchase price (it did appraise at purchase price, by the way!)
Thanks to Karen’s guidance and incredibly fast work, I was able to purchase my first home as a single mom – a place that I was proud to surprise my son with once I got the keys. We closed a day early even with our short 15 day timeline.
My real estate agent was initially concerned that I was going with a mortgage broker in the East Bay as the market in the Peninsula moves very quickly and is highly competitive, but after the initial call with Karen my agent was put at ease, and once the process was done she mentioned that she really loved working with Karen and could not believe how fast she got things done. The escrow officer also mentioned how great Karen was to work with and asked how I had found her.
Karen and Anna on her team were a pleasure to work with. They helped me understand every step of the process, answered all my questions, and got me set up to make the strongest offer possible with a short close and underwriting in advance. I can’t thank them enough, and highly recommend them to any prospective home buyer.
Brittany R.
Karen is the mortgage genie! Because of Karen’s hard work, dedication, timeliness, proficiency and always our best interest in mind we were able to get a great mortgage rate and close quickly on our dream home.
Our realtors were happy to work with her, as they used someone else in the past but were blown away by Karen and said that we now have the “dream team!” Karen was very organized and was always available to answer any questions that I had. Everything was done in an efficient and timely manner to make sure we made all the deadlines and everything went extremely smooth.
Karen is the best and I would recommend her to everyone. She also helped connect me to a great home insurance company with very competitive pricing which was super helpful. Thank you, thank you, thank you! 🙂
Brittany R.
Karen is amazing and such a hard worker. She was able to get my husband and I a great rate so that we could buy our very first home. She really knows her numbers! She is so attentive and wants to get the very best for her clients. I would recommend Karen to everyone, easily. Not only is she extremely professional she went above and beyond for us and we really appreciated all of her hard work and dedication! Thank you to the moon and back, Karen!!!
Luis A.
My wife and I were referred to Karen by a very close family friend, after having a conversation about wanting to refinance our home. From the moment we were introduced to Karen, it was just a perfect partnership. She was ready to answer our questions without hesitation, and if she didn’t have an answer, she would get back to us very quickly. Karen made this processes very simple for my wife and I. Her attention to detail is just amazing. We feel she went above and beyond what we could have expected, and by the other reviews listed, we are not the only ones who feel that way. Karen is just AWESOME.
Robert J.
Working with Karen on a refinance for my house was effortless. Karen and her team took care of everything! They were fast and efficient in getting me the best deal. I had a very negative experience working with someone else and had the complete opposite experience with Karen. I would highly recommend her!
Tonie B.
I wanted to refinance my home but I didn’t know where to go so I looked up Mortgage Brokers online and that’s how I found Karen Douglas. I noticed that she had five stars and all the reviews were glowing, so I decided to give her a call. So glad I did. Along the way we hit a few bumps, but Karen was able to smooth everything out. She kept me in the loop on everything and there were no surprises except for the fact that she is great at what she does! I received everything I wanted, and then some! Thank you Karen!
Crystal Chau D.
Karen is amazing at what she does! She came highly recommended by a top Coldwell Banker Realtor that we were connected to, and she delivered. My husband and I were first time home buyers, with little to no understanding of how the process works. But she walked us through the entire process, was very accessible and patient with our many questions, and made us feel competent and at ease. She also worked very well with our realtor.
She worked her magic and made our offer the most competitive out of so many other offers. She took care of stuff we didn’t even know was needed.
Initially, I was hesitant to go with her instead of other bank lenders (which had super low interest rates advertised), but I’m so glad I went with Karen, because don’t think they could have come through as she did. One thing she told us was that we could go with other big lenders, but they would not be available 24/7 and on weekends as she was and couldn’t create such amazing terms for us. She was right.
We actually didn’t think we would be able to buy for 6 months- a year with our current income, but she laid out many options that we didn’t even know existed and were actually feasible. Within 2 months of talking to her, we had closed on a house! Super grateful for Karen’s help.
One amusing part of working with her is that her email formatting is pretty unique, with a lot of bolding and colors and sometimes typos, mostly because she is voice texting (which she has a disclaimer about). However, it was a no brainer to overlook those small details because of how amazing she is as a mortgage broker and her knowledge of the numbers, which is what matters most.
Tarun M.
Karen is a sweetheart and one of the best in the business. This was our first home purchase and I cannot appreciate enough the time she spent with us, helping us through the process. She treated every challenge/issue as if her own and went to great lengths to resolve it together. With her on our side, the home loan approval process was a breeze. I was told by a lot of people that getting financing for a home loan is not a good experience but she made it so pleasant for us and we are very thankful! She worked with us almost everyday to come up with whatever new demand the bank came up with and they did demand a lot! In the end, it’s all about the money and she got us a great rate as well. She was there with us when we signed the documents and took possession. Do yourself a favour and talk to her about your home buying needs!
Tarun
Cathileen M.
Karen Douglas has done an amazing job for us, her attention to detail is like no other, she went above and beyond making sure we kept on task with all the deadlines in order to meet our closing date, I have done many home loans over the past 25 years, and this was by far the best experience I have ever had! Karen is one of the finest in the Industry’s..
Chris N.
She is amazing! She has helped me twice now, once summarized in my initial review in 2015 and then again late 2016 and now I pay an even lower rate! Thanks Karen, you are the best.
Chris N.
Went to many banks trying to get a loan. I make 6 figures a year and was still having problems getting a good rate and the amount I needed, even with good credit.
Karen was able to get me the best loan and loan to value ratio. Without her, I would have had to sell the home I spent nearly 3 years having built. Thank you Karen for you hard work. Hihghly recommend Karen Douglas to anyone and everyone needing a home loan!
Ken K.
Karen was extremely helpful throughout the mortgage process. I was traveling for business frequently and she always kept me apprised of the loan status and things I needed to tend to to keep the process moving. Her professional approach and attention to detail were greatly appreciated especially due to the traveling I was doing for my new job. Karen made the process as stress free as possible. Lastly Karen is genuinely trustworthy, kind hearted and caring person always willing to help out.
Travis M.
Karen is great. Answered all of our questions throughout the process quickly, even while she was on vacation, her assistant did an excellent job helping us out. We were able to secure a great loan beyond what we were asking Karen to find. Appreciated her professionalism and guidance.
Tanya W.
I worked with Karen on last year on the refinance of my house in WC. She was great! Since it was my first time doing a refinance, I had many questions and she was available to answer them all. She was very organized and let me in advance about all of the paperwork I would need and was sensitive to my work schedule. Along with her professionalism she is a very kind and positive person!
James B.
Karen was great from the start to the finish. I had a lot of questions since it was my first home purchase and she took the time to answer them all. She sat down with my wife and i to help us understand our financial limitations and loan options. Most importantly she never pushed us to try and purchase something we weren’t comfortable with. I will definitely work with her again in the future if i purchase another home or refinance.
Ros H.
Karen earned our trust from the moment we met her. She listened to our questions, answered them honestly and taught us about the home buying process. We were purchasing from a builder who had their own in-house preferred lender, which could have deterred anyone from investing time and effort to help us. Even though Karen knew there was no guarantee we would go with her, she took the time to help us learn and even prepared most of the documents the preferred lender needed. The home buying process is a stressful and uncertain process, but the one thing we knew we could trust was the service Karen provided. We love Karen and so will you!
Sue C.
I’ve worked with Karen now for a mortgage as well as (3 years later) a refi. (I HATE stuff like this…..having to comply with all the legally mandated deadlines, document signings, statement copies blah blah blah…..) On both occasions, Karen helped me through, gently prodding when needed and giving me clear and concise directions regarding what was needed. If I had to do it again (And Lord I hope I don’t for a really long time!) I would definitely seek out Karen and her team.
Jessica Mora
Karen is a wizard! Her and her team guided me throughout the entire home buying process step by step. She made my dreams of owning a home a reality and I am forever grateful. Thank you so much Karen!
Tad H. Cluff
Thanks so much for you help! I will tell you that we have been clients of Wells Fargo bank for over 30 years and have given them a lot of business. We have our mortgage loan with them and have been exceptional clients. You think I could get anyone on the phone this morning to talk to me about what we are trying to do? No way. After wasting two hours on the phone all I got was an electronic application that didn’t work and would only accept Calaveras County as a possible home search area. Maddening. I am so glad that Natalie connected us with you. Feel free to use my quote or part of it in your marketing materials.
Genie Gray
We did it again, Karen! You’re so great at what you do, thanks for everything!
Maria
Thank you for making this a smooth and easy process.
Melissa and Iain
We greatly appreciate your help and making the process so easy for us. We look forward to working with you again in the future!
Barbara Phelan
Karen was very helpful, answered all my questions. She was a pleasure to deal with.
Peter Vrana
I was very happy with Karen at Stone Castle Mortgage. They worked hard to help us obtain a refinance on our rental property.
Patricia Himenez
Karen is the best. Was always available, quick response to all questions! Thorough Explanations.
Robert Kirk
Karen is an outstanding mortgage broker. She met our every expectation. This is our third loan with Karen.
Nicholas Toy
Karen was extremely helpful and answered all of our questions thoroughly. She
Paula Pipitone
Karen Douglas is wonderful! She goes above and beyond to see that everything is perfect. Thank you Karen for going that extra mile.
James Burckhard
Karen Douglas was amazing to work with. Our loan was seamless and she made the entire process so simple! By far the best experience.