The good: The McDonald team does a lot of work in a fairly timely manner.
The bad: Very simple things are almost impossible. We had two absolute 'musts' for our house and a flexible price-point. He completely ignored our budget, and almost all of houses he showed us did not meet one or both of the 'must haves' for us to rent. It came to the point, while he was showing us houses, that we could arrive in front of the house and I could already tell it was time to leave since it was nowhere near what we were looking for. (and yes, I did my homework and was aware of what was and was not within the realm of possible). Looking over at his paperwork while he was driving (and reading, completely disregarding the fact that he's driving and endangering not only my life but that of everyone on the road...) I could clearly see that the listing OBVIOUSLY stated that the houses did not have the items that we had so clearly listed to him as 'must haves'.
The Ugly: Dishonest and/or possibly incompetent.
Mr. McDonald took absolutely no qualms or hesitation in notifying us that he was lying to the homeowner when he filled out our lease paperwork. Better yet, lying about inconsequential things that there was absolutely no point in lying about.
He blatantly lied to our family about the services he would provide as a realtor. He guaranteed a LOT of services, only to later deny them or brush them aside as 'well, really what happens is...." (these excuses came after paperwork was signed of course, he was already guaranteed his $$$).
After his agent had inspected the house for us (while he is talking up how many people BUY homes from him sight unseen) he also lied multiple times about what the house had to offer. Even very specific basic questions, like, "do the exterior doors have locks on them?" were met with condescending assurances -"of course they do". And then, of course after we had already signed the paperwork, I got to see the house and discover that all of these things he had so adamantly assured us of were NOT there. Yeah. South Florida... right where I want to live without even the basic locks on doors and windows and BROKEN DOOR FRAMES on exterior doors. Yes, no kidding, broken door frame, missing the part that secures the lock... Brought that up while the landowner, his realtor and Mr. McDonald were still at the house. 'Aww Shucks' was essentially Mr. McDonald's response, even though he had allegedly inspected the house and adamantly affirmed that all doors and locks were in excellent condition.
I won't go into the myriad of wiring, plumbing and other problems that were identified within the first five minutes. Suffice it to say I would never use McDonald Realty again, nor would I, in good conscience, allow another person to use this 'service' without giving them a word of warning.
Mr. McDonald uses his military history and rank as a means to promote himself to both the unsuspecting renter and the homeowner. This is especially true for SOUTHCOM families, who see the Eagle and assume this man is trustworthy. Buyer beware, you are dealing with a businessman in a competitive market that will do whatever it takes to meet his self-interests. read more