My wife and I bought a house in the East Mountains October of last year. Then we needed to sell our previous home in Albuquerque. Matthew Darral, of Thrive Real Estate, did a wonderful job as our buying Realtor and then as our selling Realtor. There a lot of complications involved in buying our present home in Cedar Crest which I will briefly describe below. Matthew went way beyond in getting through all these roadblocks and special situations. We wanted to sell our previous home during the December holiday season. Matthew guided us and got involved in many ways to make this possible. We were able to close on the sale of our home around the middle of January. This is a real review, so feel free to call Matthew and he can put you us in contact so I can tell you all the details and how Matthew was wonderful in going out of his way. Here are the highlights of our purchase of the house. First of all with our budget we needed to offer the owner almost 10% less than his asking price. Matthew did a comparison study of houses in the area that help convince the seller to sell to us just $5K about our original low offer. The next surprise was that the home inspections showed that the septic tank would need replacing, that would cost the owner $9K. Of course this was an expense that would have been ours if it were not for the inspections that Matthew arranged. Matthew was there for us and the owner agreed to pay this out of his pocket. If that was not enough, when they did the appraisal on the house they valued the house $11K less than what we had offered. Once more Matthew negotiated with the owner we agreed to adjust some seller credits and the owner agreed to lower the price the $11K, for a net $7K additional savings for us. Need I say more? The sale of our house was simpler that the purchase, but the challenge was to sell it in the middle of the winter during the holidays. Matthew put us on an aggressive calendar to get the house ready for sale. I told Mathew that I wanted to list the house for about 6% more than he suggested and Matthew agreed. Matthew and his crew helped us stage the house and they did a marvelous job photo and a three dimensional tour of the house. We did come down about 2.5% from the suggested price plus 6% we asked for the house. I never even met the buyers, Matthew handled everything. Oh, I almost forgot, Matthew gave us a discount on his commission since he had handled the sale of our house. Get my contact info from Matthew if you want to verify this recommendation and get more details. One happy home owner. read more

I highly recommend working with Matthew Darrall for your home buying or selling needs. He is knowledgeable about the process, patient, and has a great understanding of the area. As a first time home buyer I had no real understanding of the many steps involved in buying a home, and only had a simple idea of what I wanted and needed in a house. Matthew Darrall was very patient and informative, helping me narrow the list of houses I wanted to tour and pointing out some of the subtle pros and cons of each. His extensive knowledge of the time and money it would take to renovate some of the houses I looked at was particularly valuable. After viewing about a ten houses over the course of two days, I had myself tied in knots trying to choose between two homes which just weren't quite right. Rather than pressure me into making a decision, Matthew recommended that I expand my search a bit, and reassured me that he would stick with me no matter how long it took me to make a choice. Taking advantage of his knowledge of the area, home values, future prospects, and what it would take to "fix" a house I didn't already love, I went back to the listings. On the third day of touring houses I found the perfect place. Matthew was a calming and reassuring presence throughout the offer and purchase process. He recommended that I do a couple of extra inspections, as the home I had chosen was an older house. This ended up saving me a lot of hassle down the road, as the previous owner agreed to make repairs to things that would not have been found in a standard inspection. read more

This was our first time purchasing a home and - long story short - we couldn't have hoped for a better realtor than Matthew Darrell. Matthew's local insight and generous attitude provided the most comprehensive support imaginable. He brings to the table experience related to renovating and flipping homes. He has a good sense of awareness about the extent he engages with buyers in walkthroughs. He was always prompt and transparent in phone and email communications. Matthew is the gold standard. Our process had some ups and downs but Matthew's thoughtfulness and diligence resulted in us closing on a better house than we imagined at a great price. If it weren't for Matt's follow up and mindfulness of our needs, this listing would've slipped through the cracks for us online and we wouldn't even have visited it. Matt seems to keep track of all the details effortlessly. When closing came around, a number of complications came up. It drove me to my wits end. Throughout though, I could rely on Matt. He was always on his game and sensitive in considering everyone's challenges. This guy goes above and beyond. We spent about four months from beginning to end on this journey and we've been blessed to have Matt with us as an advisor and copilot. read more

We were looking for a realtor who would invest their time and effort into selling the property quickly without disrupting our home life. Matt took the time to answer our questions, provide objective data regarding how many homes he's sold, how long his listings typically stay on the market, and through information on comps in the area. He made the process incredibly easy and took extra steps many other Realtors don't such as bringing a stager and having professional photographs taken. The result was that our listing looked amazing! His hard work and knowledge of what it takes to sell a home really paid off - our listing really brought out all the wonderful aspects of our home. With his advice and services, our house went under contract 8 days after we put it on the market with a profit of $19,500, 9% higher than market value! Matt demonstrated exceptional skills in negotiation. We found him extremely professional, reliable, patient and honest. His ability to understand our needs made the whole sale experience painless. We will recommend the Thrive Real Estate to everyone we know. He's a true professional and a genuinely nice guy. We doubt you'll find a more competent, professional Realtor than Matt. read more

I was referred to Matthew by a friend who also used him to sale and purchase a home. I needed a lot of help and had lots of questions. I had to sell my house as well as look for a house to buy. First and foremost, I'm in Law Enforcement and my girlfriend is a nurse so our time was very limited and often had conflicting time that both she and I were off. This was one of the most stressful times in our lives; however, Matt was there for us and continued to keep us up-to-dated on the status of both selling and purchasing our home. There was one incident that occurred while both my girlfriend and I were at work. I called Matt and without hesitation he was able to take care of the issue even when he was with his family. Matt is the epitome of a professional. He is very knowledgeable and was able to answer our questions and explain the process in a manner that was very understandable. It is hard to express in words what Matt did for my family and me. He continued to go above and beyond during the process and made a stressful time in our lives so much more bearable and for that I would like to say thank you sir! God bless you and your family! read more

After contacting a few real estate agents and never getting honest answers or meeting honest people, my husband and I found Matt. We have never bought a home or sold a home, but needed to do both. Matt walked us through the process step by step. He answered every call and email promptly, even late at night! His advice lead us to making about $5000-$7000 more on the home we sold than we ever thought we could make on it. He also helped us save an extra few thousand on the purchase of our new home. He was patient enought to explain every detail to the "T" all the time. In addition to all this, Matt went above and beyond to make sure my husband and I were taken of. There were so many complications on our file, I'm surprised he didn't just give up, he used his strategies and expertise to make it all happen. We are very thankful to have found this realtor and we would recommend him to anyone. read more

I was a first-time buyer and I leaned on Matthew Darrell's experience every step of the way, which prevented me from overpaying. There were two specific times when I was prepared to pay full listing price and Matthew's analysis (CMA) helped me separate the emotion of home-buying from the actual numbers. He could have easily facilitated those transactions and I would have been none the wiser. He operates with a great deal of Integrity and he always made himself available to show properties and expedite our offers. Matthew also took the time to explain things to me (septics, wells, heating, roofs, etc.) and I learned quite a bit actually. I couldn't imagine going through the home-buying experience with anyone else, I was lucky to have him on my side! One day, I'll be buying some land and I will be calling Matthew Darrell...I trust him. read more

We highly recommend Matthew, whether you are local or having to put your trust in someone afar- you can't go wrong with Matthew! We plan on retiring in New Mexico and didn't know much about High Desert living. Matthew helped us learn about things we never even thought of before we purchased our property! He helped us understand all the potential complexities, including water and sewer, before we made our final decision. It's easy to fall in love with New Mexico, but since we are moving from Kansas he wanted to make sure we understood what High Desert living was about. We were able to put a lot of trust in him, as he demonstrated incredible attention to detail and responsive, thorough communication. Then to top it all off, Matthew negotiate an amazing deal for us on Paa-ko Ridge Golf Course!! read more

Mathew guided me when I was purchasing my first home several years ago. Not an easy process. Throughout the entire process, he was patient, and honest, not only acting as an aggregator, but truly interested in helping me find a place i could call home. Now a few years have past, and he still helps me, not only by helping me understand the current housing market, but through regular emails, offering advice, and homes that have sold in my area that are comparable, so when the time does come to sell, I will know where I stand. It seems these days that everyone knows a realtor, and many have realtors in their family. But no one i have spoken to has experienced the continued support that Thrive real estate has given me. Truly "Your realtor for life". read more

Matthew did an outstanding job marketing and selling our home. His review of comparable properties was excellent and allowed us to set the selling price at market. His marketing skills are outstanding. We had a good offer within a week of listing. The online photos and video were professionally done and outstanding. Most important was Matthew's help in preparing the house for sale and in dealing with all those issues that arise when one is moving. He is a real partner in the process, available to help whenever a problem arises. HIs contacts did a great job on minor repairs and saved us a lot of money. We cannot recommend Matthew strongly enough. read more

Matt was amazing and he found the perfect house for my family! I lost track of the number of houses we looked at, Matt never lost enthusiasm, even when we were frustrated he encouraged us and assured that we would find the right house in time. Sure enough we did, Matt guided us through the entire process and was able to get us a great deal on the house! Matt was also able to give us some guidance on the cost of some of the changes we want to make both before and after we moved in. He continues to be responsive to any questions we have even after we've moved in. We couldn't have been happier with the service and the outcome! read more

It was truly a blessing to find Matthew at Thrive Real Estate when we were looking to purchase a home. He clearly had a strong knowledge of the areas we were considering and was able to clearly discuss the pros and cons of different neighborhoods. His patience was amazing; no matter how many questions we threw at him he was patient and kind with his responses. It took us awhile to decide on a home, but in the end Matthew steered us to a home that's perfect for us in size, price, and amenities. If you're looking for a great guy to work with in the home buying process, you probably aren't going to do better than Matthew. read more

Matthew helped us find a fantastic house very quickly! He educated us about the market and what to expect. As first time home buyers, we had MANY questions and he patiently addressed all of them (in a timely fashion). He helped us negotiate an amazing price and was with us every step of the way (e.g. search process, inspections, closing, etc.) If I had known that home buying would be this smooth, I would not have dreaded the process so much at the beginning. He genuinely looked out for our interests and we genuinely liked him (i.e. solid professional, but also somebody with whom you'd be happy to have lunch). read more

Matthew was recommended by a friend, and i will be forever grateful! A couple of other realtors in the area were non responsive, but Matthew was top notch and ON IT from the moment we first spoke. We were very lucky to find a property quickly and he was so helpful with the mechanics of the homes we looked at, and tips on locations/neighborhoods/etc. He kept in close contact throughout the process, keeping us informed with every step along the way, and continuing after the purchase with quality recommendations for work to be done on our new home. This was the best experience I've EVER had with a realtor! read more

Matthew helped my wife and I buy our first house, and his assistance was invaluable! He was very patient while answering our many questions. His knowledge of the home buying process was extensive, and his knowledge of home renovations gave us useful estimates of the value of improvements made in the houses we viewed or what they would cost us to make after purchase. Matthew continued fighting for every dollar for us, literally right to the closing day. Working with him was very pleasant and made the home buying process quite simple. I highly recommend Matthew as your realtor! read more

Matthew Darrell was awesome to work with. He was more than willing to give us his time on our schedule, especially considering we were from out of the area. Matthew asked us all the right questons and really listened to our answers and what we had to say. He is very knowledgeable of the Albuquerque real estate market and impressed us with both his enthusiasm and professionalism. He was always willing to help out and was always asking if there was anything else he could do for us. Had a gret experience with him and would gladly recommend him to anybody looking for a great realtor. read more

Matthew was a great listener, customizing his services with expertise and dependability. When my husband and I needed to relocate to another state, selling our house was pretty daunting. Matthew helped us rest assured that our home was in good hands. He went above and beyond our expectations, allowing us to feel like we had support every step of the way. His support was absolutely helpful in letting us move forward in our lives during such a big transition. There is no better deal in selling a house than peace of mind! read more

Matthew is the most attentive, enthusiastic and thorough person that I have ever had the privilege of doing business with. The title of "agent" does not do him justice: he is our ally. We've bought and sold a house with Matthew and were without fail: 1) Informed: we always knew where we were in the process and what to expect 2) Empowered: every choice was thoroughly explained to us and our options outlined in depth I wholeheartedly recommend him and his team: they're equal parts insightful, prompt and kind. read more

Matthew was over the top! I think he was more excited about me buying a house than I was! His passion really shows. He knew if I was interested in a house just by my body language. Matthew made sure I understood the process and was comfortable with the steps that had to be made. He's not only a great realtor but a great supporter along the way. If I ever sell or buy another house he's the only person I would trust to help me. I'm so glad he was recommended to me! read more