If you want all the mushy details, read below. If not, here are some quick thoughts on what my wife and I think of Matt McEwan and McEwan Custom Homes. Matt is an amazing home builder and did an absolutely incredible job on building our dream home. Matt is honest, easy to work with and makes sure that the job gets done right. I wouldn't hesitate to build with him again. If Matt is not the best custom home builder in the state, he is close to the top. Save yourself a pile of time, money and headache and build with McEwan Custom Homes. You will not be disappointed and you will love your new custom home.

Now for the rest of the story . . .

We spent a ton of time searching for the right builder to build our dream home. We were thrilled when we found Matt and knew right away that he was the perfect fit for us. Every custom home project presents some challenges along the way, but our home was especially difficult given the size and some very unique design elements. Matt and his team rose to every challenge and built us a fantastic home that we absolutely love. He was consistently focused on what we wanted, not on what was easiest for him and his team. Matt wanted to make sure that we loved our new home, down to every last detail.

When we needed to make changes or adjustments during the building process, not only was he willing to do so, but he was excited to meet the challenge. Building our home was a real creative process for us and we felt like Matt was not only our builder, but he was also our partner in this creative process. In addition, we knew that we could completely trust Matt and that made the home building process even easier. Building with Matt was a fantastic experience and I would highly recommend McEwan Custom Homes to anyone considering building a new custom home.

The process for selecting a builder didn't start until after the completion of the custom home design. We asked the architect who he would recommend as a builder. We were given three names. We contacted each of them and just by their response, we quickly narrowed our list down to one builder, McEwan Custom Homes. Matt gave us an itemized bid that was very detailed and when we told him it was a little high for our budget, he went right to work to see how he could trim it down.

After meeting with Matt, looking at his beautiful home and one of the homes he was in the process of building, we knew we wanted him to build our home.

Once construction was underway, Matt installed a job site camera, so we could watch the building process from our computer at home. This was very convenient, since we were living in another state while our home was being built and did not have the ability to visit the job site very often. He also took pictures throughout the project and posted them on his web site for us, along with his construction schedule. By watching the live video feed, we could actually watch every step of the construction process.

I may have looked at the way Matt handled the building process differently than most. I spent my professional career working in Program Management, managing various Aerospace programs. I was not only interested in Matt's contract and his schedule, but since I had worked with many suppliers throughout my career, I was interested in seeing Matt's supplier's reaction to us. I asked each supplier the same question, "How do you like working with Matt?" After the first response I thought, he can't be that good. But each additional supplier was very complimentary about Matt. Many of them remarked that, "If there is any kind of a problem, Matt doesn't skip a beat, he just takes care of it." Or, "We have about thirty builders we do business with and I would only let about five of them work on my personal home and Matt is one of them."

This is a typical example of how Matt does business. - When the rock combination we had chosen for our home arrived on site, the stone mason did not think that it would look very good. Matt had the mason put a 3' square sample of the stone on the front of the house, and then sent some pictures to us. He was right, it looked nothing like what we had envisioned. Matt went right to work and spent many hours tracking down stone samples from multiple suppliers until he had found the exact stone combination we were looking for. It turned out amazing!

Matt was so easy to work with. When we came up with ideas he always considered them and he was honest with us about expressing his own thoughts or ideas. He was readily available to talk with during the whole building process and treated us like we were his only building project. Actually, he treated us like friends.

With projects of this kind there are bound to be some challenges. One snag we ran into was the need for an unplanned retaining wall that was not in our budget. Matt figured out a creative way to build it without costing us a lot of "out of pocket" money. We appreciated his ability to problem solve and get results.

The bottom line is: Our home was built on time, according to our budget, and we are extremely happy with the quality. Matt has gone the extra mile, right down to the final detail.

Matt was great to work with and we would highly recommend McEwen Custom Homes to anyone. Thank you Matt!!!

We completely enjoyed working with Matt and his team at McEwan Custom Homes. He is a true professional and someone that can be trusted. The construction of our new custom home was a very stress-free process; we felt like we knew what to expect and that Matt would be on top of any issues that might arise. Throughout the home building process we were impressed with the creativity of Matt and his team. We often discovered that they had gone above and beyond our expectation to deliver a great result; how refreshing to find a builder who exceeds expectations instead of cutting corners. Since moving in, Matt continues to check in on us to make sure that everything was working well and that we are ecstatic with the end result. Let's put it this way, if my best friend were looking into building a new home, I would point him toward Matt and his team at McEwan Custom Homes without any hesitation.

This was our first home building experience, which meant we were excited but cautious. In the past we have been known to be overly methodical when it comes to making important decisions. We met with a few award winning custom homebuilders prior to seeing a McEwan Custom Home that ultimately led us to Matt. His genuine interest in our project and honest explanation of his home building process, immediately put us at ease and put him at the top of our list. After meeting with a few of his previous clients and walking through their homes our confidence in Matt solidified. Now, at the end of the process I am amazed to see that every one of our very high expectations was realized over the year we interacted with Matt.

Matt was always flexible with us and with the few modification we made to the plans during the building process. At the same time he demanded exactness and only the highest quality from his subcontractors. Despite his demands on them it was obvious how much they respect him. It was common to hear them say, “When I build a home, I will use McEwan Custom Homes.”

Instead of being a stress and strain on our marriage, building a house with Matt was extremely enjoyable. We almost feel guilty when we compare experiences with friends who have built recently that had a sub par experience with their builder. Our home was finished on budget, earlier than promised AND it was fun. Matt was always available during the process and made us feel that our home was his only project. Not only was it a great business relationship, it developed into a true friendship.

Without hesitation we highly recommend that you build your home with McEwan Custom Homes. It was the best decision we made!

"When you build a home you want a professional and passionate person; someone that you can develop a relationship with, where he almost becomes part of your family. For us, that was Matt McEwan. We had an exceptional building experience and love our new home built by McEwan Custom Homes.

We knew we wanted Matt to build our home because of his fine reputation and quality workmanship, but thought that we may not be able to afford his services. As we worked through the bidding process, we were delighted to have it come in within our budget, so we would have the pleasure of working with Matt. Matt’s honesty and straight forward approach, allowed us to develop a trust in him as we watched our home become a work of art.

From day one, Matt made sure we were pleased. His attention to detail, upfront communication and willingness to please us was greatly appreciated. He made us feel like our home, was his home. He took individual time to answer questions, make suggestions and ensure that everything was exactly what we wanted. When we had questions about the monthly bank draws, Matt sat down with us and explained where every dime was being spent.

Matt’s wife and interior design consultant, Carrie, is a jewel. She has a great eye for design and color. She showed enthusiasm for our project and we valued her ideas and input when we needed help with some of our selections. She was eager to see that it all came together with class.

The subcontractors and suppliers that worked on our home were professional, as well as passionate about their trade. When we asked them to make some minor changes they were willing and anxious to satisfy our wishes.

When friends and family come visit us in our new home, their first reaction is, "you obviously have a well built home and had an exceptional builder.” We agree with them and are so proud to be owners of a McEwan Custom Home.

Thanks Matt and Carrie for all you did to make this a rewarding and enjoyable process!!"

After our first meeting with Matt we knew that he was the builder for us. We liked how organized and thorough he was with his approach to the home building process. He made us feel comfortable with the potential daunting and stressful process of building a home. We lived out of state while our home was being built and found Matt to be completely accessible throughout the construction of our new home.

The sub-contractors Matt uses are of the highest quality. We found them all to be extremely friendly and produced a quantity product. Matt's core group of guys are awesome including his field manager, Devin Dye. Devin was one of the most pleasant and skillful guys we had the pleasure of working with.

Overall we can’t say enough about McEwan Custom Homes. We highly recommend Matt and his team. We ultimately found that they don't just build homes they build lasting relationships as well.

"While building with McEwan Custom Homes, we continually asked Matt questions about the possibilities of incorporating certain features into our home. Our requests may have been novel, technical or expensive, but Matt’s answer was always, "yes". This was our favorite part of working with Matt, his willingness to fulfill our requests no matter how unique or small in detail. This allowed us to build a truly custom home.

We started by sitting down with Matt and revising home plans until we had all of the features we desired. In this planning and design process Matt provided us with useful suggestions and insights, many of which we adopted in our home. From re-circulating hot water lines, to a hose bib and floor drain in our cold storage room for ease of emergency water storage.

Matt outlined the building process in writing, including the timing and total cost. He gave us a detailed budget for every category of our home. Including flooring, cabinets, appliances, plumbing & lighting fixtures, along with multiple sub-contractors and suppliers to choose from. We greatly appreciated how Matt stayed in budget and on time.

We were very impressed with the responsiveness and high quality of workmanship from Matt and his sub-contractors / suppliers. In speaking with them we quickly recognized the high level of respect Matt has achieved in the building community. These relationships exacted quick responses and sub-contractors / suppliers who have stood behind their work.

On multiple occasions, we have had people driving through our neighborhood, stop and knock on our door to ask who built our beautiful home. Our experience building with Matt was so positive that three years later when we were ready to finish our basement, Matt was the only builder we would consider."

A Fairy Tale Recommendation

Once upon a time there was a family looking to relocate to a new area closer to Papa Buckner’s work. Papa and Mama Buckner heard about some land that was for sale in exactly the right place and began what they thought would be an arduous and painful process.

Someone must have sprinkled fairy dust upon The Family Buckner because before they knew it, they found themselves meeting with the man himself, Matt McEwan and his merry crew at McEwan Custom Homes. Matt cast a spell on Papa and Mama Buckner. They were entranced by his obvious integrity and unique gift for making them feel special. He even made them feel as if they were his only clients on earth.

Before long The Family Buckner began to see their new home spring forth from the barren ground. Mama Buckner spent countless hours working with the subs and suppliers recommended by Matt, all of who were pretty darn special themselves. The evil decision dragon plagued Mama Buckner. But with the help of Matt and his merry crew of experts, she was able to at last make her final decisions in all manner of finishes, cabinets, countertops, lighting, paint colors, etc. She doesn’t know what kind of magic potion they were drinking, but she continues to be desirous of the patience they had all shown to her.

Through the season of the burning sun, the storms of rain and snow, Matt’s crew toiled on, relying on his mighty power of direction and his attention to detail. In what now seems to be the twinkling of an eye, The Family Buckner’s home was completed. Just as Matt had promised, their new home was beautiful beyond belief.

Papa, Mama and their little bears couldn’t be more pleased with their refuge from the evils of the world. They gave all the credit to Matt and his merry crew at McEwan Custom Homes!

The End.

"We were initially drawn to McEwan Custom Homes because of the excellent workmanship and design we had seen in Matt's homes. When Matt bid our home, we were thrilled to learn we could have that quality at such an affordable and competitive price. The value that Matt offered, coupled with the organizational and follow-up skills he demonstrated during the bidding process was impressive. We liked his level of professionalism. However, he became our obvious choice after we learned of the excellent reputation he has among his peers. We visited several local suppliers and contractors prior to choosing a builder and each time we mentioned we were considering building with McEwan Custom Homes, we heard nothing but praise for Matt and his work. By the time we selected McEwan Custom Homes, our expectations were high. Remarkably, Matt and his team not only met, but exceeded those expectations.

Matt was extremely patient and helpful in walking us through the many decisions required to build a custom home. He has the building process down to a science. We knew from the start what decisions needed to be made and when they needed to be finalized in order to meet our deadline. His suppliers and contractors truly enjoy working with him and, because of that, we received excellent service that was on schedule. Matt was always available to address any concerns and was transparent about the costs involved. He quickly earned our trust and we valued his opinion.

The highlight of working with McEwan Custom Homes is their commitment to customer service. Matt was genuinely interested in seeing that we got exactly what we wanted, even if it required more work on his part. As our home neared completion, we realized that one of the fireplaces was off center by 2” on the living room wall. At that point of the construction process we thought it was unlikely that it could be fixed, but raised our concern with Matt anyway. Matt went to our home early the next morning, removed the travertine surround and mantel himself. Then made arrangements to have the fireplace moved, the travertine surround replaced, mantel rebuilt and repainted, all at his own expense. He was more concerned about ensuring we were happy than with his bottom line. We moved in several months ago and the McEwan Custom Homes team continues to follow-up with us to ensure that we are completely satisfied with our new home. They have set the standard for customer care.

McEwan Custom Homes delivered an amazing home, as well as an enjoyable building experience. It is easy to see why they have earned their excellent reputation. They certainly lived up to it in building our home."

Having experienced the challenges of building a custom home before, we knew what we wanted and what we didn't want in a homebuilder. Building our home with McEwan Custom Homes was a great experience. We were definitely the beneficiaries of Matt's organization and the strong relationships that he has with his suppliers and sub-contractors. They always went out of their way to work within our budget without sacrificing the quality of products, installation and service. Matt and Devin were and continue to be extremely responsive to our needs, concerns, and sometimes our changes. The chance drive-by meeting with this homebuilder culminated in a wonderful home for our family.

"From beginning to end, the process of building our home was an extremely enjoyable experience for us. We are certain this is due to Matt McEwan and the McEwan Custom Homes team. McEwan Custom Homes offers some of the finest customer service we have ever experienced from any type of business.

This was our first time going through the process of building a home. Matt and his team were patient with us, and our many questions. They took the time to address each and every concern, then the conversation always ended with them asking if there was anything else we needed them to address. We were extremely impressed with how positive and caring they were to us throughout the building process. Our needs and desires were always their priority. Matt encouraged us to call at any time should we have a question or concern. We were often amazed how quickly they responded to us and our requests. The way we were treated made us feel like we were the only project they were currently working on, when in reality, we were one of numerous projects.

Something we didn’t expect, yet made us feel very good about our selection of Matt and McEwan Custom Homes, were the many compliments we heard from the subcontractors and suppliers who worked on our house. We heard on a regular basis that we had made a great choice in a builder and how Matt was one of their favorite builders to work for.

The quality of the workmanship on our home is first rate. Not only is this our opinion, but is also shared by our family and friends who marvel at the overall quality and detail. It is evident that we have a high quality home, built by people who care and go the extra mile to attend to every detail. There are so many big and small extras we believe we received from choosing Matt and his team.

Of McEwan Custom Homes, we give our highest recommendation possible. They are truly masters of their craft and were a joy to work with."

"When we first began the process of building our home, the only concern we had was finding a builder that has a strong work ethic, attention to detail, and one that would give us a home that would last for generations. After our first meeting with Matt we knew that he would deliver.

From the very beginning McEwan Custom Homes offers standard features that are considered up-grades with other custom home builders. Matt took the time to personally show us other homes he had built, from the minute you step inside a McEwan Custom Home you can see the attention to detail and you feel you are in a "solid" home. Our bid was very competitive, and we knew that we were getting so much more for our money than others could offer.

Our experience with Matt was amazing. Everything went like clockwork. Sub-contractors were at our home working when he said they would be, that has never happened with our prior two home building experiences. The subs that Matt uses are highly skilled and knowledgeable about their craft. If we were not clear on how something would turn out, Matt would take the time to make sure that everything was clear, explaining things in different ways, meeting us at the house, drawing pictures, and giving suggestions on how we could achieve what we were invisioning. Even though Matt was building several homes while ours was under construcion we could reach him anytime, we were made to feel that our home was the only one he was building and that he was genuinely interested in the process of our home building experience, he even donated his own personal time to do some additional finish work at his expense so that we could have the home we have always wanted with out going over the budget.

We truly could not have had a better experience building with McEwan Custom Homes. We absolutely love our home, there is not one thing that we would change. There is no question that we made the right choice by choosing Matt to build our home."

"This is the second home that we have built and we have to say that our building experience with McEwan Custom Homes surpassed our hopes. From the bidding process to the final inspection, Matt was honest, patient and fair. When we got a bid from Matt and compared it with other builder's bids, we immediately noticed that McEwan Custom Homes included features not mentioned in the other bids and that the allowances were much higher than the others. When comparing apples to apples, we could see that McEwan Custom Homes had the better value.

As the building process began, Matt guided us along the way, giving recommendations on local merchants and a time line so we knew when decisions on a particular house feature needed to be fulfilled. We did our homework and some of his recommended merchants did not have what we were looking for. When we found other businesses that satisfied our needs, Matt was very accomodating and willing to work with these other businesses. When we changed our minds on the house plans, as most people do, Matt was patient and helped us work through a good solution. Sometimes this required his subcontractors to tear out walls, move doors, and reorder windows. We can't say enough about the way he handled our personal needs. This was our home and we wanted it to look the way we had in mind. Matt was very accommodating. When we had questions about the bank draws, he would sit down with us and explain where the money was going to. We never felt that we were being taken. They even finished our home three weeks ahead of schedule.

Now it is four months after we moved in and still Matt calls to see how we are doing in our new home. We have had little for him to come out and fix, but when we had paint touch-ups or minor hardware changes, Matt sent his subcontractors without a hassle to get the job done. In fact, during the bidding process we casually mentioned to Matt that we would like to have a certain feature put into our home. We forgot all about it and did not get it added to the feature list of the home. We realized we forgot to have it added to the home a few weeks after we moved in. We contacted Matt and asked him how much it would cost to have this feature added to our home. He said he would get back to us with a bid. The next day, a serviceman was there installing the feature for us at no cost to us. McEwan Custom Homes picked up the bill because they wanted us to be happy with our new home."

"We had a bad experience with a builder before, and Matt was the polar opposite. This is rarely heard of in the construction world, but McEwan Custom Homes actually performed under budget and ahead of schedule! We've found out the hard way that other builders are often high on promises up front and then they don't follow through. Matt doesn't play those games; he was honest and straightforward with us from the first day, and we were pleasantly surprised along the way as he routinely met and exceeded our expectations.

It's plain to see that Matt has developed a great rapport with his subs, and they give top priority to Matt's jobs. We were very particular about how we wanted a playhouse in our basement to turn out, and we were initially worried that this might be a nuisance to our builder. However, Matt embraced the idea completely and made it turn out even better than we could have imagined!

The McEwan team has great expertise in making a functional, beautiful product; and they completley understand the balance of being helpful without ever being overbearing. Carrie was extremely helpful to consult with us as we chose colors, cabinets, and other finishes. Matt had a great feel for what items would give us the best bang for our buck. Their input and suggestions were invaluable They never cringed or rolled their eyes if we changed our minds.

The McEwan Custom homes slogan is "The Difference is in the Details", and after seeing their work in action we can personally to the validity of that statement. Using them resulted in a smooth, low stress process, which is pretty remarkable for any building project. They are true masters of their craft. We are very appreciative of their time and talents. We highly recommend McEwan Custom Homes to anyone seeking a high quality construction product at a reasonable price."

Extensive research led us to Matt and McEwan Custom Homes. Once we looked into Matt, it was obvious that he had a great reputation. Matt and his team took the confusion out of building a new custom home. We have built several other homes in the past, but our building experience with Matt was by far the best. I've always said that what ever happens, good or bad, it is best to communicate it early on. - With Matt, we got that. It was always a positive experience with whatever situation arose during the home building process.

The construction of our custom home was planned and organized meticulously, then completed on schedule. Sometimes construction projects can feel chaotic. We never felt chaos during the home building process, instead we felt order and progress. Our new custom home is exactly what we wanted and more. Thank you to all who made the building process so worthwhile and helped us achieve our home of a lifetime.

"Our experience with McEwan Custom Homes couldn't have been any better. We knew we made the right choice in selecting Matt to build our home when every sub-contractor and supplier we came across said they would have Matt build their personal home. Matt is honest, flexible, and easy going enough to make a potentially stressful process, enjoyable. Matt accommodated all the basic things with ease and promptness while making our sometimes strange requests seem routine. We loved how his understanding of the creative process matched his technical and tactical abilities. He was always positive, complementary, and competent. He dealt with issues immediately and never made us feel like we were putting him out. He continues to follow-up and check in from time to time which is greatly appreciated. We readily recommend the entire McEwan Custom Homes team."

"McEwan Custom Homes was the best choice we made when we were looking for a builder to build us a custom home. Matt was always available when we had questions or concerns about the building process. From start to finish, he always had great suggestions of how we could get the look we wanted while staying within our budget. The "Homework Packet” he provides, helped navigate us through the selection process of flooring, appliances, cabinets, lighting etc. and made the building process stress-free. Matt is extremely creative and makes each home he builds unique in it’s own way. His great attitude and willingness to make the entire building process a positive experience is why we will always recommend Matt and McEwan Custom Homes."

"While looking at homes, my wife and I came across some that were built by McEwan Custom Homes. We liked what we saw and asked Matt to meet with us. We were very impressed with Matt from the start. He was there every step of the way, from looking at lots to meeting with the designer. It felt like a partnership. He was attentive to our needs and concerns. He always had an answer or was quick to get us one. His sub contractors were great and their work was top quality. They never seemed to mind when I was around, which was often. Matt worked with us when we found a granite installer that he had not worked with before. The home turned out great! I enjoyed watching the whole building process. Matt was very professional, punctual, organized, and thorough. Matt was like the conductor of a great orchestra. I can honestly say that I recommend McEwan Custom Homes without any reservations."