Your Big Bear Neighborhood Realtor Since 1979

Margaret Shaffner is celebrating 32 years as owner/broker of Woodstock Real Estate in Sugarloaf, east Big Bear Valley, California.

Margaret Shaffner came to Big Bear Valley via Huntington Beach more than 30 years ago looking for a lifestyle change. She has been helping others do the same ever since.

With seven years of real estate experience under her belt, she moved to Big Bear Valley in December of 1978. Her first week in Big Bear, a winter storm dropped 6 feet of snow, and even that didn’t scare her off.  Shaffner opened Woodstock Real Estate in June 1979 surrounded by pine, oak and ironwood trees—her dream fulfilled.

“I had always dreamed of coming to a resort area and being able to live and work,” Shaffner says of the little resort town she frequented as a teen staying at friends’ parents’ cabins. “It was just a great fit.”

As owner of Woodstock Real Estate, Shaffner has seen many real estate companies come and go from Big Bear Valley, homeowners go frompart-timers to full-timers, full-timers to part-timers or even becomelandlords. But she’s still on Maple Lane, sitting behind her desk at the same little two-room office in Sugarloaf across from E-Z’s Market, offering up the same service with a smile she’s been known for and that has contributed to her success.

How does she continue on in such a volatile industry, with its extreme highs and lows and fluctuations due to the ever-changing economy?

“It’s just due to hard work, a lot of persistence and tenacity, and having the right people working for me in various areas of support,” says Shaffner. “We’re more like a family.” It’s about resilience, she says. “And service is the key.” She also attributes her positive attitude and strong religious faith as part of the reason for her success.

Shaffner loves selling people the same dream she bought into over 30 years ago. “Up here, you are selling someone a vacation property, you’re selling them their vacation. You are helping them fulfill their dream, their heart’s desire.”

In the East Valley, there was an immediate demand for property management, Shaffner says, for both full-time rentals and vacation cabins. Woodstock helped fill that need and continues to be a go-to provider for full-time rentals around the Valley.

“We take it very seriously when someone is renting,”Shaffner says, explaining the nine addendums that renters are required to uphold to protect the property owner’s interests. “Real Estate is the most serious investment many people will ever make.”

But it’s not only the tenants and landlords who Shaffner watches after. It’s the entire town. Aside from being a fixture on the Big Bear Association of Realtors and holding various titles among them president, in1988 she was part of the Sugarloaf Road Commission that helped get the initiative on the ballot to pave the roads.

Back then, the easy-livin’ little town was barely getting sewer service and natural gas installed. “I think it was a major thing,” Shaffner says about the asphalt makeover. “Some might have a love-hate attitudeabout it, but I do think making the roads paved made the area more desirable.  But it’s still quaint.” The community continues to charm her more than 30 years later.

"In my experience as a Big Bear real estate professional, I've also found that providing the very best service is essentially about putting my clients first. This means keeping myself accessible, being a good listener as well as a good communicator, and responding quickly to your needs." 

Woodstock Real Estate is at 479 S. Maple Lane, Sugarloaf.  For more information, call 909-585-2591 or reach Margaret directly on her cell at 951-733-2591.  So when you decide that you'd like to buy or sell a home in Big Bear Valley, please contact me.