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Review 4/28/2009
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i was a previous tenant and after reading all these reviews - i have found out that what i went through is very similar to everyone complaining here (read the complaints), in most aspects:
- the unresponsiveness of the manager Fidel
- the long time it takes for them to give you your deposit back
- the rudeness and frustration of dealing with the staff (i dealt with someone named Ruby)
- and the unjustifiably huge amount they take out from your security deposit
so i finally filed a SMALL CLAIM against them and won the reasonable amount plus court fees. it was very stressful and glad it's almost over (take note it's not over yet!! they're giving me a hard time just collecting the money!) but anyway here's more of my dealings with them:
- i remember i forgot my key and called all the # i have of the manager. i was waiting for him to call me back because i was sitting outside my door and couldnt get in til my sister comes back which would be 6 hrs later. i called and called and left messages and..... the manager Fidel NEVER even called back. as in DIDN'T CALL AT ALL. not 2 hrs later, not 4 hrs later, not one day later, not a week later... HE DIDN'T CALL AT ALL. that's how terrible they are. but i managed to have someone pick me up and that's where i spent the afternoon til my sister came back in the evening.
WHATS GOOD: but in fairness - i havent had much trouble with the cleanliness of my place and maintenance. you dont need the manager that much because all my things were new (the sink erator, the carpet, the stove, shower, no rats, no roaches, etc.) and the rent amount is relatively cheap ...
place is a bit smaller than some other apartment nearby with the same rent amount for one bedroom so look around some more. parking is DIFFICULT.
IF YOU STILL DECIDED TO RESIDE THERE, PLS TAKE NOTE OF THE FOLLOWING:
- take pictures of everything in the beginning and pay particular attention to the inventory. they claimed something is missing when it wasn't there in the first place. also get receipt for keys, clicker or they won't refund you those things later and you can't prove it later, which is what happened to me.
- before you move out, take pictures again, use a good camera to show the details on the CLEANING, WALL MARKINGS IF ANY, and that you put back all the lighting.. even the cleaning of the ceiling fan they will charge you some $35 if you forgot to simply dust it off.... DON'T BE FOOLED INTO PAYING for the repainting. the judge ruled in my favor on that one. SMALL MARKINGS AND SMALL NICKS are under normal wear and tear. they tried to get some $150 from my deposit which is what prompted me to file a claim. they said it's a third of the $650 cost of the whole repainting if you have stayed less than 2 yrs ... which i have also read can be used by landlords ... but ONLY IF THE PAINT DAMAGE WAS SIGNIFICANT which is not the case here. they embarrassed themselves in the court there when the pictures were shown.
Also, ASK IN WRITING (fax, email, etc) the ESTIMATE cost for paint, carpet and cleaning so that if they didn't give this to you, you can later prove to the judge that they refuse to give you this information. I asked Ruby for those and she was very rude and told me "NO. WE DON'T GIVE THOSE. JUST CLEAN AND LEAVE THINGS AS THEY WERE WHEN YOU FIRST MOVED THEN WAIT FOR YOUR DEPOSIT TO BE MAILED TO YOU (about 6 months later!)." and that's all she will give you.
this is very IMPORTANT - the LEASE TERMINATION LETTER (look up in the internet how this is properly done) - be very clear on the date of moving out, how you're gonna communicate with them, when the initial INSPECTION and final inspection gonna be etc. you can use all these later if any problem arises, which from the sound of things, is very common w/ this company. it helped me greatly in court. if you file a small claim, remember to print all these reviews and complaints to prove to the judge that this company has an F rating (as of today) with the BBB with lots of serious complaints.
OVERALL, they're typical landlords. So the best you can do is take every step to make sure they won't abuse your deposit at the end of your tenure.
SO HOPE THIS HELPS.
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