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My daughter that is in college, for criminal justice, and myself, rented a townhouse that Renters Warehouse managed for a private owner. That is what the company does. After being very good and quiet renters, in what was a pretty beat up townhouse, Renters Warehouse turned in money hungry bullies when we decided to move out after extending our lease twice. I had to move into the area due to health reasons is why we even ended up there.
The deck was condemned by the townhouse association prior to us moving in which the rental company did not tell us and we were there for 2 years after that. Some of the rooms were half painted. The carpet was very old and ruined. The previous renter had free roaming guinea pigs/rabbits. All the townhouse units were resided while we lived there. The residing went into the winter. An ice storm caused the mid floor ceiling to link from the window and wall above it. It, also ruined the blind on the upper and mid floor from water. In moving out we told the OWNER, and opted to paint the ceiling for him to make it more view able to the potential renters they had traipsing through up until the last week of our rental. Also, when the townhomes were resided, the storm doors and outer doors were changed, which changed the locks.
Against our, and any, rental agreement, Renters Warehouse personal tried to enter our unit without our knowledge or permission, when we were not home. They then send us angry emails (remember we are two women quiet renters) that they are going to have our door broken down by the sheriff for changing the locks. This was more than one letter from more than one employee of RW. We had not changed the locks and they should not have been sneaking into our home.
To sum this up, they took all of our damage desposit to pay for made up, or damage they KNOW, we did not do. Damage from the residing. Which is obvious it was from the residing. The horrible carpet WE had to live with. They did not even charge us the depreciation of the very old carpet which is standard practice. We bought the new tenants spanking new carpet. Oh supposedly after it had been cleaned. So a cleaning bill for the old carpet replaced by the total price for new carpet. The carpet was discolored from age and from the guinea pig lady that rented before us. We had coit come in 2 times when we took possession and COIT could not get it out. So now we are charged for bad carpet 2 years later. The rental company, Renters Warehouse, hide behind the property owner in anything to do with keeping the damage deposit, because they are bullies that, really, cannot stand up for themselves in taking peoples money. It is outrageous. DO not rent from them. They do not manage anything. They claim to be able to list homes for rent but cannot even tell a place is not rent-able in the condition it is in... And then you will pay for it in the end...
I hope you have checked tenant landlord rights and are aware what is available to you. First thing you could have or still can do if you are living in the unit is call an inspector from the state.
"Calling In An Inspector If a landlord will not correct a repair problem, a local housing, health, energy, or fire inspector can be called by the tenant. If the inspector finds code violations in the unit, the inspector will give the landlord a certain amount of time to correct them. If the landlord does not make the corrections, the inspector has the authority to serve a summons on the landlord to appear in court. (81)
A landlord may not retaliate (strike back) by filing an eviction notice, increasing rent, or decreasing services because a tenant contacts an inspector. (See page 27 for more information about retaliation.) (82)"
The second thing you could have done if a serious code violation would have been found by an inspector is the right to withold your rent payments until the problem is fixed. The deck would be one examples and perhaps whatever else the inspector could find.
"Withholding Rent
Tenants may withhold rent if there is a serious repair problem or code violation. Because the tenant may have to defend this action in court, it may be better to use a Rent Escrow Action; however, if the tenant chooses to withhold rent, he/she should follow these steps:
1) Notify the landlord, in writing, of the needed repairs (both parties should keep a copy) and give the landlord a chance to make repairs. (111)
2) Notify the housing, health, energy, or fire inspector (if there is one) if the landlord does not make the repairs. (112)
3) Get a written copy of the inspector’s report. (113)
4) Notify the landlord in writing that all or part of the rent will be withheld until the repairs are made. (114)
If a tenant decides to withhold rent, the tenant should be prepared to defend that action in court. It is very likely that the landlord will begin eviction proceedings. (115) The tenant must not spend the withheld rent money. The tenant must bring the money to court when the tenant is summoned (required) to appear in court. The judge may order the tenant to deposit the rent with the court. Tenants who fail to comply with the judge’s order to deposit rent with the court may not have their defenses heard and can be evicted.
If the court decides the tenant’s argument is valid, it can do any number of things. It may, for instance, order the rent to be deposited with the court until the repairs are made, or it may reduce the rent in an amount equal to the extent of the problem. (116) On the other hand, if the tenant loses, the tenant will have to pay all the rent withheld, plus court costs. In addition, the case will be reported to a tenant screening service, affecting future credit and tenant screening checks. Therefore, withholding rent may create more of a risk to the tenant than a Rent Escrow, Tenant Remedies Action, or a rent abatement action.
Defense
A tenant in poorly maintained rental housing can also use the landlord’s failure to make necessary repairs as a defense to:
1) The landlord’s Eviction Action based on nonpayment of rent. (117)
2) The landlord’s lawsuit for unpaid rent. Again, the tenant should be prepared to show that the landlord was notified, or knew, or should have known, about the defective conditions, but failed to repair them despite having a reasonable chance to do so. (118) "
as always I would consult a lawyer and get all the proper paper work, there are also many other rights awarded to you for signing a lease, you can see these rights at the following webpage. Please keep these in mind for any place you rent. I am sorry to hear you had such a bad experience, but you are not defenseless when it comes to dealing with a land lord you have rights awarded to you from the contract.
http://www.ag.state.mn.us/Consumer/Housing/LT/LT2.asp#CallingInAnInspector
I agree that RW does not thoroughly inspect properties before renting them out. Then, when tenants find issues, they ask the owner to pay for it. When the owner naturally disagrees, tenants are left on their own with the problems. My story isn't as horrific, but this is what happened:
When we moved in to our rental it all looked clean on the surface. We were shocked to find out that there was dried food in the oven, microwave and fridge; pet hair and grease all along the sides of the oven and pet hair behind the fridge and oven. When wiping out the cupboards our rags were also covered in dark colored dirt and pet hair. The water softener was out of salt, furnace filter was disgusting and several specialty light bulbs (pot lights) were burned out. Things got expensive for us to replace. RW told us there was nothing it could do for us, so we cleaned the place ourselves and bought the supplies. We then asked for a credit on rent for our troubles and the property owner said 'no' because she replaced the carpet and that was expensive enough. We continue to find the property owner's messes including dog poop in the yard and on dead plants/garbage on the balcony after the winter snow melted. There has been no resolution to our problem of the house not being move-in-ready and costing us more $ past what we paid in deposits. even after the customer service manager agreed that our photos showed the house to be filthy, we were advised not clean the place very well upon move-out and that's all they could do for us/advise us to do. There is no support for tenants with this company. They are more apt to please the property owners, even if they are in the wrong.
I work for Renters warehouse and in the DFW area anyway I assure you we do inspect and repair whats needed. Needed being key word as an owner makes the final say, nevertheless all is disclosed.
In this market I do a video move in and a video move out. this includes the outside and inside. Toilets are flushed and showers turned on in the video as well. All appliances as well as HVAC and roofing is acceptable.
I do believe this is an isolated incident. . The fact that I work for both the owner and the tenant stresses transparency on both sides. As a landlord would I want to receive call after call after call ? NO ! We explain repairs to the owner and stress to them the importance of the fix.
I disagree with the above complaint but not saying this couldnt happen. Its just that the language was written by someone understandingly upset. I and the owner of this franchise take responsibility in all we do .
I haven't even rented from Renter's Warehouse but I'm already not impressed. In contacting leasing agents, they do not return calls for 3+ days (if at all). I let one leasing agent know that I was looking for a "soaking tub" in the townhome I'd like to rent and she didn't know what it was so when I explained that it's simply a bathtub that is a bit deeper than a normal bath tub - could be a jacuzzi but doesn't have to be - she said "Well I didn't climb into the tubs." So incredibly rude. I let a second agent know that I'm trying to plan ahead and it doesn't seem like there are any opportunities to partner with a leasing agent who can help find what I'm looking for and he said "we just don't have time." I'm a good -credit (720... so not great but not horrible), long-term (I'd like to rent for 46-48 months) potential client... I'm sorry you don't have the time or the knowledge to help me find what I'm looking for. I'm actually disappointed that most home-owners are turning to these unprofessional, inexperienced leasing agents. I plan to try to avoid renter's warehouse and it's making the selection awfully slim.
I agree with these complaints... try this one... I have been living in my house for 8 months now. upon moving in, yes as the guy says above they do video inspections, but buddy I have to tell ya... toilet inspections and looking to see if the water is running fine or there's a scuff on the floor (isn't) the best way to inspect a rental house. For the eight months iv been renting this house with renters warehouse I have had (bronchitis) breathing problems and ect) all from MOLD. the sad part is during the inspection we told the "quote on quote"
renters warehouse inspector, the guy that only has knowledge in real estate not (inspections) that we saw mold in the upper bed room. His response was we will take care of that and get it fixed RIGHT AWAY. WELL WASNT FIXED AND ITS BEEN 8 MONTHS 2 DOCTER VISITES AND NOW GOING ON MY THIRD... on top of that 3 weeks ago witch keep in mind was 21 days ago. we had a random inspection, and I told the renters warehouse inspector (with all that inspector knowledge) NOT... that there was mold here since we moved in and my breathing hasten been to well and that I feel something is wrong. and he says...GUESS? I will take care of that RIGHT AWAY... well he never did. so we had a real inspection done due to a water leak that accord, and now I find out there in even more mold then we thought that was in the house for the past 8 months we have been living here. and I am already sick. and my wife and I are expecting a little one. WOW not to happy with renters warehouse. This is someone's life, and MOLD is no joke. Who thinks I legally have the right to move out and get a lawyer involved due to my issues? by the way. There are some good people working for renters warehouse. but WORD OF ADVICE if you are going to have someone stay in your house that your managing and have them pay $1800 a month in rent. then you sure as hell better get it inspected by a REAL INSPECTER.. not a real estate agent that only cared more about being on his phone and going to a party on lake Minnetonka... not good.
Renters Warehouse is providing minimal service on a volume-based business plan. They did so-so at responding to our tenants (I had to send several stern emails early on reminding them it was their job, not mine, to schedule maintenance, for example). The big problem arose when the tenants, just before moving out, caused a fire. We used the deposit to cover part of the repair costs, but Renters Warehouse took no special precautions in the sending of the required notice re how the deposit was used. Of course, tenants were not happy about how we used their deposit to fix their damage--but when they sued claiming they had not been sent the req'd notice, RW could only offer employee testimony they followed normal biz procedure in sending letter to tenants, not PROOF--no certified mail, not even an email for the sake of the date/time stamp. So we had to hire a lawyer and argue with RW about how it was their fault that we had to deal with this, instead of just shutting it down by producing a PROOF of the mailing. In the end, tenants agreed to drop their claim, but not until after much stress and a small legal bill. RW said they'd pay half of it--never saw it, though they have our mailing address. Basically, they provide very little, maximize their fees, and operate with minimal, over-stretched staff, then act very huffy and righteous when a tenant or a landlord complains about the minimal service. Hire a real property mgr and pay real fees. The $100/month is wasted on RW.
Renter's Warehouse is by far the WORST company I have ever had to work with. My boyfriend and I and our two young children are renting a property through them and we have had nothing but HORRIBLE experiences! When our air conditioner went out in the middle of the summer the first summer we rented it literally took three weeks to get someone out to look at it! At the time our son was one years old and our daughter 4 and it was the middle of the summer 90 degree weather most of the time. That was just the start of it...then it took them two weeks to have our dryer looked at as well. Their online rent portal is a joke! The second month we paid rent on it, the system said that the payment never went through due to insufficient funds, yet there was more than enough money in our account, and the payment pended for 5 days then they tried to add a late fee onto it as well as a $65 fee. I had the screen shots of our account and confirmation email that the payment was accepted, and the screen shot had the balance of the account so they reversed that charge. Now we are currently dealing with the same issue. They tried to say that again the account used had insufficient funds which it doesn't, and on top of that, they did not take out our rent payment, they charged us a random $25 so they clearly had the right account and again the payment showed up as pending when we looked online. The added a $65 fee again and took away our online payment privileges! So now they expect us to drive or mail a money order to Minnetonka every month. I have tried speaking with three different people in the rent and payments department and the ALL have been ridiculously rude to us! I am still dealing with this issue and they are trying to blame our bank instead of taking responsibility for their horrible computer system! I have written email after email and been ignored and told to pay the fee. It is NOT our responsibility to pay a fee for something that was caused by their horrible system for the second time! I have been trying to solve this issue for over a month now and keep getting blown off... I know that we are a younger couple, but that does not give them any right to treat us how they are and I would NEVER recommend them to anyone.
On move out or inspection was fine, the inspector stated the property looked like it had never been lived in. He performed his video inspection and stated he had to note nails in the wall. I stated that all the nails were in the wall on move in, and that he could check the move in inspection and see. They had even been painted over!
He said we really shouldn't worry about it and we will probably see our whole deposit back since the property was in such good shape.
Renter's Warehouse took the full 21 days before emailing us stating they were keeping $375 dollars out of the deposit. $200 for carpet cleaning and $175 for a loose counter top. I disputed both charges and threatened to sue, the rather quickly backed down on the carpet cleaning but insist that I made the counter top loose. I watched their video move out inspection and the inspector LIFTED a small section of counter top, which is obviously not what they are designed for, and it moved approximately 1/4". I said their charges were outrageous and that their inspector likely did the damage himself right there, because who goes into a house and lifts up on all the counters to see if their secure? I certainly don't, most are attached with only glue and can easily break doing that. They state the high cost was due to them having to send a "professional" to fix it, and them having a high trip charge.
They have been non responsive as of this point, I have called their office several different times on different days, left messages, gotten no call back from anyone. I have sent dozens of emails and the most they "offer" is the carpet cleaning refunded. I am filing a lawsuit in small claims court against both the property owner and Renters Warehouse for the return of my full deposit. I left the place better then I received it, and I did no damage, I should not be forced to pay for their inspector damaging the property.
There is nothing professional about the "professional landlords"
How did it turn out for you i am experiencing the same problem. How did court turn out?
Renters Warehouse worst property managers I have ever come across. I'm pensioner, over 70. Put my 401K into house in Phoenix. They let in tenants from hell, and wanted to charge me a fortune for the clean-up. I did the fix up for a quarter of what they wanted to charge. The tenants paid 2 months rent, Renters took a big slice of this upfront, but I never received a penny from them. I was overseas, they left the property to rot, and the county fined me for the rubbish the tenants left. I was $10, 000 out of pocket all up. My thoughts on them range from criminal negligence to possible fraud, considering the quotes they gave to fix up the place. Worst property managers I ever came across in my life.
I completely agree. I had the worst experiences with them. Black mold all over, not carbon monoxide detectors. I can't go further into that situation due to a pending lawsuit.. all I can say is thr neglect almost killed myself and my 2 sons. My one dog did die...I hope everyone can obtain better landlords.
Sorry about the couple words, not right.. my phone likes to change them when I hit send..Thank you again