ComplaintsforGolden Rule Real Estate Team

• Initial Complaint

  01/09/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I live in this address from September 2019. I signed lease on September 2019 for $ ****** per month. When contract was ended after 12 month ,I opted for month to month pay and was paying $ ****** per month. This home is unsafe and inhabitate . There are many hidden charges. All maintenance fees are been paid by tenants and if any companies raised soon landlord will threaten that this is publicizing and he is able to charge $10,000.00 per contract. Lately we pay fees for mowing ,trash and we are asked to clean AC filter ourself. On or around x mass I wrote email to landlord saying I am here for more than 3 years and if cleaning air filter is tenets responsibility then he had to let us know from day one because now after more than 3 years passed AC was so filty and I am above 50 years old ,I couldn't do it and ended up paying $ ****** to professional to clean up the *** ******** had sent response via email on 28th December 2022 which I received his email only on 5th of January 2023. He had written email in response to genuine complaint over lack of maintenance that he has increased rate and from 02/01/2023 onwards if I want to stay either I must pay $899.00 signing one year contract or if I continue month to month I must pay $****.00 per month.He had given me till end of January to vacate or els from first February i must pay according to new rate which is 500 dollar more than current rate. I replied on the spot on the day I received his email ,remind him that his proposition is impossible for me as it is $ ****** increase in rate .I also told him that no other neighbors had such increase on rent. I nicely requested him give me time to find place for myself still paying current rate of ****** dollar. But He insisted on doing wrong to me. So since he had send his proposition on email so I replied via email with heading notice to vacate and told him since I can't pay such a fee per his proposition ,I am leaving by end of January . But . ******** tries to take unnecessary money from me which I don't have. He has written email ,saying his email was written on 28th December so from that day I had 30 days to vacate and since I responded on 5th January either i have to stay for the month of February or if i leave before that i must pay till he finds new resident that too according to new rental fee of **** dollar per month. . I remind him that writing such important notice of increase in rental rate or els to vacate can not be done via email and he had to do it by first class mail. I remind him i receivedhis email on 5th January as i am unable to check my email every single day. He refuse to listen. I told him I complaint to BBB,equal housing and police case him because he says if I leave in end of January, he will give my name to collections agency. He as matter of fact has started his late fee harassment ( he dose that all the time without tenants being aware for e.g he start late fee charges at begining of month ,for e.g by 5 dollar a day late fee charges and by the month if you get to their web page you get late fee bills which has reached to ****** dollar) so since I knew this late fee harassment I looked up in their web page last night and saw he has started hisfraud crime but this time for made more than ******* USD charges for me as not only he has started to increase the rate without notice from January 1st but also increased the rate from 656 dollar not to **** dollar but to ****.00 per month. See his not giving notice on time and via correct way of delivery in addition to illegal increase in rental fee has caused me to be without place to live. It is not possible to find another apartment till end of January. See even if he had sent his notice via first class mail still while festive holiday and bad weather was impossible to find another place to live this fast,I am single foreign working woman and I have told the landlord.

  Business response

  01/17/2023

  The tenant starts off saying the apartment is uninhabitable but says she has been there for 3 years (2 years as a month to month tenant) and wants to continue renting at her desired amount instead of the market rent.  She has been on a month to month lease so she could have moved any time in the last year but has chosen to stay with 30 day notice  The place is very habitable as are the other 13 units she has as neighbors.  This is untrue and therefore falls under the consumer protection laws that prohibits posting untrue statements and ******* HB 494 ******* Non-Disparagement Obligations Act that prevents the BBB and people from printing or posting untrue statements or any statements that intentionally disparages a person or business. ********************************************************************************************************;

  The lease clearly says 30 days notice is required to terminate the lease for both parties and the lease expires at the end of the month, she doesn't want to pay market rent and is using the BBB to try and negotiate her way out of fees she owes per the lease.  

  We gave her more than 30 days notice by sending her notice that she acknowledges receiving on the 28th but reading on the 5th which by law is all that is needed (we cant control when someone says they read their mail).

  She goes on to complain about having to pay for services she uses and also acknowledges not cleaning the air filter for more than 3 years because it was too expensive which is her responsibility per the lease section 17 as shown in the attached lease. 

  Thank you, I appreciate you not posting this and violating my rights by posting untrue statements.  

• Initial Complaint

  11/16/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My daughter, *************************** leased an apartment at ***************. in April 2021. There were termites/roaches in the apartment so we asked them to take care of it. They didn't so the city of Huntsville was contacted and did an inspection. In July, ****** was asked to move out of the apartment. The letter stated for late payments but we have never been late on rent. We were not given a 30 day notice, was just told to be out by 31 August. She moved on the 31st and had the utilities cut off. I emailed them last week and asked about the deposit of $475. ***** told me that we owed money because they didn't have enough time to clean, paint and do repairs by Sept. 1. Not only did they keep the deposit of $475, they are now requesting another $943.45 for an additional months rent. I agreed to pay the additional $350 for deep cleaning but I don't feel like another months rent is owed when the apartment was vacant on August 31 as requested. I have tried to talk to ***** several times on email and he is not willing to remove the September billing. ****** is on disability and only draws $841/month. She is now homeless.

  Business response

  11/17/2022

  Per your lease section 42 regarding non disparagement, consider this the demand for $10,000 for disparaging us with the BBB.  In addition to libel statements in your complaint to the BBB.  If you will retract the complaint immediately and pay the amount due,  we will not pursue the disparagement or libel claims.   Thank you. 

  Customer response

  11/17/2022

   
  Complaint: 18414162
  
  I am rejecting this response because: I am requesting an itemized statement of all the repairs and damages associated with the charges on the invoice.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

  Business response

  11/17/2022

  This resident who has a felony criminal record for drugs with collections on her credit report from another property management company.  She had to have a co ****** for criminal, income and creditworthiness purposes and to guarantee the damages would be covered if they left any that were over and above normal wear and tear.  Its people like this that ruin it for people who are trying to repair a broken past and why most landlords will not rent to someone with a felony past.  There is a reason she is homeless, she always messes up apartments and has a felony record so no one will rent to her any more.  As complainant stated in one of the attached emails, she didn't realize the apartment was not cleaned so she agreed to pay for the cost to clean the apartment which also acknowledges that the apartment was not rentable when they moved out and as such they are responsible for the following month since we could not rent the apartment in the condition they left it thus costing the owner an additional months rent.  She also went on to say that she believes that painting was part of what every owner should do after someone leaves because they have always left it where it needed painting in another attached email, also agreeing with us that the apartment needed painted and holes needed patched.  She also acknowledges that the floor was damaged and the pictures and inspection show that the brand new floor was damaged when they moved out.  Also the white floor that was ruined was on concrete which would not have any termites in it.  Further, we had the apartment treated for termites and it is termite free according to *****************.  And she stated the holes in the walls were a result of the curtain rods and you can clearly see there are additional holes as well as those where the curtain rods used to be.   You can also see where they tried to patch the holes acknowledging that they damaged them and that was not acceptable or they would not have tried to patch them.  This is another prime example of someone trying to use the BBB to negotiate their way out of paying damages and trying to disparage our reputation and libel us in the process.  As you can see, this is not the first time she has left an apartment a mess and stuck the management company with a bill as evidenced by her credit report showing the collection from . We intend to file a lawsuit to recover the damages.  The pictures of damages are attached for the BBB review.  See the following link which is time, gps and date stamped inspection -- https://portfolio.zinspector.com/report/openSharedDocumentReport/6Rxnqdjo8Mm7d60i6VjLryewpOAVla0D.    

  Customer response

  11/18/2022

   
  Complaint: 18414162
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I am in no way trying to get out of paying what is owed. I stated that we would be happy to pay for any repairs that we were responsible for and cleaning. The floor was damaged due to rotten wood flooring and I don't feel like this is our responsibility. I agreed to pay the extra $350 for cleaning and the blinds that were damaged (this includes the $475 deposit. I tried to work this out in a reasonable manner on both parties and I am not here to badmouth anyone but demanding $10,000 because I submitted a complaint to the BBB isn't the solution. We called and went by the office several times trying to get the floor repaired and was told that nothing was going to be done. 

  Trashing my daughter's reputation is unacceptable. I'm not sure where the information is coming from but she has never left an apartment damaged! She agreed to pay the $350 but doesn't feel like she should pay for the month of September when she was told to move out on August 31, which she was out and utilities were cut off. 

  I hope we can get this resolved soon. We are not here to create or cause anyone any problems. Life is too short and everyone needs to get along. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

  Business response

  11/29/2022

  11-29-2022  

  Here is my response and her response below:

  
  We did not charge her for any flooring ($1247 that is attached and not charged) despite them putting several tears in it even where it was on concrete and had nothing to do with the termites that were exterminated by *****************.

  
  The invoice for the unit turn, supplies, and cleaning are attached (paint costs were also not charged (normally about $250) because we had some paint left over that we used to save us and the tenant money).  Also, attached is a 5 Star review that the tenant did for us during her tenancy which conflicts with what ****** is saying about us not taking care of her daughter while she lived there... again, this is just a ploy to try and use the BBB to negotiate damages and "trash our reputation" which isn't ok according to her for us to do to her daughter with honest statements, but is ok for her to try and do to us with dishonest libelous statements?  Her slanderous and libelous actions will be pursued in court as soon as the collection agency receives the unpaid invoices.  

  
  Despite her putting holes in walls, ruining the flooring, and creating an environment conducive to roaches we still did all we could to manage the property correctly and again, received a 5 star review from the tenant while she lived there (screenshot shown below).  This is an attempt to trash our reputation and get out of paying for damages caused by her daughter who doesnt pay her bills evidenced by her credit report.  She moved into an apartment with new paint (as the co ****** said) and new flooring and left it in filthy with ***** p*** and in shambles as noted by our cleaning vendor in their invoice.     

  
  

  Customer response

  12/05/2022

   
  Complaint: 18414162
  
  I am rejecting this response because: As originally stated, I will pay for the entire apartment to be deep cleaned, replacing the mini blinds, light bulbs in bathroom and two exterior light coverings on the front/back porch, backdoor frame that I replaced twice because of someone in the neighborhood trying to break in.  I do not feel as it is my responsibility to pay rent for September as the property was vacant on August 31st as requested by Golden Rule and is still vacant on December 5th (over 90 days later). I have asked several times what repairs I am being charged for - $650 doesn't have a breakdown of repairs. 

  I have also attached a rental invoice that shows the late fee explanation. As you can see, rent was charged twice $475 and $593.75. This happened several times and when asked the response was "Don't worry about it, we fixed it". Rent was NEVER late, and the late charges were paid even though the billing statements were incorrect. 

  There is clear evidence of a pattern of denial and public shaming, intimidation and bullying, from this company.   I intend to proceed with legal filings against Golden Rule Real Estate / Mr. ******************** should he choose to defame me or attempt to harm my reputation or credit worthiness with these bullying tactics.
  

  Golden Rule responses to reviews:

  1. Hi XXXX, we don't have record of renting to you, please let us know where you rented so we can try to help.  (DENIAL)
  
  2. Hi XXXX, I am not sure why you gave us a 1 Star Review, please let us know what we didn't do well so we can try to do better next time. As I look back into our residents, I don't see where you are or were one of our residents. All the Best.  (DENIAL)

  3. We see why you made a 1-star review; we didn't accept you as a resident because you had very poor credit and had a criminal record as well as several evictions. We wish you luck in finding a place to live.   (PUBLIC SHAMING) 

  4. We are sorry that you feel that way, Golden Rule did everything we could do to help you, we thought deleting your late fees and not charging you for the bad checks that you and XXXX wrote would make you happy. And that accepting you as a tenant with two evictions when we don't normally accept Section 8 residents with evictions without a co ****** and you were unable to get a co ******. Now we are left with no options but to turn you over to collections for the debt, damages and cleaning you left behind. We wish you the best of luck in the future.     (PUBLIC SHAMING) 
  

  5. I am sorry XXXX, we don't see where you rent from us. Please let us know where you live or call us at our after-hours number of ************ and we will get back to you right away and address your emergency as soon as possible.    (DENIAL)
  

  6. XXXX, Thank you for your Golden Rule Real Estate Team rating. Customer ********************** and satisfaction are two of Golden Rule's top priorities. Would you be so kind as to extrapolate your experience? I'd like to take this opportunity to improve. We don't have record of communicating with you.     (DENIAL)
  
  
  
  
  
  

  Sincerely,

  Bren********

  Business response

  12/12/2022

  The tenant didn't clean as they admitted and the photos show, so we charged them for cleaning based on what our cleaners charged us and much less than our lease allows for us to charge, thus the Quality Property services Invoice that is included for cleaning and mentions "cabinets very nasty with ***** poop" according to the lease.  Our lease allows us to charge a lot more for cleaning and painting.  We could have had our own employees do the job and charged what the lease allows.    
  
  Goat Handyman was for painting, blind replacement, and unit turn costs. etc (it is outlined in the Goat invoice that was attached).  As I mentioned, the paint cost was not charged (labor was) and the floor was not charged for despite it being brand new when she moved in and ruined when she left.  Flooring has a useful life of 7 years and we didn't charge her despite that and she was only there since April 2021 16 months.  It is not double dipping, we have to pay to get a contractor to paint the entire unit, put in new blinds, and patch the other holes and that takes time.  During that time in September, we are not able to rent the property so we lost rent for that month and it pushed us into a more difficult time to rent (closer to the holidays is harder to rent than closer to the summer and school starting.  And this is specifically called out in Section 19 of the lease they both signed and initialed (screenshot below of their lease).   We also lost October because our contractors were backed up and couldn't get there any sooner. 

  
  This invoice is attached to the complaint and a screenshot is below of both invoices and what they are for contrary to your email.  I hope this helps, please let me know if you have more questions.  Thank you

  Customer response

  12/18/2022

   
  Complaint: 18414162
  
  I am rejecting this response because: The photo of the bathroom sink that is attached is the photo that I took and emailed to Golden Rule in May. The hole was in the wall when we took possession in April 2021 and we were told it would be repaired. We asked several times to repair it because the utility bills were between $250-$300 a month. The repair consisted of spraying foam insulation in the hole and in the cracks. The photo of the living room floor was also emailed to Golden Rule in May and asked if the floor could be repaired but we were told that nothing else would be fixed in the apartment. This is when we called the city of Huntsville and had the inspector come and inspect the apartment. Golden Rule was given 120 days to take care of the problems. This is when a letter was left in the mailbox on the front porch that ******** had 7 days to vacate the property because the rent was late which we know this isn't true because we have statements showing the rent was paid on time. 

  I spoke with the inspector after receiving the charges owed and was told that after inspecting the property the second time that it was not up to building codes and the report had been forwarded to the supervisor. I spoke with the Director of Inspections on Thursday, December 15th and was told that since Golden Rule requested that we vacate the property we were not responsible for paying additional rent. 

  Again, I have no problem paying for new blinds and deep cleaning but I don't feel like it's my responsibility to pay for repairs needed on a 100+ year old concrete building. 

  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

  Business response

  12/20/2022

  12-20-2022   We have sent the inspection (here is the link again) showing all of the work was done and there were no holes in the walls when they moved in (see screenshot below taken 4-23-2021 at ****pm at the property that is time, date and gps stamped) and the flooring was in perfect brand new condition at the time she moved in (keep in mind, we did not charge her for any flooring cost despite tearing it up).  Just another example of being dishonest and trying to use you and the BBB to get out of paying what they should owe.  We will pursue the floor damage when we take her to court.  -

  - https://portfolio.zinspector.com/report/openSharedDocumentReport/9LdjqV4zxn57qQbiWGqj7aK0WAYpPo6G

  the pictures clearly show the floor was in perfect condition and there was no hole under the sink when they moved in.  

    

  Customer response

  12/20/2022

   
  Complaint: 18414162
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I have tried to work with ************ on the repairs. I have even agreed to pay the additional $350.00 which does not include the $475 deposit that was kept but I don't feel responsible to pay an extra months rent because he hasn't been able to rent the apartment since August 31. I am NOT a dishonest person and have a TS clearance since **** and I resent the fact that I am being accused of this. 

  Again, my intentions were never to refuse to pay what is owed but I feel we are being taken advantage of in this situation. 

  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

• Initial Complaint

  07/11/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Golden Rule Real Estate Team handles the HOA for the Grove Park subdivision I live in. On July 7, 2022, I received a letter and invoice. The letter states that I did not pay my 2021 and 2022 annual association dues. It also states that I need to pay a total of 15 monthly late fees, additionally. I never received a bill, email, nor had access to their "portal" for payment. I never received any notification of arrears until this month. I agreed to pay the annual association dues immediately but would not pay the late fees as this was my first notification from Golden Rule about my arrears. Scott Gray, the owner, emailed me that I had to pay the late fees according to real estate law or they would continue to accrue. He also informed me the late fees would be included in my credit card payment I made today. I emailed him that it was shoddy practice to continue assessing late fees without notifying me for months.

  Business response

  07/12/2022

  Per the covenants and bylaws that ******** ***** agreed to when she bought home that she knew they were not going to be given any notice or invoices and they paid their HOA dues in 2020, but did not pay in 2021 or 2022 therefore they knew the association fees were due and they intentionally chose not to pay them.  We have to apply the covenants and bylaws the same for all people and not give anyone special treatment so that we do not violate any fair housing standards. 

  She has always had access to the portal and could have paid online any time.  Attached is a screenshot of where she recently logged in again and also a picture of the ledger showing where she did not and has not paid her bills since 2020 and is simply using the BBB as a way of trying to get out of paying her late fees that are clear and in fact a lot less than what could have been charged.  

   

  Customer response

  07/27/2022

  I am rejecting this response because:  the bylaws do not state anywhere that there will be not attempts made to contact the resident for continued late fee assessments.  I also question why Golden Rule decided now to send me a bill after 2 years of late fee assessments.  Why was it not sent earlier?  I contend it is poor business management and poor business practice.  I am willing to pay a late fee assessment for each year of annual dues but I do not believe I should have to pay for the additional late fees as I was never contacted or received a bill until this month.
  

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩