ComplaintsforFox Property Management

• Initial Complaint

  07/21/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We are buying a home that this company is managing the renter tenants. We need to close escrow & are try to get this company to comply with letting us get the necessary repairs done so escrow can close. Renters & this company refuse to let repairs begin until renters move out which is after our closing. We gave renters a 60 day notice. We also tried to give them a 24hr notice for repairs. The renter works for this company.

  

  Business response

  07/24/2023

  Dear BBB - There are several details being left out of this complaint.  The owner decided to sell the home, so a proper 60-Day notice was given to the tenants, which puts their vacate date on September 4th.  An appraiser did an inspection of the house and the lender for the buyer is requesting several repairs be done prior to closing escrow.  One of the repairs requires a bathroom wall to be cut out, mold removed, and wall patched and painted.  The tenant is very ill and just had brain surgery.  It's not that they're refusing entry to do the repairs - it's that they are very concerned about mold being released into the house and making the tenant even sicker.  This is a reasonable concern.  This is also the only bathroom the tenants have, so this work would cause them to be without facilities for a few days.  The buyer also wants to start painting the exterior of the house which would require them to have access to the backyard.  The tenants have outdoor dogs, and it will be extremely difficult for the tenant who had brain surgery to take care of/control the dogs while strangers are on the premises.  (The wife works during the day).  I don't believe the tenants are being unreasonable - I believe it's fair to ask the buyer to hold off on repairs until the house is vacant.  I've told the buyers that we are helping the tenants try to find another place so it's possible they will move sooner.  These tenants do NOT work for my company.  The wife is a vendor how does house cleaning for several of our rentals when they become vacant. 

  Lastly - why would the seller agree to a close of escrow date that is earlier than the tenant move-out date?  It seems to me they are trying to force the tenants out early.

   

  Customer response

  07/28/2023

   I am rejecting this response because:
  
  The lender & the owner are requesting repairs to be done so that escrow can close on Aug 1st.  The appraiser found mold in the bathroom & it has to be removed before escrow can close.  Several phone calls have been made to ***** at Property Fox Management trying to give a 24hr notice so this can be done.  The mold is to be done by a Professional/License Company, so they do know what they are doing.  I would be more worried about the mold being there than the removal.  The owner has also contacted the renters.  My husband also offered to rent a nice hotel for them for the day if they are that worried about it.  The company said it will take about two hours & that they carefully mask off the bathroom so that the mold can not spred.  It does not have to be painted as explained.  

  The owner was told that the tenant had artery surgery in his neck, not brain surgery, but if so I do have empathy for him.  I realize that the wife does work but the son is also on the lease.  If he is that bad, he is staying by himself?  Also all of our thoughts & the reason for this is that the owner of Fox Property Management is not doing her job in working with us to figure this out & make it happen.  Should she even come to the home & let the mold company in?

  The other repair is that the appaiser said there is some peeling paint on the front of the house & garage that just needs to be scraped & primered. My husband can do this himself & again it will not take that long, it does not have to the painted.  Again this is denied because they have dogs.  There is a huge shadded dog kennel on the property.  

  Why would the seller agree to close before the tenant leaves?  Really???  The owner & buyer have done what all we need to do & that is the closing date.  And Yes they have until Sept.  We dont care about them leaving early.  We even gave a nine month notice where we live so our move out date is not until Oct 1st, so we can get in there & do the painting & flooring, ect after they move out on Sept 4th.  Moving out has never been the issure, so No we are not trying to force them out.  We just want the repairs done before closing.  The home can not & will not close with the repairs, therefor we have to pay a large fee to push the closing back & we are only locked into our current interest rates until Aug 1st, so after that we pay a fee & our interest rates go up.  

  Fox Property Managment Please do your job.  The contract clearly states that any homes repairs must be honored by the tenant with a 24hr notice.

  Also an attornery is not involved & per contract the tenants are responsible for attorney fees.

  Repairs please is all we need & this company to stop & just do her job, afterall she is working for the seller!

  

  Business response

  08/01/2023

  Dear BBB - Other than my previous response, I'm not sure what else I can say.  By law, a 60-Day Notice to Vacate is required when an owner is selling the house.  The notice was issued on July 5th, which puts their vacate date on September 4th.  The tenants are entitled to "quiet enjoyment" of their home until that date.  They are not obligated to allow repairs to be done while they are packing and trying to move out.  Not to mention that one of the tenants is very ill and can't get around like you or me.  I spoke with my attorney and even if I served the tenants a 24-hour notice to do repairs, they still could refuse entry.  I offered to serve the 24-hour notice but explained to Mr. ***** that they wouldn't allow entry to the home, especially to remove mold from the only working bathroom.  Staying in a hotel for one or two nights was not an option, as it would be extremely difficult for them to pack up, move the medical equipment, and travel to another location.

  I've worked with many owners who sold their homes with a tenant in place.  All of them have waited until the home was vacant to do what they needed to do in order to not disturb the tenants.  The fact that the Wedel's and the seller decided to close escrow over a month before the termination of the tenancy is not reasonable, in my opinion.

  Mrs. ***** commented that she wants me to "do my job".  I am doing my job.  I represent the owner and the tenants and have done everything "by the book".  Additionally, the current owner of the property has been very reasonable about all of this and has never pushed me to get the tenants out or allow repairs to be made.  It's the buyers, the ******, who have been pushing me.  Legally, I shouldn't even be dealing with the ******.

  Lastly, the tenants have found another home and will be vacating on or around August 20th.  This is two weeks earlier than expected.

   

*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. ↩