ComplaintsforAt Home Real Estate Services of Southwest MO

• Initial Complaint

  06/23/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My girlfriend and I are currently renting a house through AtHome Real Estate. In the 8 months weve lived at the property, air conditioning people have been over to the house on 10 different occasions. Were constantly having to wait for approval from the company or owner to deal with these heating and cooling issues. Outside of the various other issues, the most recent issue with our AC unit has left us in a 90 degree home. Not only are we extremely hot and uncomfortable in our own home, our dogs are constantly panting due to the heat. I placed an urgent maintenance request on Friday, June 21st and its Sunday, June 23rd and nothing has happened in regards to fixing the issue. I know if it were the manager or owner of the company, this issue would be fixed immediately. However, were left to sit in a 90 degree home in the middle of summer due to their lack of urgency and respect for tenants. As I stated prior, this isnt the first issue weve had in regards to our AC. On multiple other occasions theyve failed to deal with our problems in any urgent manner. I could only imagine how slow theyd deal with other issues with something as simplistic as an air conditioning unit. Im forced to become a **** a** due to my family suffering from the heat. No one should ever have to suffer comfortability in their own home due to the company theyre renting for. The values this company promotes are significantly different from the ones Ive been experiencing.

  

  Business response

  06/24/2024

  We understand the frustration of not having air conditioning during hot weather. It can be an unpleasant experience.

  However, ********************** claim that we've visited his home 10 times for ** issues is inaccurate. Since he moved in, he has submitted four work orders, all of which have been addressed promptly.
  

  In October 2023, he reported an issue with the *** and it was fixed the following day. 
  

  Also in October 2023, he reported an issue with the dishwasher, and two days later a new dishwasher was installed. 
  

  In April 2024, he reported an issue with the **.  The tech called the resident multiple times with no response, but it was repaired as soon as we could get an appointment with the resident. 
  

  On Friday, June 21st, ****************** reported another ** issue. The vendor was able to get to the home on Sunday, but the repair cost required the homeowner's approval. 
  

  We provided ****************** with four window ** units to help offset the heat while we sought approval. 
  

  The owner approved the repair on Monday, and the repair is scheduled for the same day.
  

  Items to Note: 
  

  Due to the high temperatures, all HV** companies are experiencing high demand, making it challenging to schedule immediate appointments.
  

  As ****************** mentioned to us that if it had been our ** it would have been immediately worked on, we will mention that our company owners personal ** went out last weekend, and they had to wait over 2.5 days for a technician to visit due to the high demand for HV** services.
  

  At Home is contractually bound to seek the owner's approval for major repairs.
  

  HV** systems have various components, and different issues can arise, especially during hot weather. 
  

  We genuinely apologize for the inconvenience caused to ******************. We worked diligently to resolve this and the other three issues he reported in the past as quickly as possible. 
  

  We hope that the ** repair scheduled for today will alleviate the heat and improve ********************** experience in his home.
  

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  06/09/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I am renting a house in ***********, ** through At Home management
  service. I set up auto pay for my rent payments. Last month they took
  out one on April 1st and I had it set up for the payment to come out on
  March 30th but it came out April 1st - $1295.00. Then on April 5th,
  they took another payment. We have never been late with our payments
  and this is the second time they have done this. The first time was
  when we originally rented the house, so I went into their office to tell
  them. I told them to just keep that and wouldn't do an autopay for
  September but now when they did this they went back to their old system.
  I told them they already have one month's payment, why would you take
  another one? They want me to pay the $35 NSF charge but there was no
  reason for them to take the second payment. The bank said they couldn't
  stop the payment because it had already went through and couldn't
  change the set up because it would change my rent payments coming out of
  my bank account going forward. I didn't authorize the second payment.
  
  
  

  

  Business response

  06/10/2024

  We understand that ************ is unhappy with the $35 Payment Rejection Fee. Unfortunately, At Home does not have the ability to take money from or set up payments for her. The date and amount of payments are beyond our control.

  
  The only way an ACH payment can be made is through the resident portal by the resident themselves. We have attached a screenshot of the resident portal payment page showing that we are locked out of her payment setup. While we can see what the page shows to help explain the payment process to residents, we cannot actually process the payment ourselves.

  
  ACH (echeck) payments are not instantly taken from her account and work similar to paper checks. They are processed by the ***** and depending on factors like weekends and holidays, it can take several days for the funds to clear the bank.

  
  We are unsure if the delay in the first payment prompted ************ to make a second payment on April 5th, but the system does not prevent residents from making prepayments as many choose to do so.

  
  The attached ledger shows that ************ made an ACH payment on April 1st and a second payment on April 5th. The April 5th payment did not clear and was rejected on April 10th.

  
  As per the lease agreement that ************ signed, there is a $35 payment rejection fee in the event that a payment is rejected. This fee is also imposed by our bank when a payment is rejected. The lease agreement section outlining this fee has been attached for reference.

  
  We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience or frustration this has caused ************. However, as the payments were made through her portal and did not clear her bank, the $35 fee, as agreed upon in the lease agreement, has been added to her ledger.

  Thank you.

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  02/13/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This Happened around February 5-9, 2024. The management company changed app online to pay rent as I cost more money or percentage if you do not use your ACH of your account. Final Update for today - Appfolio has confirmed that the $2.49 fee will be off as of tomorrow. :) Late Fees will be waived for all payments we get online by Sunday, Feb 11th and we have in the drop box by 9 am on Feb 12th. We are very sorry for the delays and issues we have run into but hope that going forward things will be smoother. Thank you!!This is what was text to me and now they are not going to take the charge off. Even though they said they would and I spoke to someone on the phone who said the same thing. I am doing this as the principal of what happened to me and to for worn others. I feel they need to make this right.

  

  Business response

  02/26/2024

  We ended up refunded her by sending her a gift card for $10.00.  I couldn't refund it on her account because of the way accounting works.  We hope the extra money would be efficient.  I talked to her and she was fine.  

  Customer response

  02/27/2024

  I have not received the gift card.  I need to know that the charge will no longer be charged monthly.

  Once I know this I am satisfied.

  Thank you 

  Dusta 

   

  

  Business response

  05/22/2024

  We are perplexed as to the rationale behind the submission of this message.
  
  We have attached proof that not only was the gift card sent, but that it was opened by ************. 
  We also reached out in February to confirm receipt of the gift card but did not receive a response.
  
  As to wanting to know that there will not be any additional charges, this is also confusing, as it was made clear in writing in February that it was a fee that she could have avoided by simply waiting until we let everyone know it was no longer being charged by the software company. (roughly 24 hours after her payment)  and she has made three online ACH payments without the fee since then. 
  
  But for the record. The software company has removed the $2.49 processing fee that is paid to the software company, and it is not being charged to any resident when they make an ACH online rent payment. 
  
  
  Thank you.
  
  

  Customer response

  05/23/2024

  I am not aware of any contact from the property management company.  I have never received a physical or email of a gift card.  So I am not sure who opened it.  

  I would not be saying any of this had I received any response from the management company.  I would like to see the email or text that they told me I would receive the gift card.  I also would like to add that they ask me to take down a complaint on Facebook.  Which I did.  Have never received anything else from management company except about to go through the duplex and send them pictures so they can raise my rent at the end of my year.  

  Customer response

  05/31/2024

  I guess the business always win.  I am deeply disappointed.  They lie and get away with it.

  I should not be surprised as this is how business work theses days.  Bad landlords seem to get away with whatever they want.  I just want to go on record that I am not lying and this company is not working with their tenants.  Maybe someone else will see this and ask lots of questions and not have to go through what I have.

• Initial Complaint

  11/16/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I lived at a property owned by At Home from September 28th 2020 until May 25th 2023! The address was **** * ****** ****** *** ****, *********** ******** *****. When my boyfriend and I moved in, we moved in by taking over a sublease. Remember this term, because it comes back around. When we moved in we noticed right away a fe* things wrong, and we quickly got those things fixed by maintenance. On May 28th of 2021, we had a bee hive removed from our outdoor closet, by someone that at home sent. They never repaired the hole that was left from removing this beehive, which then ended up causing rain to leak all over our stuff we had in that closet and produced black mold all over the stuff and around this hole. My apartment also flooded twice due to surrounding neighbors, one of the times being sewage water. I ended getting pregnant in October of 2022, and immediately started going over my lease and what I could do to move out so I could move back in with my boyfriend. He moved out of the apartment in March of 2022. I read in my lease that subleases needed to just be approved by my landlord. I found people that were interested, as my roommate and I were ready to go. It was in February of this year, that we both went in and talked to a gal and they said subleases weren’t allowed no matter what. Which by this point I was almost 6 months pregnant and already struggling with making bills. When we moved out in May, my roommate and I both continued to check our emails and I even kept the app that was used to bill us, just in case we ended up owing anything for damages. We never received anything. My boyfriend and I were recently looking for a house through them, and they said I still owed a balance for damages. I paid it immediately. I kno* the couple that moved into my old unit, and I asked if they cleaned it, the couple said no and that there is damages to the carpet still. I was charged over $1,700 for these repairs that never happened and have been spoken to very rudely.

  

  Business response

  12/04/2023

  We are a bit confused as to why this complaint has been submitted, as this person is in good standing with At Home, and none of the documentation we can find indicates that this resident was unhappy.
  
  
  We are, however, happy for the opportunity to provide some clarification in this situation.
  
  
  Our lease does not allo* for subleasing at all, but the residents of this unit were able to do a fe* takeovers, by signing Roommate Change & Assignment of Security Deposit Addendums. A takeover transfers responsibility for the unit to the ne* roommate, and releases the removed party from any obligation. For this unit, there have been a fe* takeovers since the initial lease started in 2020. Responsibility and obligation to the property had been transferred resident to resident in this manner, and the deposit remained with the property the entire time. ****** was not on the original lease, she (and *****) took over the lease 4 months later.
  
  
  The security disposition was mailed to ******'s forwarding address, which she provided when she turned in the keys to the unit. It was returned to us via the postal service with the label "insufficient address, unable to forward."
  
  
  There was a typo when the original charges were entered, causing the cost of the blinds replacement to be $1100 rather than $110. This was corrected as soon as it was brought to our attention. We are human beings, and are bound to make mistakes once in a while, but we endeavor to correct these things swiftly. After the correction, the ~$1700 in charges was reduced to $706.49, $600 of which was covered by the deposit.
  
  
  When presented with the corrected disposition, the resident did not dispute any charges, and instead paid the balance due. Instructions provided at the bottom of the disposition letter state to email us in order to dispute any of the charges. We take disputes seriously, and thoroughly review all invoices, pictures, and other documentation in order to come to some sort of resolution.
  
  
  These residents were charged for the following items: blinds, trim paint, light bulbs, wall paint, make ready clean, and carpet cleaning. They were not charged to repair damages to the carpet, any holes, or any damage from leaks, floods, or anything else.
  
  
  We did not receive a dispute for any specific charges, nor did we charge the resident $1700. To our knowledge, this situation had been resolved prior to the submission of this complaint.

  Customer response

  12/14/2023

  So here am I again, counter arguing with At Home. They never even cleaned my old apartment and still charged me for it. I’m IN CONTACT with the ne* tenants of my old apartment. Nothing was repaired and I want money back that I was told I needed to pay. I was never sent this email either that At Home is stating was sent.

  

  Business response

  12/14/2023

  We are confused on why Ms. ****** believes that work was not done to the home. 

  The home was made ready and a security deposit disposition letter was sent to Ms. ******, after which we had the following conversations with her.   

  
  On Thu, Nov 9, 2023 at 9:09?AM  ****** wrote:
  
  Hello,
  My boyfriend has made it aware to me that I owe a balance for my old apartment at **** * ****** ****** ****. However, I was never reached out about this by anyone at At Home, I checked my email for this information. I also never received any sort of phone call about this.

  
  On Nov 9, 2023, at 10:33 AM, ****** wrote:
  
  ?A disposition letter was mailed to the provided forwarding address after you moved out.
  I've attached it belo* for your convenience.
  The current amount due is $106.49
  Thank you

  
  On Thu, Nov 9, 2023 at 10:49?AM ****** wrote:
  
  Also where can I pay this? I’m sure I can come in, but I live in rogersville right now, so that’s quite the drive. If I am able to call and pay it or if I am able to online I will get that done today! 

  
  On Nov 9, 2023, at 11:50 AM, ****** wrote:
  
  ?It does need to be certified funds either brought or mailed to the office. Unfortunately we cannot accept payments over the phone and the online portal was turned off once you were moved out.
  Thank you

  
  From: ******
  Date: Thu, Nov 9, 2023 at 3:56?PM
  Subject: Re: Apartment B102
  To: ******
  
  I think my old roommate (***** just came and turned in a mail order for me! Thank you! 

   

  ******
  

  We have bills showing the work was done, and those bills were used to determine the charges held out of the deposit. 
  
  The amount that was due was paid by her roommate.
  
  After it was paid, Ms. ****** started calling the office asking for the funds that her roommate paid to be given back to her.  This was after her boyfriend who had been applying with us decided not to continue with the application process. 
  
  So the way the timeline lays out is: 
  
  Ms. ****** and her boyfriend apply for another home through At Home.
  Ms. ****** figures out that she has a balance due from her move out on a different apartment.
  Ms. ******'s old roommate paid the balance due.
  Ms. ****** and her boyfriend decided not to move forward with his application.
  Ms. ****** started demanding the funds paid by her roommate to be paid back to Ms. ******.
  This request was denied.  
   
  We are sorry that Ms. ****** is not happy with the amount that was due, but the charges in the deposit disposition are valid. 
  
  Additionally, the ne* resident did not have any complaints about the condition of the apartment when they moved in.  And the only work orders we have received from the ne* resident to date were on an outside issue and a clogged drain, well after move in. 
  
  We have before and after pictures and bills of the work that was completed at the home, and are ready to defend the deposit disposition charges in court should Ms. ******’s threats of a lawsuit come to fruition.

  Thank you. 

  At Home Real Estate Services. 

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  04/18/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  A pipe in my kitchen has been leaking for 2 weeks. They sent someone out and said they would come back out but have not showed up again. I have contacted them again and they keep saying he will be coming soon. Now, I believe there is a mold issue.

  

  Business response

  04/18/2023

  This repair has been completed. 
  The water had to be turned off to the entire apartment complex to fix the leak, so it had to be scheduled and everyone notified. 
  The plumber wanted to set the repair to start a week earlier, but the resident asked for the fix to take place on the 17th. 
  The BBB complaint was put in when the plumber did not arrive at 9am and was an hour late. 
  The plumber states that they set it up a start time of 9 am to Noon and did not promise to be there right at 9 am. 
  At Home does not control the plumbers schedule or their arrival times. 
  In this situation, we have done everything possible to get the issue resolved as quickly as possible in the time frame the resident asked for. 
  We are confused on why this turned into a BBB complaint on At Home. 
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  02/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I’m tired of feeling unsafe in my home and nobody doing anything, - I had concerns about a neighbor smoking meth. They evicted him and would not answer questions despite concerns about my health. - I have put in multiple work orders for a leak in my ceiling. I now have mold and am sick almost all the time. I have missed multiple days of work and lost money because of this. I have no underlying health conditions, - I still have bugs despite them spraying multiple times. In my kitchen, where I cook and eat. - My apartment smells like weed all the time. - I am taking my leashed dog out and multiple times, an unleashed dog has run towards her. I have had neighbors yell at me because my dog reacts to theirs running at me. - Homeless people frequently sleep in the dumpster. - I wake up to screaming and potential domestic violence situations from neighbors more than I should.

  

  Business response

  02/06/2023

  Good Afternoon, 

  
  We are very sorry to hear that the resident is not happy. We are also confused as none of this has been reported to us (except for the roof leak), and some of it is just not correct. 
  

  We are going to break down the complaint issue by issue below: 
  

  Concerns about the neighbor and drug use.   We have no reports or knowledge of a resident using meth in her building. Additionally, we have not evicted anyone in the building since she moved in.  We are not sure what she is referring to here at all.  And in the 15 years we have managed this complex, we have never had a report of meth in this building.
  

  Ceiling Leak.   We did have a work order on a ceiling leak. The entire complex roof had to be replaced due to hail damage. Due to the cost being close to $50k we had to work with and wait on insurance funds to come in.  Since the roof was replaced, we have not had any other work orders turned in by the resident. And as the entire complex roof was replaced, it was clear and evident that had taken place. We will take this communication and submit a work order for the resident though and look at the issue.
  

  Pest Control.  We have a pest control contract set up with a pest control company and they routinely treat for pests. That contract allows for free callbacks anytime there is an issue between treatments. So we are happy to have pest control reach out to her to see how they can help. But since she moved in, we have not had a single work order turned in reporting this problem.  This complaint is the first we are hearing of an issue that needs to be addressed.
  

  Homes smells like weed.  This again is the 1st we are hearing about this issue. Smoking of any kind is not allowed per the lease for all residents.  If we are made aware of indoor smoking, we do everything possible to try to track down who is violating the lease and address the issue. But we need to know when it is happening, so we can try to find who is actually responsible.
  

  The issue with another resident and their dog(s).  This again is the 1st we are hearing about an issue with another resident, and their dog.  We are not onsite and without knowing that there was an issue, or who was involved, it is impossible for us to address. Even from this complaint, we do not have sufficient information to try to handle what sounds like a one time occurrence.
  

  Homeless in the dumpster.  We also wish the homeless population was not an issue in the Springfield area. But as they are in our area, we have a contract with a security company who patrols the property multiple times a night. The resident also has access to contact them if she would prefer, or the police. But this again is an issue that has not been reported by this or any other resident to our office. 
  

   

  Noise Issues and Fighting in other apartments.  Unfortunately, in apartments, sometimes there will be issues with other residents being loud, or fighting, etc.  Again we have not had any reports from this resident about this occurring. And without more information, it makes it impossible for us to try to fix the issue.  The resident can also contact security or the police when this occurs. Especially if there is screaming and what sounds like abuse. That needs a police officer’s immediate attention, and if they come and find an issue, that allows us to gather the facts needed to take the appropriate action. 

  So while we understand that the resident is not happy, she has not communicated anything other than the roof leaking to us. Nor given us an opportunity to work on the issues.  She does have the option to break her lease, for any reason, and the rules for this option were signed and agreed to in the lease contract. 
  

  To recap, we will check on the leak from the roof, and have pest control reach out to her on the pest issue reported here.  She has access to security or the police for the issues with homeless or more urgent neighbor issues.  She also has the option to reach out to us to communicate when there is an issue, so we can try to solve it. And if all of that is not sufficient, the lease covers the option to break the contract.
  

  Thank you. 
  At Home Real Estate Services.
  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  01/07/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  After they got me to sign a new lease they started harassing me and my terminaly ill father. Demanding to inspect property which they did and it passed. Threatened me with 800 dollar a day fines for a pet that I didn't have. So I moved now they say I owe 7000 for breaking lease. There the ones who broke the lease with there actions.

  

  Business response

  01/13/2023

  We are very sorry that Mr. ******* is unhappy with the balance due on his ledger, and that there was an inspection done on his home due to the presence of an unauthorized pet.
  But we stand by the charges as they are based on the signed and agreed to lease agreement and damages to the property. 

  
  Mr ******* rented the property in September 2021 and renewed the lease agreement for another year in July 2022.  The renewal extended the lease term until August 2023. 
  

  In August 2022, the owner went by the property and saw that there was a large amount of dog waste in the yard and saw a dog at the property.   They asked us to do an inspection to see what was going on. 
  

  On August 22nd, 2022 we communicated with Mr. ******* both in text and email about the dog, feces in the yard and setting up an inspection. 
  

  Below is the timeline of these communications on that date, as well what was said.  
  

  12:08 pm (From At Home) - Hello, This is ***** with At Home. I am reaching out about the dog at your property and all the pet waste that is being left in your yard.
  12:13 pm (From Mr. *******) - Hi I dont have a dog mmy daughter was visiting and brought her dog. But it's gone now.
  12:27 pm (From At Home) - So you may want to read your lease. Any animal that is brought to the property without authorization is charged $800.00. Even a visiting dog. I will need you to clean up the dog waste in your Yard and we will be doing a home inspection.
  12:40 pm (From Mr *******) - Ok let me know when
  2:14 pm (From At Home) - At Home Real Estate Services of SW MO confirmed your General Inspection is scheduled for 23rd August, 2022 at XXXXXXXX, ************ *** *****, USA.
  If you have any questions you can reply to this email or call **********.
  2:22 pm (From Mr *******) What time I have my dad has alshimar so I have to be be here.
  2:24 pm (From Mr *******) - I need to know what time cause my dad has dementia so I need to be her. Also I've got a long list of repairs that need to be made that were here when I moved in
  2:38 pm (From At Home) Around 10 am
  
  There was no further communication with Mr. ******* until October 3rd, (verbiage below) when he informed us that he had moved out of the property due to the inspection in August. No notice of his intent to move was given until this point in time. 
  

  “I have moved out keys are on the counter. I didn't appreciate immediately after I signed a new lease you started harassing me. Threatening me with 800 dollar fines and pushing your way into my home. And bothering my terminaly ill father. Any further communication well be done threw my attorney.”
  

  Per the lease agreement, Notice is required by the 1st of the month, even in situations where you are breaking the lease agreement. Additionally, in this situation, the lease break agreement was used instead of charging Mr. ******* for the remaining term of his lease which saved him $7175 in charges. 
  

  When we inspected the property after move out, it reeked of pet urine and dog. It also had fleas so bad that it took 6 treatments with a professional pest control company. The carpet cleaners also put in their report that the carpets were covered in dog feces and urine. 
  

  So while Mr. ******* is correct, and there was not a dog at the home on August 23rd when we did the scheduled inspection, he admitted to having his daughter's unauthorized dog at the home. And the condition of the home when returned to us is evidence that the dog was there for a great deal of time. 
  

  Additionally, Mr. ******* was aware of the lease term, the requirement to give notice, and the buyout agreement, and still he chose to move out and break the lease with no notice given. 
  

  His reasoning for this is being that he was upset we were telling him about the rules in the lease about unauthorized pets, which there was one, and because we did an inspection where he was clearly notified in advance and agreed to at 12:40 pm on August 22nd. 
  

  No one pushed their way into his home or disturbed his father, and we were happy to accommodate his request to be present for the inspection. 
  

  All told, the owner of the property is out over $7200 due to Mr. *******’s actions and the damages to the property so while we are aware that Mr. ******* would like to be allowed to be released from the contract and the damage done to the property with no consequence, that is not something the owner is amenable to. 
  

  
  

  Customer response

  01/17/2023

  Complaint: ********

  
  

  I am rejecting this response because: so when they force fully entered my home on August 23rd they found no evidence of any animals or dog fecises or urine. But now they say there was an anmial there for a long time. 

  
  

  I never had an animal there and they found no evidence on 8/23 they are liars and con artists.

  Sincerely,

  ***** *******

• Initial Complaint

  10/05/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  First off, I want to say again for the third time - ****** and I had to take overnight jobs, we had to quit our day jobs specifically because of the conditions with this property and the actions and abuse from the tenant above us which means all communication needs to happen before noon. Noon is the latest we go to bed and that is staying up late for us. I communicated that to you in voicemail and in writing yesterday. I am placing that communication here again highlighted or with a voice recording of the voicemail I left you. 
  Secondly please don’t get cute with us. Why would you want me to call your attorney? What was that about? What in heavens name will your attorney do for me? Does he run your day-to-day operations or do you? Exactly my point. That wasn’t funny or cute it was a blatant waste of time and effort. It was a basic gaslighting attempt to obscure details and take away from the main issue while we argue semantics, and intimidate us into submission because we should be intimidated that a business that revolves around legal contracts entirely would have an attorney, right? 
  There are many many maintenance issues here. Yesterday we had to go to bed. I had been up for 20 hours straight, working on the tail end of court preparation for the case for the previous management. In which I have already typed up and presented the issues at least 15-20 times many of which are in public record, all of which are in possession with the former management which you know - is just a quick call for you away. I would presume in order to say you really tried, a proven attempt to get with them would be prudent as all maintenance and legal issues have now been inherited. You know you’re the multimillion dollar company here with assets and people and have at least some diligent responsibility other than basically saying “ope I tried” even though you blatantly waited until a time that was clearly communicated as unavailable to get with us, all the while you still had no shame to put your hand out and ask for more money in late fees that you legally cannot charge (read our lease even it says the end of business day on the 5th not that it matters you removed our only convenient payment option and refuse to make accommodations as required by law instead threatening us with the option to move if we are unhappy because you are unwilling to do what is legally required of your company in the process which is not to affect tenant day to day quality of life. We have not had one moment of peace and quiet nor one moment of freedom of use of our space because each and every second of everyday has been spent fighting the previous management and now you. I will leave a thorough list once again for about the 20th time in this process between different agencies of defects with the unit. I am allowed to live my own life occasionally and we are sick from having been up almost 24 hours a day because of the tenant above us since we moved in. If you were serious about this - you could’ve contacted the previous management for information or tried to, or looked up the public records of this in any of the places I am recorded mentioning to you it has been left. 
  You say you aren’t in control of what properties your customer buys? So according to you, you have to take on every single account your customers provide immediately, there’s no way for you to properly prepare beforehand? You know to do things like familiarize yourself with the lease terms and the legalities that will come with that? You just immediately and illegally start pushing the tenants to force them into a new lease and cancelling the provisions of theirs? I’ve seen your recent reviews you’ve done this to everyone and that is illegal. It is illegal to even suggest this is or can be a requirement as it is YOUR company who holds full responsibility with this process not us the tenants. This building was left without proper maintenance for years, and instead they utilize renters’ insurance and insurance payouts during a disaster such as a fire caused by known faulty wiring, to get a new building and to increase their customers ROI through having a lower maintenance cost over the years. This has already been proven through thorough investigation and is being addressed at the county level. Though these things take time. Why would anybody want to enter into liability with a second party knowing this, all while you are trying to illegally force that upon lower income tenants. 
  You could’ve told your customer or had a pre-planned policy for acquisitions, to allow for a minimum 30-day period where the former management continues, and your company makes sure to do the process legally and by the book. 
  I also see you mention if we aren’t happy, we can just leave and once again I am having to remind a third “professional management agency” that a lease is a legally binding agreement between TWO parties and BOTH parties are bound to that legal document’s terms. We specifically selected this unit as its terms worked for us. We are both disabled, and I have lung cancer. I can’t just be jumping up and moving every time an unprofessional management company wants to fall out of line with the law and make our lives a living hell - at least not without proper compensation. You don’t want to be legal and deal with us ethically - we are more than open to a settlement from our previous and future move costs resulting in your agency and the agency before’s unethical and unlawful actions. We moved from out of state to find me and start, lifesaving treatment so that I don’t die which is the likely outcome here I am literally getting sicker daily. Aside from that I am physically disabled. My hand was crushed and destroyed two years ago, I cannot help much in our moves because one of my hands and arms does not work. We have to pay thousands of dollars to have moving help and they usually charge 175-300 per hour depending on who is available. We have an entire home full of possessions it requires the large moving truck which is also a massive expense. We selected this place to be somewhere we could be for a while, and it cost us 12,500 dollars to make that happen. We cannot just pack up and move again and as I have already said to two other companies if that becomes the case we will sue and so far, I have made good on that promise. I am dying - there is no way I can keep going through this. I need my health and energy so that I can provide for my wife and family - who just lost everything in hurricane Ian, and between fighting with you guys yesterday and trying to get your rent mailed by your last minute forced specifications I was desperately calling businesses everywhere in Florida trying to find my mom and dad propane so my dad doesn’t die of a heart attack in the heat. On top of that I have to take care of myself also as I am dying from cancer therefore, I told you I had to be in bed by noon. You waited till much after that to start your calls. My needs should come first and foremost before the wishes of this new entity who asked to be a part in this. I didn’t approach you guys, as stated before we researched your company during the rental process and decided to avoid you as we didn’t believe your tenant experience would line out to be ethical or legal, and these actions are proving to me, but most importantly my wife - how my judgement was correct and should be trusted. But instead, here I am in the middle of the night after only sleeping 3 hours back up and working at this again while my upstairs neighbor continues to slam on the floors, and I continue getting sicker. We selected this place as it worked for us as a place to live until we could purchase our first CRE or multi family home. This is a legally binding agreement and I plan on your company following the law, very soon, and not being retaliated against at the one-year mark and being forced to move or non-renewed which is partly why I am being so formal about making sure I have all of this in writing. I already know at the one-year mark there will be a retaliation damages lawsuit because the company previously is not an ethical or legal company and now I know yours is not - especially after the long line of judgements I just found against the company, its previous versions, the owner, and likewise several of its employees. So, I’m certain at the one-year mark because we were rented a legally defective unit and had to go through extreme hell to get anybody to do what they are legally required to they will retaliate but that is NOT going to come without a cost. We want the unit brought up to a livable standard and the tenant above us to be dealt with that is creating the non-stop nuisance, we want all terms of the original lease honored and then after that we want to be left the heck alone to live our lives in peace. Any further deviation from that will result in immediate legal action and then continued actions to protect the community from the harm your company is doing. I am already in the process of preparing a very thick file of evidence against your company. 
  Yet here we are with your company boisterously and illegally trying to force us into a lease, all while taking away provisions of my original lease, threatening us with late fees via voicemail and email and getting cute and trying to tell me “Hehe you can just contact my lawyer” - don’t you worry you keep this up he’s going to get some legal paperwork and so will Trent. Now as I told you yesterday, I literally just freed up my time from the previous management and I will now direct 100% of my resources and energy and efforts towards At Home and put as much research and work as I did with the previous two in. From now on we can only communicate through a formal venue that the responses are posted in public record such as this due to your comments yesterday. 
  Please know I am aware as a tenant I am under no obligation to provide new payment arrangements; I will need for you to replace the drop box out here. I am under no obligation to sign a new lease with you and if these issues are not addressed fully and promptly with a serious manner I will go ahead and take you to court. Don’t forget- I don’t have to go to small claims court I can go to civil court for a different and more unique judgement to make a point if necessary, and we have already had to acquire two additional Missouri landlord tenant, and contract attorneys, beyond my original tax lien and acquisition attorney I hired for my commercial real estate plan. All of them are advising us in the process from day to day as well as the instant one of them has trial time - they all have a retainer to get this going and we are keeping them updated and also making our own legal moves as permitted by law. We do not have the ability to just jump up and move. Or previous landlord before we had to move out of state in the middle of the night was ***** ******, our house became condemned and we almost lost everything, but it did cost us our entire savings. He then threatened to kill us and do bad things to ****** if we tried to sue. We promised each other we would never ever let something like this happen again and we would hold anybody who did this to the fullest reach of the law leaving no stone unturned and investing every single bit of energy we possibly could into doing so. Unfortunately, your company placed itself right in the middle of that against our will and then on top of that “stirred the mess” so to speak. 
  Quit playing those ridiculous games and get serious right now, because we are under duress and have been through hell for the last three months- yet your hand is still out for money. In that case court for repairs and deduct if necessary. I know all my options and I do not just have to start over with this because you weren’t properly informed. Now you are. 
  We need to schedule the times for maintenance to be convenient for us as we work overnights due to the conditions of the property (that was our main attempt to reason, completely quit our jobs and upend our entire lives so as to live on an entirely different schedule than normal humans live on so we can take advantage of the slight few moments of peace and the odd times they come because no one will properly address the tenants in C6, I’d say that’s extremely reasonable and we went above and beyond and didn’t have to and shouldn’t have had to do that in the first place) and only have one day off during the week. Clearly none of that is important to you as you had difficulties ascertaining that yesterday.  We have to live our lives now. Sorry this got dropped on you and you decided to be cute and not serious, but again none of these obligations fall on the tenant. 
  Please replace the Dropbox or schedule a time monthly when you can meet to pick up the rent as all other options come with a cost - it cost me $30 today to mail this check with the appropriate options, and an hour and a half of my time. That will not happen again. If I mail a check to you, then I have to add additional services to the mailing so I can verify in a court of law that I sent and paid rent on time. These additional fees will be seen to a court as illegal because they were not specified in my original lease and therefore no additional fees can be added. Because of the way you treated us today we are unwilling to meet you with additional reason as we have already been through hell for 3 months and have been plenty reasonable during that time. Now we go by what the law says which would be an on-site managers office where I can receive a receipt and a drop box (per the actual language of my lease as well as Vice President of the company who handled this before - we had to fight like heck for that too and you aren’t about to make us just give that up in the way you have maybe you could’ve tried to ask us? We still would not have been able to but at least we wouldn’t feel this way about it right now). If this isn’t possible you can pick up the money order on the first or you can discount my rent to whatever my fees are for these services you require (which you haven’t offered to do and that would be sort of a first step at reasoning rather than demanding - you don’t get to just get your way like that especially without first reasoning with me) so that you can stay in line with the laws of the state and not invoke any illegal lease breaking fees. 10 per month is 120 per year. 30 per month is 360 per year. How dare you try to come in here and push us around like this? Where do you think you have the right to behave this way legally and threaten us to “just call your attorney if we don’t like it” and then think you are going to say that same thing in a court of law to a judge and walk out of there without a judgement against you. I would really like to see you tell the judge that! “You can call my attorney if this doesn’t work for you”. If you wouldn’t say it in court, don’t say it to us because that is the next place this is headed, after I can prove my attempts to save your company by bringing you back into line with the language of our lease, and state and local law. Clearly this formal complaint against your company can be viewed as my attempt to set the facts straight, and give you an opportunity to make corrections before just filing a second case in Greene County. 
  Please be aware we are sending this to the BBB, ***** *********** ******* ********** *** ***** ******* **** ********** ** ******* * ***** *********** ***** ****** ** **** ******* *** ***** ************ ******** *** *********** ********** ****** ************** * ********** ******* **** ****** ******, a copy will be sent to your attorney, our attorneys, and any place I can submit it online so as to help further our cause, and help protect the rest of the residents by providing a paper trail of what the law really says about this. 
  Looking forward to seeing a more serious side of you who is educated and updated to the legalities of this situation and moving forward with this. Hopefully this doesn’t involve an additional party being taken to court over one single contract. We are low income and disabled - you literally cannot push anybody around like this, but you definitely can’t do us. Sorry about that. We have already been educated dealing with this for 3 months and now have our own protection. Again, looking forward to seeing a different side of your company one that is hopefully a breath of fresh air. But please understand I will be doing everything possible in the meantime to research your company, all of its lawsuits and grievances, and connect with the right people who can help if we also have to hold this company responsible.
  To summarize - major maintenance issues, disruptive tenant issues, questionable legal decisions, and an unwillingness to try to work with us during the times we have mentioned work for us. 8-12 is 20 hours per week you have to contact us during - there’s no reason you had to wait until right after I specifically said would be no good and call other than you aren’t legitimately trying to work on this and are contacting when you know we are unavailable so you can save face and say “ohhh well I tried!!” Furthermore you called at a different number than the one specifically mentioned - because it was mentioned that it was a recorded line and you want to avoid that because of the way your company does business you doing that cost you the ability to work with us verbally and now everything needs to be in writing so no matter what I can always have proof. Please do not treat me like that. I do not appreciate it one bit and to a judge it will be simple to prove this as you are committing the same behaviors I have focused on proving for the last 3 months. Literally this is no different already. Enough of that. It is your responsibility to ensure to a peaceful transition. What you have done has caused additional duress and I cannot imagine it will be viewed as legal and for the low cost to file in court and serve each party individually vs the 12,500 I am out between moving fees rent, legal fees, devices and service for evidence, so on and so forth it is a risk I am willing to take. Now you may want to talk to an additional attorney before you proceed with this the same way and make sure you fully understand what the law says. I find it hard to believe that 6 years of real estate education and research has built my education of the law to be beyond that of a professional agency who has done this actively daily for years. I know that is not the case and these are choices you are making. Let’s make the right ones here because I am unwilling to fight it out for three more months. We finally can move forward with the previous half of this and can do the same. You do not want to hear about our willingness to take that step - come back into line with the language of my lease, the laws of the state and county, and then there’s no problem for us to have to speak this way about period, right? Your choice we don’t care either way. It gets to a certain point that the hell we are experiencing is equally as bad always and new lows don’t actually affect us like that but motivate us to find accountability which certainly does not fall on us here. Have a great day. Looking forward to a major change in tone coming from this company and positive changes happening soon. I will make myself available to you Mon-Friday 8-12 and on Thursday from 8-5 I will stay up late on Thursday if that is needed as it is both of our one day off for the week. In fact - you may even call as early as 6am if the office happens to be going early one day. That is not a problem at all. 
  
  Our warmest regards - *** *********** *********** *** ****** ********
  
  PS we are really big on salutations - as they are appropriate in court and respectable in basic communication. We never were addressed with the proper respect, yet you depend on us for your monthly revenue. A proper salutation would go a long way rather than the catty, rude, self-defensive way you seem to speak. I do not address others by their proper salutation and specify ours to be blatantly disrespected. There are ways to earn reasonability from a party that doesn’t legally require it. Basic respect in written and oral communication. Addressing someone with respect and care is one way to do so. We are willing to reason. But not without receiving reason. This much should make that apparent. Thank you for your time. 

  

  Business response

  10/05/2022

  At Home just became and managers of this property, due to a sale and new ownership.

  We have reached out in email and phone calls trying to find a way to help but he refuses to talk to us. 

  Due to the nature of the communications he is sending, we have turned everything over to our attorney. 

  Apparently, the old management company also had attorney's involved due to the same issues with this resident. 

   

  We are sorry he is not happy, and wish we could find a solution, but due to the threats, and harassment, we have turned everything over to our attorney. 

   

  Customer response

  10/09/2022

  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  Hello you have chosen to escalate this into court I see. Please read the attached documents. If there are any variances to correct as far as addresses are concerned please let me know as this is where we will be having legal service sent as well as a physical copy of the demand letter provided here. By the way when I looked up your attorney to verify an address for service - one of his only reviews "this guy is a putz, steer clear" makes sense given the way you claim you've been advised to handle this. All the best - *** *********** *********** *** ****** *********

  Most importantly thank you to the BBB - you have no idea how much of an asset to American consumers your services are!!

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

• Initial Complaint

  08/19/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Since I moved into the townhouse that i rent from the mentioned company, I have had numerous maintenance problems. The first was mold being found in the downstairs bathroom. I had texted a lady ****** i think was her name and sent pictures to her. They had a company come out to remove it. Then i have had plumbing issues and now currently two ac problems. The first time I had an ac problem, they sent out a tech who had removed the cover of the outside ac unit and he decided to just replace the thermostat instead. He did not put back on the cover to the ac and just left. I was there as well as my boyfriend and my daughter. Now because the tech did this, my fan blades got destroyed and my ac is now not working again. The mentioned company is now trying to blame me for the ac and the mold combined and trying to say they will charge me for the ac repairs when i havent ever even touched the outside unit and i upkeep my entire house and i have to because I have OCD. Then they want to send me an email with writing of a notice to vacate the premises by September 30th. This cannot possibly be legal! It was obviously uninhabitable from before i moved in. And i talked to another tenant who was moving out and he had said there was mold in his unit when he moved in and he had them replace a lot of stuff like flooring and walls. All over BBB is also complaints and bad reviews about the ac's. I will not pay them another *****!

  

  Business response

  08/19/2022

  At Home has worked hard to address all maintenance requests submitted by this resident. 
  
  In July of 2021, after they moved in they turned in 5 Work Orders, all completed within 4 days of being turned in. 
  Mold in laundry room 
  ** not getting cool enough 
  Fridge Repair 
  Asked for Rods in Doors
  Dishwasher Repair
  
  In September 2021, they asked for pest control, but that is their responsibility per the lease contract. 
  In October 2021, they had a leak in their toilet  This was fixed and a work order put in for drywall repair from the leak, which was also completed. 
  In November 2021, their toilet handle came loose, and it was repaired. 
  In December 2021, they took the door of the stove off to clean it and could not get it back on correctly, this was fixed for them. 
  In January 2022, They had an issue with the hot water heater, which we fixed. 
  

  Throughout this period, rent was paid late, there were multiple NSFs and the resident was very difficult in every contact we had with them. 
  

  There were no additional work orders turned in until June 2022, for the ** which we fixed. 
  

  Then nothing until August 14th when they said it was warm in the home. Despite the weather being much cooler, the resident decided to get a hotel room and demand that we not charge them rent.  They were very difficult to talk to, unreasonable in their demands, name-calling, and suddenly talking about mold again,  even though they had not turned anything in for mold in over a year. 
  

  Their mom, who is not a party on the lease, also called in for them, also being unreasonable, and talking about mold inside the toilet. (It is the resident's responsibility to clean their toilet)
  

  This resident is in a month-to-month contract, so a written 30-day notice was given to them, ending the lease September 30th, 2022. Due to the way our staff was talked to when maintenance was turned in and the lack of on time payment history, we also let the resident know that she would need to find a home with another company.  
  When the contract is month to month, either party can give notice to terminate the lease.  It is not illegal, and is commonly used by residents when they decide they want to move out.  It is simply not a one way street where the option to terminate the lease is only available to residents. 
  

  We also understand that the resident is not happy with the home, and gave them the option to move, with as little as 1 day notice, and prorated rent if she chooses to move sooner than the end of September, so she did not have to stay in the home she is so unhappy with. Beyond that, we have multiple vendors working on the maintenance items she has currently submitted and at not point have said we would not fix the issues. 
  

  We feel we have done everything possible, especially in the face of how our staff has been spoken to by the resident, to help, give options, and address the issues turned into us. 
  
  

  Customer response

  08/20/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

• Initial Complaint

  07/15/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We have called asking to speak with a supervisor and the rep will not give us the information. We are trying to get our deposit back. When we first moved out, we were told we would receive the deposit in 30 days. They let a new tenant move in and they applied our deposit to their apartment since the new tenant didn't pay one. At Home is very rude and disrespectful to us.

  

  Business response

  07/15/2022

  This home is a 4 bedroom by the bed apartment where there are 4 leases, one for each roommate/bedroom. 

  
  ****** ******* and his 3 other roommates signed leases that renewed the lease and had a new end date in 2023. 
  

  On May 2nd 2022, ****** turned in notice that they wanted to move at the end of May 2022. The following are facts that applied to this situation. 
  

  1. A lease had already been signed for another year. 
  

  2. The lease requires a 180 day notice to be given to end the contract. And we had reached out in the winter to see if they wanted to move or stay. ****** and all his roommates signed and agreed in a legally binding contract that they were going to stay. 
  

  3. The lease does not have a buyout, so the entirety of the new year lease would have been due. $3900
  

  4. Even if his deposit had been refundable, the max that would have been refundable, would have been $100. And would have been applied to any damages including the $3900 that would have been due for breaking the lease. 
  

  Since there is no buyout clause in the lease, we reached out to all 4 roommates, and the other 3 roommates let us know they were finding someone to take over Jordan's room. 
  

  Part of the take-over agreement is that the deposit stays with the property and is not refundable.  ****** signed and agreed to this.  We are attaching the signed agreement. 
  

  The options for ****** were 
  

  1. To let the deposit stay with the property, as we were not doing any work to the home and the new person had to take the home as is.  
  2. Be charged for the entire lease that was already in place and is legally binding.  $3900 Less $100 = $3800 due plus any damages to the home. 
  

  ****** chose option 1. But now wants to ignore that he picked this option and signed and agreed that the deposit was not refundable.  He cannot have it both ways. 
  

  We are sorry he is upset, but he was able to get out of a year-long lease agreement by losing $100 vs paying $3900.
  
  

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