One of the best property management I have ever worked with. Rob is great at what he does and he…read morewas always a phone call away. Benton villa apartments are really nice, clean, safe and convenient. I enjoyed living in Benton Villa. I recommend this property management.

Rob Bender and staff were great to work with. Very responsive and helpful we rented the Benton…read moreStreet apartment for two years and it was close to the law school and campus. The unit is a little older but well maintained and secure. Laundry facility was convenient as well.

Updating my review. I moved out a few months ago…read more The deposit charges were a bit on the high side, in my opinion: -They withheld $90 for misc. cleaning charges (after we spent hours cleaning the apartment.) -They withheld $28 to replace the drip pans. (more than market price) -They withheld $114.50 for carpet cleaning - probably illegal (see Elyse De Stefano v. Apts. Downtown page 13) -They also charged $75 to repair a countertop that I burned. It was my fault and I'm not really complaining, but Karen previously told me that she thought she could get it repaired for a lower cost. So about $300 out of the deposit for a 4br...probably decent for IC, but I thought it could have been cheaper. Here's why I'm still willing to give them a 5 star rating: -They were extremely friendly, helpful and professional throughout the lease. -Maintenance response was usually only a few hours for minor stuff. They care about the quality of the property, and , e.g., responded immediately when I noticed a leak in the laundry room. -Halfway through the lease one roommate went broke and announced that he was going to break the lease and not pay any more. Another roommate had to move out for personal reasons. Karen helped us to deal with subletting 2 rooms and eventually helped us negotiate a deal with the first roommate so we didn't have to take him to court over the rent. -Even after we've moved out, Rae-Matt still forwards mail. None of my previous landlords have done that for any length of time. -They never once charged a late fee even though we were late multiple times on rent. -Tons of other minor things throughout the year that I've forgotten by now. I'm still slightly bummed about the deposit, but I didn't really push it too much with Rae-Matt because I felt that they exceeded my expectations in so many other areas. I would definitely rent again.

I lived in your apartments for 3 years and had a great experience! Landlords were very responsive,…read moreit was a safe area, and I had the best neighbors. Thank you!!

Maintenance requests don't matter unless they decide to prioritize it. It is impossible to reach…read moreanyone helpful when the office isn't open (and arguably when it is, too). Absolutely abysmal experience living with them, and if you do, be prepared to be left on your own if something goes wrong on their property!!! What an awful time renting from them, I recommend you rent from ANYWHERE else possible.

My girlfriend spent the last week of her lease cleaning her apartment and left it immaculate. They…read morestill gave her a fraction of her deposit back and listed frivolous charges for cleaning and repairs. After many months of back and forth emails and complaints ~20 emails. They finally agreed to give her back some of the deposit back and then sent a check for half the amount agreed on in the emails. 0 stars would not recommend.

If I could post this with ZERO star review I would…read more This company is a classic Iowa City slumlord. I had no idea in my lease to pay 60% of the gas bill that I would be paying to heat a space that has no insulation and looks like it was constructed with just plywood and a sham of a floor. We were desperate on moving and the location in downtown Iowa City is fabulous. Only days later did the company have a merge and didn't tell us at all. The system is now mostly texts and a portal, calls with management, ours is Teresa, is an absolute joke. I am not surprised at all to see her name in other complaints. My experience is that this company does not have your best interests in hand. Our apartment has a literal hole going to the outside world in a window where an AC unit is bolted in by the rental property. Mice and other critters have made their stake in the property and we have done our best to connect with maintenance to resolve the issue. They also tried to email us an eviction notice which is illegal. I had to contact a lawyer within the first month of moving in as they did not hold a proper investigation. They were just trying to fear monger into blaming us for "smoking in the apartment". They eventually backed off after trying to evict us illegally twice. This review comes after taking multiple trips in the office to try and rectify issues. When I tried to call and leave messages I would not get a response. If you are a renter and are trying to do the same, save your peace and just go in. Unfortunately, you will be met with a secretary that must take the brunt of everyone's unprofessionalism without being very helpful. Which is understandable when taking marching orders from completely incompetent individuals. I hope I will never have to rent from this company again. Expect extra charges for no effort.

Very unprofessional office manager at this property management. I called to speak with maintenance…read moreand instead got her. When explaining that I have a non working ac unit, she accused me of freezing it when I didn't even touch it. And she was telling me to hush and to be quite as if I am a child. She then hung up on me. I called back not wishing to speak with her, she grabbed the phone from her coworker by force and was telling me again to hush and be quite like I am a little kid. She then hung up on me a second time. Sent an email to her supervisor and he took her side immediately. She then sent an email to protect herself and said I can't contact the office anymore as if that is up to her. Stay away from the office manager at this location. This lady is a hot head with no customer service skills. She is now delaying my maintenance as if I am going to cry about that. What she fails to understand is that there are legal obligations and action can be taken if maintenance is not provided in a timely manner. I urge anyone to call and just ask for the office manager and you shall see what this lady is like. I believe her name starts with a T. I can't recall the full name. By the way, the unit rented to us has roaches.

I would not wish them upon my worst enemy. They will turn your life into a nightmare for the…read moreduration of the lease and beyond. There "free" internet does not exist. It goes out constantly and xwires, who is the provider, never returns your calls. I have not had it for a month, although they claim that the technician will get in touch with me in 24 hours. That was a month ago. I tried calling back 4 times with the same outcome. Still waiting. The office tries to penny and dime you at every convenience. The lady who answers the phone once told me that she would rather email me the lease instead of sending it by mail, so that she could save the stamp. They cashed my check for the application fee and then claimed I never paid. I had to go to the bank and get a print out showing the cashed check to convince them. Once i placed a maintenance call and they wrote down the wrong address and never showed. When we called back they said that they went to the place and there was nothing wrong. The onsite manager does not know anything and just tells you to call the office. The bottom line is that they are only nice until you sign the lease and then be prepared to have to wait for any services for weeks or months. The lady in the office is extremely patronizing and calls you hon.

Don't sign lease with this company!!!!!!!!!!!! Like everyone else said, this cheap company would…read moretry their best to deduct money from your pocket. We cleaned the house three days and it's cleaner than we moved in and now we are told that we are charged about thousand dollars for apt and carpet cleaning (I really want to see how clean it is after they cleaned up). The old white hair front desk woman with glass on is so rude and no any patient .don't expecting she would look at you when you are talking to her .never seen a proper company would have a front desk lady don't know manners. I don't know how can she stay in that company such long time??? What a jerk!

Terrible company- you are a profit maker for them and they do not look at you like you're human…read more They refuse to compromise, listen, go to the bare minimum of meeting any level of standards that's on par with the devils. Moved into a trashed apartment... having standards I asked for it to be cleaned up to living standards... he told me 'I'll give you a free out of this lease' since you are asking for too much. Terrible. Highly recommend you avoid them for builds or renting. Find a human company, this one's gutter level.

The Watts group apartments on #5 Woolf Avenue have asbestos especially apt #9 in the basement. I…read morewant to move out early due to the asbestos in my apartment and I am told I have to pay until the end of July. HELP! I feel trapped. As a nurse and a United States Air Force Veteran I feel that I deserve better service from the Watts Group Rental Service.

Fired After Being Racially Targeted…read more I was recently terminated by Pace Property Management after receiving a call from a stranger who claimed I had cut them off and flipped them off while driving a company vehicle. Not only was this accusation completely false, but the caller also used racially charged language, referring to me--a 25-year-old Black man--as "permanently tan." In my life, I've never encountered someone using such a bizarre and offensive term, and I've certainly never heard it taken seriously by a company. What's worse is how my employer responded--not with support or a thorough investigation, but with immediate termination, based solely on the word of a random caller. No one at the company asked for my side of the story or considered the racial nature of the remarks. I had never seen the person who called, I did not cut anyone off, and I definitely did not make any obscene gestures. I don't even behave that way in my personal vehicle, let alone in a work vehicle. This entire experience has made it painfully clear that Pace Property Management does not have the systems or integrity in place to protect its employees--especially when it comes to racial harassment. They enabled a hateful and false accusation to end my job, and that's something no one should experience in a workplace. I hope this review serves as a warning to others and a wake-up call to management. Protecting your employees from hate and discrimination isn't optional--it's a basic responsibility.

Where do even begin? When we first started renting from PACE back in 2016 everything was good. We…read morereceived 24hr notices prior to entry, maintenance requests got taken care of. Then shady Stacey came into the picture ~ 2018. ( you'll understand why we call her shady Stacey at the end.) Failure to provide 24hr notices prior to entry. Claims when you select yes on the maintenance request form that they have permission to enter the unit, it means PACE can show up when ever it's convenient for them not you the tenant. We have two pets so notice is necessary to make arrangements for them. Iowa state law is landlords/ property managers must provide a 24 hour notice prior to entry. Only in the even of an emergency can they enter without notice. PACE illegally entered our unit several times, I kept all email communication. Presented it to a lawyer, PACE had violated the lease agreement. When I brought this to Stacey's attention, she denied all wrong doing and that the lease was still valid. We had another place we could immediately move to, and with the lease violated by the rental management we wanted out. We had asked about subleasing our unit, Stacey said subleasing was not allowed per the lease agreement. However I had read though the lease agreement prior to asking.... and it was in the lease agreement that subleasing was allowed with written permission of the property manager. It's clear Stacey is unaware of the lease terms and state laws when it comes to being a rental manager. She treats tenants like they don't know a thing about the laws/ rights as a renter. In 2015/2016 my first rental management company I rented from was involved in a class action lawsuit for illegal lease terms/ violations. I didn't take kindly to be taking advantage of by Stacey. Maintenance showed up one Monday without notice, I denied them entry as I did not have a 24hour notice and it was my right as a tenant to deny entry. All I had was an email saying Monday, no date, no time. Could of been any Monday at anytime. Maintenance also was "testing" locks one day, I was home and recorded the event. Ask him if I could help him, no response. As I said before I reached out for legal advice to verify that laws were being broken. They were. With us wanting out and Stacey aware, she reached out in the beginning of February that someone wanted to move in March 1st,2021. Per state law we needed to have a 30 day notice to move. We got a 12 day notice once she confirmed that a lease was signed. Was not accommodating on moving time frame. Should I mention during all this I was 6months pregnant... and during the polar vortex. But it was our idea to "move last minute" Stacey cannot and will not take responsibility for any of her actions illegal or legal. Deposit was not returned within the legal 30 day window either. I had reached out after the 30 days, and it's crystal clear she is unaware on how to count. Lease ended February 24th,2021 we should of had our deposit with all the necessary paperwork by March 26th, 2021. We did not receive the deposit until April 5th, 2021. She claimed it just had to be post marked by the USPS by April 1st, 2021. Iowa law says failure to return deposit/ all necessary paperwork in 30 days of the lease ending can result in the landlord/property manager owing the tenant up to double the deposit amount. Our deposit check was post marked by USPS April 3, 2021 ... Shady Stacey breaking more laws, and not being held accountable. Unsure how she still has a job with PACE.

Finally, after 4 years of living in Iowa City, I found a property management company that actually…read moredoes their job! Cindy and Gary Parsons are an awesome married couple who own some really great properties around town. They're responsive, efficient, and overall cool people! It's really comforting knowing that if anything goes wrong, they actually will take care of it. Ex: My toilet was overflowing, and after going out to get a plunger and it still not going down, I reluctantly called Gary. This was extremely embarassing, but he handled it professionally and we even joked that it was a "CRAPPY situation!" Har har har... Cindy and Gary are great people. If you have the chance to live at their properties, consider yourself blessed, and get away from the rest of the shady landlords in this town. PARSONS RULES!

Gary Klinefelter is the Donald Trump of landlords. He makes it seem like he's on your side as long…read moreas you're stroking his ego. But once you question him, he'll be out to make your life hell. Beware. Interesting how they have a 5 star rating on yelp but 2 of 3 people rated them 3 stars or less. Hmm, buying likes, sounds just like Trump.

This place is a scam. No customer service. Very rude unprofessional staff. They don't do…read moremaintenance on their houses. They refuse to return a phone call or an email. Do not deal with this place. This place took money from me and will not return phone calls, emails. When I go to the office I get told that they will not talk to me.

Do not rent from this company unless you want your possessions stolen. They have complete access to…read moreyour condo whenever they feel the necessity to enter. With that being said, they entered my residence to, "Change the furnace filter". Along with changing the furnace filter, the workers also decided they had free reign to steal some of my possessions. When discussing this with property management director his focus was not on the fact I was violated from his workers ripping me off, but where and how I shopped for what was stolen!!! Seriously? Like that had any relevance to the issue at hand. What kind of management is running this company?! He made absolutely no mention to me he would even investigate and speak with the employees who entered my condo. Needless to say, this is very bad PR for this company, which I will be relaying to all colleagues at the University.