I'd like to start off by saying that I don't typically write yelp reviews, but due to all of the…read morenegativity on here, I wanted to give my perspective after living in a Fineberg building for a year. I'm not saying you should expect the best apartment of your life here, but you should know that there are plenty of tenants that have had an enjoyable experience renting with this company. My boyfriend and I lived on the top (3rd) floor of a unit in Allston near Comm Ave. We had spent about a month searching for an apartment in May for a September lease (for those of you that know Boston, the real estate market is a mess) and specifically, we wanted an apartment that was no fee. A broker fee is paying $2,000 or however ungodly amount for a real estate broker to open a door for you. Since our apartment with Fineberg, we've had to use a broker to get another apartment and it was a nightmare. But that's another story. Anyways, we met with Dennis and he showed us the unit. It was a one bedroom that was about ~500 square feet. Small and old, but again, that's Boston. The previous tenants had left their apartment pretty messy, and the unit was small, but we liked it. There was also no security deposit which was a huge bonus. When we toured the apartment, we did not poke our heads in, look around, and call it good. I think people do a terrible of job of actually viewing the apartments they're considering, and then get all pissed off when stuff doesn't work after they move in. We turned on the water and tested the pressure, we felt the heat, we asked the current tenants how everything was, we checked that windows opened, we turned the stove on, etc. REALLY LOOK AT THE APARTMENT BEFORE YOU MOVE IN. So many of these reviews are "there were bugs and mice" or "XYZ didn't work". By being thorough with your review of a unit, you can avoid a lot of shit. Just my two cents. We signed the lease and lived there for a year. A couple of annoyances with building in general (not Fineberg's fault) - the walls are paper thin and a couple down the hall from us had a baby. Not sure why on earth you would want to raise a family in an apartment full of college students but whatever. We heard the baby a lot, which was annoying. The heat got a too hot during the winters, but we just cracked our window and let some cold air in. Not that big of a deal - I'd rather have it a little warm than not working at all. Our hot water went out twice in the year we were there, but we were promptly notified and it was a problem within a section of Allston entirely, not just Fineberg. We had a couple of issues with our fridge not staying cold and they supplied an entirely new appliance the day after we submitted our request, which was awesome. We also had the toilet shop flushing, and again, they were in the next day to fix things. If you submit a request, they are very prompt about following up and fixing things. It was annoying that they showed up at 8 am on a Saturday to fix it, but hey, I'm not going to complain for being too prompt. Overall, we had very few issues over our year with Fineberg. When we did have an issue, they were extremely prompt in fixing it. I would highly recommend Dennis as well, because he was very honest about everything. The ONE thing I want to note that really bugged the crap out of us - when we decided not to re-sign our lease, Fineberg gave my cell phone number to (what felt like) every broker in the city. It's required that we got a 24 hour notice before anyone came into our apartment, but for a full month after our unit went on the market, my cell phone was literally flooded with calls/text from brokers. Some of them are so rude, too - not "can we show your place at this specified time" but more like "we're coming at 7 am Saturday morning" which got super old. I work full time and I came out of a meeting to 12 missed calls and 7 texts from brokers wanting to show our place. Even after someone signed the lease, nobody from Fineberg took it off the market and I still got calls and texts for a couple of weeks. Besides that, though, we had a relatively good year and I would recommend.

I had lived in a Fineberg apartment building for the past two years. I will say they are pretty…read moreresponsive to maintenance requests and it wasn't all bad. But the people who work there OMG they are the rudest people ever. Dianne who apparently controls everything is the most dismissive and rude person I have ever talked to. She has not customer service skills whatsoever and should not be in a customer facing role. There was one month I had an issue with paying rent due to some financial reasons and I got a scholarship from my school to help me pay for one months rent. My school required them to fill out a certain form instead of being understanding Dianne was dismissive and rude and made me cry. They either need to find someone else to work there or fire her completely. Otherwise apartment was nice with high ceiling but could be better maintained and cleaner. You get the landlord special with paint and heaters. I had to keep my windows open during the winter because the heat literally made my room feel like a sauna.

We have had a great experience with CJL over the past 4 years. The team is always responsive,…read morefriendly, and happy to help in a timely manner. Shout out to Caren K. who has been a huge help with our lease renewal, always making sure we stay informed and updated throughout the entire process. Overall an excellent team to have as a renter in Massachusetts!

Tim at CJL recently helped us with the sale of our family home. It was an unusual property and he…read moredid a great job of marketing it to the appropriate buyers. He worked very hard throughout the process, keeping us informed every step of the way. We were surprised at how fast things happened, but all for the best. Tim's professional and friendly manner made him a pleasure to work with. I would not hesitate to recommend Tim and CJL!

I have been very impressed with Kyle Cabral and his team in their high competencies in managing my…read morerental property. As someone who used to manage my property (from long distance), I knew the pain and efforts involved in dealing with tenants...and honestly..after a few years, I wanted nothing to do with managing a rental from far, far away. I remembered calling and leaving a voicemail message with Southpaw about my desire to find a property management company to help me rent out and manage my unit...and..to my surprise, I got a call the same day back..and all within several hours when I totally wasn't expecting it! Within a few days...I worked with Kyle to sign my rental agreement, provide him information and access to my rental unit...and the unit was already rented out...all within 24 hours of signing my agreement to have Kyle manage my property! Wow..I was impressed! What impressed me more was Kyle's ability to manage rental properties. He took great care of tenants and property owners alike. He's fair..and not just siding with either side. He is not hesitant to tell me as an owner what I needed to do to make sure my tenants are happy (and he's happy to do the same to keep me happy dealing withe thing from repair to HOA as well). I am also very happy to see that...with Southpaw...the need to manage my rental property or handhold anything..is pretty much nil! Kyle took care of everything! And..I just saw..that I recently gave a consent to continue renting out my unit/extend rental offers to my current tenants..and he already had them signed extending for another year of rental at my unit ahead of expiration of an existing lease! That's a testament to Kyle and Southpaw's competencies and proactive approach to management! I love it that..for once..I can really sit back and trust that Southpaw can handle my rental on my behalf! For a long while, I worry about having to sell my unit if the property couldn't be rented out..but with Southpaw...I didn't have to worry about sale of my property anymore..because true passive rental income from this property is now a reality for me!

We had the pleasure of working with Boston Capital Management for the past four years as tenants…read morefor one of the properties they manage. I can't express enough how wonderful Kyle, George, and the entire team at Boston Capital Management have been. They are professional, courteous, highly communicative, and respond quickly to any needs. Thanks for a wonderful renting experience.

Just rented another apartment from Steve and Uptown Realty and couldn't be happier, this time in…read moreMalden. My husband and I tried to go through another realty company the past few years after ending our lease with Steve and had nothing but issues. Going back to Steve was the smart thing to do, and I don't think I will work with any other broker or leasing agent in Boston but him. He provides showings of apartments most other companies don't have, he stays in your price range, listens to the "extras" you're looking for, but most importantly he doesn't rush a sale or make you feel like working with you is a chore. He is the only broker I've ever met who actually does the work to earn his fee. Uptown Realty has listings for both Boston and Greater Boston, along with rentals and houses/condos/townhouses to buy. Check out their listings and meet with Steve, you won't be sorry.

I've worked with Steve and Uptown Realty twice and have a great experience both times. Steve is…read morepunctual, polite and experienced. Would definitely recommend Steve for anyone looking for a home in Greater Boston!

Field corp/ sullivan and co are the best landlords/ management company we could ever ask for. Truly…read morecaring, super fast at maintenance requests, treats us with kindness and respect. Really unheard of in the Boston rental landscape. They clearly care for their properties and make life so much easier for their tenants. Properties are appropriately priced, with an easy online payment center. Would rent from them for the rest of my life if I could.

one of the best landlords someone can have. They are wonderful. They are fair in pricing and care…read moreabout their tenants. Maintanace is done as soon as being asked. I have a little baby and they de-leaded the apartment for health of my baby. I can't say enough of how amazing they are. I want to stay with them until I buy a home.

I recently rented with South Boston Property Managers and had a great experience. My property…read moremanager was very communicative and always very responsive. I had to leave my lease early due to a surgery and relocation and my property manager was supportive with every step of the way. They were able to work with me on both ends of moving in and out to make sure every need was met. This is high quality service and it was greatly appreciated!

I found my previous apartment at the perfect time. From the start, Craig communicated clearly and…read morewas very understanding of how stressful moving can be. Throughout my year as his tenant, he remained honest and respectable. He was quick to assist with any maintenance or household needs. He ensures the property is well maintained and is always professional. I've had no problems with him as a landlord and that can be difficult to find in Boston. I would safely recommend leasing with him!

We have been dealing with a gentleman named Jerry. Jerry is so quick to respond to all requests we…read morehave put it. if he does not call us the same day to arrange something he shows up and has made sure that the maintenance required is addressed. So much Better than Andy who we use to deal with from the last property management who could care less about the state of the grounds or the people working so hard to live in this building. Jerry really is taking steps to make this building a better place to live. I finally feel like the building is in the hands of someone who cares about the living conditions of the tenants. We LOVE JERRY!!

I moved into a rental in Hyannis that the previous tenant had cats and disgusting carpet…read more They did provide a carpet cleaning prior to my move in but didn't remedy the cat urine smell. The manager Andy proceeded to push on me it was my issue now because they did their part. The new maintenance company is trying to get another cleaning in but probably not going to fix the deep urine issue inbetted in carpet. Zero accountability. Zero care. Stayed in hotel last night. He could care less.

Do NOT rent from this company. We deal with the 100 state street office with Jan Bennett and Janyce…read moreButler and they are the absolute worst. You cannot get a phone call or email back. They stole 1400 from our security deposit. Boston has very strict rules on what landlord can withdraw from a security deposit and they prayed on our money during a pandemic when some of us have lost our jobs, needed our security deposit back and charged us $480 for a professional cleaner and $300 for trash removal even though we left nothing in our apartment. In MA landlord CANNOT charge you a cleaning fee. They will not return our phone calls or emails demanding for our money back. They stated we broke certain items in the apartment and when I asked for pictures they decided to tell me the items were actually not broken but missing. We had issues with our tenants who lived below us, one time one of the males climbed onto our deck in the middle of the night. I had woken up and saw him through my window and thought someone was breaking in. We contacted the landlord and she did nothing, said she doesn't handle that unit but would send an email about it. She never followed back with us. When we requested pictures of the apartment after moving out to understand why they charged us so much we found out that the tenants below had snuck into the now vacant apartment and brought yard chairs and was using the space as a hangout. Although we moved out this was incredibly alarming and the landlord should have done something sooner. The landlord tried to charge us for the furniture left even thought it was not ours and clearly our safety was never an issue to them. Do not give these people your money, find apartment buildings elsewhere. TRUST ME, I've heard similar stories from people who have rented from them. UPDATE: I finally got in contact with Kirk Bennett after Jan and Janyce wouldn't email me back after sending several emails. Kirk completely gaslighted me, told me I was being ridiculous, when I informed him of the security deposit laws of MA/asked to see an invoice or receipt from the cleaning services that cost $480 he hung up on me. Do NOT rent from these people, they are awful.

My experience with ECR was very positive. My agent was able to showed me a a handful of apartments…read morethat all fit within my price range. The application process was smooth, and I got approved within a couple of days and I can't wait to move into my new place in 9/1. Thanks ECR, i will definitely recommend you to my other friends.

Just moved in. What a complete nightmare. The inspection process involved us needing to take…read morephotos of every wall because the document they wanted us to sign was "everything is good". We had to wait a day and live in our cars because they were "cleaning", and the staff acted annoyed that they had to help us process the checkin at all. I know being critical of landlords is sport this time of year, but this company really found a new set of lows.

I'M SURPRISED THEY HAVEN'T BEEN SHUT DOWN BY THE CITY. DO NOT, I REPEAT, DO NOT RENT FROM THEM…read more Giving this management company 1 star is me being nice. This company was the most unprofessional outfit I've ever dealt with. Not only did they not respond to numerous phone calls for home repairs, they try to squeeze every last dollar out of you. I was without a working oven for a whole MONTH, no answers to my phone calls. After leaving the apartment cleaner than it was when I moved in, they took $675 off my security deposit for "paint chips" - mind you I had to ASK them to paint the walls when I moved in considering how bad they were. I didn't do any research before choosing this apartment, and I wish I had. Please for your own sanity, DO NOT RENT FROM THESE PEOPLE. THEY WILL SCREW YOU OVER. THEY ARE THIEVES.

We worked with Vena Priestly to find our condo based on many recommendations from folks in our old…read moreneighborhood Facebook group. Immediately after they suggested her, she reached out to me. Throughout the entire process, working with Vena felt like spending time with a lifelong friend. Not only is she knowledgeable and kind, but also Vena is an expert at managing buyer anxiety. We ran into some roadblocks with one seller that accepted our offer and then dragged his feet on signing the P&S for several weeks. Ultimately, we had to walk away. With Vena's guidance, we worked through that issue and secured another property within a week even in the competitive market. After that, we had to meet the new seller's one-month timeline to close, and Vena quarterbacked all the communications between the seller's agent, our lawyer, and our lender to an exceptional extent. We never felt like Vena pushed us toward something that didn't fit our needs in terms of space or finances. Plus, with each of the many properties we viewed, Vena showed her expertise in spotting issues that would mean unreasonable costs or compromises. We'd recommend Vena for anyone who is searching for a place to live.

While my wife and I enjoyed the apartment itself during the two years we lived there, our…read moreexperience with Rise Realty Boston was ultimately frustrating and disappointing. Our landlord was pleasant and well-intentioned but lived overseas and relied on Rise to manage the unit. Because of this, all building communications were sent to him instead of directly to us, and we routinely missed important updates. We raised this issue more than once, but the communication breakdown was never resolved. More seriously, for the final six months of our tenancy, the unit did not have working smoke detectors -- a clear safety issue and a violation of Massachusetts law. Under state tenant protections, this is the type of condition that can legally justify withholding rent if left uncorrected. Despite repeatedly raising this concern and attempting to resolve it in good faith, our requests went largely unaddressed. Rather than fixing the issues, our assigned representative ultimately attempted to force us out of the unit, escalating a situation that could have been handled responsibly and professionally. Other issues such as heating, cooling, and more we're ignored because communication with our rep was very difficult. In the end, we are thankful for the time we enjoyed in the apartment itself, but we are relieved to no longer be dealing with Rise Realty Boston and would not recommend them as a property management company.