Similar experience to other reviewers--this management company pulled a total bait and switch. Listed the apartment for a certain price on Zillow and then after I had applied and toured, told me that apparently a bidding war had ensued and to "respond with my best offer on the apartment by end of day". I was told during the tour that this is a rent-controlled apartment and felt kind of betrayed honestly by the outcome of the situation. read more

My experience with Kent Mar revealed an incredible lack of integrity. Rather than facilitating a standard leasing agreement based on the advertised price, Ken utilized the application process to engineer a blind bidding war among candidates. The original asking price was treated not as a requirement, but as a baseline for an auction, pitting applicants against one another to artificially inflate the rental cost. This is not just opportunistic; it is exploitative. Housing is a necessity, and manipulating applicants who have already invested time and money into the process demonstrates a profound lack of respect for people. A property broker should act as a professional intermediary, not a chaotic auctioneer. I will never consider another property affiliated with his name or company, and I urge others to avoid as well. read more

Giving it a 0 is not possible; that's why it's a 1. But anyone else who might be considering renting from this company, just don't. I just toured one of their apartments on August 17th, 2025, and applied because the price was lower compared to similar-sized/type apartments around it. Turns out it's just a ploy by this scammy company to extort money from people trying to rent. Got an email today (attached image) saying they are starting a bidding war for the apartment. If they wanted to rent the apartment for that price, they would just pick one of the applicants and move on. But now, I see why the price was lower. Must note, having a bidding war amongst rental applications is not illegal, but feels so scammy. Imagine dealing with this company when the time comes to get your deposit back or when you're looking to renew. So stay away! read more

Centron Management Group - Rent bidding for apartments just seems wild. There's no explicit law against it though fwiw. - Property Management Near Me

STAY AWAY!!! We just moved out in March, and soon after we moved out Kent and Nancy illegally ghosted us about our security deposit (which was an exorbitant amount of money). When we let them know we were LEGALLY entitled to the whole thing due to Cal. Civ. Code §1950.5., Kent once again ghosted. Our security deposit was unlawfully taken from us. Centron's buildings are NOT up to code and your unit will be dirty when you move in. Our unit was covered in dust and grout. It appeared to not have been cleaned. The windows had no screens and several of them were broken. Our shower had mold in it and nothing to stop hair from going down the drain. Soon after moving in, we needed the drain to be snaked. Nancy tried to make us pay $50 for her maintenance man to fix it. These people are CHEAP and will do everything in their power to extract every last dollar from you. It is clear from the get go they don't have interest in spending any money to maintain their buildings or your unit. Our story is one of many we have heard throughout our time as tenants of Centron. I highly recommend you keep looking as there are plenty of agencies and landlords who are fair and whose buildings are a lot nicer for the same price or lower. read more

A few things to consider while living under Centron's management for 1415 Franklin St, San Francisco, CA 94109 location: 1. They will charge you for Carbon Dioxide detector. 2. Mandatory move-out cleaning fee could be any number bigger than $200. 3. Zero improvement on overall building security after endless package thefts and even mailboxes break-in. I'd say good luck. read more

Probably the most responsive property management company I have ever had. Superfast responses over email and had repairs done promptly. Our building did have an unfortunate scenario where we had a difficult tenant (difficult is nicely put) and they had him removed as quickly as the city would allow. For that, I will always be grateful. Kent and Nancy are very nice and I enjoyed my time at our unit. read more

Stay away from Centron (Kent & Nancy Mar). They changed the rent price from what was advertised on Craigslist in our contract at the last minute. Then when we moved out, they charged us an extra months worth of rent because they require that your 30 day notice be given neatly at the first of the month. We were eager to move out because the Mar's allowed someone to live on site that was assaulting other tenants and meddling with the electrical wiring in the basement. Buildings and units are not well maintained. read more

I lived in the 1565 Jackson apartments managed by Centron for 12 years. I generally had a great experience living in the apartment and dealing with Kent and Nancy. They were very responsive and quick to fix any issues with the apartment. There are always going to be issues that arise living in an apartment for 12 years (construction, missed packages, stuff that breaks, etc.) but Nancy and Kent always did their best to quickly remedy any issues and work with their tenants to come up with solutions that would work for both parties. They were very helpful and easy to work with when moving out as well and returned my security deposit in a timely manner. read more

Horrible experience with this company. Building manager constantly trying to violate tenants privacy & rights. Has to be repeatedly reminded he can't just walk in to people's apartments whenever he wants to. The building is in absolute shambles with repairs taking literally years to get to + the constant construction that has obliterated our parking. There are currently 5 empty apartments due to mismanagement. I cannot recommend them at all. Would give zero stars if I could. read more

Centron Management Group does not care about their tenants. They are evasive, vague, and unhelpful. All they care about is collecting as much money as they can from as many people as possible. They are not organized, proactive, or timely. I will ask a question, be put in contact with multiple people, and receive conflicting information from each of them. Email responses are extremely confusing. No action items are created. Everything is run so inefficiently. Buildings are not up to code, management is a nightmare to deal with, and the rent is way inflated for what they offer (yes, even in this market). Even if I found my dream apartment online at a reasonable price, if it was managed by Centron, I wouldn't even consider it. I'm appalled at their customer service skills. I will never rent from them again. read more

Our lovely building in the Inner Sunset was bought by Centron Management Group a few years ago. Since then we have had multiple building code violations, mold, critters, unresponsive maintenance, no building manager (in fact our old manager was in hospice and died and they never sent out a notice that he was dead) and questionable fire system and often blocking our fire egresses. I got a pass through for $5 for electrical work that was done by the former landlord. My skylight blew off and it took them 2 weeks to repair so it rained in my bathroom until then. It took over 1 year to repair a leak so when they did they had to repair the whole bathroom, which they still haven't completed. Another tenet needed a replacement fridge so they gave her an old used one. My 20 year old rugs need replacing but I was told I could move all my things and have the carpet "stretched" instead of new carpet. Currently the building is under construction for seismic and additional 5 Alternative Dwelling Units (that are super tiny 400sqft and ground floor noisy) and no care (untimely) is given to update tenets to tell them when there will be noise, dust, obstructions, or even when we will get parking and storage back. The seismic has been long since completed but the new units are months over due and causing almost weekly water shutoffs and occasional power shut offs (hard to do while sheltering in place) with little or no notice. The construction workers rarely use mask, no building permit is visible and they use unsafe building practices (see photos below). So bothersome that there will be 4 units empty because people can't take the interruptions and disruption. The building is unpainted, the trees are not trimmed and the backyard has 6ft high piles of trash. Homeless have been known to easily gain entry to the building and sleep on the roof and package theft is very common even though a video camera was installed. Centron often refuses or neglects to answer pertinent questions. It is common to not give 24 hour notice for non-emergency water shutoff. The saddest part is that it was a lovely building and has been given no consideration for keeping it lovely or it aesthetic. They are sneaky, unresponsive, and cheap. read more

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Be warned: this is not a legitimate property management company. Their buildings are not up to code and on top of that - their customer service is awful. I emailed with them back and forth for many weeks about a complaint and asked repeatedly to speak to someone in management about my experience. I was dismissed each time very rudely by Kent and Nancy and never spoke to anyone about my concerns. I do not recommend doing business with them or renting from them at all. There are other property management companies out there that are actually legitimate and trustworthy - it's not worth it to engage with a shady company like Centron. read more

Centron Management Group - Dangerous wiring, not up to code at one of Centron's buildings. Spoiler alert: they won't fix it and do not care if you complain. - Property Management Near Me

Kent was an incredibly responsive landlord and always did his utmost to do right by our house. Even after moving out, Kent has gone out of his way to help with a package that had been sent to the old address. Thank you, Kent! read more

Without a doubt some of the lowest characters I've encountered. Leased us an apartment that didn't meet code, the windows and walls leaked, plumbing was faulty and never fixed, Windows weren't fitted correctly, common areas had holes in the walls and water regularly leaking from faulty plumbing into the lobby.Elevator permit was expired by nearly six months at our time of moving out and then they fraudulently debited my account after I had moved out. Steer clear of Centron "management". read more

I actually had a good experience with Centron as far as management companies go. We rented a nice apartment from Centron in Pacific Heights for a decent price. I liked the fact that we could pay our bill online and that repairs were generally handled in a timely manner. The building was well maintained as well. My only complaint was they'd sometimes turn the water off without notifying us and wanted to take marketing photos when we moved. Generally, they were willing to work with us to accomodate us when we needed something in the move out process. I'll end with this - most management companies have bad reviews because the only people who would think to post a review are people who have had an unresolved problem. I currently live in NYC and I'd give anything for the management companies here to be more like in San Francisco. read more

The thing that impressed me most about this company, right from the start, was that I was treated as an actual customer and human being when I initially went to look at the apartment. This was a rare and precious experience for me after three months of searching for an apartment in San Francisco, where all-too-often one gets confronted with cattle-call apartment showings. If you've searched for apartments in the city, you know what I mean. I rented an apartment from Centron Management for the following two years. They own and/or manage a number of buildings around the city - most of which seem to be classic 1920's era buildings with lots of iconic San Francisco charm. Some are in better shape than others and some in more upscale neighborhoods than others. The building I lived in was not in pristine condition or immaculately restored (as some of their higher priced properties seem to be), but they kept it reasonably clean and maintained. I loved my neighborhood, and the rent was a good value for San Francisco. The people at Centron were responsive and professional through a full range of apartment-related interactions - everything from a minor plumbing leak, an appliance problem, a noisy neighbor, to my changing my mind at one point after I had turned in my notice to move. In every case they were accessible, quick to respond, fair and reasonable. The downsides of my building were a tendency toward messiness in the garbage and other utilitarian areas and somewhat thin walls which were only a problem if/when the adjoining neighbor(s) lacked consideration. I was sad to move out when circumstances required me to leave for the other side of the bay, but the owner made my move-out easy, offered to hire a cleaning crew for me at a reasonable price so that I didn't have to bother with cleaning the apartment, and they refunded my deposit within the specified time. They are a home-grown, local San Francisco company -small enough to have personal rapport with you if you are a good long-term tenant. I would much rather have my rent money going to a local company like this than to a multinational conglomerate. read more

Leave it to Centron to make your already hell of an apartment hunt in San Francisco a living scam and nightmare. I have never dealt with such poor, unethical, customer service in my life. They care nothing about the future tenant or any sort of rapport or what they tell you from the start. They will back out on their word at the flick of a light switch. I replied to a Craigslist ad for an apartment. Nancy showed me a MODEL unit and it was great, she took my application and check and said she spoke with management and the apartment was mine if I wanted it. I told her I was all in and I would email her for a time in the next couple days to hand her the deposit and take measurements of the unit for furniture decisions. The unit wasn't available for another two weeks and coordinating with the current tenant was tough anyway. Nancy confirmed the appointment, and that was it. THEN, I get an email the day before our appointment from her saying her management rented the apartment to someone who gave the check without seeing the unit. UM? HELLO? First of all- so much for you and your management communication about renting it to me. SECOND of all, was that appointment we made for me specifically to hand you the deposit a fluke? Or do you just tell everyone that you'll meet them? Come on. I spoke with her that day and Nancy's excuses went from having "too many applicants" to "everyone saying they will pay but never show up" and "other people were mad too." This lady has no idea what she's doing. She agrees to meet you, assuming that you WON'T show up, and rents to the first person who hands her a pretty check regardless of any thing she already said about renting a unit to you. I turned down two apartments and my graduate program starts in 4 days and I now have no place to live. Stressful much? Long story short, this company will scam you just like the majority of other epically horrible landlords and Craigslist ads in San Francisco. They don't sick to their word, and the fact that you are looking for a place to live means nothing to them. They will rent to a crook offering a higher bid on a unit than give it to the honest applicant. BULL. Rent from somewhere else and do NOT waste your time with this flakey company. read more

They seem to be purposely evasive and shady. I called twice only to have my call routed 3 times automatically (multiple clicks and rings) each time. The first time I left VM and no one called back. Is this a way to run a professional business? The second time I called, I was told their advertisement hanging outside a commercial property was inaccurate. It seemed like I was talking to someone at their home in their PJ's, and not someone who was in charge, took charge, or really cared. read more

I've been in a unit managed by Centron for a little bit more than a year now and I've had a good experience. 5* because they behave very respectfully in a competitive market like SF. Some Yelp rating seems unfair to me which is why i write now. I agree that the process to secure the apartment is competitive and can create frustration. For example, I had to follow my application very closely to make sure to have the unit. I made sure to be the first one to visit the place (an other 'competing couple' was visiting at the same time), decided we wanted the unit straight away, paid the deposit on the spot and organized to meet the next day to sign the lease. Meanwhile, the management company was receiving calls of other people and their agents to break our deal. Centron did not let us down for which I am very grateful because the unit is great. Once this stressful application period is passed, centron is a very reactive management company. Day or night and week end, they've always responded to our queries immediately and nicely. I'm thinking of water leak with our neighbor that happened of course on a Sunday while I was in Europe.. Hope this helps prospective tenants. read more

The building I lived in lacked maintenance, not just aesthetically. I did not have heat and had a carbon monoxide leak which I didn't feel was handled fast enough - took over a month to get resolved. Also, the landlords actually rent out the street spots in front of the garages. I didn't know you could profit from renting a spot on a city street. read more

Centron Management Group manages the apartment building at 1565 Jackson Street. For years, CMG has rented units to some of the most ill behaved tenants I've ever encountered. This building is notorious for all sorts of bad behavior, which not only affects the neighboring buildings but also its own tenants, from screaming, arguing, slamming doors, loud music, climbing onto the rooftop in the middle of the night and talking as if everyone is suddenly deaf. It's one thing to be inconsiderate, but there've been tenants who are truly mentally and emotionally unstable. I've heard tenants within 1565 Jackson yelling at each other, thus the high turnover rate. And yet, none of the tenants from my (neighboring) building has ever complained until NOW. On 6/5/18, at approximately 5:40 pm, a tenant from that building violently threw an empty SKY vodka bottle at the side of our building, without any provocation. Luckily there is a screen covering my bedroom window, and no damage, but still, very alarming. Things can be replaced or fixed, but the potential to cause physical harm or even death is unspeakable. It's clear CMG will rent to anyone, risking the safety of any potential tenants and neighbors. STAY AWAY from CENTRON MANAGEMENT, KENT MAR and associates. I know people in real estate and will investigate further and update this posting. Until CMG rectifies the matter, this review stands. read more

I mostly interacted with Kent and Nancy throughout my stay there. I agree with Philippe that they behave very respectfully in such a competitive market. No games during the application process which seems to have become the norm in SF. I loved the apartment and its location and I never encountered any problems during my time there. The apartment I rented was completely renovated before I moved in so the floors, countertops, and appliances were completely new. I swear the dishwasher was the quietest I had ever encountered and the water always got hot pretty fast (these are the hidden features that can make or break an apartment for me). I would definitely recommend staying here. read more

This company is extremely shady. Steer clear. They rented us an apartment that was not up to code. The window to the fire escape was taped shut and the crank to open it was broken so that in the instance of a fire it physically would not open. They initially point blank refused to repair this and then later said that there would be a delay of several months in repairing the window as the parts had to be "custom made". When we finally threatened to contact the tenants board a repair person arrived two days later. The pipe under the toilet leaked which warped the floor and popped the tiles up. They also refused to repair this and instead would haphazardly glue,not grout, glue, the tiles back to the warped floor. The windows weren't fitted to code and the wall that they were fitted into was rotten. When it rained they may as well not have been there as water poured through the window seal and wall running down the rest of the wall bubbling the paint and warping the wood floor. The wood around the radiator was also rotted and moldy. The permit on the already terrifying elevator (which broke down regularly) was expired. The roof by the front door to the building fell in because of a leaking pipe and there would regularly be a waterfall of dirty water that you'd have to run through to get out the door. They are total scammers who, even after all of this, illegally debited rent out of our account after we had already moved out and refused to return our deposit. read more