if you are a perspective renter read this, in you are considering using this company to manage you property you really need to read this.
this is horrible company to do business with. they are disrespectful, and unwilling to do due diligence. if you are a property owner you should know that they will put you at financial risk, if you are a renter, be forewarned that they don't keep their word, are willing to put you in a filthy unsafe house, and won't respond to your legitimate concerns.
as a landlord myself I am appalled how they treated and trick their customers. they definitely give landlords and PM companies a bad name. they are completely unethical.
Recently we helped our friend get a rental property. I wish I had known about them before we rented from them.
first Terra said that my friend could move in a couple of days early as we had paid them first months rent and security deposit. once she had moved in, she was told that she was going to be charged for those 3 days. Terra should have said that up front and not waited until after the fact. we will often let people move in a few days early if the house was ready to go, just as a simple courtesy. its really no big deal, or real cost to the landlord.
this house had been vacant for some time. so really no imposition on their part.
The house was supposed to be clean, ready to move in, and although partly furnished we were assured that any furniture that my friend didn't want would be promptly removed.
none of this proved to be true!
Aside from the fact that they are only open 4 days a week, far more often they are closed and unavailable. calls go unreturned, emails un answered the house was dusty and filthy, the basement had numerous dead and mummified rats in traps laying about.
But the worse yet is still to come-
My friend has a small child and was going to open a day care business, and was given permission to do so. the "furnishings" consisted of a musty old couch a bed, a tiny and uncomfortable table and chairs, pile of damp blankets, and lots of and I mean lots of trash. upstairs there was a Coffee maker and associated garbage. this where the damp blankets were. the room smelled musty, and it looked as if someone had been squatting there. Clearly the house was not move in ready!
Within the first week we had a typical rain storm, which flooded the basement. the sump pump failed to work and since the gas water heater was placed on the floor at the lowest point (code violation ) it submerged the pilot light and electronics causing the water heater to shut off. she called Terra, and was assured someone would come out and fix things. yet no one showed. by thew next morning she and her son had been without hot water for 24 hours, and it probably would have been 48 if hadn't stepped in and fixed things. terra's excuse was that the plumber had tried to reach her multiple times, however a quick check of her phone showed that wasn't true (I also called her a couple of times and had no trouble reaching her) Terra as the property manager had a responsibility to see that the issue had been rectified, she never called, never checked back, nothing! totally irresponsible behavior for a PM. two days later the drain on the kitchen sink blew off, flooding the kitchen floor due to improper plumbing and poor workmanship. Remembering the basement debacle I fixed it myself, knowing she could be without a kitchen sink for a few days.
as she was going to use this as a daycare facility, she would need to be signed off by the fire martial to obtain her license. so I started a pre inspection. what I found was shocking! (no pun intended- well ok maybe) I found multiple electrical code violations, outlet with the neutral and hot leads reversed, GFI's missing in wet areas, open junction boxes, improper wiring that could be a shock or fire hazard , as well many other code violations. Ive been in the building trades for over 40 years, so I know what to look for.
And if you are a property owner- here's where you need to pay attention- in two of the bedrooms the only windows large enough for emergency fire egress were made inoperable. if the fire martial had seen this she likely wouldn't get her license, but worse yet the house might have been red tagged as unfit for human occupation. but it's worse for the property owner- each of the violations carries a fine penalty of anywhere from $500 to $5000.by SVPM not duding due diligence and inspecting the house first (or hiring a qualified inspector) this could end up costing the property owner any where from $1000 to $10,000 for both violations! this isn't something that is supposed to be corrected after the fact, but prior to move in!
When I tried to inform Terra about this issues and the code violations were setting my friends plans back by at least a month she wouldn't listen and kept trying shut me off. she said this isn't how thing work! she then said that any code repairs were my friends responsibility to fix!! read more
