I contacted this realty company to inquire about scheduling a property tour. Before discussing the property or my qualifications, I was immediately asked whether I was on Section 8 because they do not accept it. I found this question to be unprofessional and off-putting, especially since nothing in our conversation prompted that assumption. A prospective tenant should be treated with courtesy and respect regardless of their housing situation. First impressions matter, and unfortunately, this interaction left me feeling judged rather than welcomed. I hope the company provides additional customer service training to ensure all potential clients are treated professionally read more

Recently changed ownership Not sure how they will change Soniat. I'd be careful for awhile But they have done great employees that know their stuff read more

I rented a property on St. Philip Street listed under this property management company that was infested with termites. I called several times about the issue, and they allowed the landlord to just send his maintenance guy, which simply sprayed over the counter bug spray in the walls. The termites were swarming in the house and eating through the walls, and just before I moved out they sent me a paper saying they were raising the rent! They were aware of the issue when I moved in as the neighbors had been dealing with this for at least a year prior. They just patched it up, kept most of my deposit, and re rented it. It was so bad that my personal property was damaged inside the apartment. Beware if you rent from them. read more

Mr Greg and Soniat Reality are top notch! Always available to help and solve issues. Great management!

Hello world!! Be very very careful of this place Soniat Realty. Lashay one of the mangers of the company has a major problem with either men or with white people.. not sure which but definitely needs to be checked.. I provided my income of last 3 months of bank statements. I'm not rich but showed $18,000 in income over 3 months. No evictions with me or my partner. My partner is on disability. She gets 1400 a month on top of my income. I have proof of employment which is 4 different revenue sources. I have paid over $3000 a month for rent for the past 4 years and that is also verified.. I was a victim of fraud like millions of others in this country! I was completely transparent with her. She shut me off and waved her hand in my face and said she doesn't want to hear anything from me but was nice to my girlfriend.. be very very careful giving them the rent applications. It's a $50 dollar application fee per tenant. They will take the fees, keep the money and deny the applicants If your skin tone isn't what she thinks it should be or if she is having a bad day you are in trouble.. totally unprofessional. My girlfriend feels the exact same way. I love New Orleans and I went and immediately dropped money on a bigger place in the same neighborhood for less money. If in the process of looking for a place you may need to take all of this under consideration b cause if this behavior starts from filling out the application then imagine what it can be like in the future with Soniat Realty read more

Soniat is the property management company for my Condo. I give them three stars because it's a mixed bag. On the plus side Greg Johnson (our personal property manager) is super responsive in emergencies, including weekends! He has been key in helping me resolve my bathroom ceiling falling in and general building security issues where, for example, Mardi Gras related vandalism affected our ability to actually close our building doors to the street. He is also great about shopping our maintenance issues and gets really good prices most of the time. So five stars. On the one-star side I think he has way more properties than he can really handle. Emergencies are dealt with efficiently. Some things on his "to do" list have been there a year. We are unhappy about that and are struggling to figure out how to handle it. I really do think he is overloaded. I can't really speak to Soniat's realtors who have gotten some scathing reviews, but I wonder if Soniat could and should add more property managers so everyone didn't have to be spread so thin. One star on that front. read more

I absolutely loved working with Soniat Realty. Both Steve, who did my showing, and LaShay who approved my application and did my lease were kind, courteous, and efficient. I'm so happy with my experience. read more

I have had a wonderful experience with Bonnie and everyone at Soniat Realty. Bonnie made my leasing process simple and fast - I had the keys to my new home 3 days after I signed my paperwork, which far outperforms any other property management company I have dealt with. My emails are answered incredibly promptly and professionally - every maintenance request I have submitted thus far is acknowledged in a more than reasonable amount of time. I'm so grateful to them for making my experience so wonderful! read more

I truly wish that Yelp allowed ZERO stars, because this is exactly what I would rate my experience with Soniat. BONNIE WHITTINGLY is the most unprofessional, demeaning witch that I have ever had the displeasure of knowing and doing business with. One would think that customer service is of great importance in the property management/realty field. NO. NOT HERE! What you will get for asking about updates on repairs and maintenance needed on a house is an attitude. This is to the extent of which you feel like a burden for bothering her and the company. My house that was rented for 5 excruciating months got up to 90 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT in the last week of July. When I informed Bonnie Whitingly of this, she went to tell me that her house was hot as well, and that the owner has made many repairs on the property so nothing could be done. No window unit, no insulation, NOTHING! I literally had to get my attorney to write a serious letter to the company stating that the home at 815 Dante St. Is UNFIT to live in because of the AC not being able to cool the house adequately. This is what it took to get out of the lease. Be aware! They will also nickel and dime you upon move out in order to take some of your deposit back! read more

Our house that we rent has black mold and also our wooden floors are rising due to moisture getting in between the wooden floors and beneath etc. Our ceiling leaks every time it rains. We have to move our sofa set so the water doesn't leak on it. We asked Ms. Donyale Allums about when will she be getting this fixed and she stated in a text, that it's best for us to move out. And that she and the company doesn't have the money to get it fixed. I wonder if the owner knows that she's doing these type of things. Now she's given a 30 day notice to vacate. Be aware of this women. She is money hungry.... And doesn't want to fix anything. read more

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I sublet a room for tenants that were moving out, and we were supposed to renew the lease for another year. Getting in touch with Bonnie Wattingy was a nightmare, and almost caused legal issue with me giving my previous landlord proper notice- as it took over a month to get the paperwork sent to me for the apartment. Upon moving, I found that the apartment was in disgusting condition, and was not clean. There was black mold in the window units, under the kitchen sink, and the oven did not work. I scheduled a walkthrough with Bonnie (because this had not already been done), and she seemed annoyed that I wanted record of the condition of the apartment before I moved in. When they sent someone to fix the black mold in the kitchen (he painted over it), the maintenance person CAME INTO MY HOUSE IN THE MORNING WITH NO WARNING. I was asleep in my pajamas, and they had apparently called my roommate 15 minutes before, AFTER the maintenance person had the keys and was on his way. They also scheduled a walkthrough with the owners about a month ago and were an HOUR late, making me late for work. The oven was fixed after a month, but it has been two months and there is still no AC. The house is running about 95 degrees, and they did send someone out to examine the window units after several weeks, but have done nothing else. The A.C. experts said that the units were incredibly old and one was literally falling apart, and shooting mold and insulation into the apartment. I very clearly told Bonnie Wattingy that the window unit had mold in it that I suspected was black mold, and she pulled out the filter and said "yeah, make sure you clean this filter. While waiting on the A.C. situation to be fixed, the hot water heater went out. THEN, we received a notice on September 10th to vacate because the property was being seized for sale. They emailed it to my roommate but NOT to me, despite me giving them my contact information several times. Our lease ends on the 30th, there is no new contract, and I would not have agreed to a month to month lease whatsoever, but they are claiming that the lease automatically renews and because we did not give them 30 days notice that we were leaving (?!) That we are responsible for the entirety of the rent for October. My roommate and I found another apartment, and when our new landlord called during the background check, Bonnie Wattingy claimed to not know we were moving, despite having drafted and signed the notice to vacate?! In over a decade of renting in New Orleans, I have never dealt with such a miserable, frustrating, unorganized company. I would advise that no one rent from them. They do not take care of or inspect their properties, they have no respect for their customers, their safety or their health, and will attempt to manipulate you via illegal lease claims, all while refusing to make necessary repairs in your home. read more

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Mr. Bill and his team are exceptional. He is extremely knowledgeable in the field and is passionate to make the deal work. His team helps navigate you through the home buying process putting you at ease. I would highly recommend him and his team! read more

Soniat Realty is awesome, the company staff is very understanding & patient.. If you are looking to rent with them I 100% approve that you should.. I've been renting from them going on 2 years in October no complaints from me.. read more

This realty group has been fabulous! Our realtor went out of her way to swiftly get us approved, and was with us every step of the way. *be prepared, there is A LOT of info you have to give. It was like buying a dang house* Our landlord came and met us personally for a sit down and made us feel so much more comfortable, unlike most management companies where you never meet the owner. We had issues with the deposit because we have two dogs, so they split it up for us over three months to ease the pain. Our manager John Taylor has ALWAYS returned calls and texts the same day. When our heater went out, he had someone there in two hours and the heater was replaced the next day. Our upstairs neighbor (we live in an updated duplex) had problems with her water and doorbell, and he was there the same day and fixed the problem. On New Years Day our pipes froze and he personally came out and thawed them for us. We also love being able to pay rent immediately online, with only a one dollar fee for using your bank account. It's so much more convenient (and less stressful) than getting a money order and delivering it in person, as I bike everywhere. All in all, I would highly recommend Soniat to anyone in the market. We don't plan on moving anytime soon! read more

This business is horrible! Ms. Danielle is not professional. She speaks to people in a condescending manner. She doesn't fix anything and when you ask, she says that the company doesn't have the money to fix it. Ridiculous and not professional at all. I would never recommend this business to anyone looking for a house, condo etc. Black mold, the ceiling is about to fall due to when it rains, it leaks in the house and that's just the beginning. This company is well aware of the problems and they seem to be getting over on the tenants. But, I wonder if the owners of these houses know? I am going to write reviews on every site possible. It not right and I don't want anyone to go through what I've seen her put her tenants through. This is not acceptable! It's not surprising that this company has 2 stars. read more

I'm a student at Loyola, I was commuting from Mississippi before the storm but I'm tired of driving that distance almost everyday so I've been looking for somewhere closer to Nola. I found a listing for an apartment that was reasonably priced near to campus. It looked nice enough in person, a little aged but good for the price. I put in an application and heard back a few weeks later from Soniat. They wanted me to put down a security deposit before signing a lease to "hold" the apartment. This is something I've had to do before for renting so it didn't really raise any red flags in my head. They ended up delaying sending me the lease for another week until I reminded them to do so. The lease contained all kinds of crazy and predatory rules. On their leases it states that basically any damage to the property including damage that's Soniat's fault is the responsibility of the tenant to pay for. They could come in whenever they wanted, without warning or notice. If you had any sort of legal dispute with them, you are required to pay their legal fees. I let them know I wasn't going to sign the lease unless they changed the wording and got rid of the more ridiculous clauses. They responded with essentially telling me to eat dirt and that they'd be keeping my security deposit unless I signed the lease immediately. I ended up deciding being out $900 was better than being legally bound to them in any way. They're still refusing to refund my deposit, which is not legal. But getting it back would require me going to court, which Soniat knows most people cannot afford anyways. If you're considering renting from Soniat: DON'T. Do not ignore the warnings of others like I did. read more

Sigh. My every interaction with Soniat plays out the same way, and it's happened 4 or 5 times. Imagine this is a radio script as you sip your cocktail and peruse Yelp in the comfort of a fabulous bar... SUZANNE: ::sees a "For Rent" sign on a good looking property:: SUZANNE: I should call about that place! It looks great! I wonder how much it rents for...? SUZANNE: ::calls Soniat Realty:: Hello? RECEPTIONIST: HI! Thank you for calling Soniat Realty. SUZANNE: I have some questions about the property for rent at 321 Countdown St. Can you tell me how big it is, and how much the monthly rent is? RECEPTIONIST: Sure! It's [a great price] per month, and the apartment is [an ideal size]. Would you like to be connected to the agent that represents that property to talk about it more? SUZANNE: I would love that. Thank you! RECEPTIONIST: Please hold! ::connects me:: AGENT: ::doesn't answer phone:: Thank you for calling Agent X. Voicemail full. or AGENT: What do you want? I'm busy. or AGENT: What property? I have no idea what you're talking about. Why are you calling me? AND SCENE! At no point has an agent from Soniat actually talked to me, nor have they followed up on my rental requests. I have some theories, but they aren't very flattering. Is it incompetence on the part of the agent? Racism (which is assumed based on the neighborhood I'm calling about)? Classism? Poor relationship between the agent and agency? No idea, but I'm sick of it. No more attempts at renting a Soniat property for me. If they can't manage to get me in a rental property, how can they manage to respond to my requests for a fix as a tenant? read more

I am a landlord who has had EXCELLENT service from Soniat Realty. I dealt mostly with Andre. She is completely ethical, responsible and attentive to both the landlord and tenants. I highly RECOMMEND Soniat realty to tenants who need an apartment and landlords looking for tenants. read more

This place is pitiful for property management. NO ONE calls you back and they don't address maintenance requests. I may visit this place personally to hopefully straighten out their pathetic "management." read more

Anyway, I moved in, loved that apartment, I had gotten a puppy a couple months before the end of the lease. My friends visiting from out of town decided they wanted to go to Destin, so we embarked on a road trip to the beach. Literally as we were leaving Destin to come back to New Orleans, I get a phone call that my apartment had been robbed. I start freaking out because I wasn't sure if my boyfriend had left my puppy in the cage or had left him out to roam, since we were still crate training him. Police officer inform me over the phone not to worry, he was in the cage. Great!! Not Really, but just glad my pup was safe. I get home and it turned out the thieves had kicked down the door, (could have just slipped a credit card though the door and popped it open, but I digress) stolen from the apartment above us and the 2 apartments next to us. Across the street is a stone wall; a cemetery, so perfect robbery, they definitely knew what they were doing, well that's what forensics said anyway. While I was driving back, the management company came to I guess check in and assess the damage, they ended up leaving before I got there so I don't know who it was. As I'm leaving for work the next day, a sheriff and a man approach my door and the man informs me that I have 30 days to leave, since it is the end of the lease. They are not renewing the lease. lol WHAT!?! I just got robbed, what do you mean, no explanation, just a here you go, goodbye. I was furious & livid. So I end up calling them, they inform me that when they walked in my apartment, that b/c they had seen my dog had pooped in the cage onto the floor, tile floors btw, that they were evicting me! This is 100% what happened no info missing, these people are evil & disgusting. So I thought I'll be evil and disgusting too, so when they called for their last month of rent I decided to tell them "I didn't know" when I would have it. So they took me court, I stupidly didn't show, to this day I kick myself for it, because I'm sure the judge would have been sympathtic and probably would have been more moral. But anyway, I ended up just paying them the following week, b/c who cares Im getting my deposit back anyway. But I still have a $0 court action against me on my credit. Thank good I haven't had to buy anything major, but now that I currently work in real estate I know these people are scum.. read more

I called Bonnie's cellphone and her inbox was full. (ok not a good sign right?) I left a very detailed text message about the property that I was inquiring about_____that was just listed less than 20 hours earlier! I do not receive a return phone call, but a reply text message asking for my personal information to be sent via text message. First off, I am not sending any personal information when no in real time voice dialogue has not yet taken place with an agent yet! Like seriously.....WHAT THE (BOMB)...what kind of company's representative would be so audacious to think that a prospective tenant would be so desperate for a place to rent that they would take this type of risk....especially with these renting scams going on? I actually called her and she was out of breath "washing her car" She told me she'll call me back___no call back___I called her back____no answer_____I texted her____no response. Is this some type of mafia business only used for money laundering? This can't be a legitimate company conducting business like this...can't be. I am very suspicious and uneasy now, and I loved the house. Too bad, but thank goodness I didn't give my personal information to these agent ghosts. read more

I have only been with Soniat for 2 weeks and I can already anticipate some very serious problems. I have been blessed to have had some really responsive landlords in the past so the service at Soniat has been shocking. I have reported several repairs that need to be made upon moving in and the general response is "not my problem". In general, the attitude at Soniat is that we don't matter. Our wellbeing is not important. The property manager is very dismissive. I don't recommend renting from them. read more

Soniat Realty is the worst property management company in New Orleans, La. During the freeze last year they left me without water for three weeks. And still demanded their rent. In addition, the staff has no real appreciation or concern for your health. Mold was growing in my home and no one came to remove it. Now that I'm out of there they do not want to give your deposit back. I suggest you run from these people if you think about renting from there. Your stay in New Orleans will be horrendous. read more

These people are horrible. I used them for a year and service was pathetic. I should have known something was wrong from the beginning when I had to use money orders for my deposit. Who doesn't have a credit/debit machine these days? The few times I had to call them for something I was treated as though I was troubling them to do their job. After a year, they suddenly raised the rent so I told them I was moving. Their response was to offer to keep the rent the same if I stayed. Why raise it in the first place? To take more from the people who aren't able to move? For the cherry on top conclusion, they made up $650 of fake charges like paint and cleaning to keep most of my deposit. I assure you that place was left in better condition than found. Do yourself a favor and use another realtor. read more

Absolutely terrible. I have been in the same unit, might I add illegal unit, for almost 2 years and I have had so many problems and repairs I have needed that have gone unsolved. I JUST got my mailbox about a month ago. I asked and asked and finally got it when another tenant broke their lease due to unresolved problems in their apartment and they were scared I would do the same. John Taylor is the absolute worst propoerty manager. I emailed the president, Bill Soniat, and still no response. They are so unprofessional and disrespectful and I hope people take this into consideration when renting from them. read more

I've been yelping for years now, and here goes my FIRST one star review! Too bad there wasn't an option for no stars. This was my boyfriend and I's first time renting out a house in New Orleans and unfortunately it was the most unpleasant experience ever! We moved in in February, and things were fine and dandy until those excruciatingly hot summer months came around. Our house had no insulation whatsoever, which meant that the air conditioning was constantly running and unable to cool our house. That then turned into ridiculously high electricity bills, even WITH level billing. Our house literally got up to 90 degrees one day!! If we were senior citizens, that would not have been safe whatsoever, but we do have a dog and the poor thing had to endure that heat with us! We sent our realtor, Bonnie, a picture of the thermostat reading 90 degrees, and she had the nerve to say "It's hot outside." WTF!! No sh!t Sherlock, but we don't expect it to be as hot inside the house when we're paying an insurmountable amount each month for electricity that's not even cooling the house. We notified Bonnie of this issue several times. She attempted to rectify the problem by sending service men over to the house, but there was nothing they could do to fix it. The landlord refused to install an indoor AC unit for us, and also refused to insulate the house. It came to the point where they made us feel like we were the burden for letting them know about all of the inadequacies and issues with the house. Another thing to add, we have had issues with the dryer from the moment we moved in and the issue was never fixed during our stay there. They are the epitome of what bad customer service is. 6 months later, we got completely fed up with our situation and got the help of the lawyer to get us out of our lease with our deposit back. When we did receive our deposit, it was about HALF of what we should have gotten. They charged us huge cleaning fees, and also for things that weren't true! They said that there was a knob missing on the stove and charged us $75 for that. Who in the world would steal a knob on a stove?!?! We could have gotten our lawyer to take care of the situation, but decided to take the high road and move on from such a horrible experience. On the plus side, this gave us the opportunity to live at Rice Mill Lofts with the BEST customer service anyone could ask for. So I guess you can say this experience was a blessing in disguise, which led us to an amazing situation elsewhere. Other than that, BEWARE OF THIS REALTY COMPANY! The absolute WORST!!!! read more

Avoid these people like the plague! For starters, I found this apartment online through the Soniat Realty For-Rent locator. The Soniat realty website looked very professional and was very promising. However, the realtor that I was forced to work with was absolutely not. Upon first inquiring about the apartment, she told me that I would have to go look at the place by myself before she would arrange any sort of meeting to actually look inside the place, presumably so she wouldn't have to waste any time doing her job. According to her, this practice is Soniat policy (if it is, then it is a very unprofessional practice). But okay, I went and checked it out and everything seemed fine, so I called to try to arrange a tour of the place, but getting back in touch with her was a hassle in itself. Finally, a few days later, she scheduled a tour, for which she showed up 20 minutes late. Then she proceeded to tell me that I only had 10 minutes to look around because she had another appointment that she was also going to be late for. On top of that, she apparently double-booked me because another guy showed up and began walking around the apartment at the same time. Strangely, she refused to even enter the apartment, and opted instead for standing outside with her arms crossed tapping her foot the entire time. Aside from the price of the apartment, and how much money it would take for the deposit, she was unable to answer any of my questions. Against my better judgment, I decided to rent the place because of its cheap price and decent location. However, like others have mentioned in their reviews, I was required to put down a deposit and pay first months rent before they would even send me a copy of the lease. In retrospect, there were plenty of warning signs that I did not heed, and I am kicking myself for it. But I went ahead and decided to rent the place regardless. Upon moving in, there were quite a few things wrong with the place that I did not notice in the very short 10 minutes I was given to actually tour the place. Both the front and back yard were littered with small pieces of trash including nails, broken glass, bottle caps, and a whole variety of other things. In addition, there was tons of junk stashed away beneath the house. There were mold spots throughout the house, but especially in closets and in the bathrooms. The kitchen sink was not seated properly and leaked water into the counter-tops, causing them to warp and crumble. The windows and doors didn't close properly, allowing bugs to easily crawl in and out of the house. The water heater was busted, and I didn't have hot water to bathe in for at least the first week I was in the apartment (during late November). And the kicker, the shower door did not close properly. I called the office about the most major problems, and tried to handle the trash and mold situations on my own. Getting Mike, the property manager to actually fix anything was like pulling teeth. However, many things were fixed slowly over the first few months. Many other things were just not addressed at all. But the one thing I am absolutely infuriated by now is the shower door. Seeing as how I couldn't shower in the apartment for the first week, and then preferred to use a shower that wasn't located smack dab in the middle of a shotgun apartment with no privacy, the shower with the broken door didn't get any use until a while after I, and subsequently my roommate moved in. When I did finally notice the issue with the door, I called Soniat realty to come take a look. The repair technician that tried to fix the door used an angle grinder to cut off a small section of the door, but really only accomplished making the problem worse. He told us that there was nothing further that he could do, and that the only other option was to replace the shower door entirely. It would have been great if Soniat had decided to actually do this while we were living in the apartment. However, over the year that we were there, that shower was only used on occasion, but the section closest do the hinge would push against the frame, causing the problem to only become worse. However, we were under the impression that it was something that we would just have to live with, because that is exactly what the Soniat repairman told us! But now, almost a year after calling in the problem with the shower door, I get my deposit returned and we have been charged $200 for... you guessed it! the shower door. I called Mike, and am now in an e-mail exchange trying to fight for the $200 that we should not have been charged for in the first place. Mike even shared the record of our maintenance request in which we stated that the shower door was not closing properly. However, he insists that we must be at fault because his repairman could not fix it, and told us that we would have to just live with it. read more

My husband and I rented a place through Soniat for a year and a half. We were always very well taken care of. When we needed something fixed, they were prompt. We also signed a two year lease, but found ourselves in a situation where we needed to vacate earlier. Bill worked with us and the whole process was painless. We took care of the property and we were refunded our entire deposit in a very timely manner. I have no complaints and would rent through this agency again. read more

My wife and I recently moved into a Soniat property. As is the case with most old homes in New Orleans, we had our maintenance issues to deal with before we could call this home. I cannot thank Michael and the rest of the maintenance team enough for making our repairs their priority. We sincerely appreciate it! read more

I rented an apartment in the Irish Channel through Soniat Realty this past year and they were very responsive to any and all needs that cropped up during my time here. When the freezer stopped working they sent some guys over with a whole new fridge the next day! When the new dryer unit needed a different hook-up than expected, an electrician came by later that afternoon to investigate and fix the problem. Thanks John and the rest of the team! read more

Before I moved into my apartment (managed by Soniat) I was a landlady with three rentals. Knowing how much work goes into managing repairs and tenants, I have been very impressed with the property management at Soniat. I have had an excellent experience with Bonnie. I live in one of the Dante street apartments, and since the day I moved in, Bonnie has been nothing but responsive and responsible when something needs to be fixed. She is always professional, and has made me feel welcome to let her know what I need. read more

We have been renting a Soniat Realty property for almost six years. We have found Bonnie W. extremely easy to work with and reach whenever we needed. She is very helpful and flexible whenever we need to schedule a meeting and/or property inspection. Because our experience with Bonnie has been so good, whenever I have a friend that has asked me about rentals in the area, I refer them to Bonnie for assistance! read more

Soniat was a great help in managing our properties. Kept us up to date and made sure our tenants were happy. Definitely a go to when looking for property management. read more

I have been using Soniat Realty to manage my properties in the New Orleans area since the spring of 1997. Over these last eighteen years I could not be more satisfied with their ability to maintain rentals, mitigate loss and manage change. In the first six months of our relationship a hot water heater failed in one of the units dumping gallons of water, the resulting damage was nearly catastrophic. Soniat Realty managed the entire event from remediation, insurance claims, reconstruction to re-rental with minimal impact to cash flow or my time. In the ensuing years the Management Company has dealt with and managed small to large maintenance projects including but not limited to the resulting damage from Hurricane Katrina with relative ease in light of the circumstances. The team of property managers I have dealt with over the years have been professional, attentive to both the owner and renters. I highly recommend their services not only for property management but also for those seeking quality rentals in the area. read more

My rating for Soniat took a dive at the end of our rental experience with regard to our security deposit. We were penalized for damage to scuffing the paint job on the walls. In reality, the previous painters used such poor quality paint that it transferred to anything that merely made contact with them. So, for example, paint "rubbed off" onto our drapes. Paint transferred onto our kitchen chairs. The "scuff marks" on the wall was nothing more than our furniture touching the walls. I sent pictures of our ruined drapes and our chairs to support our claim that we did nothing to damage the walls, as well as other evidence demonstrating that Soniat's paint contractors ripped them off by the use of the cheapest quality paint possible. They gave us no response except to withhold our deposit. Much more could be said, but bottom line: renter beware. Soniat is not to be trusted. read more

I am truly NOT a fan of Soniat Realty. Members of their staff treated my wife and I with utter disrespect and I'm glad that we aren't dealing with them anymore. We rented one of their apartments in Mid-City and after signing the lease, handing over deposit and first month's rent, and moving some coats and vinyl records in...we found out that the building was infested with roaches. This was no light problem. These roaches were out during the day. When my wife and I arrived one day, they were all in our coats, all over my records, and had laid their eggs in the closets. I immediately called the property manager (who totally ignored my wife when she tried to talk to him first.) He downplayed the issue and even accused us of bringing them into the building. How disrespectful and unprofessional. Since we had just signed the lease and only moved a few items in, we wanted out of the lease. If they had been honest with us about the problem we might have been able to make a better decision. The long of the short, they kept the security deposit AND the first month's rent...a value of $1,900. I understand taking the deposit, but the first month of rent as well? We hadn't even slept there one night. The property manager, Mike, told me that it was an addendum to the lease. Sounds like a scam to me. Through all of this, NO ONE even apologized for deceiving us or for the disrespect that my wife endured. She did not deserve to be ignored. She has not slept and is traumatized as a result of this and I am out of $1,900 that I really didn't have to begin with. Moral to the story...if you are going to rent with Soniat (which I don't advise) make sure you ask them if the building is infested, has ever been infested, has been sprayed, etc. If they will be honest with you (which they probably won't) I still wouldn't rent with them. read more

Wish there was zero stars for this. Where do I even begin with these people. We used them for a year with renting our house. All I can say is beware of fees, and lots of them. Just to turn in your rent every month you have to pay $5 which is just stupid and ridiculous. Our property manager was absolutely terrible and extremely rude every time I talked to him. He completely treated me like a child and always had a mean tone to his voice. I just received my deposit back after I moved out and they only gave me half of what I paid initially because the house was not clean enough for them. They charged me $400 because it wasn't clean enough. I spent days cleaning that house on my hands and knees and video taped and took pictures and I am extremely mad they charged this amount for CLEANING And the house is only 1,000 sq ft. I will never be using Soniat ever again and I highly recommend that no on else does either. They are expensive and charge out the ass for everything. read more

They do a nice job getting you into an apartment and then it takes an act of God to fix, repair and service even the basic repairs and obligations. It is easier to give up and pay for the repairs yourself than have them do the repairs. The things they have to fix take more than 15 phone calls and between 30 and 45 days. read more

Rented a place in Midcity with Bonnie a few years ago and the situation was unbelievably bad. The place was in less than great shape to say the least, but bearable until the window unit began leaking water inside the house. We notified the agent and landlord and they came to "look at it" and nothing was done about the situation. We moved out of the apartment with one room of the home soaking wet at all times, while my roommate and I desperately tried to put buckets and towels and do anything we could think of to fix the situation. Much like many of these other folks the home was entirely too hot to consider not using the thing so the room basically smelled like mold and was pretty much unlivable.... meaning our 2 bedroom quickly became a 1 bedroom. They also kept our entire deposit due to the "damage" that came about due to their inability to get things fixed, like the leaking AC unit. They also had a leak in the bathroom which a relative of the landlord came over to fix with glue. GLUE. As you can imagine that solution worked for about 1 whole bath and then the leak continued. We notified them that the glue didn't fix it and nothing was done about the leak continued. The landlord and her son also entered the home once without any prior notice whatsoever scaring the hell out me while I was exiting the shower and had no idea anyone was in the home. I called the police and filed a police report to document this absolutely ILLEGAL intrusive behavior. We could have fought them for the deposit, as everywhere else I have lived I have received my deposit back in full, because we leave places clean and in good condition, but by the time we left we were so fed up with these people we wanted to to forget the whole nightmare. read more

Everything has been good so far. I appreciate all of their help thus far and look forward to working with them in the future. Thanks a lot!