We had a I terrible experience with this management company, specifically with Marge Cherneski. Her communication was rude and VERY condescending. She was inconsistent in her communication and provided misleading Information throughout the process. We dodged a huge bullet by NOT pursuing a rental with this realty group. 10:10 DO NOT RECOMMEND. Update: VJE's response (below) in no way addresses the originally stated concerns regarding the lack of professionalism, courtesy and respect shown to us by their employee. The policies outlined in the application were never in question. read more

Vance J Elliott has managed my property for three years. Their response time and communication is great. I worked a lot with Marge and she is fantastic! Totally on top of everything and knows her stuff. I would recommend Marge and this company to anyone looking for great property managers. read more

Thank you so much for all your help and guidance! Buying a house is hard but you guys made it so smooth and easy! Appreciate you and thank you Cari!! read more

So glad to have worked with Cari in getting our space! She is clearly an expert at what she does. Her communication was on point throughout every step and her instincts were exactly what we needed to close the deal! 10/10 would recommend! read more

We had a terrible experience with this management company. One of the apartments they managed in San Marcos was in poor condition. We experienced the toilet overflowing resulting in water flowing through the walls/baseboard into the next room. The office in San Marcos is very unprofessional and in my opinion, they appear to not care about the students or the property they are managing. I would absolutely not recommend leasing property managed by Vance J Elliott in San Marcos. read more

I can't in good conscience recommend Vance J. Elliott to anyone. Our unit had a history of flooding, according to the carpet cleaners who got our place back in order after a particularly bad storm this past spring. VJE did not disclose this to us before we moved in. When they started showing our unit to prospective tenants at the end of our lease, we had to be the ones to mention the flooding. VJE always acted as though they were going to mention it, but it was clear they were trying to sweep it under the rug. Update: We actually just met the new tenants and had to tell them about the flooding; it turns out that VJE lied to them and told them they never had an issue with flooding, which was the reason the new tenants went with this particular unit. They're inevitably going to be in for some flooding this weekend with Hurricane Harvey, and they would have been in for an unpleasant surprise had we not given them a heads up. Speaking of unpleasant surprises, VJE also held on to over a third of our security deposit. I called and asked for an itemized list of the charges, and I was told they were busy and to send an email instead. It's been a week and I'm still waiting on their response. We weren't expecting to receive our full deposit back due to some normal wear and tear, but getting only $750 of a $1200 deposit warrants some explanation. We cleaned the place thoroughly before leaving, which was more than could be said about the state of the house when we moved in (dirty carpet, trash left from the previous tenants). We also took it upon ourselves to repair minor holes on the walls left by picture frames. We regret putting so much time and effort into making the place look nice if it was not going to matter anyway. We are responsible, respectful tenants, both well older than the college kids they're used to renting to. They have a variety of properties, and it's nice to be able to choose from duplexes and houses rather than apartments at our age, but I wish someone had warned us not to rent from VJE. read more

My experience with VJR has been terrible from the start. The lack of communication, professionalism and honesty is ridiculous. Upon moving in, my house's electricity was shorted. The house was not cleaned out from the previous tenants and had leftover dishes and trash inside cupboards. I have lived in my current residence for well over 5 weeks. I have sent in multiple maintenance requests without resolution. When going into VJR building to speak in person about my unresolved requested, they tried to slide it under the rug and place blame on their contracted maintenance personnel. They even stated "They weren't aware of the open requests and that the requests are closed on their software", even though I had taken a screenshot of the open requests prior to walking into the building. If you're thinking about utilizing VJR for your real estate needs, my best advice as a former customer is RUN THE OTHER DIRECTION. read more

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I offer the highest recommendations for Vance Elliott Realty. Cari and her staff provided the most outstanding of services managing my condo during the past 12 1/2 years. They took care of each and every detail and problem. From 2009 through 2022, I never had to visit the property to solve anything. Moreover, they keep it rented at all times. When I put the condo up for sale, Cari sold it in less than two weeks at a price well above my asking price. The folks at Vance Elliott have been like family. They are the best! read more

I am sure the one positive review on this company was written by someone that works there. In my experience, they are unresponsive (not returning phone calls or emails) and act in bad faith (back-dating documents). Do not rent from them. I wrote a really long blog post about my negative experience with VJE Realty and the company's broker Cari Patterson, however it was removed by Yelp. I guess linking to an outside site deems it as having "promotional content" and goes against Yelp guidelines. I've spent enough time and energy on this company so I'll just bottom line it: I had a very negative experience with this company & implore you to avoid renting from them. They kept my $600 security deposit when I lost my job and was unable to sign a lease. Unfortunately Texas renters laws are crap and protect the property owners more than renters. The whole thing makes me sick. Stay away. read more

The HVAC system has sucked since the day we moved in, this months electricity bill is $439 because we're havin to run an AC that is broken just to try to keep the place under 80 degrees, we've begged them to just replace the damn AC but they will not spend the money. the HVAC is at least 30 years old and wouldn't pass any type of inspection. They're very slow on the maintenance, and the house is consistently 78 degrees even with the A/C set to 72 which in the Texas heat is crazy. Don't live there.. don't lease from them. You'll regret it. Those lazy, cheapskate, asshats. read more

Vance J Elliot Realty group has been Great. I moved in to a house last fall and have thoroughly appreciated the great service they provide. Moving in was quick and properly handled, and since, they have always been fast to respond to calls of complaints or concerns and work situations out with their tenants. I am pleased with my house, and I am pleased with Vance. I would recommend letting them help you in finding your home. They also have a great website with tons of pictures and info on their places. read more

If there was a way to give negative stars VJE deserves them all. From the beginning the realty company seemed professional but as the papers for their unit were signed by both my roommate and I and our lease began problems with the unit and the company were endless. I don't even know where to start... To begin with we were in one of their buildings located on N lbj, one of which they claimed was "not old" upon move in the apartment which was supposed to be made ready still had furniture, drawings on the wall, and a rug that did not belong to us. Repairs were noticeably made and by that I mean some half ass repairs were done. Door stops were missing, light bulbs were out, windows were dirty and blinds were worn/torn. As soon as the rain season came around the whole dinning room area would flood because the building had been remodeled and warped after. WE ADDRESSED THIS WITH THE COMPANY AND THEY CLAIMED THAT THE HOA WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THESE REPAIRS AND THEY COULD NOT DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT. Throughout the period of lease we submitted 11 work orders that's without counting the emergency calls from when the dinning room would flood and only 2 of them got addressed in the entire year. Since we were not getting results from submitting work orders online we showed up to the office to put in work orders in person and they always gave us the run around and were extremely rude especially Cari Patterson. In our opinion and from our experience the realty group is inefficient, unprofessional and deceiving. The other negative reviews are most likely true so don't be fooled ask around to other realty companies they have the same opinion and if you don't believe them believe the Texas State University attorneys that have dealt with VJE in the past. read more

This company is the best property management company in San Marcos. The staff is responsive and I really appreciate the way they follow up!

I DO NOT recommend renting from this property management company. They're extremely pushy about lease renewal--they wanted me to confirm my renewal when I had more than FIVE MONTHS left on a 12-month lease, which is ridiculous. Also, they kept more of my security deposit than they had any right to--they charged me for lawn care, even though that wasn't my responsibility per the lease, and charged me for removal of items from the garage that were there BEFORE I moved in (which I noted on the condition and inventory checklist!) I also left them a (higher quality than the ones they provide!!) AC filter for replacement, and they charged me for that anyway. Honestly, this is just such an untrustworthy company. Steer clear. read more

I rented a house in San Marcos from VJE a few years ago. I loved the location and layout, and for the two years I rented, I had very few complaints. The maintenance man was friendly, as was the staff at the front counter of their office. I am a relatively low-key person, didn't have any big parties at my house, and kept it clean and tidy throughout my stay there. I did not anticipate any problems upon my move-out date. Then I moved out. In preparation, I spent almost an entire week meticulously cleaning the place, bought new paint to retouch the walls, made sure there was no litter outside the yard, etc. I am the kind of tenant that believes this is the tenant's responsibility to do these things, so this in itself did not bother me. What DID bother me is the gall VJE demonstrated in keeping my ENTIRE deposit, totaling $1,200. I had expected a minor deduction for small damages to the property incurred during my stay (even though charging for normal wear-and-tear is illegal). Instead I waited the requisite 30 days for the deposit, which never came (again, it is illegal to refund deposits past 30 days). VJE failed to provide me with adequate proof of any damage, and ignored several attempts at communication and reconciliation. I finally gave up, thinking it would not be worth it to try and "right" the situation. Two years later, I'm still angered by their unprofessional and unethical approach to this situation. I now know why photographs upon moving in are necessary. Potential renters, stay away from this so-called business. VJE Realty blatantly takes advantage of the student population in San Marcos; you're better off going elsewhere to find a rental in town. read more

BEWARE. These guys absolutely suck. My boyfriend is renting a condo through this company and has dealt with nothing but absolute bullshit (pardon) throughout the entire process. First: Could not get a hold of the guys after submitting a $50 application fee ($75 if you're a student) and after calling many times-thought we were getting scammed. Second: The pet deposit is $400, $200 possible refund. Third: The move-in time was pushed back after finally getting in at 10am to 2:30 because the tile guy and the cleaning ladies hadn't finished by the date arranged. Fourth: Tile guy did a horrible, can't-use-this-restroom, job in the bathroom and they guys at Vance J. Elliott tried to push the move-in date three days later-after the lease was signed and all 3 roommates packed up ready to move in. Fifth: The place looked like it had barely been cleaned-dirty floors, the fridge wasn't cleaned out, scuff marks everywhere.... Sixth: When Boyfriend called about his disgust with the place and the dealings with the company, he was told "We're really busy" and "The place wasn't built yesterday..." but she did say she's get someone out the next morning to fix the bathroom. Seventh: The guy never showed up and no one ever called. NIGHTMARE. read more

WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THIS REALTY GROUP AT ALL!! There is not enough words to describe the amount of problems I have faced with this company. Just a few of them being when we moved in the apartment was clearly not cleaned, water leaks almost every week so water was shut off, I had no toilet for over a week because of damage with the pipes, my roommates air conditioner didn't work for weeks in the heat of the summer, my neighbors roof caved in and his bathroom flooded, my other neighbors had raccoons living in their home for a month, and the list could go on. Maintenance was at our apartment almost every single week. The management was HORRIBLE. They clearly just put bandaids on everything to fix it but everything fell apart at the touch and they never cared to offer any compensation for damages and inconveniences I as well as many others faced. Lastly, we didn't get our full deposit back for unknown reasons when we left the apartment in way better shape than when we moved in. Overall just wouldn't recommend doing any business with them. read more

The staff is super friendly and helpful. I spoke with Bonnie, Lexi, and Cassie on multiple occasions and they were always so sweet and willing to help. I plan on leasing here again next year. read more

Rented an apartment with my husband sight unseen as I moved to San Marcos from another state for graduate school. When we arrived the apartment was not ready, nor cleaned. The maintenance men got everything fixed up with a month or so, but my mother and I cleaned the unit. We loved the unit, but we had a lot of issues with things breaking (understandable--it's a rental unit), but getting things fixed was always difficult (multiple phone calls, etc.) When we vacated the unit the manager came and did a walk through with us, we took pictures, etc. She signed off that everything looked good. I worked on making sure everything was spotless. The next day I came in to get a copy of her sign off letter and was told "she no longer is available." I was then told (by letter) my deposit would not be returned because of damage and cleaning. When I went to the office to discuss this, I not only was treated poorly, but was told I needed to PROVE that my unit was clean and that pictures showed damages--pictures I had the manager take of work that was called in by us done by maintenance men, mostly when we first moved in (a chip filled in the bath tub, a faulty light in the closet, etc--little things like that). Of course the work orders I called in AND gave in written form could not be found. Avoid if you can. This happened a few years ago and I am still upset by my treatment. read more

I have leased from this company numerous times over the last two and a half years. Sally is easily one of the best people that works there and managed the apartment we lived in, Langtry, and someone I have always enjoyed working with. Sadly she does not manage it anymore. In fact in the span of three months they went through two different managers. The first was a poor excuse of a manager and the second one seemed okay until I had a real problem. She was rude, unprofessional, and someone that made me decide that I will never lease with this company again. It took Sally, the OLD manager, to get me to decide that had any concern for this company. Needless to say I am done with them. I would think someone who has spent an immense amount of money with this company would have more professionalism then I was given. Good riddance. read more

Vance J Elliot is the most professional Property Management and Real Estate service you can get. Vance and Cari work hard to run a strong, trustworthy business. They have an awesome staff doing everything they can to make their clients happy. I would highly recommend these wonderful people! read more

I have two duplexes and one condo that Vance J Elliott Realty manages. I cannot say enough wonderful things about them. The staff is great and always try to stay on top of things. They are very honest with their recommendations of whether things need to just be repaired or time for an update. They want their units to best they possibly can. I think they work hard for both their tenants and homeowners which is not always the case with some companies. read more

I have had nothing but an amazing experience with this company. I talked to Cari who helped me find a place to rent and she was very helpful and professional about everything. She was quick to respond on anything i needed done and to answer any questions i had right away. I don't understand any of the negative reviews here because my experience with them has been nothing but pleasant. I think what everyone needs to remember is that when you sign an agreement you are AGREEING to the terms of the deposit. I had no problems with any of this. If you are looking for a place to rent then this is the company for you!! They were very helpful and put my mind at ease while taking away all the stress of looking for a place all by myself. I'm telling you.. HUGE HUGE stress relief! Let them help you out!! Thanks Cari and Vance! read more

I found Vance J Elliott Realty to be extremely professional and conducive to my needs while helping me and my roommate find a place to lease in San Marcos. I'm not exactly the easiest person to deal with, I can be a bit picky, but Bonnie and Cassie stuck with me and helped us find the right place! The entire team made us feel welcomed and cared for instead of just a commission walking into the door like some other places. The friendliness and honesty you get with the staff at VJE is top-notch and unlikely to be matched by other realty companies in San Marcos. If your are looking for a home or an apartment in the San Marcos area do yourself a favor and stop by Vance J Elliott Realty and talk to the ladies there. They will treat you right and your process will be easy and worry free! read more

I was also taken advantage of by VJE, after renting an apartment from them (Corner Stone Apartments off Post Rd) for one year. During that time they misplaced 2 months of rent I had paid them, and had the gall to send Ruben (maintenance guy) to my place, demanding that I pay them for it. I would've had to give them more money, if it weren't for the receipts I saved that I was able to show them. When I moved out they kept nearly all of my deposit (for broken blinds!?) after I had spent at least a few days cleaning the place out like crazy. Getting that small amount back from them was no easy process either; like the person in the first review, it took more than a month to get it back, and only after I went up there several times in person because they couldn't be reached by phone (funny how easy it is to get in touch with them when you're looking for a place). Out of desperation I went to them to find a place two years later, and put a partial deposit down on an apartment, without signing any lease. After I found a nicer place and tried to get the deposit back they told me it was 'policy' to keep what I had given them, without giving me any legal justification for doing so. Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. While this last part is partially my own fault, I still feel like I was taken advantage of, they definitely did not explain that 'policy' to me beforehand. If you're looking for a place, do yourself and favor and find a better realtor than VJE, they seriously couldn't find their way out of a wet paper bag, unless your wallet was somehow attached. read more

I've rented from Vance Elliott Realty for 4 years. They helped me find a place several times and were great to work with. All my maintenance calls are returned fast and repaired quickly. I would definitely recommend renting from them! read more