starI have been renting from economy for years in Novliving in a little bedroom apartment deep south*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because I still believe that Economy Management mismanaged our fileOne of the difficulties in this case is that a lot of communication between us and Economy Management took place during telephone conversations, and there is no record of those conversations, the way there would be with emailsI will try to confine this reply, as much as possible, to things that can be confirmed from emails or other sourcesOur claim is that Economy Management, despite having been given adequate notice, did not advertise our house before it was vacatedAs a result, they guaranteed that our house would be vacant, depriving us of rental income for the month of August
- The application that Economy Management received in July was from a neighborThey heard about the upcoming vacancy by word of mouth, not from advertisingThe house was shown by the tenants- We first heard about the vacancy on Aug At that time, *** asked us if we would be willing to lower the rent to compensate for a soft marketWe responded by asking to see the current advertisements- On Aug 9, *** told my husband that the house was advertised on *** and ***.comHe could not find an advertisement on either site using relevant search criteria
- He called ***, asking her to provide the listing numbers*** said that she was busy with a client at that moment, but would email the listing numbers laterSeveral hours later, she gave him the listing numbers- The same day, *** called the previous tenants to ask for some information about the propertyThis would be consistent with the advertisements being posted on Aug for the first timeThe tenants told me that they would confirm this if needed- After my husband got the listing numbers from ***, he successfully searched both sites using the same criteria as previously and found our house listing easily
- The date of the *** posting was Aug - I called ***.ca and they confirmed that the date of the *** posting was also Aug (I have an email from them to confirm this)
- When I went to the house that weekend, I found that the electricity was outI believe that it is standard practice for rental companies to ensure that the electricity stays on so they can show the house, either by switching the electricity to their own name or by requiring tenants to do soEconomy Management did not do this- *** told me on the phone that she trusted *** judgement to not photograph or show the house while tenants were living there if it would put the house in a bad lightHowever, no one from Economy Management visited the house while the tenants were thereThey saw the property for the first time during the end-of-lease check-outThe tenants were excellent, and they took care of the house as though it was their ownI am not sure how anyone from Economy Management would be able to make a determination that the house was not fit to showI understand what Jen has said about posting and reposting ads on ***, and about needing to rotate ads on ***.caHowever, in light of everything else, I believe that this is not what happened in this caseI believed that somehow our file slipped through the cracks and got overlookedAs a result, our house was not advertised, and then sat vacant for more than a week before any action was taken
I would like to clarify that my husband and I fully understand that the rental market in *** was low, and even if the house had been advertised 6-weeks before vacancy, it is still possible that we would have had to lower the rent, and even then, it is possible that it might have still been vacant in AugustIf that had been the case, I would not be filing this complaintMy husband and I believe that Economy Management should compensate us for the financial loss that we suffered as a result of their mismanagementRegards,
*** ***
***
*** ***
Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because I still believe that Economy Management mismanaged our file.One of the difficulties in this case is that a lot of communication between us and Economy Management took place during telephone conversations, and there is no record of those conversations, the way there would be with emails. I will try to confine this reply, as much as possible, to things that can be confirmed from emails or other sources.Our claim is that Economy Management, despite having been given adequate notice, did not advertise our house before it was vacated. As a result, they guaranteed that our house would be vacant, depriving us of rental income for the month of August. - The application that Economy Management received in July was from a neighbor. They heard about the upcoming vacancy by word of mouth, not from advertising. The house was shown by the tenants.- We first heard about the vacancy on Aug 8. At that time, [redacted] asked us if we would be willing to lower the rent to compensate for a soft market. We responded by asking to see the current advertisements.- On Aug 9, [redacted] told my husband that the house was advertised on [redacted] and [redacted].com. He could not find an advertisement on either site using relevant search criteria. - He called [redacted], asking her to provide the listing numbers. [redacted] said that she was busy with a client at that moment, but would email the listing numbers later. Several hours later, she gave him the listing numbers.- The same day, [redacted] called the previous tenants to ask for some information about the property. This would be consistent with the advertisements being posted on Aug 9 for the first time. The tenants told me that they would confirm this if needed.- After my husband got the listing numbers from [redacted], he successfully searched both sites using the same criteria as previously and found our house listing easily. - The date of the [redacted] posting was Aug 9.- I called [redacted].ca and they confirmed that the date of the [redacted] posting was also Aug 9. (I have an email from them to confirm this)- When I went to the house that weekend, I found that the electricity was out. I believe that it is standard practice for rental companies to ensure that the electricity stays on so they can show the house, either by switching the electricity to their own name or by requiring tenants to do so. Economy Management did not do this.- [redacted] told me on the phone that she trusted [redacted] judgement to not photograph or show the house while tenants were living there if it would put the house in a bad light. However, no one from Economy Management visited the house while the tenants were there. They saw the property for the first time during the end-of-lease check-out. The tenants were excellent, and they took care of the house as though it was their own. I am not sure how anyone from Economy Management would be able to make a determination that the house was not fit to show.I understand what Jen has said about posting and reposting ads on [redacted], and about needing to rotate ads on [redacted].ca. However, in light of everything else, I believe that this is not what happened in this case. I believed that somehow our file slipped through the cracks and got overlooked. As a result, our house was not advertised, and then sat vacant for more than a week before any action was taken. I would like to clarify that my husband and I fully understand that the rental market in [redacted] was low, and even if the house had been advertised 6-8 weeks before vacancy, it is still possible that we would have had to lower the rent, and even then, it is possible that it might have still been vacant in August. If that had been the case, I would not be filing this complaint.My husband and I believe that Economy Management should compensate us for the financial loss that we suffered as a result of their mismanagement.Regards,[redacted]
[redacted]
We have managed a single family home for Mr. [redacted] and his wife [redacted] since the fall of 2014.
sans-serif;">
The fee we charge for this service is 10% of the gross monthly rent collected, plus GST. We also charge a placement fee of $395 when a new tenant is placed which covers the vacancy period (during which we do not charge our percentage), the showings, overseeing the property and the advertising cost if any, plus the administrative time necessary to set up the new tenant. The service offered for our single family management clients includes the monthly collection of the rents, payment of any bills for the property, filing and payment of CRA non-resident deductions on the rent income monthly, acting as 24/7 emergency contact for the tenants, performing any maintenance required on the property and obtaining quotes where necessary as well as providing a monthly owner statement to the client along with the auto-deposit of the month end NET income (or payment by cheque where preferred.)
In the case of this client, they had found their own tenant and therefore were not charged the tenant placement fee. A complete general ledger for the charges is available should the client provide their permission for this to be released for review.
The total amount of fees for service paid by the client for the period of August 2014 through July 2016 is $4,080 ($170 / month) based on the rent for the property being $1700 per month.
The tenants had a discussion with our rental manager at the end of April 2016 regarding breaking their lease and moving out early. Given the timing of this notice being just prior to a slow down of the rental market towards the end of June, our rental manager discussed this with the tenants and convinced them to stay until the end of the lease to avoid a breach of the lease agreement. In general, a single family home priced at this rate is significantly more difficult to rent during June and July due to the vacation timing of young families and the shortage of families wanting to move just as the school year is ending. Avoiding a difficult vacancy was the goal of deferring this tenant's leaving too soon. We received official notice from the tenants on June 24th, 2016 that they would be vacating at the end of July.
Our normal process is to advise single family property clients of an upcoming potential vacancy. In this case our rental manager failed to communicate this to the client until August.
At this time the property was advertised through [redacted] which is our primary advertising venue. We also have an account with [redacted] which we rotate properties through as needed, and in priority sequence as there are only 10 slots available for ads. However, based on our experience with advertising vacancies, [redacted] is the most used venue by tenants when searching for accomodations. These ads are deleted and re-posted constantly as they lose priority quickly.
We did receive an application for the property in July, which we declined based on the impressions of the current tenants and our manager. We realize it is of utmost improtance to the owner that a tenant have a solid ability to pay the rent in a timely manner and demonstrate respect for the property. This was not evident with this applicant.
The [redacted] advertising of the property was supplemented with an ad through our [redacted] account at the beginning of August as there had not been any additional interest through [redacted] and the current tenants had now vacated. New pictures were taken of the property vacant and at its best. Our rental manager also emailed the owners requesting that the rent advertised be reduced slightly. This also aids in quicker rental of a property, along with the return of a large number of potential tenants from vacation. There was an application received from a potential tenant at the end of the first week of August. The property was to have been shown to this applicant on the Saturday following.
I returned from vacation on the 10th of August to several messages and an email from [redacted]. I asked our rental manager if she had any applications and she expressed that she was showing the property Saturday to someone that seemed suitable. She also expressed that [redacted] and [redacted] were asking her about prior email to them advising that the property was vacant. She admitted she had forgotten to email them when we had official notice but had advertised on [redacted] and added the [redacted] ad. [redacted] I asked her to reply to [redacted] and [redacted] apologizing for having forgotten to email them the notice, and advising them that she was considering this property a priority to rent immediately. She said that she believed it would be rented by that weekend.
The following day (Thursday) I spoke with our rental manager who was in tears, telling me that these clients wanted her to prove she advertised on [redacted] before that week or take responsibility for the month of rent due to this vacancy. I then spoke with [redacted] myself. I expressed that I had discussed the issue of our rental manager having forgotten to email them the vacancy and assured them I had spoken to the manager about this being a priority. I advised that there was a showing in 2 days for a party that was qualified to be a solid tenant. [redacted] proceeded to become more aggressive in her insistence that our company be responsible for a shortfall of rent and that we were being dishonest about having adsvertised the property. I advised that the [redacted] site is our primary source of applicants and that these are reposted regularily to avoid being pushed down the list of ads. I also advised that there was nothing in our agreement guaranteeing no vacancy, that the market for this type of property is currently very tight, and that a good tenant is the priority over filling the property immediately. She expressed that her opinion was that we had spent 2 years collecting a management fee for doing nothing, and that we were dishonest and lacking integrity. I told her that was an entirely unfair and false statement, and reminded her of the responsibilities we have upheld for the duration of our management of this property. This was not satisfactory to her and she still demanded that we be responsible for reimbursing them the rent until the property was rented. I stated that this was an unreasonable demand and that I felt I had spent quite enough time discussing the matter with her, as I had clients dealing with urgent concerns waiting outside my office. I told her that I would not rob her of management time owed, but that I could not do so to other clients either. As I had taken 15 minutes to speak with her about this matter, and she persisted in being aggressive and disrespectful in her manner, that I could not continue this conversation. I also advised at that time that it was preferable to me to discontinue our management agreement rather than continue to work with a client who was being abusive of the reasonable measure of time and patience to be expected in this circumstance. I said that rather than spend all the time necessary to argue and prove ourselves to a client who was being unreasonable, I would rather terminate our management relationship. I gave [redacted] the option of having us continue to advertise and show the property, including to the potential tenant on Saturday, or have us draw up the termination letter. She opted to take a termination of management. She then called back and demanded that they receive the keys for the property as well as a copy of the termination immediately. I let her know that was not something I could process immediately but I would be in the office the following day at about 11:30after morning meetings. Unfortunately I only made it closer to noon, but had the keys waiting at the front desk and knew I could email the paperwork.
Shortly thereafter, I received further emails from the client insisting that our rental manager had been "feeding them lies" instead of "owing up to her mistake". However, as I had asked her to upon my return last week, our manager did email the clients with an honest apology for not having sent the initial email to them about the tenants not renewing their lease. [redacted] The clients also insisted that they continue to be served by us as their managers until they received the termination letter. However they demanded all keys be turned over and this was done on Friday the 12th of August. Further management of this property cannot be expected when our access to the property has been terminated.
At the point where this management relationship seemed to become toxic and unreasonable, I made the decision as the owner of our company that it could not be allowed to detract from the service we offer to our other clients. I do not take our responsibilities to our clients lightly, nor do I condone dishonesty. I believe that our manager has realized and admitted the error she made, and that she has been honest in her efforts to ensure our management responsibilities were upheld. When the clients retrieved all of the keys to the property on the 12th, they effectively barred us from acting further on their behalf to show or maintain the property.
Should there be any further questions or concerns regarding this complaint I would be happy to discuss them with you or your office. I appreciate being made aware of this client's complaint, and the opportunity to add our comments.
Sincerely,
Jen M[redacted]
starI have been renting from economy for years in Novliving in a little bedroom apartment deep south*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because I still believe that Economy Management mismanaged our fileOne of the difficulties in this case is that a lot of communication between us and Economy Management took place during telephone conversations, and there is no record of those conversations, the way there would be with emailsI will try to confine this reply, as much as possible, to things that can be confirmed from emails or other sourcesOur claim is that Economy Management, despite having been given adequate notice, did not advertise our house before it was vacatedAs a result, they guaranteed that our house would be vacant, depriving us of rental income for the month of August
- The application that Economy Management received in July was from a neighborThey heard about the upcoming vacancy by word of mouth, not from advertisingThe house was shown by the tenants- We first heard about the vacancy on Aug At that time, *** asked us if we would be willing to lower the rent to compensate for a soft marketWe responded by asking to see the current advertisements- On Aug 9, *** told my husband that the house was advertised on *** and ***.comHe could not find an advertisement on either site using relevant search criteria
- He called ***, asking her to provide the listing numbers*** said that she was busy with a client at that moment, but would email the listing numbers laterSeveral hours later, she gave him the listing numbers- The same day, *** called the previous tenants to ask for some information about the propertyThis would be consistent with the advertisements being posted on Aug for the first timeThe tenants told me that they would confirm this if needed- After my husband got the listing numbers from ***, he successfully searched both sites using the same criteria as previously and found our house listing easily
- The date of the *** posting was Aug - I called ***.ca and they confirmed that the date of the *** posting was also Aug (I have an email from them to confirm this)
- When I went to the house that weekend, I found that the electricity was outI believe that it is standard practice for rental companies to ensure that the electricity stays on so they can show the house, either by switching the electricity to their own name or by requiring tenants to do soEconomy Management did not do this- *** told me on the phone that she trusted *** judgement to not photograph or show the house while tenants were living there if it would put the house in a bad lightHowever, no one from Economy Management visited the house while the tenants were thereThey saw the property for the first time during the end-of-lease check-outThe tenants were excellent, and they took care of the house as though it was their ownI am not sure how anyone from Economy Management would be able to make a determination that the house was not fit to showI understand what Jen has said about posting and reposting ads on ***, and about needing to rotate ads on ***.caHowever, in light of everything else, I believe that this is not what happened in this caseI believed that somehow our file slipped through the cracks and got overlookedAs a result, our house was not advertised, and then sat vacant for more than a week before any action was taken
I would like to clarify that my husband and I fully understand that the rental market in *** was low, and even if the house had been advertised 6-weeks before vacancy, it is still possible that we would have had to lower the rent, and even then, it is possible that it might have still been vacant in AugustIf that had been the case, I would not be filing this complaintMy husband and I believe that Economy Management should compensate us for the financial loss that we suffered as a result of their mismanagementRegards,
*** ***
***
*** ***
Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because I still believe that Economy Management mismanaged our file.One of the difficulties in this case is that a lot of communication between us and Economy Management took place during telephone conversations, and there is no record of those conversations, the way there would be with emails. I will try to confine this reply, as much as possible, to things that can be confirmed from emails or other sources.Our claim is that Economy Management, despite having been given adequate notice, did not advertise our house before it was vacated. As a result, they guaranteed that our house would be vacant, depriving us of rental income for the month of August. - The application that Economy Management received in July was from a neighbor. They heard about the upcoming vacancy by word of mouth, not from advertising. The house was shown by the tenants.- We first heard about the vacancy on Aug 8. At that time, [redacted] asked us if we would be willing to lower the rent to compensate for a soft market. We responded by asking to see the current advertisements.- On Aug 9, [redacted] told my husband that the house was advertised on [redacted] and [redacted].com. He could not find an advertisement on either site using relevant search criteria. - He called [redacted], asking her to provide the listing numbers. [redacted] said that she was busy with a client at that moment, but would email the listing numbers later. Several hours later, she gave him the listing numbers.- The same day, [redacted] called the previous tenants to ask for some information about the property. This would be consistent with the advertisements being posted on Aug 9 for the first time. The tenants told me that they would confirm this if needed.- After my husband got the listing numbers from [redacted], he successfully searched both sites using the same criteria as previously and found our house listing easily. - The date of the [redacted] posting was Aug 9.- I called [redacted].ca and they confirmed that the date of the [redacted] posting was also Aug 9. (I have an email from them to confirm this)- When I went to the house that weekend, I found that the electricity was out. I believe that it is standard practice for rental companies to ensure that the electricity stays on so they can show the house, either by switching the electricity to their own name or by requiring tenants to do so. Economy Management did not do this.- [redacted] told me on the phone that she trusted [redacted] judgement to not photograph or show the house while tenants were living there if it would put the house in a bad light. However, no one from Economy Management visited the house while the tenants were there. They saw the property for the first time during the end-of-lease check-out. The tenants were excellent, and they took care of the house as though it was their own. I am not sure how anyone from Economy Management would be able to make a determination that the house was not fit to show.I understand what Jen has said about posting and reposting ads on [redacted], and about needing to rotate ads on [redacted].ca. However, in light of everything else, I believe that this is not what happened in this case. I believed that somehow our file slipped through the cracks and got overlooked. As a result, our house was not advertised, and then sat vacant for more than a week before any action was taken. I would like to clarify that my husband and I fully understand that the rental market in [redacted] was low, and even if the house had been advertised 6-8 weeks before vacancy, it is still possible that we would have had to lower the rent, and even then, it is possible that it might have still been vacant in August. If that had been the case, I would not be filing this complaint.My husband and I believe that Economy Management should compensate us for the financial loss that we suffered as a result of their mismanagement.Regards,[redacted]
[redacted]
We have managed a single family home for Mr. [redacted] and his wife [redacted] since the fall of 2014.
sans-serif;">
The fee we charge for this service is 10% of the gross monthly rent collected, plus GST. We also charge a placement fee of $395 when a new tenant is placed which covers the vacancy period (during which we do not charge our percentage), the showings, overseeing the property and the advertising cost if any, plus the administrative time necessary to set up the new tenant. The service offered for our single family management clients includes the monthly collection of the rents, payment of any bills for the property, filing and payment of CRA non-resident deductions on the rent income monthly, acting as 24/7 emergency contact for the tenants, performing any maintenance required on the property and obtaining quotes where necessary as well as providing a monthly owner statement to the client along with the auto-deposit of the month end NET income (or payment by cheque where preferred.)
In the case of this client, they had found their own tenant and therefore were not charged the tenant placement fee. A complete general ledger for the charges is available should the client provide their permission for this to be released for review.
The total amount of fees for service paid by the client for the period of August 2014 through July 2016 is $4,080 ($170 / month) based on the rent for the property being $1700 per month.
The tenants had a discussion with our rental manager at the end of April 2016 regarding breaking their lease and moving out early. Given the timing of this notice being just prior to a slow down of the rental market towards the end of June, our rental manager discussed this with the tenants and convinced them to stay until the end of the lease to avoid a breach of the lease agreement. In general, a single family home priced at this rate is significantly more difficult to rent during June and July due to the vacation timing of young families and the shortage of families wanting to move just as the school year is ending. Avoiding a difficult vacancy was the goal of deferring this tenant's leaving too soon. We received official notice from the tenants on June 24th, 2016 that they would be vacating at the end of July.
Our normal process is to advise single family property clients of an upcoming potential vacancy. In this case our rental manager failed to communicate this to the client until August.
At this time the property was advertised through [redacted] which is our primary advertising venue. We also have an account with [redacted] which we rotate properties through as needed, and in priority sequence as there are only 10 slots available for ads. However, based on our experience with advertising vacancies, [redacted] is the most used venue by tenants when searching for accomodations. These ads are deleted and re-posted constantly as they lose priority quickly.
We did receive an application for the property in July, which we declined based on the impressions of the current tenants and our manager. We realize it is of utmost improtance to the owner that a tenant have a solid ability to pay the rent in a timely manner and demonstrate respect for the property. This was not evident with this applicant.
The [redacted] advertising of the property was supplemented with an ad through our [redacted] account at the beginning of August as there had not been any additional interest through [redacted] and the current tenants had now vacated. New pictures were taken of the property vacant and at its best. Our rental manager also emailed the owners requesting that the rent advertised be reduced slightly. This also aids in quicker rental of a property, along with the return of a large number of potential tenants from vacation. There was an application received from a potential tenant at the end of the first week of August. The property was to have been shown to this applicant on the Saturday following.
I returned from vacation on the 10th of August to several messages and an email from [redacted]. I asked our rental manager if she had any applications and she expressed that she was showing the property Saturday to someone that seemed suitable. She also expressed that [redacted] and [redacted] were asking her about prior email to them advising that the property was vacant. She admitted she had forgotten to email them when we had official notice but had advertised on [redacted] and added the [redacted] ad. [redacted] I asked her to reply to [redacted] and [redacted] apologizing for having forgotten to email them the notice, and advising them that she was considering this property a priority to rent immediately. She said that she believed it would be rented by that weekend.
The following day (Thursday) I spoke with our rental manager who was in tears, telling me that these clients wanted her to prove she advertised on [redacted] before that week or take responsibility for the month of rent due to this vacancy. I then spoke with [redacted] myself. I expressed that I had discussed the issue of our rental manager having forgotten to email them the vacancy and assured them I had spoken to the manager about this being a priority. I advised that there was a showing in 2 days for a party that was qualified to be a solid tenant. [redacted] proceeded to become more aggressive in her insistence that our company be responsible for a shortfall of rent and that we were being dishonest about having adsvertised the property. I advised that the [redacted] site is our primary source of applicants and that these are reposted regularily to avoid being pushed down the list of ads. I also advised that there was nothing in our agreement guaranteeing no vacancy, that the market for this type of property is currently very tight, and that a good tenant is the priority over filling the property immediately. She expressed that her opinion was that we had spent 2 years collecting a management fee for doing nothing, and that we were dishonest and lacking integrity. I told her that was an entirely unfair and false statement, and reminded her of the responsibilities we have upheld for the duration of our management of this property. This was not satisfactory to her and she still demanded that we be responsible for reimbursing them the rent until the property was rented. I stated that this was an unreasonable demand and that I felt I had spent quite enough time discussing the matter with her, as I had clients dealing with urgent concerns waiting outside my office. I told her that I would not rob her of management time owed, but that I could not do so to other clients either. As I had taken 15 minutes to speak with her about this matter, and she persisted in being aggressive and disrespectful in her manner, that I could not continue this conversation. I also advised at that time that it was preferable to me to discontinue our management agreement rather than continue to work with a client who was being abusive of the reasonable measure of time and patience to be expected in this circumstance. I said that rather than spend all the time necessary to argue and prove ourselves to a client who was being unreasonable, I would rather terminate our management relationship. I gave [redacted] the option of having us continue to advertise and show the property, including to the potential tenant on Saturday, or have us draw up the termination letter. She opted to take a termination of management. She then called back and demanded that they receive the keys for the property as well as a copy of the termination immediately. I let her know that was not something I could process immediately but I would be in the office the following day at about 11:30after morning meetings. Unfortunately I only made it closer to noon, but had the keys waiting at the front desk and knew I could email the paperwork.
Shortly thereafter, I received further emails from the client insisting that our rental manager had been "feeding them lies" instead of "owing up to her mistake". However, as I had asked her to upon my return last week, our manager did email the clients with an honest apology for not having sent the initial email to them about the tenants not renewing their lease. [redacted] The clients also insisted that they continue to be served by us as their managers until they received the termination letter. However they demanded all keys be turned over and this was done on Friday the 12th of August. Further management of this property cannot be expected when our access to the property has been terminated.
At the point where this management relationship seemed to become toxic and unreasonable, I made the decision as the owner of our company that it could not be allowed to detract from the service we offer to our other clients. I do not take our responsibilities to our clients lightly, nor do I condone dishonesty. I believe that our manager has realized and admitted the error she made, and that she has been honest in her efforts to ensure our management responsibilities were upheld. When the clients retrieved all of the keys to the property on the 12th, they effectively barred us from acting further on their behalf to show or maintain the property.
Should there be any further questions or concerns regarding this complaint I would be happy to discuss them with you or your office. I appreciate being made aware of this client's complaint, and the opportunity to add our comments.
Sincerely,
Jen M[redacted]