Lawson Realty Group

Review: In May of 2010 my mother signed an agreement with Lawson Realty Group, LLC to manage the rental of our house on [redacted], Roanoke Virginia, 24015. The failed miserably by renting to friends and ignoring various conditions of their own lease agreement and by allowing them to cause considerable damage to our house when they vacated. After discussing this and filing a complaint with the CEO of the Roanoke Board of Realtor's [redacted], I decided that they had violated the Realtor Code of ethics Article 1 because they looked out for the interest of their friends that were renting our house and not ours as well as article 9 because they didn't enforce their own lease agreement paragraphs 6, 12, 15 & 17. I can prove all these accusations and I feel that we were taken advantage of because neither my brother or I, now legal owners, live in or near Roanoke. We had to invest $5,000 in the house to be able too rent it again and I spent 4 days and two trips to Roanoke from Northern Virginia to clean up the yard that they left a mess and trim bushes and trees that they had neglected.Desired Settlement: To revoke their license to operate!

Business

Response:

Summary It is our position that during the agency relationship, LRG acted to protect and promote the interests of Mr. [redacted]. LRG leased the premises in April of 2011 and the former tenant remained in the premises until April 30, 2013. During this time, the former tenant paid rent late on seven different occasions. Only two of these late payments were so late that Mr. [redacted] did not receive his monthly owner's distribution. For each late payment, a fee was charged to and paid by the tenant. All fees collected were credited to Mr. [redacted]'s owner's account. As it sometimes happens, there were problems with the premises during the term of the former tenant's occupancy. LRG handled these difficulties effectively and efficiently by promptly dispatching professional vendors to resolve them. After the former tenant moved out, we made sure they fixed all damages they caused. For some damages, there was no cost to pass through to the tenants because larger upgrades encompassed the damage. For instance, the refinishing of the kitchen cabinets, the former tenant caused damage to two doors. However, the entire cabinet set needed to be refinished. Accordingly, there was no specific cost associated with the tenant caused damages. This is also true for the holes in the living room wall and the black smudge on the mantle. The painter said there would be no increase in the cost to take care of these items. The entire room required repainting regardless of any holes or any black smudges. For other damages, there certainly would have been a quantifiable cost to fix. However, the former tenant fixed all of those items. These items include the shed door, the panel next to the electric panel, broken glass panes. There were disagreements between LRG, Mr. [redacted], and the former tenant regarding the condition of the premises at the time of the former tenant's move in and move out. In an effort to promote and protect Mr. [redacted]'s interests, LRG paid a maintenance person over $600.00 to fix all such discrepancies. This included items Mr. [redacted] alleged the former tenant damaged (replacing tile on the bathroom walls, removing items from the attic, replacing the refrigerator, etc.) and items that the contractor did not finish (installing the toilets, installing all closet doors, installing plumbing in the kitchen sink, installing handicap bars in the bathroom). Additionally, LRG paid to have a large window replaced for $325.00 broken by the contractor. Finally, LRG paid to have the premises professionally cleaned ($85.00). Additionally, LRG paid for lawn care ($650.00), the electric bill ($79.94), and HVAC repairs ($149.39) during the vacancy period. Finally, LRG found a qualified tenant, executed a lease agreement, and completed a move in inspection on behalf of Mr. [redacted]. LRG did not charge Mr. [redacted] for any of these services. Ultimately we executed an agreement of termination (exhibit 1), highly favorable to Mr. [redacted], which we thought was the end of the matter. We are genuinely sorry that the relationship ended as it did. However, we believe we performed ethically, legally, and per the terms of all agreements throughout the relationship.

Business

Response:

Thank you for providing Mr. [redacted]'s response. On August 12, 2013, all parties executed a Management Agreement Termination document. In an effort to get Mr. [redacted] to agree to terminate the relationship, Lawson Realty Group, LLC 1. Paid over $1,000.00 of its own funds to make the property rentable. 2. Marketed the property, found a qualified tenant, and executed a 12 month lease beginning August 1, 2013. 3. Agreed to waive the following fees due under the Management Agreement: a. $100.00 Lease Execution Fee b. $140.00 Lock Change Fee c. $1,500.00 in Management Fees At this point it is clear that Lawson Realty Group, LLC and Mr. [redacted] are not going to come to mutual resolution. The initial response provided to the Revdex.com of Western Virginia was an effort to explain to Lawson Realty Group, LLC's prior attempts to pacify Mr. [redacted]. After the execution of the Management Termination Agreement, we believed the situation had been resolved. Lawson Realty Group, LLC has done everything possible to satisfy Mr. [redacted]. Lawson Realty Group, LLC stands firm in its position, will vehemently defend itself from Mr. [redacted]'s repeated attempts to tarnish its reputation, and will not be a victim to his financial extortion. Sincerely, Robert Lawson, Member, Lawson Realty Group, LLC

Business

Response:

Thank you for providing Mr. [redacted]'s response. On August 12, 2013, all parties executed a Management Agreement Termination document. In an effort to get Mr. [redacted] to agree to terminate the relationship, Lawson Realty Group, LLC 1. Paid over $1,000.00 of its own funds to make the property rentable. 2. Marketed the property, found a qualified tenant, and executed a 12 month lease beginning August 1, 2013. 3. Agreed to waive the following fees due under the Management Agreement: a. $100.00 Lease Execution Fee b. $140.00 Lock Change Fee c. $1,500.00 in Management Fees At this point it is clear that Lawson Realty Group, LLC and Mr. [redacted] are not going to come to mutual resolution. The initial response provided to the Revdex.com of Western Virginia was an effort to explain to Lawson Realty Group, LLC's prior attempts to pacify Mr. [redacted]. After the execution of the Management Termination Agreement, we believed the situation had been resolved. Lawson Realty Group, LLC has done everything possible to satisfy Mr. [redacted]. Lawson Realty Group, LLC stands firm in its position, will vehemently defend itself from Mr. [redacted]'s repeated attempts to tarnish its reputation, and will not be a victim to his financial extortion. Sincerely, Robert Lawson, Member, Lawson Realty Group, LLC

Consumer

Response:

This bantering back and forth is not resolving the issue. The issue was that my mother signed an agreement with Lawson Realty Group to manage and take care of our rental property and they failed to do that. They leased to friends of theirs that were on welfare that would not have qualified for a house of this magnitude without their father’s help and caused considerable damage and left a mess inside and out upon there departure. The latest estimate of our losses while under the management of Lawson Realty Group is now over $10,000 and is growing because I am still taking care of things that they said were done before we ended their management services. After Mr. Lawson threatened to stop representing us I realized that they were not acting in our best interest. They fought me on every detail of fixing our house back to the condition it was in before the tenants moved in and it was in rentable condition before their friends moved in and not when they left. So in my mind they should have been charged for getting the house back in rentable condition period. So this is why I reported this to your organization. They took advantage of us because we do not live in the area and could not monitor what was going on and I also felt pressured to end our relationship or have to deal with their services that didn’t look after our interests and failed to follow their own lease agreement. We just couldn’t afford that anymore. So this issue will be resolved when and only when they decide to take care of their responsibilities’ and make a serious effort to satisfy the losses that we incurred while the house was under their management. Thank you for your time. [redacted]

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, please see the attached file.Regards,[redacted]