MGM Mortgage Inc.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2017/03/11) */
This is a condominium unit in a common-interest community (HOA). The damage that occurred was the result of a combination of extreme weather and a fault in the original construction of the building. When the water intrusion from the front...

entrance into the unit occurred the first time, the HOA Board of Directors determined it to be a one-time occurrence and deferred a permanent solution until its next board meeting. When the water intrusion occurred the second time, the Board determined it to be an emergency and authorized our company to manage the damage mitigation and resolution of the problem. We are the community manager for this HOA as well as a licensed contractor who performs building maintenance and repairs for this HOA.
Extreme weather conditions in this village in January and February had an adverse affect on getting contractors on site. In addition, during mitigation, fungus was detected, which put into motion air quality and subsequent air scrubbing protocols. Repairs include new drywall, floor tile and carpet, the selection of which required unit owner approval, which are absentee owners as this is a rental unit.
While there have been some delays as noted above, the Board of Directors, all the contractors who have been involved, and our company has placed the health and safety of the tenants as primary concern in getting the repairs done correctly, all of which has taken time. Now that replacement materials have been selected, ordered and installation scheduled, completion of the repairs should be completed by the third week in March. There will be more extensive work on the external deck(s) of this building in the spring to preclude a reoccurrence of this issue.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2017/03/14) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Dear Revdex.com...
First of all, we (as the owners of Burgundy Hill #[redacted]) accept much of the philosophical content of the written response from IPM to the Revdex.com in response to our filed complaint. IPM states that "the health and safety of the tenants is a primary concern" and is their mission as a business. However, we still feel that they (IPM) should have been "on top of things" back in mid-December 2016 when they were initially notified of the beginning deterioration of our Unit #[redacted]. It became increasingly apparent that IPM's handyman continuously minimized the impact of the water intrusion into our condo unit. His subsequent multiple attempts to remedy the situation were ineffective and, we assume, IPM lost money and time because of the issue not being addressed appropriately. His application of several interventions to the threshold, door, and interior portions of the unit delayed the correction of the actual problem and due to the time lost actually caused additional deterioration of our unit as well as unmeasurable costs and damages (physical, mental, emotional) to our tenant and ourselves along with our agent there in Incline Village.
As previously noted, the initial alert from our tenant to IPM occurred in mid-December, 2016 BEFORE the bad winter weather actually hit Incline Village. Therefore, in our opinion, it appears that IPM's excuse of "extreme weather conditions" would not be an appropriate excuse relative our complaint. If our water intrusion situation had been expeditiously acted upon back in December we would have avoided most of these problems. IPM was very slow to act with appropriate, logical remedies, and because of waiting so long, damage intensified to the interior of our condo. Again, more immediate follow up from IPM might have lessened the problems or at least minimized them to a large degree.
Our tenant had to vacate our condo in early January 2017 because of the extent of the wet conditions within our unit. In addition, mold spores were dispersed throughout our unit for days at a time due to the equipment (e.g., large fans, dehumidifiers) utilized by ServPro. The condo unit also appeared to be unattended by the handyman (who actually carries the title of IPM Construction Supervisor) as the unit was actually left unlocked at the end of the day which the tenant discovered upon returning. Also, bathroom facilities were utilized by workers during their multiple egresses into the condo. Fortunately, it appears that no losses through theft were incurred by our tenant. Our tenant had to secure consultation from physicians regarding her physical response or reaction to the mold. Eventually she had to move from the unit due to the physical insult of mold. As a matter of note, when ServPro was initially consulted to the unit they (ServPro) would not actually remove or attempt to extract any water from the interior of the unit because water from the outside was continuing to invade our condo. The IPM handyman continuously minimized the extent of the water intrusion and even denied the existence of mold until a mold test was finally conducted by ServPro which documented the presence of mold in the unit. IPM stated that all our unit needed was a new threshold and some caulkling. Later they said all it needed was a new threshold and a new door, etc. and the saga continued.
We communicated our ongoing displeasure to all of the "quick fixes" and delays via e-mails along with voice mails as they occurred throughout this entire experience; although we initially communicated sporadically with/ to [redacted] (IPM Supervisor) as well as Larry (President of IPM) we received minimal return communications from [redacted] and NO response from Larry. We lost 3 months rent, the tenant was extremely inconvenienced and sickened, and a great deal of continued stress occurred to all involved including our agent, [redacted] from [redacted] in Incline Village, who represents our interest in the property, as well as ourselves.
Although we are now pleased that IPM has a plan to finally correct the structural problems at Burgundy Hill in the near future and IPM is finally responding to the long-existing water intrusion with Unit #[redacted], we continue to have several concerns. Irrespective of our losing thousands of dollars in rental income to cover the multiple HOA and Capital Reserve fees that we pay monthly to Burgundy Hill HOA in a timely fashion, we continue to be concerned about our tenant, Lacy Bauer. The physical, emotional and financial costs that she has incurred are deemed to be resultant from the lack of respect given to her (and our) expressed concerns and the lack of a timely response by IPM employees. Our tenant's reports of water intrusion date back to mid-December, 2016 and she alerted IPM in a timely and responsible manner in that she reported the water intrusion to IPM (who is responsible for the integrity of the Burgundy Hill structure). Her declining health with her having to vacate the unit was secondary to the continuous lack of timely response from IPM.
We realize that no one but GOD controls the weather (we are in Denver and are familiar with episodic bouts of overwhelming extreme weather condition at times and prepare accordingly) but we can not accept an IPM "handyman" using the excuse of "Oh, the snow removal company is not shoveling like they should" as the initial excuse for the water intrusion into the unit, his repeatedly "jerry-rigging" and trying interventions that are totally unreasonable even to non-construction individuals such as ourselves, delaying repairs, minimizing reports of damage to the HOA! According to our tenant this handyman reported in December, 2016 that the carpets and tiles were "merely damp" (i.e., he completely minimized the reality of the situation in Unit #[redacted] in that the tenant described the carpets as waterlogged and the tiles "mushy" underneath if you tried to walk on them) resulting in the HOA deciding to "defer" a more substantial or a more comprehensive solution until the next HOA meeting"; the "next" HOA meeting was scheduled for a number of weeks later .
In any respect, we feel that IPM and the HOA for our condominium association should respond and support (cover the cost of the following):
(1) Follow-up on IPM's response confirming that "placing the
health and safety of the tenant" is of primary importance
including the following:
(a) reimburse our tenant for her doctor copays or visits
(b) reimburse our tenant for the cleaning of her bed coverings
and clothes that were exposed to mold spores secondary to
the dehumidifiers and other large fans in attempts to dry the
carpet (which the IPM handyman referred to as "damp" carpet
with no evidence of mold!)
(c) reimburse tenant paid to a friend for living space in her
home that was mold-free
(d) Conduct a mold inspection at the termination of the third
week of March, 2017 which is the final completion date of
the interior job to ensure the health and safety of our tenant.
We also need a copy of this mold evaluation for our records.
(e) Change the locks on the entry into the condo (if this has
not already been done) as the unit was left unlocked during
this process of remediating interior damage to the unit
(f) The entire unit should be "deep cleaned" by a appropriately
qualified cleaning provider to disinfect and to thoroughly
clean the premises.
(2) That if there is any more water intrusion before the second
phase of the structural problem is completed (or in the
distant future) that the HOA/IPM will treat it as an emergency
situation and respond as it being an emergency situation to
avoid cost or re-repair of our unit.
(3) That employees of HOA/IPM will treat us as well as our tenant
and agent with respect in the future.
Although we are aware that you do not wish to receive any additional e-mail communications we would appreciate it very much if we could send you only one attachment. The purpose of this attachment is for you to more fully understand what Lacy Bauer, our tenant, has experienced during this extended fiasco. We would greatly appreciate it if your would kindly attach this to this response.
This e-mail will be sent within the next 10 minutes. Thank you.
Signed,
[redacted] and [redacted], Owners ([redacted])
Owners, [redacted]
Date of Entry: March 13, 2017
Final Business Response /* (4000, 17, 2017/03/17) */
Thank you for your response. The supervisor on this repair has been in frequent communication with your rental agent, whom he has worked with on numerous other occasions. Please understand he is a building maintenance and repair supervisor. His use of grammar in his written and/or oral communications with you may be more a reflection of his position as a field supervisor than any particular attitude or disrespect that may have been perceived. He has expressed his frustrations with the source of this water leak as well, and you can rest assured that he wants to get the repair done with a level of quality and permanence that would please homeowner and tenant alike. If he has offended you in any way, our apologies are offered.
It is our commitment that everyone in our company who may be involved in the resolution of this problem will treat all parties with courtesy and respect, and will work toward a mutually satisfactory resolution.
Final Consumer Response /* (2000, 19, 2017/03/21) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
Thank you for your response and pledged future oversight of the repairs.
[redacted] and [redacted] BH #[redacted]