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We are 2 months into a 12 month lease and are already fed up with constant contact and visits by our "property manager". Besides being totally annoyed by things like "supervising the oven repair guy for non critical issues, three times...), something doesn't feel right....
When we first viewed the property, we initially met who we presumed to be the owner. Near the end of the visit a woman dropped by, who he introduced as his girlfriend. At some point he made a statement alluding to them owning the property jointly. Since the damage deposit was nearly $4,000, I did my own research on the couple and property, discovering the woman owns the house individually. When it came time to sign a lease, only the woman's name appeared as Landlord. The man was not a party to the lease in any way, nor was he listed as property manager. Additionally, rather than list their home address as the Landlord's contact address in the lease, they used her work address (they did not volunteer this, but I recognized the address as a billing address for a local company I have done business with in the past).
A few other facts: They claim to live near the rental property, but will not tell us what neighborhood they live in. They claim to have a number of other properties that they rent- I've search the county tax records and have found a few houses, also listed in the woman's name. The man (acting as property manager) does not have any valid California Real Estate licenses.
This all adds up to a lot concern on our part. We would like insight to the following questions:
1. If the man is not listed on the lease (or anywhere else for that matter) can he function as the property manager (keeping in mind the couple is not married)?
2. If the man does not have any California Real Estate licenses, can he act as a property manager on behalf of his girlfriend?
A few other interesting tidbits about the couple:
- The phone number provided with the listing was a Google phone number. The man insisted we "delete it immediately" and use a different cell phone to contact him when we moved in.
- Prior residents sued the landlord in small claims court to recover their damage deposit (and lost). The man was listed as a witness/property manager, however his name was misspelled in court documents.
- The couple uses an ambiguous email address for contact (does not contain any part of either name)
- An extensive internet search of the woman verifies her current employment, as well as a few other things she has mentioned. However, I can't find a single thing on the name the man has provided (even my long deceased grandparents have extensive internet footprints).
As a secondary to the 2 questions above, should we be worried?? It might be as simple as the landlord not claiming income from rental properties, which is none of my business, but I like to have a good feeling about people I'm doing business with.
1) If the owner has asked you to deal with him, then ask her to put it in writing. If you don't want to be formal about it, then send an email to the email address provided or whatever contact info is provided in the lease, asking her to please verify that you are to communicate with the man. That as he's not listed in the lease, you just want written verification from her that it's okay to deal with him.
2) No. In CA, if you manage a property that you don't own, and you are not the resident manager for, you must have a realtor's license.
I wouldn't worry about this, though, as long as you get something in writing from the owner (email is fine - as long as it's her email or the email provided in your contract) that you are to treat him as the property manager.
I can't really picture a scenario where it will matter to you if he has a license or not.
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Anything beyond the above is kind of obsessive on your part, IMO lol! As far as who is whose boyfriend/girlfriend, where they work, etc., etc. All that matters is that you are contracting with the actual owner - which you verified. And that she has designated him as her representative in writing - so she can't ever say that you still owe her rent, even if you already paid him, and he absconded with the money, etc.
As far as her coming by too often, just insist on 24 hours notice and to schedule non-emergency maintenance when you can be present, and per your schedule. Make it harder for her to come whenever she feels like it.
And know that you can break a lease in CA, and she can only charge you rent until she re-rents to someone else. Also, when you give your notice to move, whenever that will be, don't ask for an inspection - wait for her to give you written notice of your right to the inspection. And don't give her any reminders of how much time she has to send your deposit to you. If she screws up on either of these laws, you automatically get your full deposit back. No matter what.
Here's a link to the CA laws regarding deposits and initial inspection rules, etc.:
How do you know that they are not married? How do you know that he is not her employee? For property manager to neogiate leases/collet rents they must be either: owner, real estate agent. employee of real estate agent. Simply because the guy shows up to over see repairmen doesn't imply that's he the "property mangaer". He could be the 'facilty manger" "maintence supervisor" "land lord's personal assistant".
That's he's in your home too often is real issue right? Tell your land lord that he's over too often. Ask them to schedul all repair for one day with notice at your convience.
Yasrs ago, I had alnd lord that would drop-by to pick-up the rent. he call first to arrange atime (like asking for a date). It was creepy. I moved.
My understanding is there is a difference between compensated and non-compensated as to the license requirement.
If the boyfriend, brother, uncle is not compensated he is not in the business.
I've known individuals to "Manage" property such as lawyers and executors for estates and even by power of attorney for someone that is infirmed or serving the military.
NoMoreSnowForMe and STT thanks for you accurate and extremely fast feedback.
blu4u - he marketed the property, screened applicants, drafted the lease and has been our point of contact for all activities. They only thing he hasn't done is collect the rent because we transfer it directly to the owner's bank account. If it walks like a duck, and quacks....
Ultrarunner - Consideration comes in many forms, and not just monetary compensation. You make a valid point about an uncle or brother. I'm a good guy, but I wouldn't manage anyone's property for free. " A real estate broker within the meaning of this part is a person who, for a compensation or in expectation of a compensation, regardless of the form or time of payment."
Okey Dokie- good point about you being a creepy anonymous internet lurker. The difference here is that I have a legally binding contract with them, they hold $4k of my money in escrow, and I pay them over $3K/month in rent. They have my entire credit history, but yet I don't even know where they live. How can I feel comfortable they won't disappear in the night, or even feel comfortable they will perform duties as required in Lease Agreement?
There are plenty of scams out there where would be renters are duped... usually, it's for the upfront money and then the scammer disappears and upon investigation it is learned the person receiving the money has no ties to the property.
I doubt a scammer would still be around let alone respond to maintenance issues.
Plenty of foreclosed homes over the last few years around here and that's why a valid lease takes precedent even when foreclosed... this is done to protect renters.
Some people simply do not volunteer information.
You could have done due diligence prior to signing or only dealt with established Property Management firms with a solid record in the community.
On the flip side... even people with the best of intentions are not above breaching a contract should the situation change.
Also, the term Property Manager is often loosely used...
Ultrarunner - Consideration comes in many forms, and not just monetary compensation. You make a valid point about an uncle or brother. I'm a good guy, but I wouldn't manage anyone's property for free. " A real estate broker within the meaning of this part is a person who, for a compensation or in expectation of a compensation, regardless of the form or time of payment."
While consideration comes in many forms, I would guess that the privilege of sharing her bed and home are hard to prove as remuneration for managing her properties.
I just wanted to chime in on owners not revealing their contact info. The owner I worked for, as his resident apartment manager, did not share his contact info with the tenants. They did know that they could talk to him when he came every Saturday to do maintenance, but they were to go through me, alone, otherwise. And, it's entirely normal for tenants to never have any contact with the owner, and no way to reach him/her.
The owner figured that's why he had managers - to deal with the tenants. He didn't want tenants calling him or knowing where he lived.
I'm just saying this alone is not weird or unusual.
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