Definitely the worst company to deal with. Their management consists of the most clueless people in the world. The inside of of the property (at least at The Village and The Park) is so filthy and disgusting. They keep the outside that potential tenants see nice and clean, but the inside is unbearable.
Irvine Company continuously increases rent. When your lease expires, you're given the option to resign another one year for an additional $150 - $200/month, or go monthly for an additional $560 - $600 per month. I am not kidding. I have attached one of my renewal letters verifying it. It is standard business with Irvine Company.
Irvine Co. has been allowing tenants to sublease their units as illegal AirBnb units, putting all paying tenants safety and lives at risk. There are no requirements for an AirBnb customer to rent the units for days, weeks or months from the tenant. Anyone could rent through AirBnb; criminals, drug dealers, prostitutes,etc. All they need is a credit card. Irvine Company has been alerted of this matter many times and does nothing about it. Paragraph 13 of the lease specifically states one cannot sublease their unit or use it as an AirBnb, Couchsurfing, etc. Yet, when rporting this to Irvine Co., they do nothing about it.
To prove how ignorant management is at this property, we alerted them of the illegal AirBnb ad for a specific unit that showed photos verifying the exact unit. Management had the nerve to tell us the unit was in compliance with their lease! How stupid could one be! Management alone is a serious liability. They make such bad decisions, they put innocent bystander lives at risk. Management even had the nerve to come to my unit and ask me to help them locate all the illegal AirBnb ads! Management at The Village is so ignorant, they had the nerve to tell a tenant that quiet enjoyment does not apply to Irvine. That's a national law! Just goes to show how ignorant Irvine Co. and its staff are!
The security people at the properties are not security. Irvine Co. has told us many times that they are "courtesy patrol". Even Irvine Police Dept told us that the "security" at these properties is a total joke. One of the security thugs was hanging out in the garage like they always do, allowing a car to illegally sit in the driveway, blocking all lanes, preventing people from entering and leaving the garage while they talk to each other. The thug "security" dude even had the nerve to argue with me. I had to contact Irvine Police Dept regarding their behavior. Furthermore, their manager James, had the nerve to call me at 12:30 AM, and try to tell me how important he is.
The maintenance/janitorial is a joke. All one has to do is look at the inside of the property. Chunks of wall missing, stains, trash and cigarettes all over the walls and sidewalks, yards with dead plants, etc. I even have video of a janitor emptying a bucket of mop water on the plants. Another reason the plants are always dying. You will always see bags of garbage left outside units for days and even weeks; clearly proves management fails to do their job monitoring the property. If they did, the bags of garbage would not be there days or weeks later. The only areas they keep clean are the paths to the model units and main area by the pool; all for show. Walk around the actual areas and you'll see nothing but filth. It is the filthiest property I've ever lived at in my lifetime.
The maintenance are unbelievably ignorant. One dude had the nerve to argue with me and attempt to talk over me. He might get away with it with others, but there's no way in hell I would allow that. I've had disgusting smells of food coming through my AC vents from day one and it became unbearable. Maintenance had the nerve to argue it with me, insisting it could be coming from my bathroom sink, dishwasher, behind the refigerator, etc! All they had to do is stand on a ladder in front of any vent with the air blowing! It was disgusting food smells. Even the manager recognized the disgusting smells from the vent.
One of my lawyers had to deal with Irvine Co. for their illegal billing schemes. Irvine Company was gouging me for water. My monthly bill went from $35 per month to $140 per month overnight and worst yet, there were many months, I did not spend a single day in the unit, yet my water bill was $135. My lawyers and I feel this was retailiatory towards me for posting a bad, but honest Yelp review about a very rude and ignorant Irvine Co. employee.
There has been an awful lot of illegal trafficing at both The Park and The Village. A lot of Chinese pregnant people have been illegally renting an apartment here, having babies in attempt to become citizens. This has been on the news many times and the Feds have been involved. Irvine Company has been warned of this matter numerous times and still negligently refuses to do anything about it.
The other day, there were approximately 38 pregnant Chinese women walking around the property.
This property has become a very filthy and dangerous place to live. With all of the illegal AirBnb business and illegal Chinese pregnant people staying in the units, having babies, this is not a good to live.
#2Author of original report
Fri, November 04, 2016
First of all, I find it highly suspect that you just “came across” my review on Ripoff Report. From your rebuttal, it appears that you are a happy camper at The Village, so why would you be checking out this forum? Ah, perhaps Resident Services was the impetus for your response… as that seems to be the driving force behind several five-star Yelp reviews (most of which only praise Resident Services and are devoid of actual living experiences.)
While you find my report of The Village “wholly inaccurate, misleading and somewhat libelous”, it is a factual account based on my personal experience as a resident. Your living experience is quite obviously different from mine, however that does not allow you to discount my true statements as “wholly inaccurate, misleading”. They are not.
Residents using Airbnb and other short term rental sites are in violation of their lease. And just so you know, this issue has been escalated to “senior Irvine Company officials” several times. Other than the one-time written notice to residents on June 13, 2016, there has been no response, follow-up or resolve from management. While I won’t go into the details of the “resourcefulness and common sense” to which I and other tenants have applied in our numerous contacts with “senior Irvine Company officials regarding the Airbnb issue, your statement that “All it takes is resourcefulness and common sense to get an illegal problem addressed” has proven to be false. I have the documentation.
As for the Irvine birth tourism, you may wish to contact the federal authorities handing this issue regarding The Village. As for the number of pregnant Asian women residing at The Village at any one time, my reported tally is an accurate count as is the ever-present issue of unattended trash and garbage at the doors of residential units and strewn in the trash rooms. My daily constitutionals consist of walking the entire property, encompassing all sections. Perhaps I am more observant than one might be when walking a dog.
Regarding rent increases based on what the market allows without any thought process to keep current residents is an extremely poor...and inconsiderate…course of action for any landlord to adopt. It is understandable that market rates apply to vacant units, but smart landlords adhere to smaller increases for current tenants as a means of maintaining a residential community, not a transient haven which has lasting negative effects on the property and its residents.
While the property is physically appealing from the outside, actual living conditions that continuously violate laws and ordinances regarding noise, cleanliness, crime, etc. do not justify the “current market value” of said property. Irvine Co. and mgmt has a legal obligation to make certain the property/dwelling is kept in every part clean, sanitary and free from all accumulation of debris, filth, rubbish, garbage, rodent and vermin pursuant to Civil Code Section 1941.1(a)(6). They have continuously failed to abide by said law.
As for your observation that I would be happier ”to live far from civilization with no one to deal with”, nothing could be further from the truth…and “somewhat libelous”.
Also, just FYI, it’s called Irvine Company not IrTvine Company and management not menegement!
Dennis Paul
IRVINE,#3Consumer Comment
Thu, November 03, 2016
I came across this ripoff report and find it wholly inaccurate, misleading and somewhat libelous. I have lived at The Village apartments in Irvine for over 5 years and know a number of people who have lived there longer. I have found the Irvine Company and The Village menegement to be fair to deal with and far from the worst or "most clueless people in the world". Such drama. They have their faults, like any other company, but overall they try hard to please their tenants.
The property is not filthy; far from it. Sure, people leave their trash outside their door from time to time, but I have a dog and walk the property frequently, and this is hardly a big problem. In fact, I rarely see trash outside of doors for any length of time.
Yes, they increase the rent every time the current lease is up. Who doesn't? It can be aggravating but a simple 10 minute search will show that the rent prices are in line with other properties in the area, some of which have nowhere near the amenities that The Village has (grocery market, dry cleaning, parcel reception, ATM, several gyms, internet rooms, Starbucks, salon, events, party rooms, 3 or 4 pools, Irvine Spectrum across the street, etc., etc.).
Do they have AirBNb units? Probably as they're everywhere. If the local resident services office is doing nothing about it I'm sure escalation to senior Irvine Company officials would solve the situation. I had tenants next door to me that were obviously involved in selling drugs to people coming at all hours. I reported it to both resident services and senior Irvine Company management, including their legal office, and they had these people evicted in a month. All it takes is resourcefulness and common sense to get an illegal problem addressed; local resident services isn't always the best option for this.
In the 5 years I have lived here (and I get out and about almost every day) I have seem, maybe, 5 pregnant women. I don't recall how many were Chinese. There have been several busts of Chinese "baby factories" in Irvine, but those have taken place in an entirely different area of Irvine. To claim that there were about 38 Chinese women walking around the The Village apartment property is preposterous and laughable at best.
The Village is a diverse community with a number of nationalities living there. Most are courteous; some are not. So what? It would be the same anywhere else in Irvine. I have the feeling that the only way the writer of this ripoff report will be happy is to live far from civilization with no one to deal with. The over-the-top drama in this report is far from the actual situation at The Village. Is it a perfect community? Of course not. Is it a great place to live, all things considered? Absolutely.