Complaint Review: UNITED METRO PROPERTIES - Phoenix, Chandler, Mesa, Gilbert, Surprise Arizona

United Metro is the WORST property management company I have ever dealt with - Their work ethics & customer service practices are pathetic, actually, they have NONE! unfortunately, i have to deal with being victimized by them for 7 more months! YIKES

My problems began the first day - when we were meeting United Metro to sign our lease. the monthly rent went from $925 to $945, my pet deposit went from $200 to $400 per dog because new carpet & tile was just installed, even though they advertised a "Fenced Dog Run" in the yard! NO DOG RUN, FENCED OR OTHERWISE, IN THE YARD - NOR IS THERE A SPRINKLER SYSTEM which was also advertised!

Then the air conditioning unit died & we needed a new one so instead of being compensated for the 4 days we (my boyfriend, 2 dogs & myself) couldn't stay in our house, they charged un an additional $500 n something in late fees & threatened to evict us to boot!

I am having the same issues as the persons in the previous complaints regarding United Metro - Garage was disgusting (i had to clean it myself), 2 windows wont stay open without a book underneath them, the back door wont stay closed unless you dead bolt it, my driveway & entrance walkway are so damaged im certain someones gonna get hurt, my stove has a burner thats broken & my dishwasher smells like....... you can imagine, all of which i have to deal with cleaning myself.

If you have maintenance issues & someone needs to come to your home, well its gonna cost you $40 for the maintenance call no matter what!  Im surprised they didnt charge me for the air conditioning unit - how generous of them to waive the $40.00 fee!

United Metro never answers their messages!  They are the hardest people to get hold of - when my air went out i started calling them about 6:00pm (a non working emergency number) I didnt hear back from them until the next day & finally someone came to check it out later in the early evening!!  118 outside & i had no air!

If anyone out there is having trouble understanding their utility (water) bill received from United Metro, Id love to learn their accounting system!

P.S. For the record I went online to the county assessors office & found the name & address of the person who owns my home & proceeded to write him a letter - mailed it twice - never heard from him either - obviously he believes in United Metros Ethics! Dont ya think??

An "A+" BBB Rating??????? REALLY?????

Im hoping people will see this and think twice before doing business with United Metro Properties,

First of all, I would like to set the record straight as there always seems to be a misconception about who is responsible for making repairs to a rental home.

United Metro Properties, Inc. does not own the home in which this tenant is leasing, nor do the company own any of the properties we manage. We are only the property managers as we have hundreds of clients that employ us to manage their rental homes. Therefore, our company is not financially responsible, nor are we authorized to make any repairs relating to any of the properties we manage. When a tenant notifies our company that a repair is needed, we are required to contact the owner to inform them. Due to a provision in our management agreement, we cannot repair anything unless we receive the owner's authorization.

Secondly, in my opinion, this tenant did not handle this situation properly. Per the Arizona Landlord and Tenant Act, tenants have specific rights when it comes to landlords that are either unresponsive or do not agree to make certain repairs to a home. The Arizona Landlord and Tenant Act gives tenants the certain steps to take in a situation like this.

Unfortunately, this tenant did not decide to take advantage of this protection until after they gave our company their 30-day notice to vacate. For example, these tenants notified us that the owner had 10 days to make the specified repairs or the lease would be void per the Arizona Landlord and Tenant Act. However, after the 10 days had passed, they asked if they could remain in the home longer than originally intended due to a delay in their home purchase.

Another example is when the tenant informed me that they were not paying July rent unless the necessary repairs were made. I informed them that this was not the proper way to deal with this situation as the owner could request that United Metro Properties, Inc. move forward with an eviction. It is funny how then the tenant spins this into a situation in which I was threatening to evict them when I was simply suggesting the proper direction they should take. I was the one who pointed them towards the Arizona Landlord and Tenant Act. After all of this, they didnt even follow through with the rent withholding as we received their July rent.

I am being completely honest when I say that I sympathize with this tenant and her large family.
However, as I mentioned above, without the owners approval, United Metro Properties, Inc. does not have the authorization to make any repairs to the property. 

The owner of this property informed us that we are to refund the tenants security deposit per the terms of the lease.

Therefore, United Metro Properties, Inc has done nothing to deserve this bad press. Even though I can relate to this tenants frustrations, this tenant should have followed through with their threats as now all they are doing is just name-calling.