March 31, 2009
Is River City Real Estate as bad as they say?
River City Real Estate, representing both the not-yet-online Tobacco Factory apartments and Manchester’s Parachute Factory apartments, has been catching absolute hell in the wide-open world of Craig’s List rants&raves. River City claims to “offer great apartment living throughout the historic FAN District of Richmond as well as the best values in downtown loft living”; some tenants say that this is all a bunch of hooey.
The recent rants&raves shit-storm seems to have begun with a relatively tame post asking “Does anyone else have problems with River City Real Estate? I have been a renter in the fan for 9 years with an excellent renters record and relations and have never had such a horrible experience until I moved in with River City Real Estate.”
One follow-up commenter says that “River City Real Estate is not only the worst landlord I’ve ever rented from (I’m in my 30s), they are the worst company I’ve ever come across. [...] If you have the misfortune to rent from them, you’ll find yourself at the mercy of verbally abusive and highly unethical managers, who work night and day to separate money from your wallet. The newest of their many fees is a $200 charge for leaving any and all items on your balcony. They also charge at least $25 for simple maintenance (unclogging a drain, sink, toilet, etc.).”
Another commenter says that “I rented from them years ago and it was the worst experience of my life. The apartment was falling apart, and they ignored my requests to fix it, the neighbors were irresponsible pot smoking party kids. They will charge you fines till no end. There are some pretty bad people to rent from in the city and they are one of the worst. They have a tons of property and they are all sub-par quality [...] They feed on the poor unknowing young college kids or any other unlucky renter. BE AWARE!”
Relations with tenants have apparently gotten so strained that a River City Residents Association has been organized:
The River City Residents Association was formed by tenants who desire a change in the way River City Real Estate conducts business and interacts with their tenants. We want an end to unfair fees charged retroactively after months with no notice in an effort to fleece tenants of their money and then evict them. We want an end to the verbal abuse and online defamation. We want clean, safe living conditions, free of mold, pests and rodents. We want a lease that isn’t maliciously stacked against the tenant, and an office staff that treats residents with respect.
[...] friends over at River District News have a posted about the widespread(?) frustration with River City Real Estate, a management company that oversees [...]
Anyone who would take anything serious that was posted on craigslist rant&raves is a fool.The few people that post there post to each other not the general public.They insight verbal wars over race,religion,politics and the economy.The forum is used for purposes far beyond what it was ever created for with no effort by CL to regulate or enforce any of thier own rules.It’s a complete waste of time.If you want facts look elsewhere.
oh yes they are terrible- i am a tenant of theirs until may & expect fully to have to fight for my deposit- on the last page of their rental agreement river city states they charge a $300 refurbishment fee that comes right off the top of this deposit- clean apartment or no- and they are famous for screwing former residents out of the remainders. i still have a mild but chronic roof leak- they didn’t lift a finger to make it better until i put my rent $ in escrow- the real problem: a leaky old elevator shaft adjacent to my apartment that still reeks like mold.. they seem to operate sometimes out of spite alone and are clearly subscribers of the ’sucker born every minute- turn ‘em & burn ‘em- let god sort ‘em out’ business ethos. just one man’s opinion.
DG clearly works for RCRE.
My husband and I moved out of the Parachute Factory in late January and yes, they are that bad. For a while, there was an all out war on apartmentratings.com between actual tenants, and Steve Armstrong, River City Real Estate’s legal “expert.” Tenats would post negative reviews and Steve, being oh-so ethical would post positive ones, which frequently included personal attacks on past and present tenants, including remarks about tenant’s sexual preferences and credit history. In fact, give them some time and they’ll likely have the nerve to post here about how awesome the apartments are.
Everything about bogus charges is correct. In the lease it states they charge a $300 refurbishment fee upon move out that comes from the security deposit. Without fail, however, they find some other bogus charge to add to your final bill. For us, it was a dirty refrigerator. Let me just state that both my husband and I are in the military and there was no such dirty fridge, and even if there was, isn’t it logical to assume that the $300 they already took would cover it?
Additionally, the towing company employed by RCRE, USA Towing, allegedly provides RCRE a cut from of the profits they make from towing residents. On more than one occasion, USA Towing has been accused of removing license plates and registration stickers from vehicles so that they can tow them. These things have happened to friends of mine, thus I’m not just repeating things I heard from a friend who heard it from a friend :)
As for safety, let me just say this – in the last four months we lived there we had to call the police three times for various issues.
While I can’t comment on their other properties, I can say the Parachute Factory looks nice from the outside, but sucks to live in. The 100 year old exterior windows are not weather proofed, nor to they lock, or even close all the way for that matter. The walls are extremely thin and it was not unusual for us to hear our neighbors breathing next door.
So, are they that bad? Abso-freakin-lutely.
“If you want facts look elsewhere.” Okay, DG. How’s this? River City Real Estate has an F rating (the lowest possible) from the Better Business Bureau, with 38 complaints against it in the last 36 months. No other landlord in Richmond comes close. Yes, there are many things on the internet that one should not take at face value. But the anecdotal evidence points to one thing: people who rent from River City end up hating the company. Not just a few disgruntled tenants, mind you, but most anyone you talk to that has had the misfortune to sign one of their bad, bad leases. RCRE will deny it. They will say complaints are only from “losers,” “whiners,” and “haters.” But they are wrong. These people are slumlords and they are begging for a class action suit. Avoid this company like the plague.
The answer is simple – read the internet and see what people have to say about River City. If you make the poor decision to still rent from them, do what every tenant should do:
1. Read everything in the lease before you sign it.
2. Do a walk through upon move-in and document everything, on paper and with photos and video. Put in a maintenance request in writing immediately to have the problems resolved.
3.Get a copy of the Virginia Landlord Tenant Handbook – you’ll need it.
4. Don’t hide a pet – they have a right to charge you.
5. If they fail to follow through on maintenance requests, simply contact the city of Richmond and the Virginia Department of Consumer Affairs – River City will get up off of their asses when you do that.
6. Keep all correspondence in writing and overkill it with an email so you’ll have additional documentation.
7. When the roof starts to leak and cave in, video tape it.
8. When the exit signs don’t work and the building is in disarray, contact the city – skip right over River City.
9. Never use their drop box for a rent payment or you will get charged a late charge, usually 2 or 3 months later. Always hand-deliver your rent check and get a dated receipt from one of their condescending staff members.
10. Buy bolt cutters so you can access the sub-par on-site laundry facilities in the basement that are padlocked.
11. DO YOU STILL WANT TO RENT FROM THEM? You’d be better off homeless. They suck. They will rip you off. They will amend things.
You won’t find this level of controversy about any other real estate management company in this town. RC can deny until they turn blue, but their reputation is forever destroyed because of their business practices. The only decent property the company owns is the owner’s mansion on the corner of Boulevard and Monument. You’ll see the work crews taking care of that daily. Maybe they’ll let you pitch a tent in Armstrong’s back yard, but be prepared for hidden and made up fees.
River City Real Estate took 1/4 of my deposit after my lease ended without a clear explanation, even though I left the apartment cleaner than when I moved in. They are defintely taking advantage of those less unfortunate.
What kind of punitive or corrective measures can the city take against a property management company like this, one that seems to be guilty of persistent and egregious tenant rights violations?
If there is an issue with building itself, (which applies to virtually all of their properties)such as balconies on the verge of collapse, fire escape issues, fire code violations, mold, structural deterioration, drainage issues, etc…all you have to do is contact the city and they will send out an inspector. Then River City gets cited and they have to correct the issue. Try it, it works. They tuck their tails, send out a work crew to do a half-assed lipstick repair, and everything is great, right???
Just do your selves a favor, never sign a lease with these shady fools and if you have already, start looking for a new place now and cover your ass.
Check out the River City Residents Association’s site at http://www.rcrava.org to keep up with ongoing issues with River City Real Estate.
YES. God, they are as bad as everyone says. Just try to get in contact with them. If anything, they’ll send hastily written emails with many spelling and grammar mistakes. The management is very vengeful so watch what you say. We should all start a protest in front of their offices and private homes. I hate them with the fire of a thousand suns. I hope they go out of business or get sued and all their things taken. F THEM.
Just check their Better Business Bureau record. They have more than three times the number of complaints as the worst landlords in Richmond. Come check out the RCRA if you’ve been screwed by these guys. A unified group of tenants can more than crush these guys.
Ok people u r killing me!! I am a legal assistant in Richmond and I bet most of you who are whining and complaining are the very ones who is late every month, got evicted or broke the lease. In which breaking a binding contract (lease) you will be SUED!!!If you don’t pay for your car the repo man will come get it. All works the same way you sign a contract stating you will pay for car works the same with a lease!! U don’t pay U GET EVICTED!! a judgment and/or garnishment of your wages and/or liens on your property!! I have rental units myself and I know how much damage renters can do!!They don’t own it so they don’t care if they spray paint the walls, put holes in the walls and let their animals use the bathroom on the floor. PAY YOUR RENT AND YOU WILL NOT HAVE HALF OF THE PROBLEMS U BRING ON YOUR SELF!!! People I have EVICTED dog me out to but hey you can’t live somewhere for free!! If you want to live for free go home to MOMMY & DADDY!!
LegalEagle88 is one of River City’s staff employees. He is not a lawyer, never mind a “legal eagle.” He has posted everywhere on the internet. Same angry language, same contempt for tenants, same lame, lazy excuses for RCRE not doing anything to improve its mangement practices or its properties.
Well, it was pretty obvious from the text of his post that he probably had not completed the many years of schooling it takes to earn a law degree.
I was the very first person to post on apartmentratings.com about the Parachute Factory and I am sure I won’t be the last…
As a tenant at this establishment for the past couple of years, I have never felt so ripped off by anyone in my life. The landlord has terrible karma because he doesn’t respect his tenants or his properties whatsoever. I am not sure what can be done about this, but something has gotta give.
Why Tiny he could run for public office right now and be over qualified. I have met some folks who live in Parachute Factory the stories they told make me glad I never had anything to do with that property. I think you the tenants want to do something they can band together and all leave their property. That would take care of the issue until someone tries to move in.
Tenants can’t just walk out on their lease unless they want to face serious legal and/or financial consequences. The best thing to do against River City Real Estate is persuade people never to sign a lease with them or persuade them not to renew. Hitting a bad business in the pocketbook is the best way to go.
True RVA123 if you are not happy wait out the lease and leave after but there have been the occasion where they have had groups band together sue the Property owner and the rental company and refuse to pay rent until things are resolved. It has worked but that is rare.
I am a college student, and just this week signed a lease with RVRE for an apartment on monument, foolishly without doing a legitimate background check first. This site (and many many others) has scared me senseless, to the point that I’m laughing. I suppose I’m royally screwed. Any other tips on how I should prepare myself before moving in in the summer?
Abigail- The best thing you can do is be aware of your rights as a tenant. Since this neighborhood is so renter-heavy, I am going to put together a “tenant’s rights” post for future reference. Look for it this week.
Abigail, make sure you pay your rent early, if you can. The late fees RCRE charges are outrageous. Yes, they are stated in the lease, but they are outrageous nonetheless. Make sure you have read your lease front to back two or three times. Also, keep a copy of the VA Landlord Tenant Act handy. You can get a copy online quite easily. When dealing with RCRE, get everything in writing. Print out your emails. Save any bills or letters they send you. If you are sure you don’t want to renew your lease, let them know ASAP. If you have any serious problems, consult a lawyer–usually they will give you a free consultation. Good luck!
Yes, River City Real Estate is as bad as they say. This apartment is a slum and the leasing company is owned by a slum landlord. EVERYTHING was broken when I moved in. And is still is, 3 months later. I moved in the middle of a snowstorm and the heater was broken. The neighborhood is not safe, my water was dirty, clogged drains, dead rat in the bathtub- legally uninhabitable. Live wires hanging out of the wall. Check the Better Business Bureau- they have MULTIPLE claims filed against them. I will be taking them to court. DO NOT LIVE HERE!!!!!
I’m counting the days until I’m gone, and I’ll finally be free in August. I gave River City Real Estate more than a year’s notice that I was not renewing the lease. That’s how badly I’ve wanted to leave. Anyone I rent from next will be an improvement.
I have lived in Richmond my whole life and my first apartment unfortunately was through River city Real Estate. The “repairs” done are sloppy and dangerous. I had a maintenance request filed to fix our gas stove that was leaking gas. We had turned off the gas just be on the safe side. Well all the repair men did was to cut the gas on and light the pilot lights. Since this obviously did not fix the situation I called the dept. of Utilities and they came and checked out the problem. Turns out my stove was releasing carbon monoxide at 100ppm. So essentially river city’s cheap repair job could have killed 3 people. I will never rent from this company and will do what I can to keep other people from becoming an innocent victim too.
Indeed, A.S., they prey on people who usually don’t know Richmond that well, especially out-of-towners. I had been in RVA for less than year when I signed a lease with these slumlords, and I’ve regretted it ever since. I’m sorry to hear my apartment has already been re-rented to someone else.
YES. RCRE is terrible. They won’t pick up the phone, they won’t call you back, the only way to get in touch with them is to drive to their office.
Their goal is to try to screw you in every way possible. Thank God I’m moving out soon, although I expect to see none of my security deposit returned to me. They’re a bunch of criminals that belong in jail.
I’m moving out soon, too. Thank God! I’m not expecting my deposit back, either. However, I am going to clean the hell out of my place. If they don’t show up for the move-out inspection, they can’t withhold your deposit. But it seems River City’s scam is to tack on bogus charges (even if they don’t show up), so that they can justify not returning your money. However, I am prepared to take them to court if they try to deny me the deposit.
River City Renaissance is a blood-sucking real estate company with an competent staff. I have come to believe in the year and a half I’ve had to deal with/be ripped off by them that they hire people with a maximum IQ of about 5. While the receptionist is nice and willing to help, she is unable to truely do anything but get you further from solving your problem. They are BY FAR the most unprofessional “establishment” I’ve ever come across. It took over 6 mos of constant calls and messages to get a moldy wall “fixed.” However, instead of taking down the drywall and curing the leak in the wall, they simply scraped the wall and painted over it. They really need to read the Landlord-Tenant act… for example, charging for routine maintainance when a bill was not presented the day the action was taken is a violation. I had a friend who told me that upon moving out, they charged him for carpet cleaning… in an apartment that had ALL wood flooring. I was very disappointed in this rental experience and have made sure to caution anyone and everyone I can against them. While they are affordable and seemingly good deals… they’ll get more money from you one way or another…
I have been pushing the idea of landlord licenses over on the Church Hill People’s News.
One possibility that would help deal with neglectful landlords and other problems is landlord licenses. Landlords are forced to pay for licenses for their property and if there are problems they get demerits. Too many demerits and they get licenses pulled and may lose property. The City could even make a few bucks off a licensing program and put the proceeds to work for affordable housing.
anonymous- that sounds like a great-can’t-believe-someone-hasn’t-made-this-happen-already idea.
I have to say, the selective enforcement of certain laws and ordinances in this city is very disturbing.
I think the idea of a landlord license is a very good one. Realtors have to get a license, why not landlords? River City Real Estate obviously needs closer oversight, but others could use it, too. When I rented from Metro Properties, I think the owner’s daughter was running things, and she didn’t seem very qualified. She looked like she was about 20. Given that landlords at times have your life in their hands, I think they should be licensed to operate properties.
I was just about to sign a lease with these guys until I saw this forum. I’ve heard many people say the same thing but just wanted to double check, so I did not sign the lease, and I will advise anyone else not to as well. Thanks guys, and River City Tenants Association!
Glad to hear that you avoided signing a lease with them. Right now, River City Real Estate is trying to suck people in with two month’s free rent. They like setting traps. I’ll be leaving my RCRE apartment soon, and unfortunately I’m not anticipating getting ANY of my deposit back. But I’ll take River City to court if need be. They really need to be stopped. What they do is wrong.
River City Real Estate is a bunch of dirtbags. The dirtbag-in-charge is Bill Jefferson, the owner of the hideous manse on the corner of Monument Ave. and Boulevard (where he owned a vacant lot that he so generously offered his fenced in patch of dirt for use as a public dog-park. ) If you are in the neighborhood you can see what slumlords can afford. When he was ready to build his McMAnsion on his corner lot the dog-park days ended.
Let’s not forget the lovely Charles Armstrong, River City Real Estate’s president, who likes to send nasty emails to residents and non residents alike. Or his brother Steve, who has also given residents a very hard time. This company is beneath contempt.
I’m curious. Are any of these porincipals licensed RE agents or brokers? Is it worth filing complaints with the Virginia Real Estate Board based on their actions?
That’s something worth looking into. I did a quick search at the virginia.gov site and didn’t find any information on River City Real Estate. My guess is that few people at the company have a real estate license. I know in the past that the company’s “agents,” who show apartments to people, have not been licensed realtors. But I’m not sure if the company itself is licensed. My guess is it isn’t.
They have a single licensed realtor, who is their accountant. RCRE is not a member of the National Association of Realtors. They tend to avoid being associated with any orginization that holds them accountable to anyone else. The VA government is the sole source of arbitration when it comes to disputes with them, and VA law is stacked against the tenant. I’d encourage all to write to their city counsel rep, and tell them what’s going on.
I’ve met with Doug Conner and talked with him about River City Real Estate. He said he hadn’t heard anything about them before talking with me. I spoke with him for 30 minutes or so. I think all of city council could use a briefing on what River City R. E. has been up to.
Oh my god, I thought I was the only one. A friend pointed this site and stream of comments to me and I cant tell you how relieved I am that there are others who have had he same problem as me. I am a hardworking college graduate, but have been in a battle over unfair charges, apartment thats falling apart, but I am reluctant to call maintenance and be charged 100$s for it, but they walk into my apartment whenever they feel like it anyway, and it has frankly caused me so much anxiety and stress that Im having physical and psychological problems. Im moving out soon, but fear that it wont even be over once i get my stuff out. Has anyone found any legal aid that is willing to help? Any other suggestions that just complaining? Please keep continuing the discussion everyone, I know that there are lots of RCRE tenants out there feeling like they are being taken advantage and have no where to turn.
Apartment hunting last Spring, I looked into River City Real Estate, googled around and dropped them from the prospective list in a heartbeat. The Fan is an old neighborhood, Richmond at large is an older city. At some point in any of these great to mediocre dwellings, maintenance will be needed; upkeep is one of the most important aspects of any property agreement in this regards.
While looking, I responded to several posts on Craigslist, people breaking their lease and looking for substitute renters to do so. By proxy, I saw several from River City Real Estate and they were terrible, maintained just enough to pass (or not) a glancing judgment.
In one building, the balconies were near collapse although the tenet said they were recently “fixed”, tongue-in-cheek. The doors and windows offered little protection from the elements and many of them were fixed up with plywood and duct tape while pending “work requests”, again, tongue-in-cheek. I was told that the cat living in the stairwell didn’t belong to anyone really, but since the front door was busted it ventured in to mark its’ territory, pissing in the hallway.
River City Real Estate is just a terrible company from what I’ve gathered. It’s a low upkeep, “legally” leveraged venture whose business plan appears to be attracting students or other less-experienced renters into these one-sided, as-is rental arrangements. That’s predatory.
For google’s sake, I would say avoid River City Real Estate. Don’t rent from River City Real Estate. River City Real Estate is a terrible rental agency, poorly run and poorly managed with a low retention rate amongst tenets.
And arguably, for those of us not renting from the scheme, River City Real Estate is damaging the city of Richmond, and pressing hard times on the citizenry.
Dear Relieved,
I’m sorry River City Real Estate put you through such hell. But you are not alone. And people continue to post here and at CL, giving more testimony of how horrible this company is. I was losing sleep, too, at one point, because RCRE was giving me such a hard time. If you have any more problems once you move out, either hire a lawyer or take RCRE to court. Playing hardball is the only way to get these people off your back.
if you go to their website (http://www.rivercityrealestate.net/) supposedly they won some award for “best of richmond 2009″ by the US commerce association. how the hell did they win this? I wonder if it’s just a made-up/fake award.
I had to see it for myself to believe it. Looking at the USCA website, I find it hard to believe this is a legitimate association that really looks for the companies to give awards too. Rather, a business that gives out awards for those who will pay for the “title”, what do yall think? I am not a business person, so Id like to hear opinions from those with more background. I mean, the site doesnt list any contact information, its history, even its location and who is associated with the association.
I can make that same exact 90’s era template website in 1 day, buy some cheap stock photos, and ask for businesses to give me “money for the plaque” and go order it at the awards shop and give a business the right to say that my commerce association gives an award to so and so. Rather, lets look at an association that has history, is accredited, registered and copy righted, the Better Business Bureau. http://www.bbb.org/richmond/business-reviews/real-estate/river-city-real-estate-in-richmond-va-17000238/
Yes, the “award” River City Real Estate received is complete BS, just like when Charles Armstrong was telling everyone that River City Real Estate had a “98% occupancy rating.” Or just like when Steve Armstrong was writing fake positive reviews all over the internet. The Commerce Association is a “Who’s Who” type operation: you have to pay to play. The BBB’s F rating is what matters. River City Real Estate is the worst landlord in Richmond.
Check out Plus Management’s properties at http://www.plusmgt.com. They have some of the nicest apartments in the downtown Richmond area. I’ve rented from them from about four years now and have been very pleased.
I rented an apartment from “Rent in Richmond” and would definitely recommend them again. Very easy to deal with and very fair. If anything broke (by no fault of my own), a repairman was there that day or the next, with no cost to me.
Does anyone else have any GOOD experiences with Richmond rental companies?
I used to rent from River City Real Estate. Horrible company. Now I rent from a guy named Wayne Hall, who owns a couple buildings in the Museum District. I’ve only rented from him for a month, but so far it’s been a good experience.
Main Street Realty has been great to me. Any maintenance issue is handled promptly and professionally. Staff is always friendly and considerate. They have apts with awesome views and locations. http://www.mainstreetrealty.info
they are really that bad I JUST GOT Screwed with the 300$ refurbishment fee but they promised me that I would get my deposit back in full because they found someone to re rent the apartment and i had to pay a full months rent when I wasn’t even there. And now this its like never ending not to mention the shower pressure sucked getting service to fix something in the apartment was beyond difficult until i cursed and complained that I was going to call the fire dept about fire code regulations. Also I caught ten mice in my apartment and they decided to come put poision in my apartment knowing I have a dog. It was the worst living experience of my life NO ONE SHOULD EVERY RENT FROM THESE PEOPLE AND THIS AWARD THEY HAVE RECIEVED IS OUTRAGEOUS they don’t cooperate with the Better Bussiness Bureau this is outrageous and something needs to be done.
I found this informative article about the “award” that River City Real Estate claims to have “won.” Read this : http://spokane.bbb.org/article/all-that-glitters-us-commerce-association-awards-to-biz-may-not-be-what-they-seem-11397
Im so glad to hear that concerned citizens are voicing their thoughts, but I truly feel for those that do not get the word and rent from them, or let their friends rent from them. Thanks for this blog story, River District News, but how can we get more attention on this business that is leaving an awful taste on our great city’s behalf? Style? The local TV news? How can we inform more people to save them the hell that so many of us go through?
In response to DG. Not everyone that posts on CL rant and raves is irrelevant. I have posted on their out for the sole purpose of ranting or raving about Richmond businesses. Im a normal person, full time job, college degree, active social life. The truth about craigslist Rand R is that people do read it. You have read it obviously…, and other normal people to do. I have this feeling that even the business owners read them. Its a place for free speech, anonymous free speech. Its obvious which ones I would not want to read, so I just dont read them. But along with local news blogs, RnR is a way for the local community to spread news, so, DG stop clicking on those Flash Friday posts, you know its just gonna be trash.
Candace, thanks for that BBB article! Looks like the River City Real Estate scammers got scammed themselves. Or maybe they are just simply brazen enough to brag about getting an award the company knows is bogus. RCRE has no shame, but people are catching on…. And I’m going to write to Sytle Weekly about RCRE. Again.
Thanks for that link, Candace. So, a company with a F rating from the BBB gives a bogus award to another company with an F rating from the BBB. I love it.
Yes, i lived there because i could not afford to move after i found out how they treated everyone. They work with a towing company USA TOWING and get kickbacks from them & allow them to tow without rhyme or reason, they will charge you late fees, even when you pay ontime and have a receipt, they will deny giving you a receipt even when you bring it to them and show them they will claim TO YOUR FACE that you forged it, they will NEVER respond to complaints, there are roaches, mice, and rats. The front door to my building had no spring on the door so it slammed incredibly loud and there was no way to avoid that happening at least 20 times a day and they never fixed it the entire 12 months I was there (even tho it woudl cost about 1$), they will put, in small print, in your lease-obscure terminology requiring you to notify them you dont want to renew FOUR MONTHS IN ADVANCE OR THEY WILL AUTOMATICALLY RENEW SO YOU HAVE TO PAY AN EXHORBITANT FEE TO LEAVE. THey charge incredible fees for EVERYTHING-200$ and 40$ a month for a fish tank, 165$ if the rent is late, they will “lose” you rent, charge you the crazy late fee, then find it when you complain, and STILL charge you the crazy late fee, etc I COULD GO ON FOREVER. NEVER EVER RENT FROM THEM.
My lease with River City ended, and when the 45 days to return your deposit was up, I still had not recieved anything. I am now taking legal action. Has anyone had any experience with taking them to court?
JT: interesting that you said they will LOSE your rent. Something happened to me that I find fishy. I was out of town for a few months, so I had to mail my rent check, along with other bills and things. I gave plenty of time ahead about 2 weeks before so it would get there in plenty of time. However, the rent due date passes and I get a bill saying they didnt receive it and now owe them 150 in late fines. But I checked to see if my other bills got lost in the mail and they did not, they all got there within a few days and was processed. FIne I said, I sucked it up, and payed. THEN two weeks later, they “received” my check and processed it. My bank account bounced, and it was hell on my finances for a while. Im really skeptical about it, when I went to talk to the office, they said “things get so busy round here, we have so many hundreds of tenants, papers get shuffled around, excuse excuse, excuse…etc” . Has anyone else had this problem? If we find that it has happened to more than a few people, its obvious that we have uncovered another method for them to get fines from us. Please, let us know if you have.
Outrageous late rent fees was my introduction to River City Real Estate hell. Once you get on the company’s bad side, they will make you miserable. At one point, they raised my rent without having me signing a new lease, then when I underpaid, they hit me with a late fee. Eventually, I decided to pay my rent more than a month early, so it would clear the bank in plenty of time, and I’d have an online record of it. That way, in case my rent was “lost,” I’d still have time to go down in person to drop off a check. Most people, though, can’t afford to pay early. RCRE also has a nice little deal where it puts all outstanding non-rent balances first; so if you owe RC for anything other than rent, it puts your rent check to that first. If management charges you for routine maintenance that was not your fault and you refuse to pay, RC will deduct it from your next rent check, which will make your rent underpaid, which will lead to more fees. Nice, huh? RCRE, by the way, charges more than the legal limit for a bounced check fee. The Landlord Tenant Act caps it at $50. RCRE charges more.
Read your lease its not 4 months its 90 days!!! and 99% of rentals post payments to any unpaid balances first you re- re!! And if you cleaned your apartments instead living like pigs you wouldn’t have bugs!!They do not charge for a pet fish that is a flat out LIE!!! And about the “bounced check” even if it got lost in the office then was found IF the $$ was in the amount to begin with it wouldn’t have bounced!!!
Welcome back Mr. Armstrong and/or other River City Real Estate employee. Glad to know you can take time out from a busy day of reading comic books and fleecing tenants to reply here. Yes, some people on this site got their facts wrong. But the larger point is: you and your company are horrible. F rating from the Better Business Bureau. Over 40 complaints. Enough said.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
While its funny to read all of the comments from people who don’t pay their rent on time or try to pass bad checks, the real kicker is knowing that River City Real Estate is laughing all the way to the bank!
With over 800 apartments (and their latest four-story monster just opening) they are raking in the $$$$$ hand over fist!
Even with all the websites and bad publicity – they continue to GROW! So, as you keep complaining, people are STILL renting with them. Enough said.
“fees” you are exactly right about putting all outstanding non-rent balances first……i have experienced this first-hand. it’s a mess. RCRE is a terrible company, it’s a wonder they’re still in business.
Hand over fist, eh? If all you care about is money, sir, you are really in a bad state. Berny Madoff made money for a while, too. I’m guessing River City is mortgaged to the hilt. If you’re lucky, your new white elephant (aka Tobacco Factory) might see a profit someday. Maybe. Too bad you opened in such a bad economy, huh? But that’s beside the point. Just let it be known that anyone who rents from these clowns is in for a hard time. These people don’t give a damn about their tenants.
Tenants complaining about a slumlord’s evil practices isn’t funny. What is funny is a guy who can’t pass the bar exam calling himself “legaleagle88.”
WOW i mean really, what the heck is wrong with ya?
River city real estate, How do you even get that kinda bad name for yourself?
What have you done to people?
Who has this many complaints and Why dont you take care of it?
I hope you are atheists so you do not fear the wrath that will come to you for your very very bad business.
Why are your employees so mean, and unhappy looking?
Why do you take it out on innocent tenants? Im sorry if some people get you down, but please stop spreading fustration to others.
Desk lady, Armstrong, accountant T, Apartment Shower
STOP LYING! lying just to get someone to sign the contract!
Tenants, they lie so much I suggest recording with a tape or digital machine any conversations, conclusions, agreements, because yes, it comes down to that!
Why Is does it even have to come to this with you River City Real Estate?
Why is there this article about you?
Why is there a whole group dedicated to issues with you?
Ive never seen with this any other landlord in Richmond..
Why are your employees so sad?
Why does it feel sad to live in your buildings?
I hope all this negativity in your lives ceases, and I hope your tenants and employees grow stronger from knowing you, and when they are rid of you, they have no resentment and anger, and are happy and help to spread HONESTY, TRUTHFULNESS, MORAL, HELPFULNESS, KINDNESS, UNSELFISHNESS, and betterment of our beloved city.
@sorry. Amen. The present economic depression had shown us the dangers of unregulated corporations engaged in such naked greed. River City is an extremely unethical, corrupt, and devious organization. May the hand of justice soon knock them a blow.
Unfortunately, I have to agree with all of the negative posts above. They were very accessable and accomodating when my daughter and I were looking at apartments, but as soon as there was a problem (within days of her movng in) they have been rude, verbally abusive, don’t return phone calls and in my last interaction with the Charlie Anderson, he basically called my daughter a liar. I am ecstatic that her lease ends in December and let me assure you that we will never even consider one of their properties again!
@aileen. Ah, yes, the great Charles Armstrong is at it again! If you have any problems with him, threaten legal action and that will get his attention. Unfortunately, given Virginia lawmakers’ utter lack of concern for stronger anti-slumlord laws, small claims court seems the only recourse for tenants.
Pretty funny to hear Charlie call anyone a liar. River City tells so many lies to its tenants, it’s ridiculous.
I suggest directly contacting the politicians that have received absurd amounts of money from these slumlords. I love TK, but a lawyer who specialized in fair housing should stand up to someone who is undeniably a slumlord.
http://tinyurl.com/VPAPbilljefferson
@politico. Thanks for that link. Holy crap! No wonder nothing is happening with Richmond’s slumlord problem. Money talks, I guess. Odd that Billy Jeff contributes so much to Democrats, while his propaganda monkey at the River City offices is a rabid, Fox News-type. Greed, though, knows no political party.
I had two friends who rented in the Tobacco Factory. When they first moved in, it took several months for River City to install a drop ceiling in the one of the bedrooms, a drop ceiling that was only running “a couple of weeks behind” according to River City upon move-in. 3 months later, it was finally installed. However, a new problem emerged halfway into the lease: the bedroom in question developed black mold along the walls where they met the floor. Repeated calls went unanswered, nothing was done, and the remainder of the lease was spent sans that bedroom due to the health hazard it had become (”sans” means without, LegalEagle, in case you were wondering.) These two young ladies are educated, professional, and keep homes that are spotless. Black mold is caused by leaks, moisture problems, and lack of ventilation. And it can be deadly. 6 months of paying for a two bedroom apartment, and having to sleep on the couch due to landlords who see no reason for loyalty to their clients… rent from them at your own risk.
By the way, I work for a local media outlet, and am fairly handy with a camera. Anyone up for documentation and a possible expose on problems and practices involving River City? Let me know if there is an interest on this comment board, as well as if you would be up for allowing access for photographic documentary. If so, I will post a contact email for you to get in touch with me.
Ed, contact the president of the River City Residents Association (www.rcrava.org). I’m sure he’d be interested. His email is rcravaor@rcrava.org. You can also post a comment at the RCRA website.
Ed,
I wish I had read your post two years ago, I would have had some great stuff. My roof caved in and it took months of constant calling! wth! Ill keep an eye out for things. and I thank you for helping expose the unbelievable greed and misery that comes with River City Real Estate.
I have lived in Tobacco for about 3 weeks and it is the worst place i have ever lived. The smoke alarms have been beeping non stop. Has anyone ever tried to organize a class action lawsuit?
River City Real Estate has taken down the “Best in Richmond Award” announcement from its website. Did River City’s evil elves finally realize how full of crap they and the U.S. Commerce Association are? In any case, score one for River District News and all the anti-RCRE people out there!
The Better Business Bureau has upgraded their system and I saw the file on River City Real Estate. There is some interesting things on there I didnt realize before. LIke 1) those 42 complaints were from on the last 36 months! Goodness! thats alot.
2)In the industry comparison spread sheet, they are by far the most complained about company.
3) The BBB says that Charles Armstrong refuses to deal with the BBB procedures of rexolving the complaints. (goodness, I guess that would take alot of their time, but why is there so many? and What do you have to hide? the BBB is a good organization, and RCRE are avoiding dealing with them. Definitely says something about RCRE as a company.)
http://www.bbb.org/richmond/business-reviews/real-estate/river-city-real-estate-in-richmond-va-17000238/
I have a good note. After discussing with a few neighbors we realized there no fire extinguishers anywhere in this building. River City Real Estate will just say, we suggest you buy your own. BUT the buildings are old, something can happen, some apartments are empty, something can happen there, people leave their apartments, sometimes leaving a dog. And Ive seen it, a dog can accidentaly turn on a stove. and if only a one person has a fire extinguishers and that person happens to be at work, then the whle building might go down right? So, what are the fire codes? Well, turns out the Richmond Fire Department are a very friendly organization, and thought our concerns genuine. They came out to inspect the building, and now we have a public fire extinguisher! I feel much better thank you.
I too was lured into renting from River City when I was at the end of my rope with a horrible roommate in a previous living situation. Now only two months in I learn of all of their horrible ways. I’ve never experienced such awful customer service. I want to break my lease and move in with my bf but I’m worried of the legal obligations…Any advice on that end? The lease says nothing about it..
@end of my rope. River City will tell you your only option is to “re-rent” the apartment, which will cost you a month’s rent. And you’ll have to do all the advertising and showing of the apartment yourself. Some deal, huh? It’s another way RCRE has of taking lots of money from you. They know many people want to leave their apartments mid-lease, and so they make it very hard for you to do so. Has RCRE done anything that violates the terms of your lease? If so, you might be able to get out by taking them to court. If not, there’s not much you can do other than stick it out, or leave and face the legal and/or financial consequences. You might want to talk to a lawyer if you can afford it.
I’ve written Tim Kaine about the campaign contributions he took from Bill Jefferson. Should Kaine run for office again and take more money from Mr. Jefferson, I absolutely will not vote for Kaine.
Came across this tenants’ guide today. http://www.nolo.com/products/every-tenants-legal-guide-EVTEN.html
THIS COMPANY IS FREAKING HORRIBLE! SAVE YOUR MONEY, SAVE YOUR TIME, SAVE YOURSELF!!!!!!!!! DO NOT RENT WITH THEM! I HAVE MOLD GROWING ON MY WALLS AND THEY WON’T FIX IT AND ITS FROM WATER DAMAGE THAT THEY NEVER FIXED! SAVE YOURSELF! SOMEONE NEEDS TO MAKE A LAWSUIT AGAINST THEM AND I MIGHT JUST DO IT!
river city recently updated their crappy website. here’s their motto: “providing quality housing at affordable rates, for the benefit of the resident, and investor alike.” wow, I TOTALLY want to sign a lease now. maybe the investors will help me out in August when my AC hasn’t worked for a month and River City told me to “grow-up” when I complained. here’s the 411 on new fees. the old “refurbishment fee” ($300) is now called a “Capital Cost Recapture.” nice. other fees include $100 returned check fee or “maximum allowed by law” (by the way, the VRLTA caps such fees at $50); $300 apartment transfer fee; $150 roommate transfer fee; $50 for replacing parking passes; and $100 for missing keys. I might have missed some. happy renting! And Oz, good luck dude!
Slumlord Oliver Lawrence, owner of Bayou Properties, is finally getting his. He was forced to serve 30 days in jail for repeated property violations. Plus 40 days of house arrest in one of his decaying buildings. Now, some of his properties are being sold off for non-payment of taxes. May River City Real Estate suffer a similar fate!
Im wondering about the laws about sidewalk cleaning. The mush of leaves that surrounds their properties reminds me of the past few years where there seems to be no effort to clean this up. Also, when we had snow that then turned to ice on the sidewalks, no sign of clean up. Doesnt the city law give the responsibilty of the sidewalk maintenence to the owner of the property it falls on? if so, I hope this year, I (along with hundreds of others) will not have to risk breaking our tail bones just to get into their homes.
@trecherous. I’m afraid there’s little chance of River City being ahead of the curve on cleaning up anything. when we got the March snowstorm in 2009, no one shoveled any of the pathways at the building I rented from them. of course, RC is opening itself up to a lawsuit by not keeping areas clean. But, they don’t care about anything other than profits, so why should they care about leaves and snow? They’ll simply take their chances with any liability, and the tenants will suffer for it, as always.
Update: Within 48 hours of posting my previous posts, our sidewalks were cleaned up! Coincidence? I think not. I have lived on a block with three River City Real Estate apartment buildings for five years and have never seen such effort. Conclusion: They read these things, These posts have power, Posting public complaints works 80% faster than filling in a maintenance request form, and it saves gas on driving down to no-mans-land parachute factory. River City Real Estate, COME BACK WITH SALT AND A SHOVEL! WHEN THE SNOW COMES.. RESIDENTS……POST AWAY!
@treacherous. Sure it wasn’t just the city doing it? This week was cleanup week on my block (a non River City Real Estate block). But, yeah, they do read these things. Whether it improves their actions or their disposition is another matter.
Echoing all of the comments above: River City Real Estate/River City Renaissance is wretched.
Hands-down, worst rental company EVER. And I’ve been renting for quite a few years now. Everything negative you’ve heard about them? True. Shady parking with USA Towing, shady maintenance who essentially break into your home to “inspect for pets,” shady rental agents who lie about your unit, shady owners, shady construction, shady 6-page lease, shady billing, shady everything.
Bonus shady: after complaining to every media/state gov’t./city govt’t. outlet in Richmond about the epic shitfest that is River City, I got no response from anyone. Shortly therafter, I noted the rather impressive response to the Mo Karns squatting takeover, wherein a number of local media outlets ran stories on punk rock squatting bullshit.
Shortly thereafter, I broke my lease with RCRE, moved halfway across the country and am currently enjoying appliances that work, buzzers that function, parking lots that have sizeable spaces, and a landlord that doesn’t constantly break the law. Who knew?
Maybe if the local media & gov’t. gave two fucks about this situation, y’all wouldn’t have to put up with slumlords?
Cheers,
A former RVA resident
@ former RVA resident. Amen to all that. Thankfully, though, a good renting experience in Richmond is possible. My new landlord has two of his kids living in the building, so things get done. After the snow storm, the stairs got shoveled. My lease? Two pages. Free heat. I can drop my rent check off right downstairs, and it’s not late if I get it there on the 5th of the month. I have a two BR for $650. And I’m on the same street as my former apartment.
And yeah, like you, I complained and complained. I wrote to City Council. I talked to a City Council member in person about RCRE. I wrote to the media. Nobody cares or maybe they can’t do anything until this state’s ridiculously pro-business laws are changed. This city really needs to care more about its residents.
The issue comes down to the fact that there are decent and indecent people in this world. River City Real Estate is run by indecent people. The Armstrong brothers and Bill Jefferson should be ridden out of town on a rail.
Glad to hear you are having as positive renting experience out of state. And thanks for checking back in with all of us.
are there any people that would be willing to help out in filing a class action lawsuit against River City Real Estate, a most absolutely disgusting company. If so, email me immediately, as with or without your help, I am.
Stand by folks!!! Dad is here. Ive contacted my media friends. They are coming. So is my attorney. PROMISE.
Hang in there.
Regarding my invite for legal action, just one of the issues to litigate will be toxic mold. It is a major health issue and should never go ignored. I have video, recordings and pictues to show the gross negligence of this company, and will fully engage them, from top to bottom, inside and out, with media and legal support from people who could care less about Richmond Va. (They should have not messed with my daughter)
Good luck, Bill. if you do have a good case against River City, chances are they’ll beg you to settle out of court.
Good luck, Bill. If past experience is any guide, if you have a good case, River City will probably beg you to settle out of court.
I am a complete sucker and didn’t listen to the many nasty reviews I read about River City Real Estate prior to moving into their new construction building located at 700 Stockton street also known as the Tobacco Factory Lofts managed by River City. I can’t even begin to describe how terrible my experience has been with this very poorly constructed apartment and even worse is the management company. Upon arriving to the apartment on my stated move in date with all my stuff, I learned that my apartment was even ready for move in. The appliances were missing and everything was in complete disarray. The floors were dirty, tape covered the sprinkler heads, lighting wasn’t functioning, a cabinet door was hanging from the hinge, and nothing had been even cleaned. So I was told that they would have maintenance right over to the apartment and that it would be ready by 6:30 that evening, to return at that time and everything would be good to go. I returned with my stuff and nothing had even been touched on my apartment.
I tried number after number of office staff, leasing, and maintenance with no response. Over the nest several days I was given the run around time and time again, all the while I had no place to go. My old lease was expired and I had to live in hotels or with friends for 10 days!! The apartment wasn’t even worked on until Jan. 8th. At that time they didn’t even do much to repair the concerns with the apartment. They mopped an unfinished floor, did some general cleaning, and replaced batteries and light bulbs in the apartment that had died. They left the apartment and never returned. On that day I decided to start living at the apartment since some concerns were addressed. The floor however didn’t have a shiny finished as promised by the leasing agent and many other items such as the tape on fire sprinklers and broken cabinet door were left undone.
Since that day they haven’t return to correct these issues. On top of all this I recently received a late notice in the mail for rent that was supposed to be paid on Jan. 1st when I had not even moved in yet. They are accessing me 15% late fees and threatening legal proceedings despite me paying my rent on the 8th when some repair work was completed. I have not even lived in the apartment three days and the treatment I have received is unheard of and so awful that many people I have spoken to ask me how this company continues to operate.
I read some other awful reviews about River City Real Estate prior to moving into the apartment and I liked the cool apartment and price so much that I overlooked them. I warn you, PLEASE DON’T OVERLOOK this review and my warnings. They are extremely unprofessional. They do not return e-mails, phone calls, or address any concerns. In particular the President of the company, Charles Armstrong, is completely non-responsive, unprofessional, and a poor excuse of a company executive. They have done so much to ruin the state of my life, that I will do everything possible to ensure everyone in Richmond knows that this company is terrible and poorly run. Their Better Business Bureau rating is an F, check it out. I can’t believe the claims filed against this company in the last three years. If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail me.
Bill please contact me regarding the class action suit against RCRE! I would love to be a part.
So, I just got transferred from a pretty awful apartment on Boulevard to one of River City’s renovated apartments on Stuart Ave. and the new place is really nice. They put in new kitchens and bathrooms, and put on a new roof. So far, I think we’re the only people in this building, but it is much quieter than Boulevard and is a better space. If you are living in a sh*thole with RCRE, you should talk with them about moving to one of the new places. If I see problems come up, I will post about it.
last I checked, River City charged a $300 fee to transfer from one apartment to another. yet another way they have of ripping off tenants.
They waived my fees and transferred my deposit.
looks like i’m not alone. caveat emptor.
In my opinion, RCRE’s motto should be ~ “IF YOU PAY RENT, YOU CAN LIVE HERE” You can literally get away with anything!
I moved into my apartment last fall and have had nothing but problemns since. Let me say the BUILDING CANNOT BE UP TO CODE. I can HEAR and SMELL everything that my neighbors do, and yes I mean EVERYTHING! I have consistently complained (in writing) about the smell of drugs that linger in my apartment constantly. I have even had RCRE staff tour may apartment when the drugs were so bad that I had to resort to spending the night elsewhere – no action taken other than “we talked to them”. I have called the cops several times about the same which has resulted in my neighbors now being convicted drug trafficers. However, they are still permitted to live there and continue this illegal activity. One person, not on the lease but RCRE is well aware of him living in the building, is charged with possession of meth and marijuana but claim they can’t do anything since he isn’t on the lease. How about holding the leasee accountable? Maybe only providing one electronic key to each person on the lease would solve the issue of having non-leasee’s living in the building.
RCRE did offer to move me to a new apartment, nice huh! Now if I had done this, it would have cost me another deposit, signing of a new lease, and a 300.00 transfer of apartment fee, not to mention the fees that it would have cost to transfer the utilities. I want to move out and break my lease today, why would I want to incure all these costs and sign a new lease?
For management, they SUCK! I have personally emailed and written Charlie, on four seperate occasions, about issues and demanded that he call me to discuss them. I have yet to get a call and everytime I stop in to see him, he is too busy to speak with me. What kind of manager refuses to speak to his tenants?
Maintenance? I haven’t had many issues (looks like I am lucky) but the few that I have had took numerous calls, emails, maintenance request forms, and the threat of legal action to get them resolved. Yesterday I received a “maintenance request information/survey form” in the mail ~ is this a joke?
Now, let’s talk about cleanliness, or lack of, of the building. As you enter the building, you see a sign that says “luxury apartments”; this would only hold true if your last residence was located in the slum or you were homeless! After a halloween party, someone dropped a drink outside my apartment door leaving broken glass and a sticky mess (would literally pull the flip-flops off your feet). It took two phone calls, a maintenance request, and a personal visit to the office to get the glass cleaned up. It took another week of complaints to get them to mop the floor. There is no routine cleaning done in the building…even the rental office is disgustingly dirty.
Pets, yes they allow pets with a fee. This a good thing? Only if you like your front (and only) entrance smelling like urine and routinely like to see piles of fecal matter on the sidewalks and in front of the entrance. RCRE has camera’s so why not enforce the “policing of your pet” policy.
Now with the revamping of RCRE website, they no longer showing the “available” apartments available…when you have as many empty apartments as they do…it’s a clear sign that NO ONE IS HAPPY and wants to move NOW NOW NOW!
Would be happy to join any class action suite against RCRE!
If you are looking to move here, my only recommendation would be RUN RUN RUN!
I just moved into Tobacco Factory and have been living there for less than a week. Upon moving in, the floors were dirty and unfinished, the smoke detector batteries were dead so I had to listen to an annoying beep, half of the lights in the apartment don’t work because of crappy electrical work, there is no faucet head on my shower (I am using pliers to take a shower), and the drain hose for the dryer was never installed. Not to mention there is obvious water damage on the walls – while it is not a lot, it is there. I rented a washer and dryer from their recommended company but since RCRE never did their job, I now have a washer and dryer that I am paying for and can’t use. I spoke with maintenance Monday morning (though I called Friday) and was told that all of these things would be taken care of.
They came and either replaced or disengaged (have yet to find out) the smoke detector but that was it. I was told all of these things would be taken care of and conveniently cannot get in touch with maintenance.
I have talked with a few of the tenants about their experience in the building and only one seemed frustrated with RCRE as he has awful maintenance issues that they were slow to attend to.
Also, RCRE has contracted out Richmond police to watch over our parking lot and they even have a semi-office in the building. While I feel somewhat safe with the police around, I am curious as to what happened that this was necessary. Even after talking with two of the police, I still cannot dig up the reason they were contracted.
I have rented from slumlords before (Waybright, you may have heard of them) and defeated them so I believe I can beat RCRE at their own game; however, it seems tougher. If I have any advice for current/future renters it would be to make sure you have your rent the day you pay, the check hit my account within hours of turning it in (although I had the money, I found it odd that a check could hit your account the same day it is deposited). Also I cannot stress it enough: GET RENTER’S INSURANCE. It is $180/year through assurant.com.
I have read some good advice from everyone on here but do not want to have to wait until the first of the month to deposit my check in an escrow account in order for maintenance to do their job, because I already know this will not be accomplished before then. Showing up in their office fails to accomplish anything. Any ideas?
This also may be the computer I am on, but rcrava.org is not a working link. Can someone provide me with the right link?
the rcrava.org site is down right now. not sure what’s going on with that.
Jim, Stop complaining, your acting like a loser, dont move into a building like the parachute factory if your not comfortable with the type of lifestyle the younger crowd lives. stop crying guy!
man 2010 must work for River City. what a d*ck.
I have rented from RCRE for 5.5 years. At first they were great. Then, about 3 years in, they decided I needed a new lease. Problem is, they didn’t tell me. They raised my rent without telling me and next thing I know I’m being sued for back rent and eviction. That should have been my heads-up to just go. I didn’t, though. During that first three years I had a weekend where I literally had a waterfall in my second bedroom because a pipe had burst in the apartment upstairs. I called the emergency pager all weekend with no response. I didn’t have any money for a private plumber. My son and I slept in shifts so that we could change the huge trash cans out as they filled up with water (about each hour). Finally, someone showed up on Monday afternoon and they put a temporary fix in. It took them another month to do a permanent fix. Then they tried to charge me for the damage caused by the leak!!! I signed the new lease (which moved my lease date from August to November). Then, last August I lost my job. I wanted to give my 90 days notice, but I didn’t know where I was going to wind up so I didn’t. In November, I finally got another job but it’s out of town. I notified them on December 30th that I would be vacating my apartment as of 1-31-10. I explained about the new out-of-town job and reminded them that I’d been unemployed since August. Their response was basically “f-you.” So, I’ve moved out of my apartment, returned my key (via fedex so that they can’t claim they didn’t get it) and have broken my lease. Let’em sue me. I don’t care. When and if I ever need to rent from anyone again I’ll simply take a copy of all the forums and explain the situation. Any landlord worth half their salt will recognize the situation for what it is. It’s my turn to say “f-you, RCRE.” One more thing to look out for if you’re a tenant, they WILL enter your apartment when you’re not there and without giving you the statutory notice. I know this because one morning, right after I had lost my job, I was in bed sleeping and my dog (who was there legally, I paid extra rent for him) went nuts lunging at the bedroom door trying to get into the livingroom. I opened my bedroom door to find THREE RCRE employees standing there trying to decide what to do about the dog. I actually heard one say as I was opening the door that they could call animal control and claim the animal was there illegally. Needless to say, they were not at all happy to see me actually there. They made some excuse about needing to take meausurements for a renovation they were planning. When I asked later when the renovations would start, I was told it was a 5 year project. RENTERS BEWARE is all I have to say.
Why don’t you people sue? This is ridiculous. I have never heard of such debauchery without consequence. What are you afraid of. Quit complaining and start a riot!
Oh rtfm…. you obviously have never tried to wade through the mess that is our legal system. The fix is in: so long as VA legislators don’t care about tenant issues, the laws and courts will be stacked against renters. small claims court is about the only recourse people have when dealing with RCRE. But that won’t stop the larger abuses from occurring. What needs to happen is for the government to stop these type of landlords from taking advantage of people. but, there’s the rub; Va is too business friendly to give a sh*t about the little guy.
To follow up on my previous post, maintenance came in and fixed everything I asked them to fix by the end of that week. Monday morning I received a follow-up call about my maintenance request, not only from the receptionist, but the maintenance manager as well. At which time I told them that my closet shelf fell because it was poorly mounted. Within 48 hours, my maintenance request was completed AND I received a second follow up call on my request.
Think they were reading my post?
Probably, but I’m crossing my t’s and dotting my i’s, I never take chances with leasing companies.
i also got a follow up call after i requested my heat be fixed – it was FREEZING in my apt and i was almost about to go down to the office and complain when i got a call from a office worker asking me if my heat had been fixed yet. when i told the girl no she said she would pass that on to the head maintenace guy asap and they would see what they could do. literally minutes later a guy came in to fix my heat.. then the next day the girl called again to make sure everything was working well. i dont know what they are changing but whatever it is it’s working!
Is It really possible for RCRE to change? I diddnt think so until my heat was actually FIXED on a timely basis for once! and the best part is… its still working! haha, Although I have been extremly frusterated with them in the past and they have pissed me the F*** off, I am actually amazed by how wuick my maintenance request was fullfilled, with a million follw oup calls it seemed like to make sure i was ok! go RCRE!
N2 is such a RCRE employee. John or Sergio? my guess is John.
Hmm. It seems that someone is now writing fake fixed-maintenance posts. God, how low will they go? I especially like the fake typos and use of profanity. YOu SuCKe Riverr Citty Realle Estayte! How’s that?
@J. I second that. Who the hell seriously goes by such a douchey name? Anyway, I wouldn’t count out Steve or Charlie writing here either.
@rcresux So, you want the government to take care of your problems? Quit being such a socialist. You sound like a whiny bitch. Get a life.
@rtfm. Yeah, it would nice if government could step in and help. That’s why I pay taxes. That’s why we have elected officials. That’s why we have laws–to protect us from a**holes like RCRE. Riot? You’re just being stupid.
It’s all true. I’ve lived in apartments in Chicago, New York and Virginia. RCRE is the shadiest company I have ever rented from. From their questionable business practices to their unresponsive office staff and maintenance staff.
Check out their rating on the Better Business Bureau’s website…it’s an F.
I have lived in 2 RCRE apartments over the past 3 years. At our first property, we had problems with the tub and bathroom sink clogging, and were charged at one point to unclog them, despite the fact that a few days later they removed 65 years worth of hair from the drain below us. One one trip out to unclog our drains, the maintenance staff used acid, which they were extremely careless with. The ruined my hairdryer, the pad on my baby’s changing table, our bathmat, and the down comforter on our bed. During the time we lived in this building, someone broke the glass out of our secure front door, and it took them almost 2 whole days to fix it, with shards of glass still in the door and on the sidewalk. They then removed the lock on the front door (so if they tell you a building is secure when you’re renting, check it!) and a homeless man was asleep on the landing one morning when I left for work. I had to go down my fire escape because I couldn’t get around him and was scared to wake him up. We were told there were laundry facilities in the basement, and when we went down there, there were none. Not to mention the basement was pitch black with almost no lighting and I wouldn’t have gone down there alone anyways. We had to fight to get our deposit back, and they deducted the $300 refurbishment fee even though the original lease we signed said it was only $150. Our deposit was returned more than 2 months after we moved out, and only after we sent a certified letter to the owner threatening to sue. Because we missed our 90 day notice (by a week) we had to transfer to another of their units to avoid the rerental fee they charge (equal to one month’s rent).
At our next apartment, there were roaches present immediately once we moved in. Our tub and bathroom sink wouldn’t drain properly from day one, and we were standing in ankle-deep water by the time we finished showering. We had to keep the bathroom door closed til it drained because we have a toddler and didn’t want her drowning. It took maintenance 2 weeks and 3 trips to unclog it. On the second trip, they used acid again, and left our ENTIRE TUB covered in it. We called to complain and a few hours later they sent one of their cleaning crew to clean it up. We have been having issues with mold, and it’s taken a month now and they are still not resolved (which is a violation of the VRLTA) They told us they would get us a dehumidifier and we still have not received it. There are broken panes of glass that need to be replaced in our livingroom, and they can’t fix those until the place is dried out (which we need the dehumidifier for). And last week, we had a leak in our ceiling, and nothing was done about it. It was leaking again all day yesterday. Don’t bother with the emergency pager, they won’t come out. Also, make sure you buy a shovel, because they won’t do any snow removal on the walkways and sidewalks outside the units, even if you call them every day for a week telling them you’ve nearly fallen taking your children to the car. They’ll keep telling you they’re getting to it. The rent is reasonable and the units are a good size, but you get what you pay for. Our neighbor had his bathroom ceiling cave in! I feel very bad for the maintenance staff, because there are not enough of them for the number of poorly maintained units they have to keep up on.
I understand that any building this old is going to have problems, but it is the responsibility of the landlord who you pay every month (in our case, always on time!) to keep them in livable condition. Know your rights! Read the VRLTA, talk to the Department of Consumer Affairs, save every maintenance request, take pictures of any problems you have! Hopefully this helps people make an informed decision!
It has been a week since I moved my things into this third story apartment on the Boulevard. Last weekend, during the wintery mix, we figured out that the HUGE stains on the ceiling actually DO leak water into our apartment. There are a few holes in the walls along with a draining issue with our dishwasher. None of our doors have proper locks, or they don’t shut properly. Also, our balcony door was cracked so badly that when my roommate opened it (maybe a little too quickly) it completely broke into 2 pieces. Now we have rigged it up so that a couch is in front of the door, keeping the elements from coming in.
We wrote down and e-mailed these issues within the first 5 days, like they said we had to because we got the apartment in an AS-IS condition because the previous tenant rerented it.
They say that they’re renovating our building in a few months and we will no longer have gas heating and they will replace all of our doors and kitchen appliances. I understand that, but I don’t think it’s necessary for us to have to live in a place where water is leaking in every time it rains until they get it together and renovate.
I just know that they’re going to hit us with some outlandish fee when we move out, a year from now, for things that are not our fault. We didn’t take pictures right away, but I think we still can. I feel like we’re going to have to go to court in the future with this company and I really don’t want to have to.
Paying my rent is not an issue, and putting up a security deposit that was equal to 2 months rent (because of having no credit) was not an issue. Now, they’re going to attempt to blame the repair issues on us. I’ve read a lot of these reviews and it just scares me that I signed a lease with these evil people. Hopefully they really do renovate my apartment soon and all of our would-be fees are waived.
I’ve contacted the city and they’re sending someone out to inspect the place. Hopefully there are some code violations and they can get RCRE to take some action.
Any advice?
YEAH MY ADVICE IS TO INSPECT YOUR APARTMENT BEFORE YOU MOVE IN SO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE GETTING YOURSELF INTO…”OH THOSE HUGE STAINS IN THE CEILING ACTUALLY DO LEAK!” – -YOU PEOPLE AMAZE ME!!!
RCRE also operates under some company known as Tabac, LLC (same address as the Parachute Factory)? weird. I’ve never seen a company that has so many names. let’s not forget River City Renaissance. and the frequent PO Box changes. I guess it’s all in an effort to elude tenants and confuse the legal process. S-H-A-D-Y.
I’m a renter here and can say that getting problems fixed is a time consuming and very aggravating process. be aware of your rights and ALWAYS proceed to contact them in a legal manner. if they won’t fix something be prepared to call building inspectors and/or the richmond fire department/health department. these guys sure do need to be taken to court!
Before ANYONE rents from this organization, all I can say is DON’T. Almost everything they rent is trash!! My daughter has a homeless man living in their laundry facility so nobody goes down there. We have reported it forever, no response, We have kept records so we are giving 24 hours, if not we are filing complaints with Richmond Police and the Health Department. Their lobby, so disgusting the girls use the fire escape up and down. What they say about paying your rent in person TRUE, and ALWAYS get your receipt. If you mail it, no fail, they will say they didn’t get it in time. Too bad I pay my daughter’s rent and track my checks and mailing date. If they say they received it late, ask to see the post mark on envelope. Doesn’t matter, 15% of the total apartment rent as the late fee and then they start adding on $20/day. Their lease is up soon, and the day we move out, we will take action. We already have a lawyer, we are going to get at least one building shut down! They are the sleeziest rental company, I have ever run across. They make their money by scamming college students, getting them to sign contracts they don’t understand. Guess what 15% late fee AGAINST THE LAW, even if it is in your lease, AGAINST THE LAW. We plan to start a class action suit soon. I will be posting details soon. I know most of you and then some and then some will be on board. Look out River City, we’re coming for our money back!!
Good luck, Steve. I fought these people for a long time, too. Any victory you can win will be well deserved. Yes, I’ve heard the court’s will not allow RCRe to claim a 15% late fee. and you are right, just because it’s in the lease doesn’t mean it’s legal. These scammers need to be shut down, and I hope you will post here again soon with good news.
RCRE has 51 complaints at the Better Business Bureau. Way to go River City!!! Worst BBB record in central VA!!!!
I learned the other day from the Virginia State Police website that a convicted sex offender has listed his employer as River City Real Estate, using the company’s 305 N. Thompson address. I hope for the sake of River City tenants that this man, who I assume was/is a maintenance worker, is no longer employed by River City.