If you want to live in a poorly maintained, substandard building with common areas littered with cigarette butts, unidentified holes and garbage, and tenants who will move out in a year and not really care about being polite to you, go for it. It also means that you get to enjoy what will probably be a grossly insufficient and shockingly unclean laundry room filled with years of junk and who knows what else. Otherwise, keep looking. read more

I lived at 4405 North Clark Street. There is a BDSM club directly below the building. Directly underneath our apartment. Yes, a sex club. So unless you enjoy being kept awake all hours of the night by spanking (Yes, you can hear the spanking) and moaning, I would suggest not living here. They also threw loud parties with microphones and speakers too. The back staircase is extremely dodgy and the basement where the washing machines are kept is really creepy. The back door needs to be replaced as it could easily be broken into. The apartment itself was okay, no bugs. The kitchen area was new. The bathroom just needs a good renovation. Every time I spoke on the phone with the owner of the building she was extremely rude and sarcastic. Not worth the money for a tiny studio. read more

My wife and I lived in the Bertsch Properties building complex at Glenwood and Argyle for four years (we just moved to the East Coast), and it had been the best experience compared to other landlords we dealt with prior to moving into this building. The property manager Ned and his crews were always very accessible and responsive. The rent had always been fair and we never experienced any unreasonably high rent increases. In fact, when the economy tanked, Bertsch decided to not raise rents during that year, which we thought was very considerate. When we had to break our lease due to a relatively sudden move to the East Coast, we were provided with various options and the process was dealt with in quite a professional manner. In fact, Diane Haglund, leasing manager at Bertsch, was very helpful and supportive during our transition process. She kept checking in with us regularly and she even helped us with the language and content for our postings (which was the option we chose) on craigslist. Not only that, but Diane actually found someone who rented our apartment (which wasn't even part of the contract or her responsibility)! We couldn't have asked for better support and professionalism during this period, which was quite stressful at times. Based on our experience, we highly recommend Bertsch Properties. read more

Update on heat: Management didn't do anything to help resolve the issue but I got in contact with someone who works on the building and he came in and fixed a majority of the issue and we finally have some heat. I am very disappointed in how my management help deal with this issue and they never followed up to see if it was ever fixed. read more

I lived in the apt building on Kenmore Ave. It was a great place to live, with all utilities included and in a great location for accessibility to the subway and major buslines. The best part was the building manager on site, who was a really great person and very helpful. She keeps the place running like a tight ship! I found it easier to deal with her than Bertsch directly, especially when I was trying to sublease my apartment. The only downside is the sublease options. If you tell them too early that you are planning to sublet it, then they absolutely drive you crazy to sign this document where you have to pick either showing it yourself for free, or having them show it for you which comes with a huge non-refundable fee (1 months rent) and absolutely no guarantee on their part (ie, if they do not find a tenant, you are out that fee AND still have to pay for the apt). So why would you ever do that?? The third option is to pay a ridiculous sum (1/2 months rent) if you find someone who wants to sign a new lease, which makes no sense considering the new tenant is still paying a new lease sign fee. They basically punish you if you are able to find a new lesee for the apt, which I found very annoying. Other than that, the people in the building are friendly, the walls are thick enough that you don't really hear neighbors, and the building is very clean (again, because of the apt manager on site, who is the best!). Maintenance responds quickly. I lived there 1.5 years, and was generally very happy. read more

I have lived here since 2019 and the first representative of Bertsch Properties I met was Panya. From that point forward she has honestly been the only person that has been able to resolve any major issues that I have ever had with the property. She was extremely welcoming when I first met her and kind enough to explain the area and what to expect as I am not from here (I'm from rural NC so our neighborhoods and towns are set up differently). Just recently I have put in several maintenance requests because my fridge has been leaking water, the end result is that it needs to be completely replaced. Unfortunately I have been dealing with this since last November and I was not receiving adequate communication with maintenance. One phone call with Panya and now we know when our replacement is coming! She is always so genuine and professional in our conversations and I always know if I speak to her directly whatever the issue is she will solve it. Bertsch Properties is lucky to have her. read more

Worst property and worst Landlord I've ever encountered. Find a better unit not one by Bertsch. Bertsch manages the building at 4803 N Fairfield that I unfortunately signed a lease in. It's the worst and nosiest building I have ever been in. Not only is the building very cheaply renovated with paper thin ceilings between the units, the property is managed with duct tape to solve any problems. Not only will Bertsch not fix anything here, they won't respond to numerous complaints by me any other neighbors about a very loud person above me who also pounds the floor when he walks across the floor which is unfortunately all the time. When this person walks this unit vibrates like I'm inside a bass drum. I need to wear over the ear headphones to hear anything on TV. Unfortunately, I can still hear the vibrations even through the headphones. Bertsch will not do anything about this person who sounds like an elephant walking and running above me. read more

I highly recommend Bertsch Properties ! Buildings are clean ,the office employees are kind and very responsive, maintenance issues are resolved quickly ... read more

I just want to say how accommodating and understanding the management at Berstch Properties (especially D. Heglund) was with me when I had issues moving out to my new place as my lease was about to expire. They were able to give me an extension for another month which I truly appreciated. ~Alma R. read more

I have lived in my apartment in Ravenswood for just under 7 years and have had an overall positive experience. Management and maintenance are very responsive, and any issues are generally resolved within one day. They have made investments in the building during my time there, and the property is well kept. I docked one star because in my time there the bathroom has shown quite a bit of wear and tear, but it is an older building and it's been awhile since an overhaul has been completed in my unit. read more

Decent property, awful service. Broker was very misleading and cannot be trusted. She snuck details into the lease without telling us, then claimed she forgot to tell us. Keep the $450 non-refundable deposit. I consider it a gift that I didn't sign a lease and *only* lost that much money. I liked the property but couldn't bear the thought of dealing with these people. If they were rude during the sales process, I can only imagine how awful a lease would be. I would discourage anyone from working with them. read more

Bertsch purchased the building I had lived in for about 8 years. I knew they could force me out with limited notice if they had other plans for the building. I was told that they had no reason to lose paying tenants and "wouldn't do that." Of course, they did exactly that a few months later. I came home from a business trip to a letter under my door giving me about 7 weeks notice. No call, no explanation, and the letter even required me to be out by 11am on the last day. I had to call and get bounced around to learn they were completely remodeling a couple of the units. What's most frustrating is that just 90 days earlier they charged me a $250 pet fee after making me jump through hoops to get approval to adopt a dog in a building with multiple others. I paid it in good faith that I'd be there a while, not to be promptly booted out so they could completely gut the apartment that fee was intended to help protect. No way were they completely unaware that was the plan. It was super shady. They also pretty quickly increased all the costs for laundry but didn't fix the machines when they didn't work. They'd close out maintenance requests without repairs being made. read more

Professional, reliable and very helpful. Everything that needed attention to my unit was done in a timely manner.

I have signed 3 years of leases with Bertsch properties. I really love my apartment on Kenmore in Buena Park. It was recently renovated and the layout is unlike anything I've been able to find for a studio. I have a fantastic property manager that has always made herself available when I had a question or needed anything repaired. I can see myself staying in this building until I leave Chicago. I highly recommend Bertsche property group. read more

Haha..All the one star reviews are dead on! This company sucks! Moldy bathroom, Moldy Bedroom, Bugs, Bums as maintenance people(no seriously they hired the alcoholics that hang out front of the building to do the maintenance). My pilot light went out and they sent out the "maintenance man" to fix it, so how does he attempt to re-light my pilot? Well he goes and gets a newspaper from out front, rolls it up and sets it on fire and than sticks it in the broiler(I wish I made this up). Needless to say, the city inspected and there were multiple violations associated with the apartment. DO.NOT.RENT.FROM.BERTSCH!!! read more

I have lived in the same apartment with Bertsch Properties for 5 years and have loved working and interacting with the staff and building management. This property management company has made paying rent, requesting maintenance and asking for assistance with various other concerns a breeze and I have never had problems with them getting back to me or wondered when someone would be out to make a repair. They are kind and prompt and treat everyone fairly. My unit was a great price for the amount of space provided and was maintained excellently. If you are looking to rent in Chicago I highly suggest renting from Bertsch. Knowing others who have dealt with unable to reach landlords, repairs that have gone unfixed and various other concerns with landlords other then Bertsch, I am happy to know that I have had an incredible experience and hope others can do so as well. read more

I found a few apartments managed by Bertsch on an apartment listing service and reached out to Jackie K. to schedule viewings. Over the 3 days we communicated and tried to set up times to view the apartments, she was consistently rude and unprofessional. I know that scheduling in person tours during the Coronavirus pandemic is a rather tricky endeavor and I was willing to be as flexible as needed. Every time we spoke on the phone, not only would she contradict herself from one sentence to the next, she would constantly interrupt and speak over me while I was trying to talk. When she actually started screaming at me on the phone during a call, I'd had enough. If this is how Bertsch treats potential customers while they're trying to lure their business, I can only imagine how they treat tenants when they're stuck in a lease. I can't speak to any other aspect of their operation, but Bertsch should really reevaluate the people they have representing their brand. read more

I hate to write any of this negative review, but I hope it provides insight for future prospects/residents. I moved into a Bertsch Management property in October, 2017. When I toured the apartment prior to applying, I thought for sure the maintenance items would be addressed or close to completion before my actual move. The day of my move in, none of the closet doors were attached to the tracks, the walls were halfway painted white over green, the microwave didn't work with the ventilation system laying on the counter top, smoke detectors were not in place, cabinet panels were not attached and the previous residents shavings and stains were left in the bathroom. After speaking to the very unpleasant Property Manager, Robert, he had the apartment painted the same day we moved in. Thankfully, my very handy boyfriend was able to fix the rest of the items. We were asked to set up a gas utility account, but Peoples Gas said that the gas lines were not properly connected to our apartment. When I asked Robert about the pipes, he responded with.. "how am I supposed to know which gas line connects to your apartment?" The first week there, a water pipe ruptured in the building and caused mold in the drywall. Took about 4 months to replace. To get to the pipe, maintenance cut a 4'x4' hole in my kitchen and that took a month to patch and paint. Long review rant short, I would never rent again through this management company. Very unorganized, rude and unapproachable team. I am looking forward to the end of my lease. Luckily they didn't offer a full 12 month term due to their greed so my lease expiration could expire during a peak leasing season! read more

Like all the other 1 start reviews, I would not recommend this management company. There were numerous issues wrong with our apartment and they just never seemed to fix them. Our pilot light would go out a lot and we would call them to start it back up because it was so cold outside and the windows leaked BAD (they didn't even shut despite the ad stating they were new windows....). After the third time someone had to come out, the maintenance person showed us how to do it so he wouldn't have to come back. That's obnoxious. Dealing with their leasing person is a joke. She will not leave you alone if you don't respond RIGHT away. She'll follow up like 2-3 emails instead of waiting for a response. It's just all day and not necessary. This company not only sucks, they let their tenants do whatever they want regardless if it's ruining the building or creating a safety issue for the other residents in the building. Additionally our place would get stray cockroaches and they said it wasn't a cockroach. I paid my own money to hire an inspector to come out and sure enough it was a cockroach... They still didn't care. DO.NOT.RENT.FROM.BERTSCH.PROPERTIES read more

Love my apartment but dont expect them to upkeep your building. They make over $40,000 a month from renters in my building but they can't paint a wall or change a lightbulb in the elevator. read more

I lived in the building on Lawrence and Fairfield. There, I co-inhabited the place with huge water bugs (basically cockroaches) for the 11 months I was there. They were EVERYWHERE. I've had maintenance come out and try to resolve the issue in addition to treatment provided by their biweekly (not so biweekly) fumigation guys but this did not fix the problem. However, I will say they are generally good about tending to maintenance requests very quickly and when I lost my keys and was locked out of the building at 3am one night, Emergency Maintenance was good about driving out to my place and giving me spare keys within 30 minutes. Adversely, the things that they couldn't fix never got fixed (i.e. hot water cutting out in the shower and the kitchen sink). I was told that the hot water must be cutting out during my shower bc everyone else in the building was taking showers at the same time I was. Um, really? I also had to make repeated requests for them to fix the gap between main door and the frame. Requests were made since the first month I moved in up to the last few months of my lease, at which point they finally sent someone to do something about it. If anything their sense of urgency came about after I referenced the incident in which the neighbor across from me was broken into, assaulted and robbed one night. From reading the other reviews, it seems that reviews vary based on which Bertsch Properties building you live in. I paid $825 for a 1 bedroom and I thought I had found such a great deal but I soon realized that it was too good to be true. I think I lived in one of the ghetto-er buildings. After this experience, I learned to become a more discerning renter when shopping for apts. Things I didn't even think to ask about (i.e. pest infestations, is there hot water?) but rather, assumed are now definitely on my radar. You live and you learn, I guess. read more

First of all, hi Kay! I don't think you're really helping matters by appending every negative review with an excuse for Bertsch! Seems to me the truly effective way to counter the poor ratings would be, oh... property management so awesome it inspires people to come here and rave about you. In all, I didn't have the same traumatic experiences that others have recounted (no yarns about Bertsch-employed ex-cons breaking into my apartment with company keys). Just I've had an impossible time re-renting my Lincoln Square apartment since no one seems to want a unit that's about $100 over-priced. So some good things: * Cute place, great location. * I never saw any bugs in my apartment. * My kitchen was fabulous. New everything--fridge, stove, microwave, dishwasher cabinets. When an oven says it's 375 degrees, I expect it to mean it. Mine always did. * Low, low utility bills. Each room came with a powerful new ceiling fan that obviated the need for air conditioning the two summers I lived here. Chicago winters get retarded cold, and I'd sometimes supplement the free heat with a space heater and electric blanket. This never added significantly to my electric bills And some not so good things: * Rent is too expensive. There are plenty of other apartments available in the neighborhood with nearly identical features that cost $50-150 less per month. So have fun paying that $2000 lease break fee when you fail to find someone to re-rent or sublet your place should you need to move before your lease is up. Sucka! * Not exactly the most conscientious or responsive maintenance crew. When the pipe above my shower broke and flooded my bathroom, the repairs left cracks and peeled paint all over the walls. Six months of intermittent calls to Kay and Ned got me nowhere in terms of getting things fixed. Only a Hey! I'm moving! I guess this means I won't have to pay the lease break fee since you guys haven't fixed my bathroom, right? call to the owner got results. * The courtyard is way gnarly and unattractive. Bertsch could maybe pay someone to make the grass and bushes look nice, weed a little bit, repaint the rusty fences. Judging from the other reviews here I'd say my overall meh experience was probably a best case scenario for Bertsch. My advice: keep looking. You can get the same amount of vintage charm for less money with better management. read more

I have lived in one of their buildings since Aug 2011. I have had minimal problems and any problems I have had, they have taken care of immediately. My previous landlord seemed un-phased to let us go without plumbing for THREE DAYS. In contrast, I submitted a non-urgent maintenance request this morning and it was done when I got home from work. My apartment had brand new bathroom and kitchen appliances when I moved in, and all hardwood floors. I love my apartment and the management company. Never had a single problem. read more

First off, the only reason this place is getting 1 star is because Yelp will not ALLOW me to give it 0 stars! Secondly, the one person who gave this place a 5 star review either works for this place (and was paid off) or was simply paid off. Before I get into the specifics realize that this is the worst business I have ever dealt with in my entire life. It was in fact so bad that it made me think of what a management property in Jamaica, North Korea, or the Congo would operate like. I moved into this place and had to move out 3 months later because I was literally living in hell. Let me begin: 1. I moved into a building that must have been air-flown from the seedy slums somewhere out of the Brazil or what have you. I should have known this at the time but the studio looked rather pleasant and I did not notice the other glaring issues until much later. Issues such as: ---Living right next to a park with repeated shootings and stabbings on a weekly basis. ----Having a roach infestation along with numerous other unidentifiable critters. Also, I was seeing roaches during the day and if you know anything about roaches that is BAD news. ----The outside commons littered with cigarette butts, trash, filth, grime, and oh yeah---more roaches! -----The front lobby ceiling would leak every time it rained. The building obviously had serious mold and water damage if the lobby ceiling is leaking... -----Having completely unresponsive and rude staff at that office. The staff basically treats their tenants like bothersome nuisances. In other words, the LAST thing these people want to do with their busy lives is somehow help you out with anything. Anytime a request was made it was never addressed. I have a feeling these people sit in the office, write down a request on paper (e.g broken light bulb, moldy ceiling, noxious fumes, a very disturbing infestation, etc, etc) and then crumple up the paper and play trash can basketball for money. I would not at all be surprised if that's how tenant requests were handled. This place was such a living hell I was forced to move out just after three months and PAY these CON ARTISTS $2600 for the privilege of breaking my lease early. Sounds foolish I had to get out at any price. Bottom line, DO NOT even THINK for a SECOND about giving these people 1 PENNY of your money. This is the worst company I have ever dealt with and they should seriously be investigated and shut down for a violation of an ENDLESS list of tenant rights. Please take my word for it and everyone else's. It will be the best decision you will ever make. read more

I really want to give Bertsch 1 star, but it wasn't all god-awful. Just mostly. My bf moved into Bertsch while I was living in Texas; I joined him a couple months later. It was a relatively cute apartment in west Wrigleyville, and it wasn't astronomically priced. The apartment was old and did have some charm/character to it. Appliances broke occasionally, but were repaired in a relatively short period of time. Issues: 1. There were noxious fumes coming out of the basement. When trying to identify the smell, the bf and I got extremely lightheaded. We placed many work requests for this over the months, but nothing was ever addressed or solved. 2. Bertsch had free heat but was generally very stingy with said heat. However, when the heat was on, you knew it because the radiators were so loud they'd wake you up in the middle of the night. 3. Very disorganized office. There were a few times I'd made appointments and the office was closed; no one was there to meet me. 4. Lots of bugs, but that's probably to be expected with an older building. 5. Mold in the bathroom, which was never addressed, and the apt was so grimy that no amount of cleaning made it feel clean. 6. Dark and icy side alley. Burned out bulbs weren't fixed, walkway wasn't sufficiently iced. Attempting to do laundry in the winter was literally dangerous. 7. Apparently, a check failed to go through on our September rent. No one ever told us this, so essentially we were paying our rent one month late after that point. When we decided to move, Bertsch reported our 6 months of late pay to the new apt building and our application was denied. No one ever told us that we paid late - we would have remedied it immediately - but as a result, moving was so much more difficult than it needed to be. So sick of Bertsch. The lack of notice on the check was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. Never again. read more

Well, it was 4 long years with Bertsch properties. The reason i stayed... location. It was a really great apartment. I'm not someone who is too picky, so i never really payed attention to all the negative things going on around me until I got a new roommate who couldn't believe what i had been putting up with! 1) No hot water for 3 years, literally. Finally, in year 4 someone came in and did something. I figured the building was old, small water tank, even after several calls, it never got fixed. Until year 4. 2) Laundry rooms are horrible. I don't care what Kay says about the revamps, they are still horrible. They never work, roaches abundant, and are really dirty. I would never store my stuff in those basements. 3) We had several issues with the company when a new roommate moved in. They were rude, mean, in fact, completely unhelpful, and did I mention RUDE. As a long time tenant, as a tenant period, i expected a little more respect. 4) The snow removal is better, but not great. 5) They have the lawn care company come at 7AM on SATURDAY!!!! I actually heard someone yelling at the men a few Saturday mornings. 6) I'm sorry Kay, but you can be really really rude. We did nothing but comply with all your apartment showings and you were rude to us, often. Clearly customer service is not of importance. 7) We complained often about lights being out in hallways, front walk ways, ect. It was unsafe. It took months to get these things fixed. Well, nothing is ever REALLY fixed. Band-aids are the Bertsch way. They don't want to spend money on anything. 8)They raised the rent 50 DOLLARS A YEAR!!!! When i tell people that, they are in disbelief. Maybe one year it was because we got new windows that actually suck worse. They keep no cold out, that's for sure. 9) Roaches and ants. Yep, we had 'em. 10) They made a friend of ours in the building cry when she tried to talk them about moving out. 11) Many not working light fixtures. 12) The roof was falling down on our porch for years. 13) Hundreds of stacks of newspapers in the front hall. Called, called, called. Finally. Which also means they don't clean the front hall very often. That's all I can think of now. So glad to be out. When i told my current landlord who i previously rented from, his response was that he had heard several bad things about them as well. I know it's tempting. They have apartments in great locations, but it's not worth it. So people, don't rent from them and maybe they'll get the point. Really. Not worth it. Keep looking. read more

I'm from the southside of Chicago originally, and when I moved up north to be honest I was very weary of finding the right apt and the right landlord bc you hear a lot of horror stories about apartments up north. Through a co-worker, I ended up hearing about Bertsch and since then, I've considered myself lucky to have been referred to them. I've been a renter from Berstch for 4 years and am only moving now bc a job opportunity is taking me to DC....But while living in 2 different places managed by Bertsch I truly felt like they actually cared about my living condition...which is contrary to the story that SO many of my friends who live in other apartments managed by slumlords and shady businessmen. So as a tip to anyone who's on the hunt, here's a recent renter's review of why I liked being their tenant. Great apt selection at reasonable renting prices. Northside apartments are getting more and more expensive, but I found that when I was searching apts on Bertsch website, I was surprised at the buildings they had available in AMAZING locations. I lived at their location on Southport and Addison...walking distance from Wrigley field and 2 blocks away from the Southport Brown line....and I was paying about 1/3 less than my friends who also lived in the same area. When I moved 2 years later, I lived in a similar apartment under Bertsch control, still walking distance to wrigley and a red line stop, and once again for much cheaper than I expected. Accomodating When I moved into both apartments under Bertsch, I recall being amazing how everything was brand new. Upon seeing the places for the first time, the previous tenants in both cases were clearly young fresh out of college kids who roughed things up a little...but when my move in day came....new wood floors, new oven, new windows, new sink and mirror in the bathroom....it was really impressive. I know landlords have to clean everything before you move in, but they had clearly taken into account that the previous tenants had worn things down and replaced everything without us having to ask....very professional.... Responsive We lived in a garden apartment with a gangway outside of the back door. There was a drain in that gangway that would occassionally get clogged with leaves from a tree and create standing water if it rained pretty heavy, I noticed this and gave them a call and basically asked that they come snake the drain as I was worried about potential flooding....they did me one better....they actually built some sort of small wooden wall next to the drain in our gangway that helped funnel the excess water away from our door and back toward the drain if it ever clogged again....it was some serious engineering...and sure enough during one of the hurricane like storms over the summer, we worried about flooding but were relieved when we saw that the wall they'd built was actually keeping the water away from our back door.....this is the best example of their service but for any problem I could hit Ned or Rob, the building managers on their cell phones and even if it was outside business hours or weekends, they'd make sure they sent someone by to address any problem in towns like Chicago, it normally sucks to rent, and it feels like you're getting screwed over, but it doesn't have to be like that. If I were still renting in Chicago I would avoid the likes of Apt Management Group and giant realty companies and go with a more people oriented organization like Bertsch.... when I have a problem or a question, I'd rather be able to call or text a responsive person I can trust...than email a huge inbox of a giant company and hope the receptionist calls me back before 5pm......they have a more personal way of doing things, and most importantly....they actually CARE about their tenants read more

Let me start with the positive. Living in this building has let me "metamorphasize" into the mighty, but passive, roach-assassin who has unlocked the real secret for single-handedly wiping out large infestations without those chemical sprays, which indeed seemed to be ineffective anyway; post hoc, those secrets will remain undisclosed. There are far worse buildings in newer shape than this one. The older buildings have concrete walls which greatly improves silence, making piano playing possible. Another tenant had a gas leak, and in accordance with People's Gas, the building is in very good shape for its age (in comparison with brand new condominiums). My slow draining problem was resolved relatively timely. With the units themselves, many don't seem to be consistently nor thoroughly "rehabbed". Some units will be beautifully rehabbed, while others have problems with smaller holes by the drainage pipes under the sinks, small cracks- hence the incorrigible roach problem, exposed rotting floor under oak by the closets (not my unit though), and parts of the ceiling seemed like they were starting to fall apart (in the closet area).. My unit wasn't particularly clean, though much nicer compared to many others. Any problems seemed to have been painted over, and the painting was cheap contracting as there was plenty of paint around the drain of the bath tub. The falling apart entrance and old carpet (though cleaned regularly) give the building a slight grunge feeling rather than the glory and pride a vintage building deserves. The rent is too high for these units, especially when comparing to other units of this neighborhood. For Bertsch leasing, I have no comments as I leased through another agency. As for Eloy, he did come to the building in order to switch my apartment when there was a mix-up with the leasing agency. The 2 stars is "Meh, I've experienced better" which is a rating based solely on dollar for value. The three is the fun of being a roach assassin- lots of practice. Neither horrible nor great. read more

I wrote a scathing review a few months ago and it appears to have been removed. This is disappointing, mostly because it detailed so lovingly what horrible, unhappy, dirty, irresponsible, dangerous, unkempt, bug infested, easily accessible to robberies, rude, skirts the law management and apartment these people run. So much so that I had the urge to check other mean yelps about them 6 months after I moved out. So much so that I am REWRITING the entry that has mysteriously disappeared - it was that bad- and I think you should know! Here it is again: BUMMER! Here is EVERY terrible problem we had: My boyfriend and I spent almost 3 years in this place (it was a great size/location) until we had ENOUGH! We took great care of the apartment: replaced things as they broke (because the clueless unhandy man "no fix dishwashers" or sinks. toilets. refrigerators. . .) we painted (because bertsch didn't) we primed and painted the stinky unfinished cheap-o kitchen cabinets that were making our food smell like plywood. My favorite part was when the company SOMEHOW allowed a felon access to the keys to all of the apartments (either by hiring them or the person opened the shoddy locks for the basement where the keys were "kept") There I was, home alone (2pm) and a man with a gun is breaking into my apartment WITH MY KEYS! I was one of many and Bertsch said nothing to the other renters to protect them - so I DID. I spent $250 to have my locks changed and I also helped put a man behind bars. I have the police report that sites NEGLIGENCE! The officer showed me how to open the main door with a butter knife- which Bertsch called "standard and up to code". That should have been it- but we stayed. Then there were the bugs! Moths, roaches, ants, and billion leggers- OH MY! Im a natural girl so we didn't want them spraying carelessly pesticide all over our belongings- so we moved. but it wasn't because of the bugs alone. . . Because of the FLOODS caused by the "construction" workers who tore down a wall upstairs before even looking at the building's blueprints to check for water pipes. Well they hit one and we had niagra falls in our main closet TWICE! They said it was in the lease to have renters insurance and that was all they offered. We had renters insurance after the BREAK-IN so no egg on our face there. There was also the moldy flooded basement - or as they call it "free storage" space where you can do laundry with the roaches and have clothes that never smell right. Or when they tore down parts, just parts, of the back staircase without notice to us so when I came outside to take the garbage out there was no railing and I could have fallen! No one shovels or salts in the winter and the back gutter is detached at the roof so the stairs and path to the alley/laundry/garbage area are a DEATH walk in the winter there is so much ice and icicles. If anyone from Bertsch reads this you have no excuse to even stoop to respond BECAUSE YOU NEVER RESPONDED FOR 3 YEARS! And the owners lawyer talk (to justify his negligence and try to "scare" us into being quiet) is WASTED on me because I come from a family full of lawyers judges and politicians who are respectable! Their advice- move out. And so we did. This won't change their deplorable business but I hope it prevents you the future renter from the hell we had to go through. Keep looking. read more

Like others have said, I should have checked here before moving in to a Bertsch building. It started out seemingly ok. My apartment was huge, beautiful, and a great price. The whole building was being rehabbed at the time we moved in at the end of August a couple of years ago and there wasn't a laundry room yet. We were promised a laundry room within a month. It didn't happen until October. We were also promised storage units in the basement - there was plenty of space - and they never happened. As the renovations progressed, things got worse. Our water was turned of with no notice. Our hot water was turned of in the middle of winter and not turned back on. We had to call emergency maintenance to get it on and that's after a couple of days of heating water on the stove to bathe. Both winters we lived in this place we had to call to get heat. I started leaving a thermometer out and the temperature in my apartment often averaged between 50-55 degrees F even after they started running the heat. Every time they ran the heat, though, my husband and I would get sick. When the heaters would kick on, it was like we were having an allergy attack and when they turned off, we'd start getting better. We tried to say something about it and we were told "You're sick, go to the doctor." It happened again the following year, but by that point we knew better than to even try to say something. I've never once seen them flush out the heating system. Another bit of building care I never saw was pest control - not once in the year and a half I lived there. The bug problem was incredible. We deep cleaned repeatedly and sprayed consumer grade pesticide, but when the building has a problem, there's very little a tenant can do. One time after a deep clean when we sprayed, so many bugs came out from behind the cabinets in the kitchen and started crawling up the wall that it looked like something out of a horror movie. During their renovations on the apartment above us after those neighbors moved out, the people working left something wrong with the toilet. That evening, it started leaking and dripping through our ceiling on to our toilet. We called emergency maintenance and explained the situation and they wanted to deal with it the next day. It wasn't until we told them that if they waited there was a strong likelihood that the neighbor's toilet would be sitting on top of ours by morning that they took it seriously. They never came and fixed the damaged ceiling and drywall after saying they would. One of the bedroom's doors had a doorknob with a lock on it like what you'd normally put on the front door of your apartment. We were not provided a key. When it accidentally turned when we shut the door and we were locked out, they wanted to leave us locked out of our bedroom all weekend rather than dealing with it. When they came, they practically destroyed the door jamb getting us in and never came back to fix it. This is just a small sampling of the maintenance horrors we dealt with. I'll leave you with the story of our move out. When we didn't renew the lease, we had been told by multiple people in the office that we didn't need to fill out move out paperwork, just don't renew. Then, we got emails about not having our move out paperwork. We also received an email with every other tenant that was moving out when we were copied on it without using BCC. I now have all of their email addresses and they have mine. The email told us essentially that they were going to start showing the apartment. Ok, that's expected. What's not expected is this actual quote I've copied and pasted from the email: "I will notify you at least two hours prior to entering your apartment to the most recent phone number we have on file, by text, or by email of you prefer. Please make sure your apartment is clean and presentable. It does not matter to me if you are home or not, we keep spare sets of keys at the office for all apartments." First of all, code requires a 48 hour notice AND that if we prefer to be home for the showings, they need to abide by that. Having had a situation where the real estate agent wouldn't lock the door when leaving after showing our apartment before the Bertsch property one, we definitely prefer to be there for showings. I ended up sending them a message through the Chicago Tenant Rights app and they sort of backpedaled, but asked if we could reduce the notice time to 24 hrs, which took a lot of nerve at this point. It didn't take many showings for them to get a new tenant because, like I said, the apartment is beautiful. It was all I could do, though, to not tell the people coming to see it to run and not look back. read more

I lived in the Kenmore building of Bertsch Properties for nearly ten years and rarely had any problems. It's my understanding that my building is one of the few that has an on-site building manager and mine, Bobbie, was always helpful and easy to communicate with. Whenever I had any maintenance issues in my apartment, she got them taken care of immediately. I recently moved out, but she even contacted me when I had a package delivered there because I had forgotten to update my shipping address. read more

My husband and I have lived in the building near Addison and Southport for nearly 3 years and are very happy. We have an enormous one bedroom with a back porch. Despite the units in the floors below ours having frequent turnover, we seldom hear noises form other apartments - I'm chalking this up to the good old-fashioned thick and ultra sound-proof walls. My husband can't even hear me talk loudly to him from another room (which I'm sure he loves). The downside to these walls is that it's a crap shoot trying to hang pictures. More importantly, maintenance requests are filled lightening fast and I feel they're pretty respectful of your pets when they enter your apt. For example, they had to spend a few hours in our unit replacing windows one day while we were at work. We came home to find they had safely quarantined our kitty in the bathroom, with his food and water, which wasn't necessary since our fat cat could stand to live off his own body fat for a few hours, but I'm sure he appreciated it. Rent is raised $25/year, which is annoying, but fair considering the market and location of our place. Laundry room is probably the bad part. It's in the building, but for some units (ours) you have to walk around the back of the building. It's a scary room if you're a female and there are only 2 washers and 2 dryers for 16 units. Honestly, in our opinion, this is the only downside. Location couldn't be better - it's a quiet neighborhood, the building is right behind Jewel and steps from Southport which has more shops, restaurants and bars than you could imagine. read more

I would say this is about average as far as Chicago leasing companies go (I've used several in this city). There were several problems over the course of my year with them, but nothing major enough to warrant fewer than 3 stars. The issues: - Poor communication re: construction and projects. - Laundry was disconnected for a couple weeks without any forewarning (new machine was installed) - They are a little scattered and disorganized, I found it was occasionally difficult to reach the building manager Overall, it was an average experience. I should note I didn't have any major maintenance issues, which could easily have tipped the scale in either direction depending on how it was handled. read more

Make sure you check "filtered reviews"--or the honest reviews that Bertsch wants to hide to try and keep their meager reputation in tact. The fact that they have to hide 23 reviews (which don't count into their star rating) and they still only have 3 stars is a sign that this company needs work. In the filtered reviews you'll see my full disclosure of my experience, but I wanted to add that as I'm preparing to move to a much better apartment they have supposedly shown my apartment 3 times...once we even had to leave the apartment so they could bring people by...but Diane just told me tonight that they have "misplaced" the keys to our place and haven't been able to show it because she can't get in. Why she hadn't disclosed this information over the past 2 weeks when they have been "showing" our apartment, I don't know. And now keys to my place are just floating around who knows where. Real comforting when one of the Yelp reviews mentions a creepy maintenance worker basically pulling a home invasion in the middle of the night. Bertsch, you're terrible. read more

I've been a tenant for about 13 years. When I first moved into my Horner Park apartment, it was an exceptional value. A big one bedroom with a big dining room I used for a music room. Since it was a really good value, it wasn't perfect. The kitchen was outdated, and the floors weren't shiny. But good bang for the buck. The neighborhood was not Lincoln Park, but it was quiet and starting on it's way up. Overall, management was quite responsive in addressing issues that came up. It's a building built in the teens or 20's, very solid, but like all old buildings, there are mice and occasional roaches. Welcome to the city. I found over the years that I only see mice when they are attracted by tenants leaving garbage on their porch for days at a time, rather than putting it in the dumpster. Roaches are a function of how clean you keep the apartment (I'm not a slob, usually, but I'm not compulsive either). For a few years in the 2000's when the neighborhood was being purged of very mild gang activity, gangs would occasionally tag the back door. It was painted over promptly. The weekly cleaning crews have always done a good job and are reliable, friendly and unintrusive. After a few years I requested an upgrade in the kitchen, and it was done to accommodate my schedule while I was on vacation and I was able to talk to the crew regarding progress and what I wanted during the process as well. The rent increase for this was fair and reasonable. Maintenance has gotten better over the years, too, as their business has grown. I've always found their maintenance employees friendly, courteous, and enthusiastic. In my experience they have responded well to emergencies, including being accommodating when I've locked myself out of the apartment. Rent increases have always been fair also, at or below what I expected. In 2009, at the height of the economic downturn, there was no increase. A few years ago when I was considering moving to a 2-bedroom, I looked first at other apartments they had available at the time. They are a bigger company now than when I first moved in, and they've had their growing pains I'm sure. In my experience they are honest and make a genuine effort to accommodate tenants and address issues as they arise. Though I'm leaving Chicago, if I return I'll check first to see what apartments Bertsch has available. read more

Still doing well and taking care of things perfectly. Apartment is well maintained and staff is friendly. SOOO much better than the property place I rented from before. read more

We moved out yesterday from an apartment we had been renting from Bertsch for the past 3 years. We've always had great service from them - whenever something needed to be fixed, Ned would send someone the same day, the building was always clean and the rent was reasonable. Our heat was included in the rent and we were never cold - in fact we had to open the windows during winter time. Kay, and then Anna, were awesome to answer any questions we ever had. Overall they have been great landlords and I highly recommend them. read more

I lived at a Bertsch property for a year. It was a vintage building, which I knew when I rented the place. Does it have those centipede creatures? Yes. Does it have an old, loud radiator system? Yes. Are the floors kind of dirty and the walls a little cracked from settling? Of course. But it's an old building, and the apartment was spacious in a great location for a great price. Overall, I have no significant complaints and I think I got great value for my money. Kay was always a delight in all our dealings. My repair requests were always responded to along with follow-up. They replaced my microwave AND my dishwasher while I was there (probably time for those appliances to be replaced), and it took practically no time. Do I think there are better deals in the city? Sure. But really, this is a perfectly reasonable company with which to find an apartment and they'll treat you fairly. So long as you don't rent a vintage apartment and expect new-construction, you'll be totally satisfied with Bertsch. read more

I'm really surprised by the negative ratings for this property management company. Perhaps it all depends on what building you are in, but I have had NONE of the problems that others have had. My apartment on Damen and Lawrence was a large studio with new fixtures, new windows, and the building was incredibly quiet. The only noise that would bother me at times would be traffic, but even that wasn't bad considering I was living on two of the busiest streets in Chicago. The only maintenance issue I had was to fix the pilot light on my stove. Maintenance requests were always addressed within 24 hours. The building is cleaned regularly, and I did not have pest issues like others. Again, I think it depends on the building. Dirty neighbors means more issues with pests. From the moment seeing the apartment through having to break my lease early and subletting it, the property managers were extremely helpful. I was able to obtain a flexible lease, pay rent online, and they were extremely helpful in getting my apartment subletted almost immediately when I had to move for a job out of state. Truly one of the better apartments I've had, and I would recommend that property in particular to anyone looking for a cute, affordable studio in a fantastic neighborhood. read more

I lived in the Montrose Beach Studios for about 6-months. Loved my apartment, very affordable. No maintenance problems ever. The building janitor lives one site and is super cool. The building manager however is a complete asshole, and screamed at me on the phone when I locked myself out of the apartment. Aside from that I would definitely recommend this building to anyone, great location, well maintained, well priced, right by the jewel. read more