I moved to Bloomington for work from another State and found the unique rental market here beyond challenging and companies like this make it worse. I saw a new listing pop up that I liked so I called and scheduled an appointment for that day at 4:30pm. That time came and went so at 4:45 I called the office. No one picked up - I went through the entire phone tree and left messages for everyone, including the owner - no response. The next morning, I call again and spoke to a different agent to schedule another appointment (original person never reached out or apologized for the inconvenience of no-showing). Of course now, because the market here is so jacked, they don't have any appointments for that unit for a day and half. Low and behold, I get an AUTOMATED TEXT, not a phone call, that my appointment has been canceled because the unit has been rented. The final insult is another text after I complained apologizing for the "misunderstanding". Oh I understood perfectly. Your lack of professionalism and customer service screws with peoples lives and can have major repercussions for them which you obviously just don't care about. Business is good, thanks to 40,000 college students, so no skin off your nose, right? read more

I've lived in a Choice apartment for the past year and just moved into another Choice apartment. I've been very pleased with the communication (although I've at times had to nag with phone calls -- they can get busy), quality of housing, and value for what we pay in rent. In looking for my current apartment, I specifically searched Choice's website to see what they had available, and will likely do the same if I have to move again. read more

I would like to give a big thanks to Choice Realty and staff for all their hard work and dedication, in helping us with our rental needs over the past few years and the incredible opportunity to purchase our current home. I highly recommend this business if you if you are looking for a professional and passionate group of people to help with all your housing questions and concerns read more

Avoid if possible. Truly the least ethical and least well organized managers we have ever experienced. Maintenance ignored issues for months and the agent directly lied about what was in the lease. They are rude and untimely, while also micromanaging every aspect. I cannot emphasize enough that out of 4 agencies we have gone through, none have treated us nor the property worse. read more

The neglect is so bad on the properties that my oven shorted, and caught on fire. I could have lost my life and so could have my animals. You are truly evil people. You're starting to look like Olympus Properties. They took away their residents water, and now you guys try to burn us down? The housing market is KILLER these days. read more

I received a call from Lori on Monday December 27th, letting me know that our landlord hired her to manage the duplex that I live in with my children. She told me she would be sending me a "welcome email" with information. I let her know that the owner is aware of a mold situation in our basement, as well as many other issues, and that my kids and I have been sick for months and now my baby and I have to have sinus surgery. I finally called the company, today, to ask why I have not received the email. I was told I would receive a call back from Lori, and have the recorded conversatIon. I received an email from Lori, not a phone call, letting me know to pay the owner rent for January, and she would follow up with me about the issues after the holidays. I responded back asking what she plans to do about the situation with the needed remediation and repairs. No response. We now have to sleep on our living room floor to help my baby breathe better. That was recommended by my son's pediatrician. Most unprofessional company that I've ever dealt with, and with only one phone conversation and one email. They also have no lease for us because the owner (Jane Toon) lost our signed lease agreement. Im taking appropriate measures, but I've read through this company's reviews and definitely didn't have the best first impression off the bat. I've been in the property management industry for 5 years. Luckily I know my stuff. Others aren't so lucky though. Lori, I'm waiting to hear back from you. You would think that you would create a sense of urgency when there is mold involved, especially the health of 2 children. I'm order to run a good business, you need to learn how to have the compassion and sincerity toward your residents/clients. I'd love to train you on that if/when you have the time. Shoot me another email. read more

We hired Lori Abram at Choice Realty and Management to help us sell our home in Bloomington, Indiana. Before signing a contract, Lori came to our house (in the midst of downsizing chaos!) and walked with us from room to room making detailed, helpful suggestions that we followed almost to the letter. After two months of renovations, Lori returned for another consultation and helped us set up and stage our house so that it looked amazing. She put the house on the market the day we were ready, hired a professional home photographer to take flattering pictures, and wrote a detailed, persuasive description that she posted the first day. Then she brought a dozen real estate agents through on Day 2 to get some buzz going on our house. We saw immediate interest on our home, and in 3 weeks it was SOLD! And in a tough real estate market, pretty impressive. The best part after the sale of our house: Lori dealt with all the negotiations and paperwork with our buyers (and the sellers of our new home!) while keeping us in the loop almost on an hour-to-hour basis. She's constantly on e-mail and has an efficient system in her office that allows you to sign a document, which she immediately scans and e-mails to the other buyer or seller or their agents. And you get an immediate paper and electronic copy for you and your bank. I'm impressed with Lori's patience, positive attitude, professionalism, hard work, and personal service, and I recommend her highly to a buyer or seller in the Bloomington community. read more

I lived in one of the units for two years and switched to another unit this last year. It was initially under different management when I moved in and they were great. The people I talked to were nice, understanding and really wanted to help. Lately however with Choice, customer service is absolutely terrible. I have never talked to people so rude before and they do not care about your problems. We moved into an apartment that was disgusting and it took them forever to send maintenance out to fix our two pages of problems. Oh, and some of them are still not fixed. I do not recommend living here with these owners. The apartments are poorly constructed and management will not help right away if you have a problem. As someone who has pays upfront and has rented at this place for three years, they are extremely rude to me. Lastly, as for safety, the parking lot in the back is very dark and unsafe. I have had a lot of people congregate outside my window and people bang on my door. I told management this a year ago and they did nothing to fix it. read more

Dealt with this realty company through three years of college. In a non-biased review, this is one of the worst companies I have ever dealt with. If you are trying to email any of the employees, expect either no response or at least a week to here back. I have seen the owner of this company legitimately yell at other tenants during disagreements. It took almost 3 months for them to fix a simple washing machine and 2.5 months to install blinds for our windows which they didn't apologize for. They attempted to take most of our deposit but since my roommates and I already knew this we made sure to document any pre-existing conditions of our unit. Out of the 10 or so tenants that lived on my floor, every single one of them had similar issues and also recommended not dealing with this company. If this company is managing a building that you are interested in, I recommend staying away. read more

Rented a House filled with mold down at the crawspace, along with rotting water. And the owners refuse to do anything about it. Everytime the heat or A/c would kick in a terrible smell would arise. Extremly unpleasant. Initially addressed the issue when I first moved in and they slapped a coat of paint on and said it was fixed. as more water got down to the space, more black mold started to form. Also was having ongoing plumbing issues in which they tried billing ME for. Indiana laws states that it's the landlords job to provide the home with proper plumbing and of course no mold. Or else the home is considered uninhabitable. They prey off of ignorance, please research and know your shit. Or they WILL attempt to rip your asshole open with charges that is not rightfully yours. I can go on and on about issues I've had with Lori Adams. Once she feels challenged, she will tell you straight up that "I'm no longer addressing this matter" So, I had to contact HAND and also got in contact with a lawyer to help me out of this because they REFUSED to do any work. I had photos, documents showing evidence in which I was disputing but I guess it wasn't enough to get the job handled. read more

They were very nice and friendly, but it was like pulling teeth to get any maintenance done. I had to do minor stuff myself. Upon move in, no repairs or cleaning had been done from the previous tenants. The carpet was heavily damaged. We didn't mind because they told us we wouldn't be charged when we moved out because the carpet would be replaced anyway. What happens on move out? Of course they try to charge us for every last problem. They wanted to charge us almost 2k in damages, with less than half done by us or even our responsibility (the washing machine and dryer never worked and were dirty upon move in). Thankfully, they were bad enough to not get our move out letter to us until after 45 days. Technically, we could sue them for out entire deposit back plus legal fees. I'm thinking about doing it after seeing what they tried to charge.... read more

This review is for property owners who are considering CHOICE for Property Management Services. I used them for over a year and we parted ways uncomfortably. Here's what I learned. Although it sounds obvious, it is important to have the same -Vision- as CHOICE and to listen carefully to what you are being told. "We'll take care of everything" meant for me that they will not , even if requested, provide current data about my property.No copies of the leases. No copies of the invoices until we terminated. The contract between the the owner and CHOICE refers to the relationship as "turning over the management" from Owner to CHOICE. CHOICE procedures are not listed in the contract , however, I was told more than once that decisions were made according to procedures. For example , for one of my properties I arranged the yard maintenance for over a year. Yet when I brought another property on board I found a very high yard maintenance charge . I was told Procedures required CHOICE to arrange for yard care - at more than double what I had been paying. Understanding the -Mission- of CHOICE is also important. For that second property I attempted to bring under CHOICE's management, I bought the proverbial "money pit" to remodel. It ended up needing a new well, septic, roof, paint, and all appliances. Needless to say it took much longer and much more money than I anticipated. I paced myself in order to pay for it all yet not bury myself in debt. Here is what the CHOICE told me about their Mission. " We don't work for free. We don't get paid unless the rentals are leased." That is understood, but the continual asking when they would be able to show it, just added to my anxiety about my need to manage my costs. "The property is not up to our standard and we are no longer going to waste our time. Here is our 30 day notice." Did I mention that not two weeks earlier a rainstorm caused a roof leak and we had to replace the bedroom ceiling and the roof. We completed those before she terminated the contract two weeks later. Consumer beware. It is important to be Vision aligned and Mission aligned. 'Turning over the management' means the procedures will be applied with out your prior knowledge. If this is your desire then CHOICE is for you. If you want to be more involved with your property then they are not. read more

We rented from Choice Realty at Northern Manors, the new buildings on Lincoln Street, just off 17th this year (2013-2014). We are thinking of renewing but the area is just too high-party, being so close to the stadium, that we need a change of scenery badly. We really love the quality of the apartment we got. It's a one-bedroom but made to feel more spacious by the high ceiling and large windows. I've made a list of PROS and CONS about the apartment that might help another renter. PROS Built just a few years ago = clean, not run down like most other apartments at IU. Like-new appliances (Whirlpool Gold everything) Very close to the A and X bus stops at the Stadium - literally a bus every five minutes. Nice floors and carpeting - There is vinyl/fake-tile flooring from the front door to the living room, and carpet only in the bedroom, then the same vinyl in the bath and washer/dryer room. Big windows that let in HUGE amounts of light to the bedroom and living room. HUGE bathroom and vanity counter/cabinets Washer and dryer in unit - this is AWESOME! ALL utilities included, even internet (although this is changing in the next year, they will have tenants paying for electric from 2014 onward) Pets allowed for one-time pet fee and one-time deposit per pet, which covers a whole year (no tacking on pet rent each month) Private parking lot, which you get the use of for free, but you do have to pay for a parking pass when you first sign the lease in order to use your space. If you have more than one person in your place, like we do (me and my fiance) one of you has to park on the street. CONS Noisy, noisy noisy! - We had to call the Bloomington PD on our downstairs neighbor three times (within a one-month period) because of his music that shook the floor of our apartment and kept us awake from 11 p.m. until 3 in the morning some nights. Also, tons of noise from the surrounding apartments and houses - BIG party area, which really isn't our style now that we have outgrown that phase of college life. Small size - we had to sell off almost everything we owned from our previous apartment just to fit our stuff in this one No storage space for extra stuff - you basically have some shelving in your closet, and a little space in the washer/dryer room to put a shelving unit, which is what we did. Other than that, you will have to ram and jam or sell off a lot of stuff. Street parking for additional cars is a HUGE hassle- If you have more than one car-owner in your place, the additional cars over that 1 that is allowed to park in the lot out back has to park on the street in front of the building. The problem with this is you can't find parking sometimes because it is free parking, not permit or zoned for the apartment use only. You get those people who steal the residents' spots for game days, hours of tailgating, or for visiting somebody in the area. So, if you need to park your car at the apartments, but there's no parking, you can't park in the lot out back (even if you live here) because your car WILL get towed, even if you live here. Maintenance issues are not resolved quickly at all - We have a door handle that is so loose, someone can just pull up on it really hard and the door will push right open, even if the handle is locked. For this reason, we always lock the dead bolt, even if we are running downstairs to the car and are coming right back up. It's a hassle that we just don't like to have and it's unsafe. When we approached the management about it in July of this year, they promised they would get someone out to fix it. The maintenance man from the company came out and couldn't fix it - he didn't have the right tools. So we were told they would have someone come out from the company who installed the door handles, to fix it. It's been almost 6 months and we haven't gotten this issue fixed. It's probably something we could potentially complain about legally, but we aren't that kind of people. So we just lock our deadbolt out of habit now, and leave it at that. Hope this helps out anyone who is renting. Overall great experience. Just some things that we don't personally like, but I would probably recommend these apartments to others, as long as you can handle the noise and constant distractions around you. read more

I arrived in Bloomington and tried to navigate the difficult rental market, yet was lucky enough to find Choice Realty. In a college town like this, I know how hard it can be for a business to deal with students and renting to them. Luckily, I'm older, but still this town's rentals are mostly occupied by students. Still, Lori and her team found me a great property. The move in process was easy and simple. My experience had been nothing but professional, and to deal with Choice has been easy. Repairs are handled quickly, and Brad, who has worked on my property a number of times, is just amazing. The entire staff has been prompt, courteous, and even kind to me and my family. I see some of the reviews and understand that often students are new to the rental market as well as entering into contracts and agreements, but Choice Realty's reviews here definitely do not match the experience I've had. read more

Lori Abrams is evil incarnate. Do not EVER allow your properties to be under the thumb of this greedy shrew. You will suddenly find that your gutters, A/C, furnace, roof, plumbing, paint, windows, insulation, etc. are in need of updating. And who will be billing you for the updating? Who will be raking in the money? Why, it will be Lori Abrams, Inc--also known as Choice Realty! It won't be independent contractors, and you will NOT receive estimates from which to choose. Oh, no. Only HER people will do the work. ONLY HER PEOPLE. It will be charged to you, and deducted from the rent check you're owed. Never allow these people to manage your rental. RUN AWAY! read more

Never had I expected to be hung up on by the owner of choice realty, Lori A. Todd, over simple repairs, damages, and cleaning before my new housemate/tenant moved in. A room should be cleaned before a new tenant moves in. It is simply unacceptable. I expect action not complacency. read more

The absolute last people you want to rent from. You will never see your security deposit again, regardless of how pristine you left your apt. And they will charge you outrageous amounts for items that they did not even list on the exit inspection. (Make sure you are present and get a copy of that inspection! ) Charging to replace the locks when you have fulfilled your lease and are leaving. Really?Their new buildings are substandard construction with water leaks and ant infested. Unethical at the least,and most likely illegal practices. read more

The management is awful. They are constantly changing property managers and honestly I don't even know who mine is now. They are always doing construction on our property INCLUDING on the weekends when people are supposed to be relaxing and can't do to the un respectful workers. They also hired a construction company to replace all the windows and put in new walls (to the outside) of all the apartments in a compilex IN THE MIDDLE OF WINTER. It's -1 outside right now and there's huge gaping holes in each apartment while they put in new windows. Unbelievable. They also just pounce right into your apartment for any reason without any warning and barely any knocking. They act like people don't even live in these apartments. Just down right rude people. read more

I would give this zero stars if I could. When I moved into my apartment it was managed by someone else (who was great) before the owner was forced to switch to choice realty. All of their staff except for one lady who infrequently answers the phone are unprofessional, aggressive, and could care less about any issues in your apartment. Not only that, they will take your entire security deposit and give you no proof whatsoever of the charges. I emailed two people 4 times, called once a week and got no response from either of them for over two months. They charge each person 70 dollars from their security deposit as a lock change fee- outrageous as that is supposed to be the landlords responsibility. I was also charged 500 dollars for a dirty carpet which was noted on my walk through before I moved in. I told Joani that this was noted and she said "your case is closed you shouldn't have moved in if it was stained". This place should be shut down... Unprofessional people trying to steal your money, stay away if you're smart. read more

I rented a one bedroom for my son at Northern Manor apartments managed by choice realty and we received a complete list of requirements upon move out in order to receive your damage deposit. We had a cleaning crew come in and clean from top to bottom, disinfect, and clean the carpet. It was spotless upon inspection and the rental agent even said it was the cleanest she had seen and wished all would leave their apartment this clean but that by law, they still had to have a carpet company come in and clean and would be $100 deduction even though I had already had the carpet cleaned! I received my refund check and they had taken out $500!!! They listed a $212 cleaning fee, $100 carpet cleaning, replacement of a lightbulb for $10, stove drip pans for $25, a mini blind for $30 that we bought because it was never replaced from when he moved in so after numerous calls for a blind, we just bought one, a $45 painting fee when the walls were spotless, and a $75 lock change? so $500 dollars was deducted for charges!!! They don't tell you that even if you spotlessly clean your apartment, they will STILL charge a cleaning fee and a carpet cleaning fee. When I tried to talk to the agent, she hung up on me! This is a company I would NOT recommend renting from! There are many other reputable rental companies in Bloomington to choose from. Avoid getting ripped off by choosing a different company to rent from! read more

Please do not rent from Choice Reality. I am a professional and needed a short term place to rent when I first came to Bloomington. Choice Reality looking professional themselves seemed like a good fit but I was sadly disappointed in how they treated me. Without going through all the details here are the highlights, I rented a total of 38 days from the company and had to wait 46 days to get my deposit back. I got half my deposit back, what?????? Yep, I didn't even move furniture in and kept it spotless but they managed to take everything they could. They conveniently DID NOT take pictures at move in but DID take pictures at move out. I had a dog there 3 weeks out of the time and had to pay a $200 pet fee and they took another $200 out of the deposit claiming there were fleas even though the work was completed after other tenants had moved in and the whole complex had pets. They also charged for carpet cleaning and when I made a comment that the carpet did not appear to have been cleaned before I moved in, I was told "they did not have to disclose to me whether it was cleaned or not." By the way after waiting several weeks to get copies of the bills, the carpet cleaning amount was $140, but they charge me $200. They also charge you $40 an hour to clean with their own staff and after you already cleaned it. If you do rent from them, don't do it short term and make sure you cover yourself. There are greedy hands there. read more

I DO NOT suggest doing ANY business with Choice Realty. My roommates and I rented our house for a year for them and we quickly learned that they were very unprofessional. Among the MANY problems with them, they were very disorganized, always rude, and did not seem to care for our safety when it came to concerns with our house (they were not in a hurry to put locks on our windows when a lot of crimes were happening near the IU campus). When my roommates or I would try to email them, we would have to send several before they would respond to us. And when they would not respond so we would call, it felt like they were irritated so they treated us like children instead of treating us with the respect we deserved. Several of our friends also rented from Choice and had the same experiences. I had to post a review because people should NOT have to work with such unprofessional and rude people. I would definitely give them negative stars if it was possible. They are difficult to work with. read more