This is a long story but necessary to tell. I hope that reading this for you will help you understand even an ounce of the pain and time we were put through only to be denied a place we were told, by the landlords, we could have.
Dealing with Renee was an absolutely traumatizing nightmare. My partner and I were in a huge, violent situation where we had to move immediately so I posted an ad that had the following information:
- Location
- Budget
- Credit Situation
- Pets (w/ pictures of pets)
She reached out to me and told me she had a place within 20 blocks of where I was living! We were ecstatic but had just been scammed by someone and were slightly hesitant, which I told her as well.
When we spoke, she asked me if I was living paycheck to paycheck or had money saved and I told her, verbatim, that I had "enough saved for one month's rent and one month's security" to which she AGREED.
My partner went to see the place. I was so excited that I might finally be getting out of my unsafe situation. When my partner got there, she showed her the place, when she asked how much would have to be paid upfront, Renee told her one month's rent, one month's security, and an additional BROKER FEE. Immediately, my partner lost all hope, telling her the story about our situation, to which she responded by rushing her through and out of the apartment. Later I called, upset but desperate enough to BEG her during work for an opportunity to discuss the monetary situation with the landlords.
The landlords were absolutely wonderful. After seeing (and falling in love with) the place, they spoke to us honestly and told us paperwork, credit reports, and the like did not matter as much as we, as people, did. We were honest and upfront about everything, but then came the second inconvenience. Renee hadn't told the landlords about our money situation, the fact that she had purposely withheld the broker fee information from us, and the fact that we were desperate for an opportunity for a payment plan or understanding regarding the situation. We still moved forward with the conversation, and the landlords told us (again, verbatim), "If you want it, it's yours." Renee, who had been staring at her phone the entire time we'd been there, interrupted us all to say she had to do paperwork first, but only for due diligence.
She wanted an application, a credit check from credit karma, proof of my job, pictures of my pets (which I had already sent to her) and more. This was normal for any application for an apartment, so we agreed and sent it to her the same night, maybe a few hours later.
An email from her office asked us for a bunch of details regarding my credit which was explicitly detailed in the credit report I had sent.
Eager to just move forward, I sent all of the information again just in case.
I had let them know that the job I worked for was closing but that they would be placing me somewhere else with no pay cut if I didn't place myself before the end of the summer. They needed this in writing from HR. I worked my butt off trying to get the paperwork, desperately emailing and calling and making meetings with everyone I could in order to get a letter stating the same information that I had told them. Finally, someone got the paperwork for me. I sent it to Renee and her office. And AT THIS POINT, the office secretary (or whatever) let us know that we would be able to get the ball rolling on signing a lease.
They now requested from us additional money (a good guy clause, if you've ever heard of it, I had not) over a few months. This was money we didn't have. They also demanded an additional background check that she told me we would not need. I didn't mind, as long as it secured our place, but they didn't tell me that that too would cost money we didn't have. For the broker fee, we had to borrow money from a family member, which she knew. She told us it was not a good look that we couldn't afford the additional $$. My partner told her upfront that if they couldn't accept what we had already agreed to, it would be best that we all moved on and we would continue looking.
Somehow, she "convinced" the landlords to overlook the whole idea of the good guy clause. Which sounded fishy. We tried to get a meeting where we could all talk and decide what the best next steps would be. She decided that she had to stand between us, her words. Over the phone, Renee lied and accused me of misunderstanding her the entire time. She had obviously lost track of her lies.
The next day she spoke to me, not wanting to speak to my partner at all. She told me that I had lied to her, that there were things she knew that she could not disclose, that the owners no longer wanted to rent to us. She told us that the conversation the night before had shown that our relationship with the landlords could likely turn sour.
What a horrible company and horrible person. Do not use Renee. Save yourself the money, time and trouble. read more
