I lived in one of their apartments for 4 years. Everything was great- until it wasn't. This review will be a long one, but it can be summed up simply. If you were my mother, uncle, brother, mailman, hairdresser, or anyone else I even remotely cared about, I would tell you to RUN (not walk) away from Penmar Management. This includes potential tenants as well as owners. If you need more convincing, here's my story:
On May 1, 2018, I received a $500 rent increase notice (which is a 28% increase monthly). This is a lifestyle altering amount of money. Even for a hard working single woman with a master's degree. I wrote them a letter explaining this and trying to convince them that this is too much for me all at one time. I was told (by Leticia Ramos, office manager) "if you can no longer afford to live in this neighborhood you are welcome to put your 30 day notice in."
I loved my apartment and I really wanted to stay so I grappled with the idea of getting a side gig to make it work. So I put a few upgrade/maintenance requests in writing to justify such a large rent increase. Among those were: replace the 1950s-pink bathroom tile, replace the carpeted floors throughout with hardwood, replace the 1950s oven that required a thermometer to determine the cook temperature, replace the linoleum kitchen floors that were not properly installed, replace the stucco ceiling, and paint/replace the wood cabinets. Ms. Ramos stated that she would be willing to look at making upgrades (in the bathroom only) once the exterior stairs were repaired. I reminded Ms. Ramos that the exterior stairs had been damaged for almost a year, therefore, it was difficult to believe that the upgrades to my apartment would be done in a timely manner. Ms. Ramos then stated that if they were to list the apartment to a new tenant they would charge them $2400 so I should be grateful my rent increase is $100 less than that. I asked her if they would be able to list the apartment in the current condition for that amount and she said "of course not." So why would I have to pay the increased amount?
On August 1, 2018 I moved out of the apartment. They deducted $361 from my security deposit for two sets of bedroom blinds (simple, vinyl blinds with a cord) to be replaced with faux wood cordless blinds. Additionally, they deducted $935 from my security deposit to replace a glass stove top with a small crack. The stove top worked perfectly and was still beautiful. I assume they wanted to upgrade that as well so that they could charge the new tenant $2400. Neither of these charges included a receipt of any kind or an estimate from a contractor. I reminded Leticia Ramos that California Civil Code Section 1950.5(g)(2) requires receipts for any deductions over $125 within 21 days of vacating the property. Over various phone calls (on 8/14, 8/15, 8/16, 8/21, 8/22, and 8/23) I was repeatedly told that I would never receive a receipt for the deductions made, but they were looking into my deductions. On August 24, 2018, I received an email notifying me that I would receive an additional refund of $361.73 with no explanation or admission of mistake/wrongdoing. To this day I have yet to receive any receipt or contractor estimate for the additional amount deducted ($935!).
Oh and if you're still reading this you've probably done your due diligence and read through the other reviews. Many of the positive reviews below are from the complex I lived in "Hermosa Shores." All of which reference "Brian" as the amazing property manager that took good care of everyone and made it such a positive experience. Brian is amazing. In fact, he was the best property manager I've ever dealt with. Unfortunately, this February (2018) Penmar unexpectedly fired him without explanation and the complex has been without an onsite manager since. Once again California law requires there to be an onsite manager for buildings with 16 or more units. But at this point I think Penmar believes they are above the law because you're not breaking the rules until you get caught. read more