As a board member of my HOA, I was quite displeased (for a plethora of reasons) with our former management company. After spending a few months reviewing various options, we landed on Steward Property and have been quite happy. Though all property management (and HOA!) business moves a little slower than I would like, that's just par for the course and not indicative of Steward Property. Do we have unhappy homeowners? Of course! They are now being held accountable by Steward, something that never occurred with our previous management company. I would not hesitate to recommend Steward Property to other HOA's. read more

12/4/25 The owner of Steward Property responds to the negative reviews right away, but only to deny provable facts of mostly non-responses and lack of action, plus broken promises over many years by employees of the company. Negative reviews = same day response with nothing but denial. Actual concern or action over many years = almost none. Do you see a pattern here? read more

Customer service frustrations aside, the lack of knowledge regarding the properties they manage is concerning. I can appreciate their large customer base and being the position of middle men. I don't expect them to have everyone's CC&R's/leases memorized. It's been 15 years. It would make a world of difference if when returning a call, they were prepared with the details of your home. Adding photos of the layout of the homes to your software would be extremely useful (plat). To effectively manage an HOA, a business needs to do more than collect/disburse fees and interpret documentation. General awareness with respect to things like common areas and access points are lacking. Information seems like it's new when you are revisiting it. read more

Steward Property Services has been collecting DOUBLE PAYMENTS from me for 4 months- and didn't say a word. I discovered it only by accident while reviewing my bank records. When I came to their office to ask for refund and explanation, I was treated incredibly rudely. The employee I spoke with refused to tell me his name and title. When I insisted that they return my money immediately- not in 30 days - they call the police on me. Yes, police. For asking to be returned what's rightfully mine. Meanwhile, when payment was delayed by just 6 days due to a bank issue months ago, they instantly charged me $36 late fee. They had no problem taking my money. But when it came time to return it- no urgency, no apology and no accountability. TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE! read more

Our Hoa used Steward for several years. The service and follow up the board received was poor at best. Multiple emails would have to be sent and the owner of the company would be cc':d as well. We would be assured things would happen but they didn't. Obvious abnormalities in bills wouldn't be noticed by the manager. Things wouldn't be added to agendas and supplemental mailers would have to go out. To follow up to Jeff's response. I disagree with his comment that the board couldn't come together for meetings. We met regularly. Your accounting team should look again. I believe it was q4 of 2024. We are over budget for our water expense due to the leak. This was not caught by your team and I believe it should be. read more

My hoa contracts with steward. Not clear how they stay in business. Their personnel are hard to reach. Their attitude toward their customers I would characterize as 'indifferent'. Very disorganized. Unresponsive. F- Wish I could give zero stars read more

Would never recommend this company for property management. They fail to take action, push the buck off & lackadaisical. It really becomes apparent after switching companies. Won't be managing any of my rental properties in the future! read more

In a 35 years of dealing with property management companies to our properties takes the cake in every way. They are kind, friendly fast and knowledgeable and take major concern and put a lot of time and effort in their properties and tenants. Janne Kreisbol it's one of the best people I've ever dealt with. Janne is extremely knowledgeable in every aspect of property management. She is kind patient, friendly and prompt in everything that she does go with steward properties make sure you speak with Janne and the rest will take care of itself. read more

They don't deserve a star. Don't use this property management company they could care less about you or your property it's obvious from the lack of communication from the property manager. She ignores you doesn't return phone calls, emails, or letters there is absolutely no responsibility from these folks they pass the buck and say it's because of the HOA board. I want my property fixed you have made my life a living hell, to live in my property without my master bedroom and the work not completed for over four months is negligent so is you choosing not to communicate is completely unacceptable. This is a health and safety item that you are ignoring. It's been three months asking to get this done and nobody cares that there's a hole in the wall and the issue is not resolved. I literally have asked you to come into my property take a look for yourself I don't care what you need to do but get this work done. Other grievances as you can see the landscaping is not maintained that ground cover in front of our houses should be a couple inches high not a couple feet high we pay $61,000 to the gardeners yet they don't do anything . I also brought the attention that my roof tile is not flush with the Gutter might be one of the reasons why we had some water intrusion but you know it's not up to me you don't maintain our properties we pay you lots of money to manage but you can't even communicate to the owners of the association??? For the money that you're receiving your company should be able to return phone calls, emails and letters in a timely matter not months later it's just not professional, or acceptable, I don't pay you my HOA dues later or months out I pay them on time. Within a reasonable amount of time you should be able to do your job and communicate to the people who are wanting things done to their property. They have me sit out here for four months with no communication no deadline nothing and have me camp out in a third bedroom Is completely unacceptable. read more

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Another year another gouge! Hard to believe that 5 years ago how was under 200 bucks and now we are going to pay 741 a moth! This is just one example of the price gouging they do here! Who pays $18k a year on postage? Ever heard of email? Mind you I have relatives in la who gyms and tennis courts as part of the hoa and they pay 150 a month! Congrats on being the worst manager of money. Yes gross negligence and mismanagement of funds! read more

Steward Property Services - Property Management Near Me - Petaluma, California

I do not recommend this company. Their manager Brenda Dougan, who is the primary contact for our HOA, is the most unprofessional person I've encountered. Her communication skills sorely lack and it is a surprise she is a manager given the way she treats residents and their requests during times of need. She is highly reactive and does not seem to know how to pause and respond, letting her emotions get the better of her. There have been many complaints from other residents about her behavior as well. Since she is the face of the company for our HOA, the ratings reflect that service. My advice to the company is to work with their employees to develop soft skills and monitor emails from their managers to ensure quality customer service. read more

Don't expect them to return your calls or reply to your emails. Better yet, don't buy a home with an HOA. You will not get the response you need in a timely manner with this company. I'm fed up. It's been 72 hours and no response from 2 calls and 2 emails. Not professional. read more

My interaction with Brenda and her team since my purchase in 2020 has been nothing but positive. Association management is not an easy task, and I am a real estate professional myself with over 20 of property and association management. I have found Brenda very responsive to all my communications and /or questions. Accounting and general admin have also been great. Our insurance brokers available and responsive as well. Finally the website, resident communications and news letter etc... are easy to navigate, are content rich and timely. read more

Avoid this company, they do not lift a finger! For some reason our HOA uses them and they have been awful. Trying to get our board to drop them. The whole property has never looked worse than under their management. It's no wonder their staff/managers change with the wind. We're currently on Mikala. Have lost count how many we had before, but they're all not very good at their job. Will only do bare minimum of sending copy/paste email out every few weeks. No responses. Poor communication. Wanting to charge for every little thing like their own paperclips and copies! Ridiculous. We have some liabilities/hazards on our property that were brought to their attention, did not even receive a response. read more

Talked to Mark a month ago to follow up on our request to landscape our front yard and he told me the board did approve it and that he would send out the letter that day or the next day, still have not received anything. Followed up again today to check on the status and apparently he is now going to send it out after a month of sitting on it. I should be put on the payroll there for the amount of times I have had to follow up on things you all should have been keeping tabs on, that's a basic task of any job. Not holding my breath on getting this, coming up on a year living here without being able to landscape the yard. It's also hilarious that every 5 star review on this company begins with "As a board member of my HOA". Seems like you're bribing your board members to leave 5 star reviews on your awful company, how sad. read more

My HOA is in the process of carrying out an election for Directors. Unfortunately, the Board is attempting to eliminate nominees who are "seeking or engaging in" legal action against the HOA. And this is unlawful. Also unfortunately - Steward Property Services endorsed the Board's unlawful action by putting its branding on the form. As a company with "certified" property managers and access to legal counsel, Steward Property Services should have known better! read more

Steward Property Services - Nomination Form with unlawful "certification" statement - Property Management Near Me - Petaluma, California

I have worked with Steward Property Services and manager, Janne K. on many occasions. Janne is a pleasure to work with. She is easily accessible, has a superior understanding of community association management, and runs meetings efficiently. Each association she manages seems to have happy and engaged community members. I look forward to continuing to work with Steward Property Services and Janne. -Liberty HOA Election Services, LLC read more

I have been living in my Novato HOA for 32 years. For 25 of those years, I was on the BODs. And for 18 of those years, I was the board's president. I have seen and been directly involved with several management companies. Also, as president, I had the opportunity to talk to other HOA presidents looking for referrals to replace their "horrible management company". I have always recommended Steward Property Services, because from my experience, they have been the best in being able to manage a complex community of real property (214 PUDs), the endless communications for all of the owners/residents, the details of the financials to be correct, invoices to be properly paid, coordinating vendors, and helping the BODs to create realistic budgets (never had to have a special assessment!). And above all, the owner, Jeff sincerely cares that his company properly takes care of the properties SPS manages. SPS has been with our Novato HOA for over 15 years, and I have had the privilege to work with Jeff on a couple of projects. Also, I have had a wonderful professional opportunity to work with our property manager, Carolyn, concerning all of the above mentions items that she manages for our association. From my experience, Carolyn is very knowledgeable, responsive, and sincerely cares about our HOA community to be a good place to live. From my point of view, SPS's management fee is reasonable considering the high quality of the service our HOA receives from them. Thank you Steward Property Services! Sincerely, Boris read more

Worst property management company in Sonoma county. I've lived in a community they "oversee" for over 5 years and their HOA fees have literally doubled! Literally! There's no pool, no park, no sports complex to upkeep. Never fix anything in a timely manner, my group of buildings had an electrical issue that could burn our building to the ground and they only fixed one of the tenants buildings leaving the exposed and old wires untouched. People's lives are in danger but all they do is take money and increase HOA fees two times a year! People's lives are in danger... SMH read more

It takes an act of God to get anything taken care of! My deck was dry rotted. I wrote several letters. Finally my foot went thru the deck and it got fixed. The landscaping is severely underwater and in the summer it's a pile of rocks and dirt, again nothing ever done. I have a leak originating from outside my unit and they keep insisting it's inside even though Ive had several contractors agree its coming from an outside wall. My belongings get wet when it rains. My garage door paint is peeling; they just refuse to paint it saying it's not that bad. Well, it IS, looks very trashy. read more

My experiences with Steward have been quite good. I was on the Board of our HOA when Steward was the property manage and I felt we were in good hands. It can be challenging living in one of these townhouse communities, but a solid property manager helps make things work. Then is this last year I purchased a townhouse in another HOA and was delighted to learn Steward was on the job. They are helpful, provide good counsel and are good people. read more

Advisory! This HOA will have a tendency for taxation without representation. You will be falsely fined for something that doesn't even have to do with your property. Even if you contact them and the field manager replies with a simple " taken care of", you will still get a letter a few weeks later demanding the false fine. Sure you can pay the fine to get them to stop harassing you, but that's besides the point. Taxation without representation is what gave our great country her start. Jeff, I advise you to look into the values of your association and stop allowing your field management to waste people's time. read more

If paying over $640.00 is not enough to get urgent ‼ attention for rodent invasion in community, I don't know what urgency is. It should not take 3 months and many many Emails without respond. Back flow took 4 months. These are facts and there is record of all of these. after 3 months we got pest management. So Dear Mr. Jeff F please tell me months after months after months would you, yourself and your dear family live with rodents???? If only you understood my frustration. It is not acceptable. Steward property management communication is very poor. In my experiences, no respond when there is request, it takes up 3 or 4 before they respond. And of course there is no communication let me/us know if / when the pest control are coming! They don't take ownership for wrong doing. Same issue with back flow. I would be happy to change my review when, I see you have corrected your procedure for urgencies. Still my rodent issue is not solved. read more

I always thought so negatively of HOAs in general, but now that I finally have one, which I was dreading, I have been nothing but THRILLED with the experience. This management company has been on top of everything and Brenda has been extremely responsive and helpful every time I've had any issue or inquiry. I highly recommend this company to any HOA looking for management. They are professional, responsive, and execute on behalf of their communities like no other. Compared to the horror stories I hear from friends who have different HOA management companies, I feel as though we really hit the jackpot here in Quarry Heights in Petaluma. read more

As a board member for more than 15 years, I endorse Steward Property Services. Steward is honest, ethical and has a good group of vendors to recommend for projects. Our property manager is always kind and courteous even in the face of irate owners who are experiencing a property emergency. As a board member I know all the elements that our property manager juggles and it is not easy. Vendors don't respond timely or the board needs to agree on what is the HOA portion versus the owner's portion of a project. Property management is not easy and Steward balances the issues well. Thank you to our team at Steward! read more

I would like to applaud Steward Property Services for being total professionals and long time partners managing our HOA. I would also like to especially call out Janne Krejsbol who is the BEST and has taken care of our HOA for over 10 years. Happily would provide personal stories but I can not say enough about our service! read more

I have lived in this neighborhood for 34 years, but it wasn't until I sat on the Board of Directors that I fully understood the complexity of managing a homeowners association. Carolyn Ivancovich is smart, professional and sincerely cares about the residents in our community. I appreciate her ability to navigate both regulations and personalities with ease and tact. We are in good hands. read more

This company is the poster child for what can go wrong in a bureaucracy of any size. Behind their chrome and glass corporate fortress of an office, there is simply no one to help homeowners with their concerns. I have actively written and called about a warped fence board that is both unsightly and dangerous. I've been contacting them regularly since April of 2022 and the board remains warped, with nails protruding. You'd think they'd care about how ugly it looks since it faces the street, not to mention the safety issue for my family. My grandchild plays in the yard and could be hurt by the nails. I began by trying to repair the fence myself, but the warp in the long board prevented me from successfully retailing it. They contacted a local contractor who came out and seemed to be ready to take care of it. Last week, the contractor let me know that no work order has been issued. The fence post has a big white paint splotch on it, indicating that is was marked for replacement. I've dealt with Beth Ainsley, who has been unhelpful at best. Next steps for me are a letter to the board of the HOA and the local newspaper, as well as stopping payment of my HOA dues until the problem is resolved. read more

My HOA's Board of Directors has been discussing "design change applications" during Board meetings, in executive (closed) session. Instead, the Davis-Stirling Act requires such discussions to be carried out during Board meeting OPEN SESSION. Steward Property Services is our property manager, and it has employees who are "certified" and who should know what the Davis-Stirling Act requires. Nonetheless, Steward continues to support my Board's unlawful actions by sending meeting agendas and writing meeting minutes for the Board's unlawful secret discussions. read more

Stewart Properties is fantastic and they know what they are doing. It amazes me when I read complaints in regards to not getting tasks completed on time, vendors they use, a warped board etc. Our prior Management company was unprofessional uses a real estate lawyer for their CC&Rs which actually needed to be updated by a Lawyer who specializes in HOA's and we now retain The prior manager for our complex lacked integrity as they would correspond with other homeowners about confidential information so we went with Stewart Property Services after many interviews with other Management properties. Susan Wallen is our Manager and she is fantastic, professional, personable and always responds in a timely manner. This was the best decision as their Accounting is always on top of everything where the previous lacked also. If you get a non compliant letter than you are not following one of the many rules that come with having an HOA. If you don't like something you can't just demand. If you want something done it has to go through a process and takes time. People read your CC&R's they are lengthy and long and most people don't want to, so then stop complaining. If you really want to know how it works, get voted on your HOA board but get something clear, your HOA (volunteer position) has to follow the rules and Stewart properties works for your HOA and has to follow what is legally in writing for your complex and YES THE STERLING DAVIS ACT. This Management company follows ALL OF IT. If you don't hear anything within the time frame you think you should then I would advise you to know when your board meets, is it monthly, quarterly and it must be on the agenda. Until that happens you won't get anything done and if you stomp your feet about it then buying a property with an HOA is not what you should purchase. It makes a world of difference to educate yourself on how it works and not get pissed off because you didn't get something done you feel you want done on your timeframe because now you have a mortgage. When you have Board members (volunteer position) that board who get voted on have to make decisions that don't make everyone happy but decisions must be made for the whole complex not just to make a few home owners happy. Your Board members (owner volunteer position) must have integrity, professionalism and they have to follow all rules and regs if you feel they are not then prove it or get on that Board and make a difference. Don't sit on the side lines and cry. Steward properties was a GODSEND for our community and they have a huge list of vendors and that comes in handy for multiple estimates when decisions are being made for your complex. All vendors must meet standards and we have had only positive experiences. If you do not like a vendor you are using (janitorial, landscaper) then hire another one. This is up to the HOA/Owners not Steward properties if you are not happy then you ask your Property Management for ones to chose from then you (HOA board/Owners) interview them and look at their work then hire another vendor it is very simple. There are not many good Management companies out there we did extensive interviews when we made a decision and STEWARD PROPERTIES is by far the best. BIG SHOUT OUT TO SUSAN WALLEN!!!!!! read more

While at a friends house watched one of the tenants from a property they manage throw lit cigarette butts into a patch of dried grass. Called the property service to be told there wasn't anything they could do. read more

I work with Steward Property Services in managing their clients' trees and I have really enjoyed collaborating and getting to know them. Janne Krejsbol is my main contact there and she has been an important ally in bringing quality tree care to the communities she serves. The entire staff is professional, knowledgeable, and genuinely care for all the HOA's they manage. They have also been generous in allowing my company, A Plus, to educate them on tree related knowledge, and how to better serve their clients. I look forward to continuing our great relationship indefinitely into the future! read more

I live in the Sonoma Mountain Townhomes in Petaluma. Recently Janne Krejsboz was assigned as our property manager. Janne is a breath of fresh air and she is responsive to the residents needs. Janne has accomplished much in her short duration as the property manager. Janne is patient and a good listener and hears you out when there is an issue and acts as an intermediary between the resident and the "board". I want to commend and thank Janne for an outstanding job. read more

I am so surprised of the high marks that Steward Property is receiving. The others that are reviewing this company must not live at Marina Cove. Many of us are unhappy with the responsiveness that we receive. I myself have been ignored many times. And my requests are so simple and mild. It's so frustrating to pay so much money to be ignored. read more

I was on the Board of our Homeowners Association when we made the decision to select Steward Property Services. We were very impressed with how Helen Loorya represented her Company. She spoke with great passion about her background and her vision for delivering exceptional service. However, the reality is very different than the vision. It can take several weeks to get a response to an inquiry, if you hear from them at all. At one point, when I communicated my frustration about the slow responses, the Property Manager had the nerve to email me and complain she was too busy getting ready to go on vacation! The vendors they use, carpenters, general contractors, etc., are not the 'A' Team. You can't trust their judgement or professional experience. There is no doubt in my mind, our Association has spent more than we should have to solve the problems created by poor management and shoddy work. Bottom line, Helen knows how to sell, but not how to deliver. read more

I belong to several HOA's and have also Managed Apartment buildings in the City. With this experience I've seen great landowners and some very bad ones. Along the way I became familiar with Management Companies and the responsibilities that they assume. I can tell you that many of them make promises, but very few keep up with them. Probably because of the time and knowledge that is needed to manage many homes in any given complex. This is not the case with Steward Properties! They are always available and take the time to hire quality vendors, giving you the feeling that your property is well manicured and safe to live in. Often Homeowners will dispute the need for an HOA, but having been apart of the financial exchange (HOA Dues), I'm glad to know that Steward lives up to their promise, and takes great care of their Homeowners investment. When buying a home find out who the Management Company is. If its Steward, you can feel confident that you'll enjoy the neighborhood. read more

Our HOA has been working with Beth at Steward Property Services for many years now. She is professional, hard-working, and truly cares about our homeowners and our association. She brings both focus and good humor to our board meetings (if you've ever been on a board, you know how it can be). Thank you! read more

My townhome in Petaluma, CA is managed by Steward properties. We have a large lawn area that residents use for various activities. It has been overwatered by the landscaping company. The whole area is either muddy or waterlogged. The area is unusable unless you want a muddy/wet dog or child. You cannot even walk through it without getting your shoes/feet soaked. I have been trying for over six weeks to get the sprinkler's turned down on the property. I have called and emailed my manager Beth Ainslie over 20 times to get this simple task fixed. I have left a message with the owner Jeff Steward and have not heard back. If you are considering this company to manage your property, I would think again. They have NO accountability and NO follow through. TURN AROUND RUN LIKE HECK AND DON'T LOOK BACK. If you need any more information about how they do business feel fee free to email me @ srapicav@yahoo.com. read more

Harassment, bullying and regret..... that's what you get when you do business with them... I purchased what I thought was a great house in a good neighborhood and it's all been overshadowed by this HOA. They do NOTHING for our community but are quick to fine us Ludacris amounts of money. ((FOR FALSE CLAIMS)). It's such a constant stress, it has taken all the enjoyment from owning a home. This has been a horrible experience....absolutely horrible. I regret ever buying a home here. read more

Steward Property and Brenda have been great managers of our condo association. Brenda makes serving on the condo board almost painless.