News 8 has a Consumer Alert about a local
company offering to help San Diegans find a place to rent. The name of
the company is Rent San Diego Properties, and if you're thinking about
paying them upfront, the Better Business Bureau says you might want to
back off.
Military wife Peggy Andrews was pregnant with her
daughter Sophie when she started looking for a home to rent. She went
online and found Rent San Diego Properties.
"I looked at it. It seemed okay. Called my husband, he said go ahead," Peggy said.
The
company offered hundreds of local online rental listings, so Peggy
signed up and paid about $100. But when she got the list, some were
already rented, and in the end Peggy was unable to find a house.
"They
are supposed to update it every day, and I would go on there and it was
the same listings, maybe one or two new ones," Peggy said.
On
their website, Rent San Diego Properties promises customers a full
refund if they can't find a place to rent, minus a service charge.
That's where Peggy ran into more problems.
"It was horrible, absolutely horrible. I couldn't believe I had to go back and forth for months," she said.
Peggy ended up getting half her money back, after the company kept a $50 service fee. And she's not alone.
"Basically
they gave me a list and they said here ya go, and the whole list was
bogus. There was nothing on there that I could use," Scott Hodges said.
Scott only got half his money refunded too, after finding out many properties on his list would not accept his pet cat.
"When
I looked at all the properties after I paid them, all the properties -
12 of them - were no pets allowed. Then the two that I did call were
rented," Scott said.
At the Miramar offices of Rent San Diego Properties, we found owner Laverne Bosse, who defended her company's practices.
"We
offer a really good service. We have a lot of landlords that love us.
We have a lot of clients that love us. I can't make everybody happy all
the time," she said.
The San Diego Better Business Bureau
agrees on one point - not everybody is happy. They're received 24
complaints in the past year.
"This company has earned an F
rating from the BBB. We don't give those out lightly, and we strongly
urge customers not to do business with companies with an F rating from
the BBB," San Diego Better Business Bureau CEO Sheryl Charleston said.
"Come
on guys, let's not blow this up like I'm over here doing... taking
advantage of people and offering a terrible service," Bosse said.
Bosse
emailed News 8 phone numbers of several former clients as references.
Two called us back, saying they would not use Rent San Diego Properties
again. Both also wanted to know why Bosse had given out their phone
numbers without permission.
"We're not perfect. We have a small
company, we make mistakes. We try to rectify those mistakes and offer a
good service," Bosse said.
Peggy ended up finding her own rental on Craigslist, and that didn't cost her a dime.
"I don't think this company is worth what they charge. I don't think it's worth anything," Peggy said.
Rent
San Diego Properties has a valid license with the California Department
of Real Estate, which is also in charge of enforcing complaints.
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