Florida — Today, rentals are hard to come by and when you find one most who are looking tend to “jump” on the opportunity.
Does the property have an Action Rental Management Realty sign out front? You might want to think twice before dialing their number.
Action Rental is accused of illegally withholding thousands of dollars in deposits and rent monies from clients and tenants. The company is also accused of being predatory.
Hundreds of unsuspecting renters have used the company not knowing that their lives would soon become a nightmare.
Stories of clogged sinks, broken cabinets, backed-up sewage, faulty wiring, and failure to return deposits are very common with the company.
For years, residents have complained to Action Rental Management Inc. about sewage backing up into sinks, dishwashers, and toilets at a Lecanto apartment building managed by Action Rental.
For years, the landlords ignored the problem.
Rather than address the issue, which was discovered to be a faulty drain field, Action Rental repeatedly had the septic pumped. However, residents say that the septic company had told the landlords on multiple occasions that the drain field needed to be replaced.
Even after pumping the septic, especially if it rained, toilets, sinks, and dishwashers continually backed up into the apartments. Sometimes, it would take days for the water to drain.
One of the tenants reported that the sink was backed up for 4 days before Action Rental sent out a plumber.
While on-site, the plumber informed the tenant that Forestview Apartments had been an issue for years.
Two years after the initial complaint the drain field was finally replaced.
The biggest complaint renters have is about the owner of Action Rental, Marie Hager, refusing to return deposits.
Sarah P. said, “The owner of this company is appalling at best. No class or professionalism and is callous with how she handles prospective renters.”
The complaints about Hager refusing to return deposits are in the dozens.
Tenants say it doesn’t matter if a renter vacates an apartment and leaves it in perfect condition or if they hire professional cleaners, “Hager always finds an excuse to keep a deposit.”
Ocala Post was provided with pictures from several tenants and the pictures show backed-up sinks and broken cabinets. Additionally, photos show immaculate apartments that were professionally cleaned upon move-out.
Joy P., Said, “Not recommended to anyone, between action Rental and the owner of the mobile home, it was an awful experience. I rented the home for 5 years, never late. There were no damages, even after he assured me he would see to it that Marie would return the deposit. They refused to give my deposit back.”
Like tenants, property owners have also complained about Hager illegally withholding rent monies.
Dave, a property owner, said, “Poor Communication with clients. I have been a client for approximately 10 years. Throughout the entire experience, I have felt trapped with [Action Realty]. Because of the way the contract is written, the only time you can get out of the contract is if there is no tenant occupying the house. That finally happened for me. I was not notified that the tenant had notified them that they were moving out at the end of [the month]. I was expecting my portion of the rent check to arrive in the mail. [Two weeks had passed] and the check had not arrived (not unusual) so I waited a couple more days before I contacted Action Rental Management to ask what was going on. I have sent about 10 emails over the past 8 weeks trying to resolve the problems to no avail. On July 10th the President of the company (Marie Hagar) called me on the phone, she was yelling and screaming about how dare I say that they ignore my emails, that I have no reason to complain because I keep my property in such poor condition, and how sick and tired she was with owners like me who are always whining about how poor they are and that they need their money right now!! This company has held my property hostage by not returning the keys to me making it impossible for me to hire a new property manager. Also, they still have not paid me $1330.00 they owe me.”
Again, this is just one of dozens of complaints by not just tenants but property owners who have hired Hager’s company.
John H., said, “If you do not mind being treated like a child and dealing with the arrogance of the owner, you like having your deposit withheld, then this is the place for you.”
Tanya D, said, “Why bother cleaning the apartment and stressing over the deposit if you are not going to get it back anyway? Leve it and make them work for it.”
Even more disturbing, Ocala Post discovered that Action Rental allows pest control techs to enter properties without giving the tenant 24-hour notice.
Ocala Post reviewed an Action Rental contract and it does not make mention of pest control techs being given keys to the property.
One tenant described that she had no idea techs had been entering her apartment and for months felt like sometimes when she returned home some of her underwear would be missing. She also reported a missing bra and a pillow.
Ocala Post reached out to Action Realty during our investigation. However, the company refused to answer any questions.
Ocala Post also reached out to the Federal Trade Commission. A follow-up story will be published once they respond.
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