I moved into my new home on Friday. By Sunday, I already wanted to leave.
Roosevelt Square looks great from the outside. The apartments are well taken care of and it’s affordable. My apartment, located just two blocks from the light rail, is about as urban as Phoenix is ever going to get.
But its property management team is terrible. Let me tell you a story…
When I moved in, I was told not to park anywhere on the first floor, as it was controlled by the City of Phoenix. No problem, as the security gates didn’t allow those without a gate opener (notice I don’t say residents) access to the second, third or fourth level.
I moved in yesterday, left my car parked in a stall a few spots away from the entrance to my floor and left with Katie at 3:30pm.
I came back at 11am Sunday to find my car gone. I made a few guesses as to where I had left it and noticed something I hadn’t before. A no-unauthorized parking sign. The ONE reserved space on the entire floor was where I had left my car and I didn’t notice the sign until now. Crap.
Wait a minute…didn’t I put my license plate number on the 30+ page lease agreement I had signed/initialed 24 times on Friday morning? Wasn’t my phone number on there too? Why wouldn’t they call me?
I asked the office team (in a rather harsh tone) these very questions. Their answer pissed me off even more.
There’s no field for license plate numbers in their CRM solution. There’s no way to search for license plate numbers. None. The management lady told me that with over 400 residents, they never take the time to check all the leases for this kind of information.
So how in the hell do they know what cars are in their parking garages? How can they promise any kind of security? What’s the point of having gates if you don’t bother to regulate who comes in and out?
Why is it so hard to notify a resident instead of having a car towed?
What kind of neighbor does this? What kind of management company allows this? Greystar does.
Welcome to Roosevelt Square by Greystar, where you’re safe from everyone…but the management. Welcome to the neighborhood!
UPDATE: After visiting the leasing office yesterday (I may have been a bit confrontational) the front office promised to call the tow company and try for a reduced rate. A long shot, but nice of them to try, right? WRONG. They never called, at least according to the tow company lady who answers the phones all day. Really Greystar? REALLY?
More from tdhurst
- Apple has lost the magic
- Decisions should not always be made by the people
- Kabuki responds to customer tweet during Happy Hour
- Buy to rent
- Here a Ford, there a Ford
Arkayne recommends
- Make a Mark on Your Customers (Derek Neighbors)
- Strange Lessons in Learning How to Sell Well (Tomas Carrillo)
- How To Find a Social Media Expert (Derek Neighbors)
{ 7 comments }
Which is easier: having them have license plate search capability in their CRM tool or you just looking to see if you are parking in a valid parking space? Come on man.
Neither Katie nor I saw it. Who expects to get towed from their own parking garage? And since they have no ability to determine who IS allowed to be in there? What’s stopping me from letting you or anyone else free reign in there? Why did I have to fill out so many pages of a lease to have them not even know which car was mine? Don’t they work for ME?
Sorry man, I gotta side with Wayne. It sucks getting your car towed but it is not their responsibility to track you down when you park somewhere you’re not supposed to. Did you not get a code for the gated part of the garage? If not, that’s what you should be pissed about.
I was IN the gated part of the garage. There are apparently a few reserved spots, one on the third floor, that I had no idea about. When I hear open parking, I assume that means open parking.
While I do agree with Wayne, you have a good point.
Any apartment complex I have ever lived in has done the same thing: required you to fill out page after page of auto information, only to basically scrap it once you’re approved for the apartment. Why? If they’re not actively tracking who’s parking in their space, what’s the point? And, as you’ve said, how can they guarantee the security they say they do?
Someone needs to start consulting these companies on best practices.
Sorry to hear about your troubles. I hate management companies that don’t care about the resident (customer) experience, even after you report it to them.
Remember when you asked me about Roosevelt Square, because I had lived there for a year before? This pretty much echoes my experience, they aren’t specifically bad, but they certainly aren’t any better, friendlier, or more efficient than any other apt management. Management companies in general just suck. And I feel for the people who work there–they are overworked and underpaid.
Comments on this entry are closed.