FOX MANAGEMENT INC

Probably the most unresponsive company I have ever hired to do anything. I signed with them on July 17, 2012, had a potential renter ready to sign 3 days later at the advertised rent, and didn't even learn of it until about 3 weeks later....AFTER Fox consistently hounded me to drop the price level. Emails go unanswered (with the exception of one) and phone calls/voice mails are ignored. There is no communication between the staff members and they consistently ignore the owner's requests for communication regarding the property. There were reports to me from potential renters that they were told it doesn't matter what the owner wants, they were the property managers. OK Fox, last I checked, the owner's are paying you....you do what they want or get out of this business. And I'm very apologetic if it's a "pain in the butt" (to quote the ever-so-eloquent Ms. Rossi) to do your job and get quotes for repairs/cleaning of a property. Wow. What's worse is they treated potential tenants in the same fashion with ignored communication attempts. NO THANKS TO FOX the renters really wanted my property, so all the footwork was done by them. Kudos to Hot Pads and Craigs List...do yourself a favor and advertise your property there...that's all Fox does anyway and you're saving yourself some time and degradation. The communication within their own office is severely lacking. Prime example, I said two pets, not one, the property would be available Sep 1, not August 1, all of which was written down. Somehow this information slipped right past a leasing agent, the internet advertising person, and the property manager. Another example: when questioned as to why I wasn't notified of a showing so I could vacate premises (which occurred on three occasions), the standard response was "It shows up on my calendar from the secretary. I asked if you were notified.....". If this were true, then the proper answer in all three instances would've been no...since I wasn't! So either the communication skills are severely lacking in the office or someone is not being completely truthful. Either one is a problem. On at least two occasions, there were showings scheduled that the leasing agent couldn't bother to show up for-- or call to notify myself or the potential tenants, or return our calls at the appointment time. Still waiting on that call back. At one showing that Fox failed to appear at the renters said "They [Fox] work for you. If I were you, I'd be pretty angry because you had a tenant ready to rent today-right now. They weren't here to finish the deal." Nice job Fox. Tressa Rossi, the owner, presents herself as a professional when trying to get your business. Once you've signed, if you irritate her in any fashion, her professionalism goes out the window. I was her paying client (if she could've managed to do her job and close the deal with a renter) and she spent ten minutes screaming at me on the phone about how she was in no rush to close the deal that required some additional paperwork, that she was not a babysitter when I asked for more communication regarding a lease signing, and all because I called to ask why she failed to show up to a scheduled meeting with myself and the tenants agent via phone. Well here's where I apologize again for not realizing that in a four week time frame, five phone conversations, two meetings (one of which was to sign your contract and cut a check-didn't want to miss that meeting did you?), numerous ignored emails/voice mails, and asking to be notified when I need to leave-was a tad over the top in communication with a company hired to represent me in leasing my property. She then informed me that the company wouldn't be able to pass a government credit inquiry unless she produced paperwork and that she was in no rush to "check some stupid box from 2007" to find it. Big red flag when a company can't even clear up a potential credit issue five years after it supposedly happened. Did I mention that Ms. Rossi, and I quote her, doesn't "deal with owners or tenants." Funny, you dealt with me when you wanted my signature on your contract and a check. Suddenly you are above that now? Again--Wow.Even after all of this, I was still willing to work with Fox Management since I'm a pretty reasonable person, but after the verbal bashing and screaming abuse I received from Ms. Rossi I decided it may be well worth the $200 fee to sever ties with her. She then threatened to charge me $600 for a tenant finding fee, but backed down when reminded that she didn't find any tenant to move in (read your own contract Ms. Rossi). Fortunately, she backed down - perhaps when she realized I would call in Federal attorney's to resolve the situation. Then, within fifteen minutes of hanging up, she suddenly found her sense of urgency (which was desperately lacking when she decided to miss a lease-signing negotiation) to send me an email "parting ways" and graciously waived the $200, which was bogus anyway since the contract states that it's payable when I notify in writing, which never happened (again, take some time and read your own contract Ms. Rossi). Thanks, you waived a fee you weren't entitled to anyway. I'm really glad it made you feel better to throw the first punch and sever ties with me. To top everything off, the potential renters that witnessed the entire conversation went to the Fox offices to retrieve whatever paperwork they had signed and were told that the contract with me had been severed earlier that morning. News to me since her leasing agent was at my home at noon to sign papers, and also very sad since the renters knew the staff was lying to them. Maybe you can add time telling as a job requirement for your staff Ms. Rossi, or at least how to fabricate intelligently. Anyway, what property manager has a tenant sign anything if they no longer have a contract with the owner? And, when the applicants asked for their application fee back since Fox claimed they no longer managed the property, they were told to take it up with the owner and GAVE OUT ALL MY CONTACT INFORMATION without my expressed permission. Looking at my contract, Fox Management keeps all application fees, so perhaps they should retrain their staff and get them to read the contracts as well. Maybe toss in some privacy act, personal information disclosures. And why would you charge that anyway if you no longer have management responsibilities of a property?In short, if you enjoy paying a company to ignore you as a client, go against your expressed desires (I distinctly said to please call if there's questions, not email; and they blatantly went against my instructions regarding a pending contract), and verbally abuse you when you dare to ask them to keep an appointment, go with Fox Management. If you want your property rented without feeling like you're a nuisance to a company that you're paying to perform a service, run as fast as you can from Fox. The only thing good I can say about Fox is that despite Ms. Rossi's blatant short temper and bullying tactics, Julie (an obviously underpaid employee if the office environment is anything remotely close to what I experienced) did keep her composure and professionalism--and that Ms. Rossi showed her true business sense and lack of professionalism before I was locked in too deep to get out and any potential renters were forced to deal with her or her company for one more second. The poetic justice in all this is that Ms. Rossi burned the only bridge she had to a potential market corner with the military community in the Portland-Metro area. Heard of the term "blacklisted"? Perhaps she can dig in some "stupid box" and figure it out since she won't be finding any rent checks from me or the government in there.

Fox did an unbelievably terrible job renting and maintaining our rental property. First, their costs were extremely high and they double billed us on several occasions. About a third to a half of all rental income, when the property was actually rented out, went to Fox through maintenance and/or management fees. Second, they were very slow to deal with a tenant who was months in arrears despite my requests to handle the situation. Third they were incredibly unresponsive to email or phone calls. I would say stay as far away as possible.