HUBER REAL ESTATE

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unknown

The problems started when we submitted a written notice to vacate the property. They were nice when we dropped off our notice. About a week later we received a statement showing that we would loose our initial one month deposit ($1075.00), which we fully expected. It also said that we would forfeit our $200.00 pet deposit, which we knew was non-refundable. But there was also additional fees totaling $231.00. These consisted of a $45.00 charge to have someone go inspect the property after we vacated, $130.00 carpet cleaning charge for cleaning the living room, 3 average bedrooms and a hallway. The balance was to pay for cleaning the house after we had spent 1.5 hrs cleaning it ourselves. We vacuumed, scrubbed the 1 bathroom, cleaned the kitchen, even pulled out the fridge and cleaned under it and behind it. Took all the shelves and drawers out of the fridge and cleaned in the sink. We crawled around on the floors and scrubbed all of the uncarpeted areas. We requested details about the cleaning charges and asked what the pet deposit gets applied to since we thought that was to go towards the carpet cleaning, which we were told not to clean because they would have it cleaned professionally. We were told that the pet deposit just goes to the owner of the home because we had pets in it.???? The cleaning details specifically mentioned that we were charged for pulling out the fridge to clean under it and behind it, which we had already done!!! and to do the inside as well. Huber would not negotiate or discuss with us over the phone, they just kept telling us to submit any inquiries in writing and every letter we received from them had the threat of us hearing from their attorneys if payment wasn't received within a specified time frame. I really feel that was unnecessary since we were nice to them and just were asking questions about our concerns. Just seemed a like it was a little extreme of a way to treat us when we had done nothing wrong. We had paid our rents on time and in some instances had payed for 2 months at a time in advance. We had been told by them and the owner of the home (who lived next door to us) that we were exceptional renters and that we were the sort of people that they loved to rent to because we paid on time and took great care of the home. To me, it appears to me that they treat people nice when they want you as a customer but once you are vacating, then they treat you horrible and like you have done something wrong or incorrect. After telling coworkers about our experience we discovered that no less than 3 others have had very similar experiences with Huber. I decided to check the BBB website on Huber and found that they have a current rating of "F". This is because they have had 2 complaints to the BBB in the past 6 months and Huber did not respond to the BBB's inquires to them. We currently own 3 houses ourselves and rent 2 of them out in other cities and over the years we have rented multiple homes and apartments and have never experienced anything like this. I would NOT recommend Huber Real Estate to anyone that is looking to rent a property or have them manage your rental property.

Huber provided good service when we inquired about viewing a house for rent. They were agreeable when we completed the paperwork for the rental agreement, and we had no issues, as we paid our rent on time each month. The issues began after we gave notice to vacate. We cleaned the property, returning it to a condition equal or better than when we moved in. We had also done a few minor repairs at our own expense, as to not burdent the owner or the property manager. We understood that the $1075 deposit we had on account would be forfeited, per the terms of the aqreement, as we stayed less than one year. We also had paid a pet fee of $200, which was to be applied to any damages caused by our dogs. Approximately 10 days after turning in the keys, we received a disposition statement in the mail, demanding an additional $321, with a statement on the letter stating that the matter would be referred to the agency's attorney if payment was not received within 7 days. We called Huber to inquire about the specific details of the charges. We were informed that all inquiries would need to be submitted in writing. This lack of willingness to answer questions made by phone inquiries was horrible service. And, a threat to sue on the initial statement seemed a rather harsh approach to us. A written response was submitted to Huber. After waiting two weeks, we still had no response. Another call was made, and we were advised that the owner's assistance would be reponding. Another 10 days went by before a response was received. The response did include two receipts for charges that were being passed onto us. One charge for carpet cleaning, $130 for less than 600 square feet of carpet. The other receipt was for cleaning the residence, at $15/hr for four hours. The list from the cleaning staff, an employee of Huber, indicated the list of cleaining performed. The items on the list were, in fact, completed by us when vacating the residence. The bill from Huber to us also charged us $37.50 per hour, when the invoice provided by the cleaner indicated $15/hr. While our pets did not cause any damage to the place, the fee we paid was not applied to the carpet cleaning, or any other expense. We were later told that the fee was just for the privilege of having a pet, and would not be applied to any cleaning or other expenses. This seemed like another way for Huber to pad their profit. The response to our inquiry did not include answers to very specific questions addressed to the agency regarding responsibilities/charges to tenants and to property owners. The owner refused to provide full disclosure, and to answer direct questions about the charges being assessed to us. Not only did they retain $1275 in deposits, they charged us an additional $231 that was unjustified. Being new to the Wenatchee area, we had no information about the property management companies in the area. But after sharing our experience with co-workers, they all relayed similar stories about Huber, with a bad reputation and questionable integrity spanning two decades. Their current BBB rating is an F, indicating that they have not responded to any complaints lodged against them. Our experience indicates that Huber is motivated by greed, rather than providing the customer service they are hired to provide. Their contract is intentionally vague, as to allow them to assess unjustified costs to tenants. And we suspect that they are passing along the same charges to the owners, as they would not provide information requested outlining what the responsibilities of the tenants versus owners are. I would warn everyone to stay away from this business.