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CitiApartments / Skyline Realty
Rating Details »
Categories: Apartments, Property Management [Edit]
Neighborhood: Castro2099 Market St
San Francisco, CA 94114
(415) 861-1111
- Hours:
Mon-Fri. 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Sat. 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Sponsored Result
Announcement Nearby
Real Management Company
- Category:
- Property Management
- Neighborhood:
- Noe Valley
RMC is open Monday-Friday 8AM-5PM and weekends 10AM-5PM. Drop by the office with a photo ID and $40 cash and we'll loan you keys for 1 hour!
92 reviews for CitiApartments / Skyline Realty
Boo.
They owned our building until recently.
They fired anyone who came to vacuum and clean and pretty much stopped doing anything to maintain a fairly nice building as soon as they bought it. The previous owners were great, but not this multi-named mystery.
Boo.
From the outside looking in the place is really corupt. someone should be going to jail for our elevator not working, because any reputatable service company will not service CitiApartments because they do not pay their bills. Oh yea-- how many deposits have they not refunded in order to pay the bills. and is the city attorney doing anything at all- NOOOOO. they city lawsuit is two years old? or older. Does Citiapartments pay into the city health plan or employees--- most likey not... and why not aren't building managers employees?
Where are you Herrera? fundraising for you next campaign?
They are all crooks--- Dave Raynal, Walt Lembi, ......
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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2/14/2007
Have you ever heard the word Slum-Lord? Well that's Skyline/CitiApartments in a nutshell. --- At… Read more »
BEWARE
Just wait until Citiapapartments screws you too.
MOST OF THEIR BUILDINGS ARE IN FORECLOSURE.
They are not repaying ANY security deposits right now as they are going through bankruptcy.
KISS YOUR SECURITY DEPOSIT GOOD BYE
In my building alone:
-The blood in the hallways from a crime was never cleaned up.
-Used condoms sit for months in the garage (from hookers)
-My window has been broken for 3 months.
-My neighbor's stove has been broken for 2 months.
THEY ONLY WILL REPAIR A SAFETY HAZARD IF YOU REPORT THEM TO THE CITY - (415) 558-6220 http://sfgov.org/site/...
Okay, so here's a glimpse into the future:
Skyline + Citinet (CitiApartments' puppet wifi provider) = Skynet (fictional computer network from the Terminator films)
The similarities:
CitiApartments / Skyline Reality is located in San Francisco and is one of the city's largest real estate companies. Citinet is widely incorporated throughout their buildings.
Skynet's California headquarters dominates a post-apocalyptic Bay Area.
CitiApartments / Skyline Realty employs intimidating thugs in an effort to rid their apartments of defiant or non compliant residents (i.e. justice seeking tenants).
Skynet utilizes intimidating robots or "terminators" in an effort to eradicate the world of the human race and its defiant or non compliant resistance fighters (i.e. justice seeking avengers).
Citinet offers an unreliable and often malfunctioning wireless internet connection to CitiApartments / Skyline Realty residents at an unreasonable cost on an unsecured network.
Skynet is also a malfunctioning network of technology that offers a terrible service (killing people) at an unreasonable cost (human life).
I'm sure there are more similarities, but we'll just have to wait for Kyle Reese to nude-travel from the future to make more sense of this evil empire.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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7/12/2009
WARNING: THE FOLLOWING IS FUCKING DISGUSTING
From my boyfriend:
July 12, 2009
This day will forever be… Read more »
Trust some of what Stu said, but Citi Apartments is still in business, unfortunately when those suckamalechickenorgan knows that potential newbies into the big city like it in the analregions, hard and fast they will take your last dollar to jack up the rent and create false reasons and excuses, leaving you with a horrible apartment without fixing things such as a dripping faucet, rodent problems eminating from their lack of effective property management!!! It may have just been my bad luck for that particular placement. Hey. they have a huge range of agents and evil is evil. Unfortunately, that evil doer happened to have worked for CitiApartments, unbeknownst to me the silly virgin girl to the big city. Hey notice those metal jail grates on their doors? They put those up soon after the bad publicity hit all the old style papers on the streets...We are in the KNOW now!!!
Do NOT do any business with them IF you can avoid it. The main problem is that they have a HUGE corner on a majority of the larger apartment complex management business in this city and if luck out, like me and find a sweetheart of a deal you get rescued as if by a knight in shining armor and swept off your feet onto a white stallion with a wonderfully good vibing organ. Peace be with you!!!
l l l l
VVVV
8/17/09 Got my deposit back from the new company - urban pioneer - after signing my rights to sue away. Do not rent from citiapartments.
DEPOSIT update - moved out of my trophy properties owned building, today marks the 21st day out, no deposit back as of yet (legally they have 21 days).
Did the walkthrough with the building manager. Only negative of note was cosmetic in the bathroom sink (a small crack). Deposit paid was $1,900 four years ago.
No deposit as of yet, will keep you all updated. AVOID renting from citiapartments.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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10/19/2007
These guys are the worst. They bought the building I've lived in happily for the past few years and… Read more »
Finally I got hold of the person who "takes care of legal matters" at Citiapartments. According to him, the specific legal entity that purchased the building that I resided is currently facing a foreclosure, and per court order, the defendant's assets are claimed by the plaintiff, such that I can only get my deposit back when the matters clear with the creditors.
I am uncertain about the validity of his statements but I am suspicious. I know that I had been misinformed by the company before, and he did not provide any written statements, no document, nothing, despite the fact that the company owes me money, and it's two months overdue beyond the 21 day window period. In response to my request for written statements, he told me to search on the California superior court website for applicable filings.
OK, I'm not a legal clerk working for you. I'm your client and, unwillingly yet practically, now your creditor. Why don't you have your staff download that goddamn document, save it in PDF, and forward it to us as an attachment to a memoranrum explaining the circumstances, if your claims are for real?
"Why don't you call back in a week to follow up? Feel free to exercise whatever rights you think you may have."
Wow.
http://en.wikipedia.or...
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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6/21/2009
It's been two months from the date by which they legally had to return my security deposit, and I… Read more »
deserve no stars! Ever since first dealings with them I have been given a headache every time I speak to someone. They always have a new person who handled my account. Promised lowering my rent for a parking spot I was rented, never happened. when I canceled my spot I was supposed to get a security deposit back, I called a month later and they said the building management had been turned over to Laramar Group. They are just as bad. Now it has been almost 2 months and no deposit back!
UPDATE: .a class action law suit was filed today (7/13/2009) on behalf of those who have yet to receive their deposit back or were delayed beyond the legal 21 days in receiving it. If you did not sign a settlement waiving your rights you could join the suit. If the case is successful you could receive twice the amount of your deposit in damages.
Success! Not only did I get my deposit back but their check cleared the bank when I cashed it. Then I went back and protested on principle and to educate others. To my surprise there was an NBC news crew to cover my one person protest. The People need to be heard and heard they will be! :)
Watch the film clip here:
http://www.nbcbayarea....
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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7/1/2009
If I could give zero stars I would.
I am holding a PROTEST BOYCOTTING CITIAPARTMENTS TOMORROW,… Read more »
CitiApartments owns the buildings it claims to "manage" and they are currently having a number of their building foreclosed upon, and not returning deposits to their tenants. Steer clear of these people. They engage in illegal and unethical behavior on a regular basis. It would not surprise me in the slightest if it was revealed they have connections to organized crime (actually "organized crime" could describe their business practices.)
If you are curious about their "Best of San Francisco" rating, this was simply a write-in done by them (they grabbed every SF Weekly they could find and had their employees write-in their name.)
They are liars, they are evil, and hopefully they will be out of business and out of our city for good before too long.
It's about time I reviewed this place. After almost 5 full years of taking my rent check every week, these jokers are now almost 3 months deep into not giving me back my deposit of $2300. Needless to say I've contacted them many times via email and voice mail messages. It's now come to the point where they have admitted they are illegally holding my money and have told me I can take them to court if I wish. SFAppeal was nice enough to hear more of my story and wrote it up at the link below. I urge you not to rent from this shady business as they have no morals and are the worst realty company I've ever dealt with...
http://tinyurl.com/klhrbe
I live in a Citi bldg and just received a note (Sept 23) that the building has gone into receivership and we are supposed to pay Laramar Urban SF Apartments. I've got calls into Citi (nobody answering) and Laramar to confirm it is legit before I redirect checks. However, I thought it would be useful for Yelpers to know about. The financial crisis apparently hit their balance sheet hard ...
3 days with out water, still no help from management.. great place, not to mention the cockroaches!
Why o' why must I give one star? If I HAVE to give a star, why can't it be a Chinese star into the skulls of the evil unethical chimps who run this establishment.
MY BUILDING HAD BEDBUGS DURING THE WHOLE 3 YEARS I LIVED THERE.
Did Citi-Apartments cover ANY of my losses? Did they cover the loss of my bed, hundreds of dollars of property, lost wages, medical visits, and laundry cost? NO. Did they manage to find crazy ways to deduct from my deposit when I moved? Absolutely.
DO NOT RENT FROM CITIAPARTMENTS. This business does not care about anyone. They only care about money. They rule with greed, corruption, and lack of common decency. I am much happier with my new leasing company, Hawthorne & Stone.
The worst of the worst. Zero stars.
I have had plenty of bad landlords over the years, but CitiApartments puts them all to shame in terms of complete lack of ethical principles.
They do not fix things.
The elevator breaks, and it stays broken, for weeks at a time. The fire extinguisher was used (because there was a fire), and it has not been replaced. Yes, we are living in the largest wooden building west of the Mississippi, and we have an empty fire extinguisher for over six months, despite repeated complaints. There are parts of the building which seem never to have been cleaned. There are rats. There is garbage everywhere. Etc, etc.
They do not let you contact them.
We have a building manager, but we are not allowed to have her number. We can only reach an answering machine, where it is claimed that our call will be return shortly. Calls are not returned, ever. There is an option to "speak to an after-hours representative", but if you choose that option, you hear that "you have chosen an invalid option".
The truth is, if you choose CitiApartments, you have indeed chosen "an invalid option".
I'll leave it to others to describe how they are broke and no longer returning security deposits. I still live here. But I'm already writing off that money.
PS. Most of their positive Yelp reviews are clearly bogus. Especially the ones that mention particular agents by name: they all have the same style and arise from suspiciously new accounts. Two star average? No. Zero stars.
PPS. Why is a five star review on top of the list on Yelp, even though I just posted mine? Because Yelp is taking money from CitiApartments? Oh well, if you can sleep well at night, you gotta do what you gotta do, I guess.
About 3 years ago when I was trying to move into the city from Pleasanton (which I had been living temporarily) I had some friends that were living in CitiApartments buildings so I went there first. I didn't have the best experience at that time and vocalized my complaints because I didn't get a whole lot of attention surrounding looking at many apartments. I ended up moving into a private apartment building that I found on Craigslist but after having a very apologetic conversation with a manager that was running the leasing side, I did commit to giving them a second try when I was ready. Boy did they take it seriously!
I lived on Beach and Fillmore and had been passively looking to find a place with a remodeled kitchen because I've been cooking a lot more lately and not having a dishwasher was brutal. I emailed Tracy Ballard about one of the listings I saw on Craigslist around 11pm at night and she literally called me at 8am the next morning. She stayed late that night to show me the apartment because of my crazy work schedule and not only did she let me scour the place but she brought a list of other apartments that I might like if I didn't like this one. She was soo friendly and accomodating! I ended up liking the original one she showed me and got a great deal AND was able to move in right away!
The thing that really blew me away was that she sent me 'reminder' emails of my appointments for the lease signing, getting my keys, etc with specifics like where I needed to go, who I needed to talk to and all the specifics. She really held my hand through my experience and had no idea what kind of experience I had before which made it an even better 'test' for them...and they passed with flying colors! There was even a little surprise for me waiting at my door when I moved in. She's since followed up a few times to make sure everything was going well and I have since referred a few people to Tracy.
It was such a great experience and I'm not sure how they did it but in just 3 years they have completely turned how they do leasing around. Good work everyone and thank you for my great apartment!!
Citiapartments, I tolerated you. I wrote a fair and uncritical review of one of your agents, and gave you 3 stars despite the less-than-stellar building management. I defended you while others disparaged.
I terminated my lease early - not ideal, but I had found my dream apartment and thought, hey, if I can reach a mutually beneficial compromise with Citiapartments (they give me a little of my rent back, and get to try to rent my apartment in advance of the crazy no-one-in-their-right-mind-is-moving-house holiday season) then perhaps we'd part on good terms.
Paul, the legal contact at the Lembi Group with whom I corresponded (or at least tried to) is one of the most unprofessional, unresponsive people I have ever had the misfortune to encounter. He was consistent only in his failure to send the appropriate documents, information, updates without my hounding him via email/phone. He handles time-sensitive materials in a very untimely manner with all the professional grace of an elephant.
Never, Citiapartments, shall I work with you again, for this and all the other reasons listed in the countless other negative reviews. How naive were my 3 stars, how unjustified this one remaining. Shame on you.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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7/20/2008
I didn't have a terrible experience with Citiapartments. When I was looking for a place my financial… Read more »
UPDATE - i went to citiapartments this morning at 8:30am and waited for jeff lieberg (property accountant who i have left at least 5 voicemails with) to walk in the door and demanded my security deposit. he told me the company doesn't have the money to pay me. i explained that is impossible b/c my money should be in escrow, not used for operational expenses. he was extremely rude, ducked my questions, and when i told him how unprofessional i thought it was to ignore my phone calls he bluntly said "i get about 50 calls like this a day", as if that volume of calls he gets about this somehow justifies treating tenants like crap? after jeff ran away and offered me no support or information, i demanded to speak with ed singer, the general counsel there, and after about 30 minutes of waiting a check was cut for me.
if you are also trying to get your deposit, my advice is to go there in person and don't let them tell you no. if i would have walked out there door after speaking with jeff, im confident they wouldn't have paid me. don't be afraid to let every employee there know that you are aware it is illegal for them to withhold your money after 21 days and tell everyone you speak with (including the receptionists) that you are not leaving until you have a check in hand - i honestly think they paid me b/c i was so presistent and didnt just go away.
now whether or not the check actually cashes is another story...
____________________________________
its been well over 21 days since i vacated the citiapartments property i lived in for one year and they still haven't paid me my security deposit. ive called various people in various positions and have not gotten a straight answer from anyone. i left a message for their attorney, ed singer, today. ill keep you posted on how it turns out.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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5/5/2009
if i could only have back the hours of time i've wasted dealing with ridiculous issues that have… Read more »
If they wanted to let me have a three bedroom/ 2 1/2 bath (w/ a marble tub and bidet), skylights, Italian granite kitchen w/ Vulcan appliances, bamboo and mahogany flooring, 24K gold Kohler fixtures, inlaid waterfall foyer entryway, teak balconies w/ matching chaise lounges surrounding infinity pools overlooking the entire city of San Francisco..............I would decline the offer. Need I say more?
This company is comprised of predatory staff (with rare exception) who do nothing more than capture normal clientele and watch as the equally predatory- wannabes carry out the distasteful duties involved in executing nothing short of frank deception and theft of human existence.
Living in SF is an amazing miracle in and of itself. If more people were as forthcoming with description of personal experience as I am doing- "YELP" would be utilized appropriately to ensure that others are not caught in the net of "unfortunate fish" so greedily pulled from the sea of hopeful, trusting righteous folks who despite Citiapartments- will hopefully recover and continue to believe in humanity, NEED I SAY MORE???????
If I could give negative 5 stars I would. This company is a sham, a cheat, a gimmick and a bunch of inconsiderate fucks that have absolutely ZERO interest in tenant satisfaction.
I could write a novella, but I won't. Every singe interaction has been so far sub par that it makes me angry just to type this. When no one would answer my calls I went into the leasing office to speak to someone about the CONSTANT NOISE that leaves me up at 3am EVERY NIGHT (and it's the freaking RICHMOND!?!) i was met with really discouraging attitude from the receptionist who seemed shocked and inconvenienced that I, an on-time with rent, tenant should have a concern about not being able to sleep (and I've lived in NY & LA, noise is rarely if ever an issue).
Every time I deal with them it takes every fiber of my being to avoid choking someone out from across the desk/through the phone.
Moved out of my citiapt-run apartment one month ago, and still haven't received my deposit, but I didn't start sweating until I saw the other yelpers' reviews. Now I'm nervous.
In addition, I was told $150 was being held from my deposit because I didn't clean the fridge well enough. Hopefully, professionals come in between each lease and do an overall cleaning, right??? Maybe not, eeewwww.
Not recommended. I'll repost in a bit regarding the deposit situation.
Do not rent from these people if you have a choice. They have just fired a lot of their managers and replaced them with extremely part-time tenant assistants, which means maintenance will be sporadic. The manager in my building did an outstanding job of keeping the place immaculate and of screening for good tenants, but they canned her anyway.
They also took 8 weeks to return my deposit (for no apparent reason). How do they get away with it? They take out from your check for "cleaning" exactly the amount that they would've had to pay for a rent board fine.
It's a pity that they do these things because they certainly turn off repeat customers!
If you're renting in the city you won't necessarily be in a position to choose your landlord, but if you ever have to rent from these guys just be prepared for some letdowns. The customer service here is terrible. To be fair, I don't entirely know if they're really swamped and understaffed or if they simply don't give a shit, but every time I've had any kind of immediate need (while moving in, moving out, and trying to collect my deposit) it's taken me huge efforts to get in touch with anyone that could actually help rather than forward me to someone's voicemail. With all of the laws that favor renters here in SF it seems like it would be in their best interest to get things done in a timely manner, but who knows, maybe they're just tough like that.
I have been waiting to write this review for 6 years! The only reason to rent an apartment from citi apartments is if you have a dog period.
I will start w/ my move in date with these folks six years ago. I moved from Denver to SF. My mother and I had driven two days straight w/ my dog sitting on her lap the whole way. I call my citi apartments broker many times to inquire about my apartment ( I had also called prior to my trip). We finally arrive in SF and drive to the citiapartments office building. Guess what my apartment is not ready and the broker is nowhere to be seen! Not ready is an understatement there is a toilet sitting in the middle of the living room floor. Luckily this was during the http://dot.com bust so Citiapartments allows me to stay in another apartment temporarily for a month. This does not help the situation w/ the movers that are coming the next day.
Next lets talk about the manager's of my building. The first one seemed nice at first but ended up being a complete lunatic. He calls my apartment at 3 am drunk of his A$$ cursing in my phone that I can no longer trash the hallways w/ my mail. Apparently a bed bath and beyond coupon w/ my name on it had fallen out of the general trash can.
Ok now lets talk about the dead spider the size of my fist that is STILL in the hallway smashed up against a wall and has never been removed for the past 6 years!
Next topic. The Elevator from hell. This thing worked about 20% of the time. I lived in a 7 floor building. I also was stuck in it once. The fire department had to come and rescue me it was a scary! I was not the only one that needed to be rescued this happened several times. I don't think it can handle more than 300 lbs as well so forget about telling movers that you are moving into an "elevator" building.
Last but not least the day I moved out my manager throws away half of the stuff I was trying to load into my car.
Enough said Citiapartments brings a new meaning to the word slumlord. I stayed there for six years because of rent control and I am happy to be out from under them!
I live in a building that is partly owned by CitiApartments/Skyline Realty. I and 5 other tenants are contributing to this.
Managers do not return our phone calls or respond to written requests for repair. Repairs take months, if they are done at all. Many requests for repair are simply ignored. The only hope to get them to do repairs is to complain to the SF building inspector. Even this does not always work. Many tenants here fear retaliation and will not complain to the city.
Things have gotten much worse recently: we suspect that the CitiApartment foreclosures (http://sftu.org/) will cost us dearly for many years to come.
By the way, with respect to Megan M.'s post, we all have seen Andrew around with prospective tenants. You're right: he is unethical and unprofessional.
Call me a serial optimist, but I believe that life is beautiful and that the perfect apartment and rental company will always be what I am given. I really enjoyed working with Guy at Citiapartments and his willingness to help me find the perfect place. He went out of his way to provide outstanding service and cater to my every need. Everyone that I dealt with at this company was kind, professional, and helpful. Despite what the other reviews might say, remember that most people are more likely to write negative reviews than positive ones.
Citiapartments are the spawn of the devil. If ANDREW HAWKINS or CONOR NOLAN try to approach you about their "relocation program" be warned- it is scam that is embedded deeply in lies. They will do everything in their power to convince you of their professionalism in order get you out of your rent-controlled unit without any compensation or help. They both spin lies and a lack of professionalism that I found appalling. They show up late, do not return phone calls, LIE repeatedly, and basically do their utmost to screw your life up in every way they can. Do not be sucked into Citiapartments attempt to gentrify your neighborhood. Keep your rent controlled apartment and tell the bloodthirsty ANDREW HAWKINS and CONOR NOLAN to keep their scummy offers and "F" off.
I changed my mind, Citi is really one of the lamest organizations out there. I'd been trying to get my lease updated for several months and nothing ever happened. The apartment manager they assigned for my building apparently had a known drinking problem. They apparently left the records a MESS for the folks who are now managing my building, so I'm having a hard time seeing how they manage to keep track of anything.
Also, for those of you paying attention to the CitiApartments lawsuits/etc, I too was pseudo-threatened by the ex-cop "manager" or whatever he was. He was talking about how he used to be a cop and trying to be intimidating, I mentioned that I was buddy-buddy with current SFBA officers and that shut him up.
They also bugged the hell out of me and my neighbors by calling multiple times a month asking if they could offer me money to move out. Two of my neighbors did, and moved out of state. They offered me a lot of money to leave, which I didn't take, so I'm guessing they were really working their "we circulate tennants to make you more money" angle to landlords. Too bad that landlords don't make as much money that way either...
They also never paid the interest on my security deposits, handing that bag to the new owners.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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12/31/2006
They're my landlords, and while I could say a lot of random things about that, I've decided that… Read more »
What a horrible organization. I have lived in three places in san francisco in the past three years. Whenever I move, i find my new place on craigs list. Whenever I click a link and see the citi apartments logo, i've learned automatically that it will be a complete rip off. They maximize profits at all cost and have no interest in helping make housing affordable for anyone. enough said...
They would be in Minus Star territory if I had my way. This company is finally bankrupt, thank God. My first experience with Skyline was in 1978 when I lived at 2677 Larkin at Chestnut. They bought the building and immediately jacked the rents up. The raise was more than I was willing to pay and they pretty much emptied the building and raised rents through the roof. I came into contact with them in several other tenant situations until 2007 when I was evicted from my apartment of 18 years. I was and am a disabled senior citizen on a fixed income and they treated me like garbage. They almost went under during the Savings and Loan debacle two decades ago, but survived and even thrived by gouging and over leveraging every property they bought. They even layed off resident managers and one time I called a plumber who said his company would only work on a Skyline/Citiapartment property for CASH because they hadn't been paid in so many years. Terrible company with terrible values. The City has been suing them for almost ten years.
I had the same problem with these guys that a lot of people have: Agents who won't return my phone calls, have full voicemail boxes and a receptionist who only transferred me to another full voicemail box. When I called back and said that the voicemail box of the agent she transferred me to was full and asked to speak with another agent, she transferred me to a random agent...who then transferred me to a full voicemail box. GAH!!!
Well, whatever. I found a studio apartment that was in the location and price range I wanted anyway. If Citiapartments doesn't want my money, I'm more than happy to spend it somewhere else!
Say what you will about Citiapartments, but they helped me find my bad ass apartment in SF and there is no way I would have found it without them!
My relationship with them all started during the week between Christmas and New Year's. I was desperately on the search for an apartment and was practically renting space on Craigslist I was checking it so often, but every time I entered my price range, image and cat friendly, well, the results were...pathetic. One, maybe four listings a day and needless to say I was starting to panic.
How was I ever going to find a place? Does SF hate cats or something? Does no one own a digital camera to take a friggin picture of an apartment before I fly my ass up to SF to look at a place that might possibly be a total dump?! These were the questions I asked my cats as I spent day after day and night after night searching and finding nada.
But then finally it appeared. Oh. My. God. The coolest apartment ever!! With views and pretty windows and hardwood floors and a livingroom big enough to get my new armoire in!!! And the price was great, it was in the Lower Haight and I was sooo excited and so I emailed the guy on Craigslist and we started chatting. I then worked (what I thought was) my magic and arranged for an early showing before the masses got their hands on it that Saturday and based on the photo and what he told me about the place, I was on the next plane out of Burbank and wasn't coming back without that apartment.
Well when I arrived in SF and called the gentleman, things seemed to get a tad more complicated and instead of this once, easy, meant to be kind of apartment moment it was more of a "I've totally been had" reality check of a moment. The nutshell is that the guy who posted the add was a tenant. A tenant trying to break his lease. A tenant that had no right posting an ad. A tenant that listed the apartment for a made up sum that was no where's near what it would be renting for once he left. Of course, I learned all of this while sitting in the Citiapartments offices thinking I was there to see this place and make it happen only to sign on for total bummerness. (And yes, I'm aware that bummerness is not a word, but it fits dammit!)
At this point I was really sad, frustrated and of course it started to rain. I mean, what kind of a story would this be if it didn't start raining right at the pivotal moment of home hunting heartbreak. I then met the main girl at citiapartments and she explained the sitch and said that they could try and line up some places for me to see next week, but that wasn't going to do me any good, I was only planning to be there for a couple days. I explained this to her and the very next morning I had a 10am appointment with Dan O'Leary to go look at places. Wow!
Now, this doesn't happen in LA. There is Westside Rentals which is basically a total rip off, but a company that will personally drive your ass around to look at places and not charge you? What is not to like? We went all over the Mission, the Lower Haight and all of the areas I wanted to live in. We joked around, he gave me hope and then took me to...my new home.
As soon as we walked in, I just about fainted. I had seen some total shit holes that day that just weren't what I could stomach to call home, but this place, oh my god, and those views, oh my god and the roof access. OH MY GOD!! And so, I looked it over and pretty much decided then and there that it was mine. After asking him to let me think about it over night, I took my friends in the city to see it the next morning and well, done and done.
Since then, working with Dan on the credit check, lease and the first month/last month/parking space financial stuff has been totally pro and awesome and for a girl who didn't know where the hell she was going to live to the happiest little future transplant in the world, well, I have nothin but love for Citiapartments!
I loved Citi Apartments. I used a gentleman by the name of Guy - he was amazing. I had a very short period of time to find a place, he worked nights & weekends to accommodate my working schedule. I found a lovely place in Pacific Heights, I love the building. Went to the Citi Apartments to sign my lease and everyone seemed friendly. Maybe it depends who you get. Well, ask for Guy...seriously, I gave him my criteria's and I wasn't disappointed. As for slumlords, Citi isn't one of them in my opinion, when i get an issue, i call and usually within 24-48 hours I get someone to fix the problem or call me to set an appt. Sure the building has issues, this IS San Francisco, if you want a new building to rent, move to the Burbs, but seriously - my experience has been positive.
I find it hard to believe that there are any good reviews? I think this is part of a PR scam? Well they raised the rents when they took over the building. 1775 in just one month to 2500 for a 1 bedroom.
They have not taken care of the outside of the building in a gorgeous area. They kept calling when they first took over the building. They tried to change my lease terms. There were some people who looked like they just got out of jail living in one of the units? They mentioned they were friends of the owners? They never signed a lease, and they almost burned the building down!
I have to say all the signs, papers, and marketing that they put all over the building defaces the look of the building. I wish they could just manage and take care of the building! A lot of the tenants in my building are really not happy. I would not have moved in here if I knew they would be the owners. They offer a lot of money to buy the building I am in........... Oh well............ I prefer the small business owned buildings. My boyfriends building they have never raised the rent and we moved around the same time.
"Thank you for chosing shitty apartments, we realize you have your choice in landlords, and you've made the wrong one." I couldn't give less stars, that's why I gave it one. It should be a base 10 rating system with a range of -5 to 5. I'd give CitiApartments a -5. What a bunch of incompetent goons. They burst into your apartment CONSTANTLY showing it out to prospective rent. Like, I'm talking about four times in a month, and what are you to do. Meanwhile they won't return your phonecalls (don't even think you're going to get anything fixed, anytime this century.) I was nearly killed by having a shittily- installed 30 pound tile fall from the top of the shower into the tub, leaving a giant dent that would've nicely pierced my brain. This was in one of their 'refurbished apartments.' Then they didn't even show up for the walkthrough when I got out of their shitty deal. I agree, this company is organized crime by definition.
After 12 years of living in this city, and for my 100th review, I'd like simply to say:
F*ck Skyline Realty. F*ck Citiapartments. F*ck everybody in the offices on Church and Market. All of them...right in the eye, f*ck them.
Absolutely horrible service, absolutely useless liasons, and an absolute monopoly. How is this even possible?? Mafia-run, squalor-friendly, internalized-theft-encouraging, tenant-hating, inept-management m*therf*ckers.
The business practices of Lucifer, himself.
Are we gonna let the elevator break us down?
Where the hell do these people find their apartment managers????
I lived in a citiapartment studio in the tenderloin and it was HELL. The plus is that they're dog friendly. I had 2 dogs at the time and I had problems looking for a cheap dog friendly place to live. I also didn't have a car, so I had to live close to my work.
First of all, I hate living in the tenderloin. Obviously it's unsafe, especially since I had to walk my dogs late at night after I got home from work. But that's not citiapartment's fault, that's just SF. My complain to citiapartments is that they don't take care of their buildings. There were mice in the laundry room. The elevator broke down a few times. Lemme tell you, moving in when the elevator's broken is a PAIN IN THE BUTTHOLE!
And then there's the manager. He's almost impossible to contact! He's never home and never picks up the phone. I got locked out of my apartment once when I walked my dog. I couldn't find the manager so I had to take my dog to work! Then when I went home, the manager was still not home! I even asked some friends if they could break into my place. No luck. I actually got inside by squeezing through the window. Yes, the window. Apparently I was skinny enough to get through a half-opened window. I made sure I lock the windows after that.
The last straw was when I saw the manager getting arrested right outside the apartment. I have no idea what he did but I knew I couldn't live there anymore. Plus, I think the old guy living next to my studio died and nobody noticed until a few days later. Ack!
I moved to the peninsula, got a car, and never looked back.
This company is horrible. I will say now that the ONLY person of quality and decency is the Maintainance Manager, Ciretta (don't know how to spell her name but she is amazing and so so kind). EVERYONE else in that company is lazy, fake, and unprofessional. Everyone I have worked with, from the front desk, to the district manager (that changes almost as often as I do a load of laundry) is incompetent. The will do anything to cheat you of your rent. What can I say that hasn't already been said? LOOK elsewhere-- there are much better prices and far more friendly and service-orientated people to work with.
"Without any doubt the worst and most abusive landlord in San Francisco"
-- San Francisco Tenants' Union (http://www.sfbaytimes....)
"Egregious pattern of illegal business practices...Skyline's illicit business practices do not merely victimize tenants...it is pervasive, it is illegal, and it will not be countenanced in San Francisco's rental marketplace."
-- City of San Francisco, Office of the City Attorney (http://www.sfgov.org/s...)
Yup.
-- Me
Man did I screw this one up.
I read the yelp review. I saw the 1 star, but I signed up anyway and now I'm stuck in an apartment full of crackheads, people who smoke in their units, the hallways, and the elevator. A lobby that smells like trash. No trash chute, even though this is a 10 story building. No washer and dryers.
I actually had the building sup lie to me about getting washers and dryers in a "few months" in order to get me to sign the lease. It's been 6 months, still no washers. They did a bait and switch to get me to view the unit, advertised price was $155 less than what showed up on my lease. When I questioned it, they said, "oh, that was a mistake, our list says it is the higher price."
They have monthly "pest inspections", which worry me to no end. They do these while I am at work. What kind of pests are they looking for? Are they going through my things? Did they find pests?!
Crappy water pressure, random hot water, sometimes no water. Unresponsive corporate management. The elevator breaks at least once a month, and it is filthy and sometimes tagged. Tiny fridge, worthless wall heater, and it was dirty when I moved in. Fresh paint though, oddly enough.
The upside is that the building manager is a nice guy. That's half a star, the other half star is because the toilet seems to work pretty well.
Edit: 4/21/08: I was able to break my lease with Citi, in agreement that I wouldn't sue them for such unlivable conditions. I got the pro-rate of my rent back, but not all of the deposit. Despite having Mindful Maid (see their review) do a great job of doing a move out clean, I still got charged $250 for "broken tiles" that were broken when I moved in.
I decided it wasn't worth contacting Citi again, so those worthless slumlords can keep my $250 for the phantom damages, and rest in hell.
