Kass Management Services took over my building a couple of years agoPrior to that, the building was maintained regularlyCommon areas, windows, trash area were all kept cleanKass doesn't keep the building up, windows are so filthy they can't be opened and common areas are overrun with cobwebs, spiders and dustRecycling has been terminated (a City of Chicago code violation and single dumpster replaced the our individual trash bins - not good when the neighbors use your trash for their dog poopTurnover in the management office high, reflecting their transient natureNew tenants are a step down: noisier, dirtier, louder and leave their stuff whereI literally now have neighbors whose friends' dogs crap on patio and it sits there for weeks*** Kass and his organization define low-rentIf you are in Chicago and care about your surroundings or the buildings you own, avoiding Kass Management is the smartest thing you can do
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/07/24) */
Contact Name and Title: ***
Contact Phone: ***
Contact Email***
I received the application for *** for a Re Let of the apartment at *** #G on June 22nd to
process from the property managerAn approval was determined and a lease with instructions for execution was email to the applicants on June 24thI received notice on this day from the applicants that they had found something else in the interim and were not taking the unit at Wolcott anymoreSince they did not put money down to hold the apartment the only money that was deposited was the Non-Refundable application fee
I explained to the applicants that application fees are not refundable and I doubted the statement that the receptionist quoted a hour turnaround time
Regardless, There may have been miscommunication
at the time of applicationTherefore, in an offer of good will we will refund the application fee
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/04/17) */
In response to Case# XXXXXXX
Our records indicate that *** *** and *** *** (Co-Signor) entered into a one year lease for an apartment at *** ** *** Chicago, IL XXXXXThe beginning date of the lease was
August 7, and the ending date July 31st, The signed lease clearly states under Use of Apartment that the apartment shall be occupied exclusively by Tenant and other persons listed in the application*** *** was the only applicant on this leaseDue to her subsequent relocation she sublet the apartment to *** *** *** *** was not on the application nor was she approved to reside at this apartmentThis all transpired without the knowledge/approval of owner/agent
Once the lease expired they did not relinquish the unitInstead there was a renewal lease document subsequently signed on behalf of *** *** and *** *** for an added lease termBased on the documents we received and also correspondence as recent as March, the illegal occupant was portraying themselves as *** ***We have call records requesting maintenance service listing the name *** however the phone number is for *** ***
In addition to requests for maintenance there is additional correspondence between the property manager and *** *** regarding a past due balance as well as the procedure for relinquishing possession at the end of the second lease termThis clearly confirms that *** *** was aware that *** *** was still living in the unitAt no point did *** *** proclaim that there was no further association between *** ***, *** *** and the apartmentIn his discussions with the property manager he stated he tried to make a payment online and was unsuccessful
After seven months into the second term of the lease, Mr*** requested a copy of the lease documents and stated that the signature was not hisUnfortunately, we at Kass Management Services, Inccannot perform forensic signature analysis and rely on the integrity of the signors
Based on most recent communications with *** *** we believe that he was well aware of the fact that the unit was inhabited by an unapproved tenant *** *** and should be held accountable for the amount owed
In an effort to remedy this situation, Kass Management Services, Incis willing to compromise and split the remaining balance owed between the Tenant and Owner
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/04/19) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The lease is an obvious forgery, and one need not be a forensic specialist to determine this to be the caseAnd there were no requests of any kind made by myself to Kass, and nor was there any contact between myself and Kass until they decided to try to collect an alleged balance due, and I would challenge them to provide proof of such conversationsThe apartment was turned over to Kass Management and Ms*** and the lease was put in her name after the one year term of mine and *** lease had expired*** had vacated the unit two months earlier, and I did not renew the leaseApparently Kass Management misplaced, omitted, deleted or destroyed Ms*** lease, and they had no idea who she was when they first contacted me about the apartmentShe left when the term of the lease expiredThe lease to which Kass management is referring, and of which I have a copy, has a total of eighteen signatures of both mine and my daughters nameAll of them are obvious forgeries and they not only do not look anything like out signatures, but the signatures themselves do not even look like one anotherThey are simply scribbled lines, again not having the remotest similarity to ours, as simply comparing them with the signature from the lease which expired in will easily proveIn addition, my daughter was living in Indianapolis, and I travel for a living and was also out of town, on the date that the lease was allegedly signed by us bothAll of this can be easily provenSo this is eighteen counts of forgery and fraud on the part of *** managementI think that they would be wiser to drop this issue, however, if they wish to proceed, I will be more than happy to turn this into a criminal matter
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 7, 2014/03/20) */
Contact Name and Title: *** ***
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: ***@kassmanagement.com
Resident *** *** of NKenmore contacted us via e-mail on 3/5/@ 9:amW responded the next business dayE-mail is
attached hereto
Mr*** has had a history of lodging complaints about noise, sounds, vibrations, etcover the past two years or so
They have been unfounded with the exception of an issue last week as well as an occurrence in the Spring of when a pump was found to be failingAt that time numerous residents complained not only about sounds from the plumbing but lack of hot water as wellThe pump was promptly replacedSee attached photoThis pump is the same pump that has been in place since the Spring of despite Mr***'s belief that we changed it again after he had his attorney send us a threatening letter
Shortly after the pump was replaced in the spring of we also replaced the two hot water heatersWe installed expansion tanks at the time of heater replacement at the recommendation of Mr*** as well
Upon receipt of Mr***'s voicemail on 3/I immediately dispatched a plumber to the property to confirm or deny the problemWhen we arrived in the afternoon we found that there was a legitimate problem with the South heaterThe vent motor on the top of the unit was making a racket and we disabled the heater and D&B Plumbing promptly ordered a new motor
On 3/6, Mr*** lodged his Revdex.com complaintThe vent motor was replaced on Saturday 3/8, under warranty, as soon as it was received
To date, through e-mail correspondence, Mr*** has not confirmed or denied whether the "high noise levels" in his unit have been resolvedHowever, in his e-mail he does admit that "The previous noise I had been hearing from the hot water pump has gone." We have visited Mr***'s unit on 3/11, 3/12, and 3/with no success in gaining entryThroughout time we have done virtually anything that Mr*** has asked with regard to the supposed noise and vibration that he hearsWe engaged the Board of Directors of his Condominium Association and they too agreed that there was no noise being emitted from the heaters or mechanicalsIn fact, they recommended that Mr*** contact his neighbors to see if they were running a fan, humidifier, or dehumidifier in their unit that may be disturbing him as the units have hardwood floorsAdditionally, Mr*** would claim that the noise would be worse at nightThis does not coincide with a correlation to the hot water heatersThe heaters barely run later at night when demand is downIn addition, Mr*** said that the pump would speed up and slow down and he could hear thatThis is not possibleThe pump is a single speed pump that simply runs a hot water circulation circuit that ensures that units far away from the heaters are able to receive hot water promptly*** Management, the Association's Engineer, the Association's HVAC Contractor, and the Association's Plumber have all been in Mr***'s unit at least one time or another and none of us have been able to verify any kind of "high noise levels" other than the two aforementioned instances that were promptly resolved
Attached are copies of invoices for services rendered in investigating past complaints from Mr*** as well as for repairs to resolve legitimate problems with mechanicals at the property
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 9, 2014/03/20) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The problem has not been fixedI have recordings of the previous instances of high noise levels that I sent to Kass Management at their request, and they are available for anyone to hearFor a long while, they even denied that noise could be coming from the heaters downstairs into my apartmentI have asked them to come over and listen to the noise later in the evening (8-pm), when the hot water heaters are most active, and they have balked at doing soIn only one instance was I not in my apartment when they contacted me: I made up for it by being there when they next called: I am always willing to accommodate themHere is the current status: I have offered to have my plumber fix the noise problem according to his diagnosis and I would pay for itKass has no problem with that, so long as he provides proof of insurance and writes a proposalI will ask him to do soOnce Kass agrees (hopefully, quickly) I will proceed accordingly(My plumber says it would cost $I don't understand why Kass is spending money on documenting current conditions in the heater room, when simply spending the $would probably solve the issue.) In the meantime, I want to thank the Revdex.com for providing this opportunity that has effectively resulted in Kass responding more quickly to my problem with more informationI hope I can work with Kass to resolve this issue quickly, but unfortunately, at present, my complaint must remain open
Final Business Response /* (4000, 14, 2014/04/21) */
3/25/@ 3:59PM and 4:13PM E-mails were exchanged with Mr***Mr*** proposed that *** *** of *** Plumbing, who Mr*** has engaged make some repairs that will resolve the alleged noise/sound/vibration problemsWe agree to allow Mr*** to diagnose and propose a repair scopeWe also advise Mr*** that, in return for engaging his contractor, we would want him to sign a release with regard to further claims against Kass Management Services IncMr*** agrees to meet with the plumber at his place to work out the detailsWe then ask him what details he needs to work out with Mr***Mr*** responds back via e-mail saying, "To work out the proposal he's to send to you, the proof of insurance, and when to do the workOnce you agree to all of that, I'll sign off on the release."
3/29/@ 10:PM - Mr*** emailed the following:
There is not only a loud pumping sound I have been noting since January 2013, but also what sounds like another motor problem, this time in the left tankThere is also a gassy smell around the heaters
3/31/@ 8:AM with a 9:AM e-mail response to Mr*** - Kass Management was at the property this morning and no extraordinary sound from either heater was notedIn addition, we met one of our contractors on-site and we utilized a TIF Combustible Gas Leak Detector to check the entire basement where the water heaters are located and no gas leaks were detected anywhereWe asked Mr*** to please let us know when we should expect a proposal, W9, and COI from Mr***'s plumber, *** Plumbing, so that Mr*** can make the repair that Mr*** and he prescribed
3/31/@ 10:AM Mr *** sent the following via e-mail which we did not respond to:
I'm consulting with an attorney on my next steps
4/3/@ 11:AM Mr*** forwarded an e-mail to us from his plumber apologizing for the delay and that a vibration isolator is $installedKass Management Services advised Mr*** via e-mail that we needed the proposed fix prescribed by Mr*** in a bonafide proposal with a diagnosis of the problem, proposed repair(s), and warrantyIn addition, we also requested *** Plumbing's Certificate of Insurance and Wform
4/7/@ 10:AM We received a Wform and a Certificate of Insurance but the COI did not fulfill the requirements that we had requested listing Kass Management Services Inc as an additional insured and Certificate HolderThis was relayed to Mr***
4/9/@ 12:15PM Mr*** e-mailed an updated satisfactory Certificate of Insurance to usWe replied back to him letting him know that everything looked to be in order and that we would simply await the return of the legal release that was provided to him via e-mail before moving forward with the work
4/10/@ 4:PM Mr*** responded via e-mail that, "I'll run it by my lawyer and keep you posted."Despite agreeing to the work and a release on 3/25/2014, Mr*** has now decided to engage his attorney and further delay the execution of the legal release as well as the proposed repair work
4/14/@ 3:PM Mr*** asked that the release be amended to include language that Mr*** would not bear any costs related the repairs prescribed by Mr***'s plumber
4/15/@ 12:PM An amended release was sent to Mr*** and agreeable to himHe further responded at 3:PM that he would sign the release and send it back to us via United States Postal Service
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 16, 2014/04/22) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Kass is on the right trackI have signed the release and once the work is completed, I will fulfill the agreement
My property manager Kurt couldn't have been more responsiveBoth my washer and dryer quit working late one evening and Kurt had the repairman in my place the next morning and the units were repaired that dayBecause of several events, I had to move months before my lease was overAs a result, I contacted Kurt to learn my optionsHe outlined several of them, so I chose to re let the unitI paid Kass one month's rent to take care of all the marketing, showings and applicationsWithin less than a month, they had a new tenant sign to take over in JanuaryI highly recommend renting from Kass!!
Run
Don't walk
Run to their nearest competitor
Work that was supposed to be completed before I occupied the apartment was not completed after numerous requests over multiple years
The in building laundry facilities were poorly maintained, and while functional, one of the two washers took about minutes longer per load
If the need to re-let your apartment comes up the company will actively work to prevent you from re-letting
When I needed to escalate issues it took over two months to even receive the contact information for the person to whom issues could be escalatedOnce escalated there was no action taken on supposed remedies to the issues
Just absolutely horrible people at the decision making level
Don't give them money if you have a choice
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/08/01) */
Contact Name and Title: *** ***
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: ***@kassmanagement.com
Below is an email we have sent to Mr*** regarding his complaint
From: *** ***
Sent: Wednesday, July
23, XXXX X:XX PM
To: '***@uchospitals.edu'
Cc: *** ***
Subject: RE: *** *** **
Justin, I apologize for how you feel you have been treated and will attempt to answer your questions and resolve your issues below, but I believe you are mistaken on some levels
The notice you received was due to the fact that your rent account is separate from your parking accountAt the very beginning of your lease term my office notified you that if you chose to pay online that parking would have to be set up separately from the rent payment accountYou were provided two separate log in's and were advised that if payment was made to one account in full it may not get applied to the other account as it requires manual adjustment of your account which may not happen automaticallyI have attached a copy of both letters that are provided which detail your account log in info so that you could set up payments properlyWith that said *** the previous property manager monthly would attempt to have the payments you were making to the rent account adjusted manually so to apply the appropriate amount to the parking spot accountThis and last month that did not happen and you received a late letter for the balance on the account for the parkingWhile I apologize for you receiving such notice I am sure you will understand how this could have been avoided by using both accounts to process your paymentsWhen making monthly payments you should have noticed the amount being charged to the account you were paying for was not the full amount including parking but that is not important since it seems you feel my office should have monitored your account continuouslyPlease do note that we have over 10,units and monitoring each account is not possible and we hope that you can understand this
With that said your account has now been adjusted and you will have a credit on your account for $See attached ledger for proof and history
As for the issues with your neighbors during your tenancy I would hope that you filed police reports and or filed complaints against them with the police so to investigate the situation accordinglyIf you did not, I can only advise you that as a landlord we would be limited to what we could do and by making such a claim against someone without evidence and or police interactionAs with you, those tenants were inherited by my company at takeover and we were not provided any information on them beside the names and monthly rent dueNonetheless, we are in the process of evicting that tenant and hope they will not be a disturbance for anyone in the property moving forward once they are moved out
As for your claim of making you provide us proof of rent payment at management takeover; it was necessary as the previous management who rented you your apartment had records showing a balance on the accountIt was necessary to receive the information as we did not want to presume the information provided was accurate
As for your request for a settlement for the gas bill; I want to be very clear that WE did not rent the apartment to youWe did not have any knowledge of this and did not offer you a lease or renewal under the pretense that you were paying for the laundry gas, nor were we aware of it until recentlyWhen you signed your lease with Wrightwood Management (see attached) there is no reference to it and I can understand your frustration with it being connected to your unit but am at a loss how that frustration is aimed at my firm directly
I will be upfront in stating that we have been very accommodating to you during the lease term, in that we reserved the right to NOT charge you late fees to your account despite there being a handful of late payments during the lease termThe one late fee charged was actually reversed as a sign of good faithNow you wish to attack me and my firm for being money hungry and only caring about the collection of rent? Where is the logic? Would it be possible to add those late fees to your account now? Yes it would, but I do not wish to do business that way and hope this example of how in some way we were accommodating will help both sides understand how things can be taken out of context
Justin, during your lease you moved people in without having them added to the leaseThat is a clear violation of the leaseWe did not make it a sticking point despite the concern that it bringsYou were insulted that we were charging app fees and admin fees for the processing of the applications for the residents who were at the time illegally occupying the aptWe certainly don't want people in the unit that are going to cause a disturbance and properly screening them is mandatoryThose fees are to cover those costs as I do run a business and cannot waive late fees, app fees and admin fees all the time despite what we did for you during your lease term
With that said I am happy to offer a $credit to your account as a settlement to your claim which was raised after your tenancy was established with a previous landlord
If you choose to settle this and move forward with our lives I will expect the Revdex.com complaint you have logged to be dismissed and for a termination agreement to be signed stating that neither party will revert to any negative commentary toward the other in an avenue available and that both sides will provide neutral references about the other party if needed
If you choose not to accept this offer by Friday July 25th at noon we will proceed with responding to the Revdex.com accordingly regarding your complaint and your tenancyThanks
*** ***
Principal-Vice President
Kass Management Services
*** * *** *** *** ** XXXXX
XXX-XXX-XXXX ext ***
Fax XXX-XXX-XXXX
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/07/07) */
Contact Name and Title: ***
Contact Phone: ***
Contact Email:***
I spoke with the tenant about the complaint he made
The gas was shut off by People Gas because the tenant failed to correctly
establish a service account upon the lease start date of June 1, As stated in their lease in the Addendum to Apartment Lease paragraph When the tenant reported that his apartment did not have gas he was informed that if his gas was shut off it would have been done by People Gas and not usAt that point he stated a red Peoples Gas tag was placed on his meterI told him that is a clear sign gas was shut off by Peoples Gas and that I would call the contractor to find if had any knowledge of meter shut offThe contractor called Peoples Gas for information and was told the meter for this tenant's apartment was shut off because service was not transferredAfter I received this information from the contractor I called the tenant to inform him that the gas meter was shut off by Peoples Gas because according to them the service account had not been open as of July 1, Today the tenant acknowledged that the meter shut off was due to Peoples Gas not having processed his application for service properly
The public gas meter that services the building's dryer was faulty and replaced on July 1, with another faulty gas meterThe Peoples Gas technician assigned to install the gas meter refused to repair the leak in the meter and instructed the contractor to repair the leak in the gas meterThis lead to a disagreement between the contractor and Peoples Gas technician, the contractor is not able to make repairs to the gas meterWe are working with Peoples Gas to resolve the faulty gas meter as soon as possible
Management is was not made aware of an issue with mail delivery by this tenantMail boxes have been installed at the propertyPostal lock installation for mailboxes and buzzer systems have been requested for a third time today July 3, after another tenant reported not receiving his mailIt is difficult to follow up on requests because no work order numbers are providedWe have contacted the Alderman and Congressman to request a Congressional Inquiry about this matter
Pest control was sent to the building for quarterly service on June 15, within a week of the tenant's pest issue reportWhen I spoke with the tenant on July 2, about his issues I offered to have pest control call him to schedule a treatment for his apartment
***
***
***
***
***
***
I really love that I can set an auto payment through their website. I've never had to contact my manager about any problems (hope I won't need to) but I frequently see the maintenance man around the property and he's really friendly. My lease renewal just arrived and I am definitely renewing. Thanks for such an amazing experience.
Kass tries to wrongly muscle tenants out of money.
The building I lived in was acquired by Kass. Although I had prepaid rental credits with the old landlord, Kass said these credits no longer applied. The Illinois state Security Deposit Return Act of 1974 explicitly states that prepaid rents transfers over under new ownership, but Kass claimed they didn't. This was an abject lie from Kass, and a despicable collection practice.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/02/27) */
Contact Name and Title: [redacted]
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: [redacted]@kassmanagement.com
On the day in question, the elevator was serviced by the elevator company and deemed safe to be in operation. When an elevator...
goes down is unfortunately beyond my control. Moreover, the accusation that Management is negligent as being the reason in unfounded. The board of Directors makes the decisions for the association which management executes. We are aware of the issues at hand with this elevator and are exploring all options for repair to avoid a costly special assessment to replace, if at all possible. Email notices have been sent to unit owners throughout the month outlining the elevator issues, as well as notices posted throughout the building.
To that end, service was out for repairs on 2/20, 2/15, 2/12, 2/9 & 2/3. Each time the DC overload switch needed to be reset. We believed this to be due to a water line break that was flooding the pit. The plumber has twice pumped out the pit. We now have brought in two different elevator companies who have identified other causes and are providing quotes to repair. This is in an effort to avoid replacing the elevator, which can be up to a $200k expense that would need to be a special assessment.
The Board is also unhappy with the service of the current vendor and canceled their contract by giving a 90 day notice. The new vendor will start on May 1st.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/06/09) */
In your complaint you stated that you were unaware you signed a six month lease term. We reviewed the signed lease and found that there was a modification made to the lease start date and was initialed by all parties. Considering a...
change to the lease start date had been made, we believe the lease start and end dates were known to you on the printed lease. There was no error on the lease, as it clearly states the start and end dates. It is not uncommon for tenants to sign six month leases and feel that we are unjustly accused of errors. Our lease signing process is extensive and requires your signature at numerous checkpoints. We certainly did not intend to cause you hardship and hope you see that you also have placed us in an unfair situation since we no longer manage the building. We are committed to providing quality property management services to our clients and residents.
Not picky person but if you are looking for a nice place to live and want a good management company then Kass has been solid in my opinion. I have an apartment in Bucktown fun area to be in so I have o complaints.
In response to
your complaint, we understand your frustration in this matter and appreciate
your diligence in making sure that the payment was received. Please understand that we do not control the
mail delivery system. Additionally, the
replacement check that was issued on...
10/21 did not arrive in our office until
Monday, October 26th. The
bookkeeper did not have the check in hand on Friday, 10/23 when you called, so
she was truthful in her reply. We
appreciate your perseverance in making sure that your rent was paid and the
late fee will be waived.
I have lived in my apartment managed by Kass going on my second year and I have to say I have no real complaints. Sure I've been here for two years there have been some maintenance request that had me worried but my property manager and maintenance person have been great with getting things done and letting me know if someone will be in my apartment to address those issues.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/06/06) */
Contact Name and Title: [redacted], Office Mgr.
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: [redacted]@kassmanagement.com
June 4, 2014
Re: [redacted]
[redacted]
Evanston, IL XXXXX
We were...
concerned to receive Mr. [redacted]'s letter regarding problems with the owner of the property that he is staying at.
We were not involved with the notification process, scheduling, or commencement of work in the unit as this was handled by the property owner who resides at the same address where Mr. [redacted] has been staying.
We have had an opportunity to discuss this matter with our client and it was determined that proper communication was carried out with the leaseholders of the unit, this was further verified by written responses to our office by the leaseholders. Apparently Mr. [redacted] is subleasing from one of the leaseholders who neglected to notify Mr. [redacted] of the work that was agreed upon well before Mr. [redacted] started staying in the unit. Neither [redacted] Management Services Inc. nor the property owners, [redacted] Properties, have a lease or sublease agreement with Mr. [redacted].
We regret that Mr. [redacted] was inconvenienced and are empathetic to his situation as he clearly does not have an open line of communication with his room-mates or sublessor. We imagine that this can be frustrating for him.
We have emphasized that, in light of Mr. [redacted]'s frustrations, that he may wish to seek housing elsewhere. As a gesture of good will we have arranged, to credit 1/3 of the rent for the months of May and June to the remaining unit tenants. This agreement is agreeable to the remaining tenants.
KMS aims to consistently deliver a professional service to our customers and while we do not believe that there was a lack of communication on our part or that of the property owner we represent, we wish to be good neighbors and a reputable business.
Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention and we hope that you will have no further cause for any complaint in relation to our service.
KMS company is constantly working to improve service levels and your feedback has proved to be invaluable.
Yours sincerely,
Kass Management Services Inc
Thank You,
[redacted]
Kass Management Services Inc
Senior Property Manager / Project Manager
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2014/06/09) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
Kass Management manages my condo building in Lakeview and every time I have an issue I speak to Cheryl who is the bookkeeper. She is always amazing, and quick to respond to any issues I have. She is pleasant and always willing to help. No complaints from me!!
Kass Management Services took over my building a couple of years agoPrior to that, the building was maintained regularlyCommon areas, windows, trash area were all kept cleanKass doesn't keep the building up, windows are so filthy they can't be opened and common areas are overrun with cobwebs, spiders and dustRecycling has been terminated (a City of Chicago code violation and single dumpster replaced the our individual trash bins - not good when the neighbors use your trash for their dog poopTurnover in the management office high, reflecting their transient natureNew tenants are a step down: noisier, dirtier, louder and leave their stuff whereI literally now have neighbors whose friends' dogs crap on patio and it sits there for weeks*** Kass and his organization define low-rentIf you are in Chicago and care about your surroundings or the buildings you own, avoiding Kass Management is the smartest thing you can do
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/07/24) */
Contact Name and Title: ***
Contact Phone: ***
Contact Email***
I received the application for *** for a Re Let of the apartment at *** #G on June 22nd to
process from the property managerAn approval was determined and a lease with instructions for execution was email to the applicants on June 24thI received notice on this day from the applicants that they had found something else in the interim and were not taking the unit at Wolcott anymoreSince they did not put money down to hold the apartment the only money that was deposited was the Non-Refundable application fee
I explained to the applicants that application fees are not refundable and I doubted the statement that the receptionist quoted a hour turnaround time
Regardless, There may have been miscommunication
at the time of applicationTherefore, in an offer of good will we will refund the application fee
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/04/17) */
In response to Case# XXXXXXX
Our records indicate that *** *** and *** *** (Co-Signor) entered into a one year lease for an apartment at *** ** *** Chicago, IL XXXXXThe beginning date of the lease was
August 7, and the ending date July 31st, The signed lease clearly states under Use of Apartment that the apartment shall be occupied exclusively by Tenant and other persons listed in the application*** *** was the only applicant on this leaseDue to her subsequent relocation she sublet the apartment to *** *** *** *** was not on the application nor was she approved to reside at this apartmentThis all transpired without the knowledge/approval of owner/agent
Once the lease expired they did not relinquish the unitInstead there was a renewal lease document subsequently signed on behalf of *** *** and *** *** for an added lease termBased on the documents we received and also correspondence as recent as March, the illegal occupant was portraying themselves as *** ***We have call records requesting maintenance service listing the name *** however the phone number is for *** ***
In addition to requests for maintenance there is additional correspondence between the property manager and *** *** regarding a past due balance as well as the procedure for relinquishing possession at the end of the second lease termThis clearly confirms that *** *** was aware that *** *** was still living in the unitAt no point did *** *** proclaim that there was no further association between *** ***, *** *** and the apartmentIn his discussions with the property manager he stated he tried to make a payment online and was unsuccessful
After seven months into the second term of the lease, Mr*** requested a copy of the lease documents and stated that the signature was not hisUnfortunately, we at Kass Management Services, Inccannot perform forensic signature analysis and rely on the integrity of the signors
Based on most recent communications with *** *** we believe that he was well aware of the fact that the unit was inhabited by an unapproved tenant *** *** and should be held accountable for the amount owed
In an effort to remedy this situation, Kass Management Services, Incis willing to compromise and split the remaining balance owed between the Tenant and Owner
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/04/19) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The lease is an obvious forgery, and one need not be a forensic specialist to determine this to be the caseAnd there were no requests of any kind made by myself to Kass, and nor was there any contact between myself and Kass until they decided to try to collect an alleged balance due, and I would challenge them to provide proof of such conversationsThe apartment was turned over to Kass Management and Ms*** and the lease was put in her name after the one year term of mine and *** lease had expired*** had vacated the unit two months earlier, and I did not renew the leaseApparently Kass Management misplaced, omitted, deleted or destroyed Ms*** lease, and they had no idea who she was when they first contacted me about the apartmentShe left when the term of the lease expiredThe lease to which Kass management is referring, and of which I have a copy, has a total of eighteen signatures of both mine and my daughters nameAll of them are obvious forgeries and they not only do not look anything like out signatures, but the signatures themselves do not even look like one anotherThey are simply scribbled lines, again not having the remotest similarity to ours, as simply comparing them with the signature from the lease which expired in will easily proveIn addition, my daughter was living in Indianapolis, and I travel for a living and was also out of town, on the date that the lease was allegedly signed by us bothAll of this can be easily provenSo this is eighteen counts of forgery and fraud on the part of *** managementI think that they would be wiser to drop this issue, however, if they wish to proceed, I will be more than happy to turn this into a criminal matter
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 7, 2014/03/20) */
Contact Name and Title: *** ***
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: ***@kassmanagement.com
Resident *** *** of NKenmore contacted us via e-mail on 3/5/@ 9:amW responded the next business dayE-mail is
attached hereto
Mr*** has had a history of lodging complaints about noise, sounds, vibrations, etcover the past two years or so
They have been unfounded with the exception of an issue last week as well as an occurrence in the Spring of when a pump was found to be failingAt that time numerous residents complained not only about sounds from the plumbing but lack of hot water as wellThe pump was promptly replacedSee attached photoThis pump is the same pump that has been in place since the Spring of despite Mr***'s belief that we changed it again after he had his attorney send us a threatening letter
Shortly after the pump was replaced in the spring of we also replaced the two hot water heatersWe installed expansion tanks at the time of heater replacement at the recommendation of Mr*** as well
Upon receipt of Mr***'s voicemail on 3/I immediately dispatched a plumber to the property to confirm or deny the problemWhen we arrived in the afternoon we found that there was a legitimate problem with the South heaterThe vent motor on the top of the unit was making a racket and we disabled the heater and D&B Plumbing promptly ordered a new motor
On 3/6, Mr*** lodged his Revdex.com complaintThe vent motor was replaced on Saturday 3/8, under warranty, as soon as it was received
To date, through e-mail correspondence, Mr*** has not confirmed or denied whether the "high noise levels" in his unit have been resolvedHowever, in his e-mail he does admit that "The previous noise I had been hearing from the hot water pump has gone." We have visited Mr***'s unit on 3/11, 3/12, and 3/with no success in gaining entryThroughout time we have done virtually anything that Mr*** has asked with regard to the supposed noise and vibration that he hearsWe engaged the Board of Directors of his Condominium Association and they too agreed that there was no noise being emitted from the heaters or mechanicalsIn fact, they recommended that Mr*** contact his neighbors to see if they were running a fan, humidifier, or dehumidifier in their unit that may be disturbing him as the units have hardwood floorsAdditionally, Mr*** would claim that the noise would be worse at nightThis does not coincide with a correlation to the hot water heatersThe heaters barely run later at night when demand is downIn addition, Mr*** said that the pump would speed up and slow down and he could hear thatThis is not possibleThe pump is a single speed pump that simply runs a hot water circulation circuit that ensures that units far away from the heaters are able to receive hot water promptly*** Management, the Association's Engineer, the Association's HVAC Contractor, and the Association's Plumber have all been in Mr***'s unit at least one time or another and none of us have been able to verify any kind of "high noise levels" other than the two aforementioned instances that were promptly resolved
Attached are copies of invoices for services rendered in investigating past complaints from Mr*** as well as for repairs to resolve legitimate problems with mechanicals at the property
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 9, 2014/03/20) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The problem has not been fixedI have recordings of the previous instances of high noise levels that I sent to Kass Management at their request, and they are available for anyone to hearFor a long while, they even denied that noise could be coming from the heaters downstairs into my apartmentI have asked them to come over and listen to the noise later in the evening (8-pm), when the hot water heaters are most active, and they have balked at doing soIn only one instance was I not in my apartment when they contacted me: I made up for it by being there when they next called: I am always willing to accommodate themHere is the current status: I have offered to have my plumber fix the noise problem according to his diagnosis and I would pay for itKass has no problem with that, so long as he provides proof of insurance and writes a proposalI will ask him to do soOnce Kass agrees (hopefully, quickly) I will proceed accordingly(My plumber says it would cost $I don't understand why Kass is spending money on documenting current conditions in the heater room, when simply spending the $would probably solve the issue.) In the meantime, I want to thank the Revdex.com for providing this opportunity that has effectively resulted in Kass responding more quickly to my problem with more informationI hope I can work with Kass to resolve this issue quickly, but unfortunately, at present, my complaint must remain open
Final Business Response /* (4000, 14, 2014/04/21) */
3/25/@ 3:59PM and 4:13PM E-mails were exchanged with Mr***Mr*** proposed that *** *** of *** Plumbing, who Mr*** has engaged make some repairs that will resolve the alleged noise/sound/vibration problemsWe agree to allow Mr*** to diagnose and propose a repair scopeWe also advise Mr*** that, in return for engaging his contractor, we would want him to sign a release with regard to further claims against Kass Management Services IncMr*** agrees to meet with the plumber at his place to work out the detailsWe then ask him what details he needs to work out with Mr***Mr*** responds back via e-mail saying, "To work out the proposal he's to send to you, the proof of insurance, and when to do the workOnce you agree to all of that, I'll sign off on the release."
3/29/@ 10:PM - Mr*** emailed the following:
There is not only a loud pumping sound I have been noting since January 2013, but also what sounds like another motor problem, this time in the left tankThere is also a gassy smell around the heaters
3/31/@ 8:AM with a 9:AM e-mail response to Mr*** - Kass Management was at the property this morning and no extraordinary sound from either heater was notedIn addition, we met one of our contractors on-site and we utilized a TIF Combustible Gas Leak Detector to check the entire basement where the water heaters are located and no gas leaks were detected anywhereWe asked Mr*** to please let us know when we should expect a proposal, W9, and COI from Mr***'s plumber, *** Plumbing, so that Mr*** can make the repair that Mr*** and he prescribed
3/31/@ 10:AM Mr *** sent the following via e-mail which we did not respond to:
I'm consulting with an attorney on my next steps
4/3/@ 11:AM Mr*** forwarded an e-mail to us from his plumber apologizing for the delay and that a vibration isolator is $installedKass Management Services advised Mr*** via e-mail that we needed the proposed fix prescribed by Mr*** in a bonafide proposal with a diagnosis of the problem, proposed repair(s), and warrantyIn addition, we also requested *** Plumbing's Certificate of Insurance and Wform
4/7/@ 10:AM We received a Wform and a Certificate of Insurance but the COI did not fulfill the requirements that we had requested listing Kass Management Services Inc as an additional insured and Certificate HolderThis was relayed to Mr***
4/9/@ 12:15PM Mr*** e-mailed an updated satisfactory Certificate of Insurance to usWe replied back to him letting him know that everything looked to be in order and that we would simply await the return of the legal release that was provided to him via e-mail before moving forward with the work
4/10/@ 4:PM Mr*** responded via e-mail that, "I'll run it by my lawyer and keep you posted."Despite agreeing to the work and a release on 3/25/2014, Mr*** has now decided to engage his attorney and further delay the execution of the legal release as well as the proposed repair work
4/14/@ 3:PM Mr*** asked that the release be amended to include language that Mr*** would not bear any costs related the repairs prescribed by Mr***'s plumber
4/15/@ 12:PM An amended release was sent to Mr*** and agreeable to himHe further responded at 3:PM that he would sign the release and send it back to us via United States Postal Service
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 16, 2014/04/22) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Kass is on the right trackI have signed the release and once the work is completed, I will fulfill the agreement
Kass has been a good company to rent with, I don't see any problems with them
My property manager Kurt couldn't have been more responsiveBoth my washer and dryer quit working late one evening and Kurt had the repairman in my place the next morning and the units were repaired that dayBecause of several events, I had to move months before my lease was overAs a result, I contacted Kurt to learn my optionsHe outlined several of them, so I chose to re let the unitI paid Kass one month's rent to take care of all the marketing, showings and applicationsWithin less than a month, they had a new tenant sign to take over in JanuaryI highly recommend renting from Kass!!
Run
Don't walk
Run to their nearest competitor
Work that was supposed to be completed before I occupied the apartment was not completed after numerous requests over multiple years
The in building laundry facilities were poorly maintained, and while functional, one of the two washers took about minutes longer per load
If the need to re-let your apartment comes up the company will actively work to prevent you from re-letting
When I needed to escalate issues it took over two months to even receive the contact information for the person to whom issues could be escalatedOnce escalated there was no action taken on supposed remedies to the issues
Just absolutely horrible people at the decision making level
Don't give them money if you have a choice
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/08/01) */
Contact Name and Title: *** ***
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: ***@kassmanagement.com
Below is an email we have sent to Mr*** regarding his complaint
From: *** ***
Sent: Wednesday, July
23, XXXX X:XX PM
To: '***@uchospitals.edu'
Cc: *** ***
Subject: RE: *** *** **
Justin, I apologize for how you feel you have been treated and will attempt to answer your questions and resolve your issues below, but I believe you are mistaken on some levels
The notice you received was due to the fact that your rent account is separate from your parking accountAt the very beginning of your lease term my office notified you that if you chose to pay online that parking would have to be set up separately from the rent payment accountYou were provided two separate log in's and were advised that if payment was made to one account in full it may not get applied to the other account as it requires manual adjustment of your account which may not happen automaticallyI have attached a copy of both letters that are provided which detail your account log in info so that you could set up payments properlyWith that said *** the previous property manager monthly would attempt to have the payments you were making to the rent account adjusted manually so to apply the appropriate amount to the parking spot accountThis and last month that did not happen and you received a late letter for the balance on the account for the parkingWhile I apologize for you receiving such notice I am sure you will understand how this could have been avoided by using both accounts to process your paymentsWhen making monthly payments you should have noticed the amount being charged to the account you were paying for was not the full amount including parking but that is not important since it seems you feel my office should have monitored your account continuouslyPlease do note that we have over 10,units and monitoring each account is not possible and we hope that you can understand this
With that said your account has now been adjusted and you will have a credit on your account for $See attached ledger for proof and history
As for the issues with your neighbors during your tenancy I would hope that you filed police reports and or filed complaints against them with the police so to investigate the situation accordinglyIf you did not, I can only advise you that as a landlord we would be limited to what we could do and by making such a claim against someone without evidence and or police interactionAs with you, those tenants were inherited by my company at takeover and we were not provided any information on them beside the names and monthly rent dueNonetheless, we are in the process of evicting that tenant and hope they will not be a disturbance for anyone in the property moving forward once they are moved out
As for your claim of making you provide us proof of rent payment at management takeover; it was necessary as the previous management who rented you your apartment had records showing a balance on the accountIt was necessary to receive the information as we did not want to presume the information provided was accurate
As for your request for a settlement for the gas bill; I want to be very clear that WE did not rent the apartment to youWe did not have any knowledge of this and did not offer you a lease or renewal under the pretense that you were paying for the laundry gas, nor were we aware of it until recentlyWhen you signed your lease with Wrightwood Management (see attached) there is no reference to it and I can understand your frustration with it being connected to your unit but am at a loss how that frustration is aimed at my firm directly
I will be upfront in stating that we have been very accommodating to you during the lease term, in that we reserved the right to NOT charge you late fees to your account despite there being a handful of late payments during the lease termThe one late fee charged was actually reversed as a sign of good faithNow you wish to attack me and my firm for being money hungry and only caring about the collection of rent? Where is the logic? Would it be possible to add those late fees to your account now? Yes it would, but I do not wish to do business that way and hope this example of how in some way we were accommodating will help both sides understand how things can be taken out of context
Justin, during your lease you moved people in without having them added to the leaseThat is a clear violation of the leaseWe did not make it a sticking point despite the concern that it bringsYou were insulted that we were charging app fees and admin fees for the processing of the applications for the residents who were at the time illegally occupying the aptWe certainly don't want people in the unit that are going to cause a disturbance and properly screening them is mandatoryThose fees are to cover those costs as I do run a business and cannot waive late fees, app fees and admin fees all the time despite what we did for you during your lease term
With that said I am happy to offer a $credit to your account as a settlement to your claim which was raised after your tenancy was established with a previous landlord
If you choose to settle this and move forward with our lives I will expect the Revdex.com complaint you have logged to be dismissed and for a termination agreement to be signed stating that neither party will revert to any negative commentary toward the other in an avenue available and that both sides will provide neutral references about the other party if needed
If you choose not to accept this offer by Friday July 25th at noon we will proceed with responding to the Revdex.com accordingly regarding your complaint and your tenancyThanks
*** ***
Principal-Vice President
Kass Management Services
*** * *** *** *** ** XXXXX
XXX-XXX-XXXX ext ***
Fax XXX-XXX-XXXX
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/07/07) */
Contact Name and Title: ***
Contact Phone: ***
Contact Email:***
I spoke with the tenant about the complaint he made
The gas was shut off by People Gas because the tenant failed to correctly
establish a service account upon the lease start date of June 1, As stated in their lease in the Addendum to Apartment Lease paragraph When the tenant reported that his apartment did not have gas he was informed that if his gas was shut off it would have been done by People Gas and not usAt that point he stated a red Peoples Gas tag was placed on his meterI told him that is a clear sign gas was shut off by Peoples Gas and that I would call the contractor to find if had any knowledge of meter shut offThe contractor called Peoples Gas for information and was told the meter for this tenant's apartment was shut off because service was not transferredAfter I received this information from the contractor I called the tenant to inform him that the gas meter was shut off by Peoples Gas because according to them the service account had not been open as of July 1, Today the tenant acknowledged that the meter shut off was due to Peoples Gas not having processed his application for service properly
The public gas meter that services the building's dryer was faulty and replaced on July 1, with another faulty gas meterThe Peoples Gas technician assigned to install the gas meter refused to repair the leak in the meter and instructed the contractor to repair the leak in the gas meterThis lead to a disagreement between the contractor and Peoples Gas technician, the contractor is not able to make repairs to the gas meterWe are working with Peoples Gas to resolve the faulty gas meter as soon as possible
Management is was not made aware of an issue with mail delivery by this tenantMail boxes have been installed at the propertyPostal lock installation for mailboxes and buzzer systems have been requested for a third time today July 3, after another tenant reported not receiving his mailIt is difficult to follow up on requests because no work order numbers are providedWe have contacted the Alderman and Congressman to request a Congressional Inquiry about this matter
Pest control was sent to the building for quarterly service on June 15, within a week of the tenant's pest issue reportWhen I spoke with the tenant on July 2, about his issues I offered to have pest control call him to schedule a treatment for his apartment
***
***
***
***
***
***
I really love that I can set an auto payment through their website. I've never had to contact my manager about any problems (hope I won't need to) but I frequently see the maintenance man around the property and he's really friendly. My lease renewal just arrived and I am definitely renewing. Thanks for such an amazing experience.
Kass tries to wrongly muscle tenants out of money.
The building I lived in was acquired by Kass. Although I had prepaid rental credits with the old landlord, Kass said these credits no longer applied. The Illinois state Security Deposit Return Act of 1974 explicitly states that prepaid rents transfers over under new ownership, but Kass claimed they didn't. This was an abject lie from Kass, and a despicable collection practice.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/02/27) */
Contact Name and Title: [redacted]
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: [redacted]@kassmanagement.com
On the day in question, the elevator was serviced by the elevator company and deemed safe to be in operation. When an elevator...
goes down is unfortunately beyond my control. Moreover, the accusation that Management is negligent as being the reason in unfounded. The board of Directors makes the decisions for the association which management executes. We are aware of the issues at hand with this elevator and are exploring all options for repair to avoid a costly special assessment to replace, if at all possible. Email notices have been sent to unit owners throughout the month outlining the elevator issues, as well as notices posted throughout the building.
To that end, service was out for repairs on 2/20, 2/15, 2/12, 2/9 & 2/3. Each time the DC overload switch needed to be reset. We believed this to be due to a water line break that was flooding the pit. The plumber has twice pumped out the pit. We now have brought in two different elevator companies who have identified other causes and are providing quotes to repair. This is in an effort to avoid replacing the elevator, which can be up to a $200k expense that would need to be a special assessment.
The Board is also unhappy with the service of the current vendor and canceled their contract by giving a 90 day notice. The new vendor will start on May 1st.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/06/09) */
In your complaint you stated that you were unaware you signed a six month lease term. We reviewed the signed lease and found that there was a modification made to the lease start date and was initialed by all parties. Considering a...
change to the lease start date had been made, we believe the lease start and end dates were known to you on the printed lease. There was no error on the lease, as it clearly states the start and end dates. It is not uncommon for tenants to sign six month leases and feel that we are unjustly accused of errors. Our lease signing process is extensive and requires your signature at numerous checkpoints. We certainly did not intend to cause you hardship and hope you see that you also have placed us in an unfair situation since we no longer manage the building. We are committed to providing quality property management services to our clients and residents.
Not picky person but if you are looking for a nice place to live and want a good management company then Kass has been solid in my opinion. I have an apartment in Bucktown fun area to be in so I have o complaints.
In response to
your complaint, we understand your frustration in this matter and appreciate
your diligence in making sure that the payment was received. Please understand that we do not control the
mail delivery system. Additionally, the
replacement check that was issued on...
10/21 did not arrive in our office until
Monday, October 26th. The
bookkeeper did not have the check in hand on Friday, 10/23 when you called, so
she was truthful in her reply. We
appreciate your perseverance in making sure that your rent was paid and the
late fee will be waived.
I have lived in my apartment managed by Kass going on my second year and I have to say I have no real complaints. Sure I've been here for two years there have been some maintenance request that had me worried but my property manager and maintenance person have been great with getting things done and letting me know if someone will be in my apartment to address those issues.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/06/06) */
Contact Name and Title: [redacted], Office Mgr.
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: [redacted]@kassmanagement.com
June 4, 2014
Re: [redacted]
[redacted]
Evanston, IL XXXXX
We were...
concerned to receive Mr. [redacted]'s letter regarding problems with the owner of the property that he is staying at.
We were not involved with the notification process, scheduling, or commencement of work in the unit as this was handled by the property owner who resides at the same address where Mr. [redacted] has been staying.
We have had an opportunity to discuss this matter with our client and it was determined that proper communication was carried out with the leaseholders of the unit, this was further verified by written responses to our office by the leaseholders. Apparently Mr. [redacted] is subleasing from one of the leaseholders who neglected to notify Mr. [redacted] of the work that was agreed upon well before Mr. [redacted] started staying in the unit. Neither [redacted] Management Services Inc. nor the property owners, [redacted] Properties, have a lease or sublease agreement with Mr. [redacted].
We regret that Mr. [redacted] was inconvenienced and are empathetic to his situation as he clearly does not have an open line of communication with his room-mates or sublessor. We imagine that this can be frustrating for him.
We have emphasized that, in light of Mr. [redacted]'s frustrations, that he may wish to seek housing elsewhere. As a gesture of good will we have arranged, to credit 1/3 of the rent for the months of May and June to the remaining unit tenants. This agreement is agreeable to the remaining tenants.
KMS aims to consistently deliver a professional service to our customers and while we do not believe that there was a lack of communication on our part or that of the property owner we represent, we wish to be good neighbors and a reputable business.
Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention and we hope that you will have no further cause for any complaint in relation to our service.
KMS company is constantly working to improve service levels and your feedback has proved to be invaluable.
Yours sincerely,
Kass Management Services Inc
Thank You,
[redacted]
Kass Management Services Inc
Senior Property Manager / Project Manager
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2014/06/09) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
Kass Management manages my condo building in Lakeview and every time I have an issue I speak to Cheryl who is the bookkeeper. She is always amazing, and quick to respond to any issues I have. She is pleasant and always willing to help. No complaints from me!!