Realty Express / LaBarbera

Review: My roommate and I were in the process of leasing an apartment in Hoboken. Before signing the lease we noticed that the checks we gave in good faith to the realtor had be inappropriately given to the management company (Realty Express LaBarbera) and cashed before a contract was entered into. We did not proceed with the lease and we have not received our funds back from Realty Express LaBarbera. Realty Express LaBarbera was never entitled to those funds and illegally cashed the checks. When attempting to resolve the issue on our own, the owner Vincent LaBarbera, has been unhelpful, rude and negligent. He won't effectively respond to our emails, if he responds, he will hang up on us if we call to check the status of our reimbursement and is all around unprofessional.Desired Settlement: We would like our money back. We would also like for Realty Express LaBarbera to be under investigation as it's clear they are unethical and have poor business practice. In addition to our situation, I have seen that this type of behavior has taken place on other occurrences from reviews online.