IMPOSSIBLE
LANDLORDS
properties — the result is often
the same, they said.
When unpacking their belongings, Cecil and his wife said
they found rat feces in the dishwasher. The sliding-glass door
that opened onto the back yard
was unusable. They tried to take
showers, but the hot water heater
was broken, they said.
Invitation Homes sent a repairman to fix the water heater, but
other repairs — including to an air
conditioner that broke down three
times — were slow, leaving the
couple to swelter in the Florida
heat, they claim. “If we had known
the problems that we were going
to have we would have never rented from these people,” Cecil said.
“I really don’t think they care.”
Some tenants have grown frustrated enough to sue. James Atwood
alleges in a lawsuit filed last month
in a Georgia state court that WRI
Property Management, the local
agent of Colony American, failed to
respond to dozens of phone calls,
even as problems mounted in his
$2,000-a-month home.
Among his allegations: the air
conditioner did not work when
he moved in, forcing the family to
stay in hotels and with friends;
tubs and sinks sprouted huge
HUFFINGTON
11.17.13
leaks. Lights would flicker on and
off, and the home was infested
with fleas, roaches and even a
family of racoons, which lived in