Sterling Real Estate

I enjoyed my time living in a Sterling RE house, it was as solid of an experience as one can have with big city rentals. I lived in one of their properties in South Philly for the past two years before buying a home. They responded to my maintenance requests promptly, were friendly, and I received my whole deposit back at move out. I also appreciated that they were pet friendly for my furry friends!

I rent from sterling at one of their UD properties. I found it to be an easy and smooth move-in process. The town homes are absolutely gorgeous and spacious. Although there are some trash issues with other tenants, all around it's not a bad setup for a college student.

We moved into the place and there was within a few days, sewage water leaking out of a pipe in the basement. The real estate company did clean it up within a few days, and sent someone out again after the initial fix didn't work. We also had a broken dryer, which they ended up replacing. It took close to a month. We had a washer that wouldn't drain water, again took them awhile to fix.
The worst, though, is that they won't do anything about pest control. If you sign a lease with them, refuse to sign it without that being their responsibility. We had mice and *shudders* cockroaches and centipedes. We managed to keep that more or less under control using tons of poison, but it was clearly that they hadn't had a pest service plug up the foundation before we moved in.

All their renovations were shoddy. The doors barely open without tons of force. Their hot and cold water faucets are mixed up. One of our cabinet doors straight up fell off after a month of everyday use. They also had a change in management I guess or a change in landlords, which meant long story short, I had no property manager to contact until 2 months before my lease was up. They charge a $13 service fee to pay rent through their website, and I couldn't find where to mail it to even after attempting to call them. Everything was done through a poorly designed portal on their website.

The only good thing I have to say about them is my house was big and affordable. Their communication with their tennants is attrocious.

TL;DR: went to check out a property Sterling flipped in December with a bunch of friends, and the experience verified every negative review. House on Roland Ave in hampden still needed work before being move-in ready, but the lease absolves Sterling from doing any additional work.

This past weekend some friends and I met with a Sterling agent to walk through a property in Hampden, Baltimore that we were interested in renting. I was a little weary renting from this company based on some of the revirews I had read, but I feel like reviews on any rental property may not speak for the agency as a whole.

That being said, EVERY. SINGLE. POOR. REVIEW. Seemed to be verified within the 30 minutes it took to walk through the property.

Our first red flag was raised when the leasing agent was 30 minutes late, offered no communication to us, and arrived with who we presumed was her boyfriend. The place on Roland Ave in Hampden could have been an awesome house. The rent was good, location was great, and pictures from the recent renovations looked awesome. However, when the group pf us arrived at the location it was apparent the pictures we saw online were just the highlight reel.

The property itself sits next to a washout from the adjacent building and a sewer main. The front and back yard was covered in trash, from paper to broken bottles to animal bones. No joke. The renovations when seen in person looked nice, but upon further inspection we found a TON of black mold in one of the closets and mold in the basement. Some of the tile in the bathroom was not cut flush with the tub and would definately break if someone were to step on it. No deadbolt on the outer back door. There also was what looked like a dryer exhaust vent propped up above the back door frame next to EXPOSED INSULATION making me feel like we were touring a fire hazard. We pointed all of these things out and were told they would be taken care of prior to move in. Our Sterling agent casually mentioned they purchased the property to flip back in December, but damn at least try to put some effort into it. And if you say a location is move in ready maybe send someone to make sure its move in ready.

When I asked the Sterling agent about maintenance, she told me that their policy is to act within 48 hours of submitting the request via the online portal. They do not have a maintenance crew, so your request goes out to a contractor to do the work. I got the feeling that this meant they were only responsible for submitting the request within 48 hours, and it was up to the will of the contractors schedule to get it done.

Baltimore is known for its rats, so I asked who was responsible for pest control issues. The Agent told me that Sterling covers rats and mice, but bugs ants and cockroaches fall on the tenant. Yet, when reading a copy of the lease it very clearly stated that all pest control issues are issues for the tenant. In fact the lease seemed to absolve Sterling of all major maintence, including the hot water heater. We were told by our Sterling agent that all of the issues mentioned above would be fixed by move in, however when reading a draft of the lease there was an article stating that by signing, the tenant accepts the property AS-IS, AND IT IS NOT THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE LANDLORD TO MAKE CHANGES BEFORE OR DURING OCCUPANCY. I was supposed to take their word that these fixes would be made when they had written obligation to make them. Yeah right.

I had doubts about the place going in, and everything was quickly confirmed when viewing the location. Always read everything when signing.

I appreciate the pet friendly policies and the online payment portal. What I dont appreciate is a complete lack of communication with tenants.

Emails go unanswered 100% of the time. Phone calls are usually an exercise in futility. repair requests that require more than one visit have 0 follow up. Fees get added to your account without explanation and there are no means to dispute them. My property manager has apparently changed .... not that I received any sort of communication about who I should direct my questions to.

Oh, but they do send you an automated reminder to pay rent.

There are a lot of land lords to choose from, be wary choosing this one.

DONT LEASE FROM THIS COMPANY! They lease out properties that have sewer problems, rodent infestations, and leaks. We asked for proof of inspection before move in and they assured us there would be no issues as the unit was "new." And they made rodents/pests fall under tenant responsibility in our lease, even though we had asked for proof of inspection with no success. We had sewer water leaking into our kitchen, mice in our dining room cabinets, and leaks coming from the bathroom floor. They are good at covering up the issues so the unit looks nice, but once you live there the problems present themselves. When we try to get in contact with Sterling to address the issues, we have been persistently ignored for weeks because someone is "sick" or they didn't see our online maintenance request. And don't even expect them to answer the phones I don't think anyone is ever in their office to answer a phone call. We have tried reaching the property manager, the dispatched plumber, the maintenance office all with no response for weeks on end. I will never recommend them or never lease from them again. Very disappointed and looking forward to me lease ending with Sterling. Oh and by the way we are still waiting for our rodent problem to be addressed and the request was first made over two weeks ago with multiple emails and phone calls in between.

ZERO STARS!! This company is HORRIBLE! Lies at the onset of the lease regarding the pet deposit. Sold the home I lived in and the new company non renewed everyone so had less than two months to find a new place and vacate. Takes them FOREVER to fulfill a work order and then they eff it up and it takes 3 or 4 return visits. AND they lie about your pet deposit, never respond to emails, always have an excuse. They are the most incompetent bunch of twits I've ever dealt with! BEWARE!!!!!! When it comes to a Sterling Property RUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DO NOT RENT FROM THIS COMPANY. I would give them zero stars or even negative stars if only that were possible. They do not respond to maintenance requests. We still have 2 requests that have been pending since we moved in a year and a half ago. When they do finally say someone will be coming, no one shows up.

They did not finish hooking up our air conditioning unit before we moved in ( we moved in in February so we weren't using it at the time). It took them a month until someone finally showed up. Each time someone said they would show they ignored our phone calls and stood us up. Even with an appointment no one ever showed. We had the same issues when our washing machine stopped working.

Our laundry room is poorly insulated that the cold water hose leading to our washing machine froze. They said someone would come and insulate the room and provide us with a better heater, but they never did.

They do not answer their phones or emails. We have been through 3 different property managers in the 1.5 years of living here.

They stopped sending our water bill to us out of the blue and have refused to send it to us after asking multiple times to see it.

The list is endless.

I CANNOT stress enough that you will be greatly unhappy renting from this company. DO NOT DO IT!

If there was a way to leave a negative star for this place I would. This place is horrible and it doesn't change depending on the management company that buys them. I've rented from this company for 3 years and in that 3 years it has been American Colony Homes, Waypoint Homes, and now Big T Properties. Dealing With these companies have been mostly good except 1. No matter the managing company finding someone to answer the phone at the local office is IMPOSSIBLE. I've never had to deal with someone where the only way to talk to someone was to physically walk into the office. Worst company I have ever had to deal with when it comes to customer service. They go up on rent every year and it becomes a bargaining game to meet in the middle. Big T Properties bought the company lately and my house I was renting and at first I thought they were great until it was time for me to get my deposit back. Isn't it funny when a company demands money when it's going to them but takes their time when it is time to refund that money back to you? I moved out and it took numerous emails, phone calls, text messages to get my money back. The funny thing here is when the guy finally answered the phone and processed it , it took less then 15 minutes to get it in my bank account. I am so glad I bought a home so I will no longer have to deal with companies like these.

Awful, owns a property next door to us. The remodel of the house they bought took forever, didn't initially have the proper permits displayed then switched contractor companies halfway through the renovation. Once redone it was all cheap and tasteless fixtures. Just about fell on the floor and died when I learned from my neighbor what they were gouging him for in rent. Left one of their ugly signs up advertising their company scaring the facade of the house for years. All around appears to be a trash act. Investors beware, I wouldn't want to attach my name to such a place.

Like Sterling Silver, It Tarnishes

When I came to see the unit at South Commons Court, I liked it. You could tell the place was new just extremely dirty. I was told that it would be cleaned and repainted as the stairs were black with footprints. I was told another girl confirmed she would be moving in, and that I would get a free month’s rent for signing the lease. After seeing a few other places, I felt like I finally found a piece of jewelry that I resonated with in the store. You know, a simple Sterling silver necklace- something nice yet affordable.

I was ready to sign the lease when I first saw some of the silver start to tarnish. Before signing, I found out that the other girl didn’t go through with the place, the electric had to be put in my name (oh and the address I was given was actually different- it’s not 221 Murray Rd it’s Socom Ct). Then because they had to seriously clean the place, they had to push my move in date back (twice). But hey as long as it’s clean right?

Move in day came, and, well... I’m not really sure what they cleaned or repainted. The stairs were still disgusting black, the carpets had stains and needed to be vacuumed, the floors needed to be mopped, the windows needed to be loved by some windex, and the toilet seats still had urine on them. Gross. But that’s not all that was wrong with the place- the boys still had the garage door openers, the doorbell was found in the mailbox, the kitchen blinds had been ripped out of ceiling, two lights were out, and there was a lovely wasp nest growing in the corner of the door. Welcome home.

A week later mother bear came up to see the place. She created a list of the problems, and called Sterling. How great it is to get a machine when you call? And then after dealing with the machine you get the voicemail? Luckily, the awesome intern answered and reported the problems to the respective people. Unfortunately, the respective people didn’t get back to us. The new realtor came to show the place to someone the following week (you would think they would knock before entering when they’re 40 minutes past the time they said they’d be coming). Afterward, I talked to her about all the problems, and she said that they could have someone come clean but all they’d do is sweep. (Already did that). So I got a day’s rent concession instead. Great right? How tarnished is Sterling now?

A few weeks go by- nothing’s happened. And then I get a knock on my door. Is it the mailman? The maintenance guy? Nope it’s a girl who said she was moving in. I asked her if she had the right unit which she did. (Btw, this is a different girl than the person they showed the place to). Right then, the realtor pulls up, the girl signs the lease on the back of her car, the realtor leaves, and she starts moving stuff in. All to find that there’s no furniture in her room. She calls the agency- no answer (typical). We have to go through the first girl that the realtor showed the place to last week to get a hold of the realtor. Two hrs later, the realtor comes back with her boyfriend and son-in-law to move furniture in. It was really nice of her family do so, but her “I’m so nice and great” attitude for moving furniture in afterhours is on a broken foundation. The furniture should have already been there, the mattress should have been the size the girl requested, she shouldn’t have had to worry about where she was going to sleep, and I should not have had to start preparing an air mattress for my surprise new roommate.

Despite the chaos and mess of Sterling Real Estate Agency, South Commons Court is a nice place. It’s spacious, it’s quiet, the appliances work, it has parking, it’s a 20 min walk to the heart of UD campus, and the lighting and energy is overall nice. But goodluck dealing with the real estate agency themselves. They tarnish quickly. They’re difficult to get in contact with, they don’t get back to you, and they’re “move-in” ready standards are obviously flawed.

PLEASE DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND LISTEN TO THESE REVIEWS BEFORE YOU RENT WITH STERLING REAL ESTATE. this is the absolute WORST renting company I have ever dealt with. I and my 3 roommates have had the worst experience with these unorganized idiots. It took almost 2 months in the middle of summer to get our air conditioning fixed, so do not expect any kind of help with maintenance!!! These people NEVER answer their phones or get back to you. They say you can 'pay online' but every month they don't take out the payment and they charge us a fee and every month we have to call and wait to hear back from these people so we can get our money back. I CANT WAIT UNTIL OUR LEASE IS UP AND WE NEVER HAVE TO DEAL WITH THESE PEOPLE EVER AGAIN!!! LISTEN TO ALL OF THESE BAD REVIEWS AND STAY AWAY FROM THIS AWFUL COMPANY!!!!

I have never actually written a review on any company, but have to say I’m appalled by the lack of professionalism of this company. One of many incompetences is that I keep getting late notices on utility bills for an apartment I no longer have a lease on. Ineptitude has been evident on all levels from the first encounter to the last. A major overhaul of this company is needed, from top to bottom.

0 stars! I just moved out and for minior painting and spackling needed for the apartment this fraudulent company is trying to take my $1,850 security deposit, $250 pet deposit and they want another $268 on top of all that!!! BEWARE renting from this company. I am in the middle pressing charges with my lawyer to get back my money and also more for wasting my time. Don't ever rent from this company!

NEGATIVE star rating! Please read all the reviews! It is obvious! This is the worse leasing company ever! They over charge, never address any maintenance issues and always make it seem like you are wrong! Please please think twice before signing any documents with them! Unprofessional and thieves!

Don't do work for this company as a subcontractor, you will not get paid, they don't respond to emails, when you call and talk to Smantha, she gives you a new excuse every time why the invoice is not paid.
Horrible service. They take advantage of small companies.
Stay away!!!