Ellis Enterprises Inc

My experience with this family owned business was awful. My biggest mistake was making a verbal agreement between myself and Donna, the wife of the couple (who had passed away a few months after signing my lease, god bless) allowing me to have a pet, then later getting harassed for having one. Between having a very rude, snobby, unprofessional property manager, and the husband John (landlord) who screams at you, asking "do you want to settle this" when you bring up a concern, Just super unprofessional. I'm currently moving out and need to re paint the bathroom, after my mistake of thinking it was Menards, I called my local Home Depot for the paint color under the company name to re paint the bathroom and could not receive a straight answer. I contacted my property manager to get this information for me and was told that I don't follow directions, that I'm a liar and didn't speak to the correct individual, yahda yahda yahda. Upon finally receiving this information from the property manager, I thanked her for actually doing her job. I've heard stories from locals that they rarely return security deposits, but we will see.

Maybe others have had a different experience, but personally, I wouldn't recommend them to my worst enemy.

The only good thing I can say is they leave you alone, goodluck.

I wanted to bring to your attention a recent experience we had regarding our inquiries about a specific apartment. Unfortunately, we encountered a significant delay of three weeks in receiving a response, only to discover that the apartment had already been rented out without any further communication.

I must admit that this lack of responsiveness was quite frustrating, especially considering the high cost and limited size of the property. We had hoped for a timely and efficient process, but the delay and subsequent unavailability of the apartment left us disappointed.

Upon further reflection and gathering feedback from others, it seems that we may have dodged unfavorable circumstances by not proceeding with the rental. We are grateful for this insight, as it reinforces the importance of thorough research and due diligence when it comes to such significant decisions.

Moving forward, we kindly request that you prioritize prompt and transparent communication with prospective tenants. This will not only help manage expectations but also ensure a smoother and more satisfactory experience for all parties involved.

I rented from Ellis Properties for 7 years. And in the beginning my experience was wonderful. As I am even related to the owner, John Ellis. Not that we are close or anything, but still. His wife at the time was amazing with tenants and keeping things up to date. Unfortunately, she passed away and everything went bad. I never got anything fixed, no one ever answered calls or texts, I couldn’t get my carpets cleaned. The lease said only through them, they never responded. I spent $100’s in repairs over the years and never missed rent even. I’ve missed work days from being snowed in, even though the lease said he would do that if over 2 inches. The property always had garbage, bugs, bad landscape. Every year it got worse. The people he rented too were awful after she passed. I was there the longest, and watched over 5 people be arrested. Cops always in and out. I can go on for hours. I have a text my security deposit would be mailed shortly, still waiting on it, months later. He trash talks his tenants, has a very unprofessional mouth. Curses up a storm. Very unprofessional. I’m more embarrassed to be related. Worse decision I made was not withholding rent when I needed things done. Beautiful apartments too. It’s like he stopped doing background checks. Search Ellis Properties anywhere you’ll hear nothing but bad. Worse staff ever. I’ll never understand why.

When 13 of the last 15 reviews are only 1 star, believe it. I moved out several months ago and have reached out several times to check status of my security deposit's return and I am being ignored. I rented from them for 2 years and I came into contact with 4 different property managers during that time. Perhaps business breaks down internally because no one stays long enough to get a grasp on what they're doing? Luckily I didn't have many problems during my time, but it seems like if they are not prevented by law to ignore the things you report, they will ignore it. So prepare to take some matters in to your own hands even though they own the structure and the fixtures within it. Even if your lease doesn't state that it's the tenant's responsibility. Trying to get a response out of them sometimes takes days and multiple follow ups, if you get a response at all. I was never late with rent, never wrote a bad check, never paid short, and never asked for an extension. Cleaned the apartment from top to bottom when I left, did everything I was to do as the tenant, and they still can't return my calls. I would definitely explore other options outside of Ellis Properties.

I have been scrolling through many rental websites for a couple of months now and found a handful of properties being offered by Ellis Properties. I didn't know these were managed by Ellis Properties until recently. I noticed the phone number on the website matched the phone number of the person that was asking me to call them through the websites, someone named Donna.

We had reached out to ask about a couple properties and even made arrangements to see them. Then we were given an excuse by Donna as to why we couldn't be shown the properties. Now we've been completely ghosted. I've left voicemails and sent text messages and have gotten absolutely nothing back. And then I check my email this morning to see that these apartments are no longer available?! Really nice.

I've been trying to reach someone for weeks to see an overpriced, tiny, outdated apartment, it took TWO weeks to get a response and then we get ghosted only for the place to get rented out. What an actual joke!!!

But now I think we dodged a bullet judging by these reviews. I also know someone that knew the owner very well and they told me many, many horror stories about how much of a slum lord this guy is, but still charges premium rental prices. And now I see these reviews about people getting cheated out of their deposits, bugs, mold, broken windows and bad appliances.

I would have still considered renting from these dirtbags because we desperately need to move for a custody issue, even with all of the bad reviews, until I saw that email this morning that the apartments we were supposed to see the other day are now off the market. After we were told this Donna lady had a "family emergency".

Judging by these reviews and stories I have heard about John Ellis and Ellis Properties, I think Donna is full of sh*t. Actual slum lords. How do you people sleep at night? How are these people still in business?

Moved out 5 months ago. Called today and asked about my security deposit. "Donna" (she claims thats her name, i dont think it is) told me that I won't be receiving my security deposit because her parents died last week. If that doesnt tell you not to rent from these people then I dont know what will.

P.S. I think she probably lied about her parents dying and even if they did die, what does that have to do with my security deposit.

RENTERS BEWARE! Ellis Enterprises is the most unprofessional leasing company I have ever rented from. A little over a month into the lease- I was never provided a mailbox key (leasing manager’s solution was for me to hold my mail at the post office), the laundry unit is not functional, dishwasher does not work, and to top it off, the unit was an absolute mess upon move in (dirt and sawdust everywhere from construction that I cleaned up myself). Leasing manager is incredibly evasive. She does not respond to calls or text messages and does not follow through with maintenance requests. I requested a number for a supervisor and my request was ignored. Numbers listed on the company website are either disconnected or calls simply aren’t returned. This company WILL leave you high and dry the moment you sign a lease. My advice, please take these reviews seriously! One month in, 11 to go…

I received a letter in my door with someone else's name on it stating that they were terminating my lease in 30 days due to zoning restrictions. I have been a good but frustrated tenant dealing with these people. They are very unprofessional, rude, immature and clueless. My lease isn't up until July of this year, but they built on ComEd's property and I found out that the apartment I live in and the one across from me will be torn down. I am struggling now to find a place to live. I am downright terrified. They offered no apology or even help to find other apartments or resources. They are terrible people. The laundry machines always have something wrong with them, today the coin slot isn't working because they haven't emptied it. I am at my wit's end. They are slow to fix anything like my shower which submits a high ringing noise when you turn the hot water on. Caitlin is the main person I dealt with. She doesn't act professionally and the day I was supposed to move in, which was confirmed and signed in my lease, she stated I couldn't because she was out of town. I don't know what they think they're doing, but it's not a good situation. They need to be checked by someone because what they're doing is not right. I can go on and on, but point is, STAY AWAY. It's more stress and frustration than it's worth. If they're willing to breach a lease and give a tenant 30 days notice because they messed up, that tells you all you need to know. They went ahead and rented property to people that they KNOW may be torn down. Disgusting.
Update: I was able to find a new apartment within the 30 days and now rent from KDR Real Estate who have been nothing short of amazing. They are quick to respond to everything needed and literally have someone in your apartment the next day to fix things that don't work. It took three months for John to return my security deposit and his property managers failed to communicate with me regarding it for those three months. I was ready to submit a final notice to them and thankfully it appeared in my mailbox on June 5. They mailed it June 2. I was out of the apartment on March 26. Be extremely cautious when applying or renting an apartment from them and READ ALL REVIEWS.

Worst worst worst!!! Place to ever rent from!! STAY FAR FAR FAR FAR away from Ellis properties, they are the most unprofessional landlords I have even dealt with, their “property managers” are a literal joke! They are more like children scrambling around, and literally have no idea what they are doing. I’ve been renting from them for almost a year now and seriously can not wait until my lease is up so I can run so far away! My sister currently rents from them as well, and has two BABIES in her apartment and there is frost inside of her apartment because her seals are so messed up.. she has asked to be switched out of that unit 5-8 times over the last 2 months, and no one responds, or does anything about it. She will be contacting a lawyer. This entire company is a literal joke, the landlord was in my sisters apartment yelling at my mom because she called him a slumlord because he renting out her unit covered in dog urine, I just don’t get how they are still able to provide homes for people. How does a Lanlord keep TWO BABIES in a freezing cold apartment. I hope he has some sort of regret when a letter from her lawyer is in his mailbox, my sisters kids have been in and out of the doctor from being sick because of this. This entire company needs to be shut down!!!

John is a slumlord. The only good thing about renting where I live is I’m able to bring my two small dogs in with me, but getting him to do the small jobs such as a huge hole by my back door has not been taken care of for almost 2 years now, I’m going to write a letter to him and to the village and hopefully he will respond and take care of the air And bugs that keep coming in through my bedroom door. He mows the lawn may be 2 to 3 times in the summer and good luck getting your gutters cleaned out he considers this a cosmetic job.As most landlords around this area all they care about is collecting their rent and he is one of them. I’ll throw you out the minute you don’t pay rent.

HORRIBLE!!!! Didn’t have a fridge for two weeks, my dad has to come out and fix it. Window in second bedroom shattered in the dead of winter took them over a week to repair it. Had a homeless women sleeping in front of my door for a week even with calling the police every morning and asking the landlord to put locks on back and front door. Electrical problems in hallway and kitchen nobody came to fix. LOUD neighbors complained almost everyday and they did nothing. Almost all tenants (including myself) has their cars keyed in parking lot. They wouldn’t deduct what we paid from the rent, dyer and washers constantly breaking, landlord let her girlfriend move in with her Pitt bull even though it says in the rent NO dogs over 25 pounds. We gave $975 security deposit, and a $300 pet fee. Didn’t see any of the money back and they sent me a bill for $680.00 extra!!! We saw the exact unit we moved out of a couple days ago and all the things they’re charging us extra for has NOT been done!! DO NOT RENT HERE!!!!!

The issues that I had were trying to move out of their apartments. I lived in a wilmington establishment on Van Buren st. The apartment was fine there was an issue with a washer at one point that took them weeks to fix with water in the washer it caused a mold out break in my apartment I had to throw away furniture and clothes that were affected. Honestly looking back I had a lot of allergies living at this place that I never had before so I’m not so sure there isn’t black mold or other allergens in the air. Since I’ve moved I’ve had no problems. for a company that lives and dies by the lease agreements as much as these people do they sure break their own agreements I found that out when they raised my rent randomly during a lease agreement. So the real issue here is moving out of this place And heres where they get you when you sign your lease agreement there’s a sheet that documents a ton of stuff that if you leave uncleaned or broken when you leave they can charge you for. Well this is where the bs comes from. First of all when I was trying to leave here my lease was up I hadn’t signed a new one and heard nothing from them about it. I tried to call and give them over 30 day’s notice I was going to see if they would work with me because my new apartment could only get me in, in the middle of the month. Of course they would not. even though I wasn’t in a lease anymore and I was giving over 30 days notice I ended up having to pay a full month even though I only lived there half of that month. Then during this conversation they informed me that I have to get their carpets cleaned at the cost of like 160 dollars or whatever it was or they would deduct it out of my security deposit. They had laid new carpet right before I moved in and I’m telling you there wasn’t a stain on this carpet I had no pets my apartment was almost just like they gave it too me i was very clean and respectful. They told me this carpet agreement was in the lease it actually wasn’t it says they can charge you for it if it was damaged only not that I had to do it as an agreement. Shouldn’t this be their job? Not to mention you can’t clean them yourselves you have to go through the company that they recommend. Talk about a scam to help that business I bet. Anyways I complied to this because I wanted my over 1100 dollar security deposit back and I didn’t want to give them a reason to try to keep it from me. Before moving out I pretty much cleaned everything I was not a dirty person so was very easy I cleaned the kitchen and the tub. Well fast forward to a month and 10 days after moving out ( how long it took to get my security deposit back they will wait till the very last minute even though I was paying for a new apartment with a new deposit and new rent all while having to pay rent at a place I wasn’t even living at and had to wait well over a month for my security deposit. The day it came in the mail I was relieved I was starting to think I wasn’t going to get it. That was until I opened it. What was supposed to be 1125 dollars or more was a measly 750. Here’s what they charged me for. 40 dollars to wipe out the cabinets. I checked the cabinets befor I left maybe one had a little dirt nothing that warrants 40 dollars. Clean oven 50 dollars. I used this oven maybe 5-8 times for like frozen pizza I did all my cooking on the stove which I cleaned before I left. There was nothing to clean. Bath and shower which I also cleaned if it wasn’t clean it’s because the water rusts and you have to clean it every week my tub was turning read. Why should I be paying for that 40 dollars. Touch up paint “prorated 25 months” I don’t even know what that means I maybe put 1 or two nails in the wall that they probably didn’t notice. 83 dollars for this for something they should do anyways There was no stains on my walls everything was as good as They gave it to me. There was some other charges but ontop of the carpet I saw near 500 dollars of my 1,125 security deposit and my apartment was spotless. Stay away from these apartments. I’d write more but ran out of character

They don’t even deserve one star. I have been calling and texting their property manager for over two months now, to get our leak fixed. It is growing mold and flooding our apartment. Extremely rude and unprofessional, I am just unsure why he and his team would want to ruin their places. Definition of a slumlord. DO NOT RENT FROM THEM.

Tenents beware! Do not rent from here if you want any kind of a competent landlord. I live in the apartments in Wilmington and will be out ASAP even if that means breaking my lease. There could be a foot of snow drifted and the parking lot won't be plowed making it impossible to get a vehicle out. The landlord will ignore calls so he doesn't have to deal with it. I'm guessing all the good reviews are friends of his.

PLEASE STAY AWAY!!!!!!!!!!! This company is run by a SLUM lord! Nothing ever gets fixed just put on a “list”. I’ve had to buy my own appliances, smoke alarms, fix a toilet, a fan, and RE WIRE my WHOLE ENTIRE CONDO because they refuse to do it! Love my apartment but it’s basically as if we own it, so we’ll do whatever we please.

This place is horrible! They ran a minors credit with out parental consent. Charged 50 each 2 ppl for a credit check! Mind you my 17 yr old can not even sign a contract!! My attorney is involved. If Any of you would like to share your experience with me and possibly start a class action lawsuit you can instant message me at Constance Weese on Facebook! Do not delay as of 5 o'clock this afternoon there 24 hours is up to contact my attorney and give me a full refund! I will pursue them to the absolute fullest!