Ma Properties

Do not consider renting an apartment that is «managed» by Ma Properties. Those who are foolish enough to rent from them will be greatly disappointed. They are purely in it for the money. They should be managing sweat shops in Bangladesh. They have done nothing to resolve an issue of unbearably noisy upstairs neighbors, going on for a year an a half, excusing their inaction by claiming that tenant’s rights laws are so strong in California that poor Ma Properties is powerless to help me. Boo Hoo! Where the hell are my rights? Save yourself a lot of grief (and, probably, money). Rent elsewhere.

This should be a -(minus)-5 star rating, in my book. Unfortunately i can’t write for public display, how i really feel about. Ma and. Company. But trust me. When this termination of agreement as resident manager and termination of tenancy is all said and done, (keep in mine) my wife and i have been here a little less than 2 months, any one that has had an experience, good or bad, with these life abusive lords of slum, will be able to hear it all. Stay tuned!!.

My roommates and I moved out recently. There a funny though that crosses one’s mind when reading negative reviews about anything: «maybe my experience will be different. Maybe this nightmare won’t happen to me.»
We were wrong. Something didn’t sit right with the logistics of our move-​out process. The timing was off. We weren’t afforded enough time for a walk-​out inspection and no itemized check-​out. Predictably, we were sent a massive bill, and many items that dinged us were items that were likely not deductible — items that constituted non-​deductible wear-​and-​tear under California law.
Talking to a former Ma Properties neighbor who is an attorney, it appeared that much of the conduct from Ma Properties was on shaky legal ground. However, one gets the feeling that Ma Properties often gets away with it, as it usually costs more to pursue a landlord-​tenant claim in small claims court than just to eat the costs of the deposit.
Monstrous and unethical.

STAY AWAY FROM THESE PROPERTIES!!!
Thankfully, I do not live in any of their properties. I do however, have first hand experience with the tasteless and tackiness of these landlords. My friend who a tenant recently passed, and we were given 2 weeks to cleanup prior to doing an inspection. Since then, the owner has barged in the property — without notice, and started questioning broken glass (which was reported to their management company over two years ago), ceiling stains — which clearly is coming from the tenant upstairs, etc.
I don’t know why I have to give any stars at all. This property is a dump, and the way they are handling my friend’s passing is tasteless and disrespectful. He was a tenant, with paid rent through month end — and they just keep wanting to keep coming in and out of the apartment with all kinds of reasons. Today — they said they want to SHOW it to prospective tenants. REALLY? Someone just died in the apartment, and has traces of the long illness. You really can’t wait another week for us to get the place in much better shape to show? Please. I realize this is business as usual for you — but have a little bit of class. Oh well — I guess it’s too late for you all.

Go with any other landlord anywhere, don’t fall victim to these people. For us, it’s been the worst renting experience in our 10+ years of renting across 3 states. Slummy apartment from the start and a total bait and switch. Access to the pool? NOPE! Working garbage disposal? YOU WISH! Parking spot? DENIED!
The first
our new place there were roach traps throughout the entire unit, including the kitchen cabinets, indicating no one had lived there for a long time. The 2^nd week the piping backed up and overflowed our kitchen sink, leaking filthy brown backwater all through our kitchen, flooding our home and permanently damaging our property. It didn’t get fixed for 2 days, apparently this wasn’t a priority, there was also no compensation for our damaged property.
Last week, they finally opened our pool for the season and my husband swam for a day. The next day, we come outside to see the pool closed and locked up by order of the Alameda County Health Inspector. We contacted the Health Inspector and the pool was not authorized to be open, yet it was opened anyway and they allowed tenants to swim there. Thanks for the disease, Ma Properties.

I lived in two of Sanford’s apartments between 1999 and 2012 and he was a perfectly reasonable landlord. Sure he’s cheap, and if something breaks in your apartment, you’re probably better off fixing it yourself if you can, but I don’t have a problem replacing a fill valve in my own toilet. His rents were always reasonable and both apartments I lived in were nice with hardwood floors, high ceilings, and steam heat. I guess some other people have had problems, but as far as landlords go, Sanford wasn’t nearly as bad as some others I’ve had.

This is the only negative review I have ever written on Unilocal.
I have been living with cockroaches for almost a year now. They have been in this apt since the day I moved in. I found roach bait stations from the previous tenant so I know it was an existing problem. I have been very patient. First I tried to get rid of them myself and purchased 2 rounds of bait and a spray. When this failed I let Ma properties know about the infestation. They did send someone out to put professional bait in the apt. When this failed they had the onsite manager bring some powder stuff over.
None of this has worked and every time a new set of bait is introduced I have to go through the same nightmare all over again of all the cockroaches coming out and then finding a bunch of half dead twitching cockroaches all over my apt. It’s disgusting.
I am a pretty clean person and have even made sure to leave no dishes in the sink and all food sealed but I find them everywhere and am continually disgusted.
They have not taken any action in the past several months despite the long messages I have left. I have now confirmed that at least 5 other units in the building have the same problem and a few of them have also complained.

Wow. I wish ZERO STARS was an option.
It took them 2 months to fix my broken lock on the door to my apartment.
It took the a month to fix a broken lock on my mailbox.
The power went out when you used both wall heaters at once and ANYTHING else plugged in.
They gave me back only $ 200 of a almost $ 1500 security deposit, most of which we just lies, the place wasn’t great when I moved in and to be fair it probably needed someone to give it a once over cleaning after I left. But they cited wall painting as a major cost? And lied about how many smoke detectors there were? This shouldn’t cost me $ 1200.
They all act very nice to your face and on the phone, but are sleazy, lazy, cheap, slumlords. DO NOT RENT FROM THEM.

If I could give them 0 stars, I would. I had a nightmare of an experience renting from Ma Properties. I should have heeded the reviews that I saw online, but I thought I could make it work since the rent was so low and the place was cute (on the surface). Boy, was I wrong!
1) THE BUILDING I LIVED IN WAS A DUMP
My power went out multiple times/​week in the first 3 months that I lived there due to a faulty breaker box. I would come home to a non-​working fridge full of spoiled food or look up and be sitting in pitch dark at any given moment. They kept insisting that it was my fault and the only way I got them to fix/​replace it was by complaining every single time it went out FOR 3 MONTHS!
There was vandalism and breaking of doors/​windows that occurred on more than one occasion in the building foyer, compromising the security of the building, that took them WEEKS to fix.
There were gnats in the kitchen that would not go away. Again, they insisted this was my fault and proposed that I solve the problem by not leaving any food whatsoever out on the counter.
2) MA PROPERTIES IS RUDE AND DOESN’T RESPECT OR VALUE THEIR TENANTS
On several occasions, when things went wrong with the building (basement flooding, front door being broken, etc.), MP would post derogatory notes for the entire building to read. This was unbelievably disrespectful to tenants who had NOTHING to do with these issues.
There are also nasty notes posted about paying rent late or needing duplicate keys. (I have pics of everything) They are just beyond rude and ridiculous.
3) THEY ARE DISCRIMINATORY AND BIASED IN HOW THEY GOVERN DISAGREEMENTS BETWEEN TENANTS
The most heinous act of all was the discrimination that I had to feel for nearly the ENTIRE time that I lived there. I had the rudest, most entitled couple living underneath me that complained about EVERY STEP that I took nearly every week. Their building is OLD, the walls are paper thin and the old floors creak. Everyone can hear what everyone else is doing in this building. Instead of taking responsibility for these things and working to create an amicable agreement between neighbors, Ma Properties management took the complainers side and harassed me all times of the day and evening, including while I was at work. There was NOT ONE other complaint from any other tenant in the building, despite the fact that I had neighbors above, one both sides and across the hall from me. These people took it upon themselves to invade my privacy and totally violate my right to live happily in my own home and MP Management completely supported them in that plight. I had to endure a hostile and invasive living environment, being scolded like a child and harassed by constant texts and voice-​mails from the other tenants and MP. They were rude and totally unreasonable, even when I made every attempt to cooperate. Ma Properties did not respect me as paying tenant and I eventually (after less than 6 months) made the decision to move out. This, of course, inconvenienced me greatly financially and from a time standpoint. I felt targeted, punished and persecuted; like they orchestrated an unfounded eviction.
To sum things up, I was treated like a child or a vagrant who was being allowed to live there. Not a paying tenant with equal rights. My reputation as a renter and a property owner is impeccable. I have never endured a situation even remotely close to this one.
Please, if you don’t want to regret it, steer clear of ever coming into contact with these people or their properties.

When I first moved in, the windows seemed a little sketchy. They were old and it was a first floor apt. At some point, someone had installed a locking system. This would have been great if it weren’t defunct. There were no keys and it needed to be upgraded. I pointed this out to the management and they didn’t do anything about it. My place was broken into through the window, like I suspected it might. I believe that it had been broken into before as there were bars on one window only. They were too cheap to put them on all the windows. Well, after the break-​in, I called to let them know that I was now sleeping with a loaded gun at my bedside (true story) in case anyone broke in. The window was broken and unable to be closed properly. They finally put bars up. They eventually replaced the windows (though they replaced the other units first) when I made a stink about it.
The new windows…
The whole job was a hack job and they didn’t offer to put me up anywhere else while the work was being done (which I’m pretty sure is illegal). My apt was covered in dust and I got sick from it. I had to clean all the dust up myself. It covered everything I own. It was a nightmare.
The windows weren’t sealed properly and for months I was calling to tell them that it was raining inside my apartment when it rained outside. They came to caulk but never finished fixing the water damaged area and the bedroom window still leaks.
They also have it set up so each unit in my building has to pay for water and sewer.
AND when my bathroom sink clogged up, the maintenance guy lied to the management company and told him there was a hairball. I was there the whole time watching him and there was no hairball. I explained this to the management and they still want to charge me for fixing the sink even though there is no evidence that I caused the clog! All I do is wash my hands and brush my teeth in that sink. I don’t wash my hair. I’m pretty sure it is also illegal to charge the tenants for repairs that are due to wear and tear.
My plan is to leave Oakland asap and I will be SO glad to never have anything to do with Ma Properties again.
About a month later:
Bathroom sink is clogged AGAIN/​STILL. No call back x over a week.
City of Oakland City Code Enforcement: (510) 238‑3381
Better Business Bureau

My sister complex has been without hot water for four days now.

Very nice people. I rent a nice clean 1 bedroom apartment by Lake Merritt from Ma Properties for a reasonable price and they always respond when I need them. What more could you ask for? I’d definitely recommend them to any of my friends!

I havent been on here in a while, but i promised an update… Ma Properties sent someone from the vector’s office to our apartment, who set out a series of traps. It took me a couple of weeks to realize that this mouse wasn’t going to conveniently walk up to one of the Tom and Jerry– esq mouse traps! We ended up sprinkling poison around the areas he was seen, and we noticed that he ate it. After about three days, the poison was no longer being eaten, and we haven’t seen any traces of him again.
In the end, we took care of the issue ourselves. Ma Properties did clean out the junk from the stairwells, at the advice of the vector. Not much has changed, other than Ma Properties raising my rent twice in one year. They are still pretty good about responding to maintenance issues, and for the most part, Sanford stays out of your way. I think there is an issue of renting in Oskland in general: people will pay high rents for less than adequate living spaces. Oh well, maybe I’ll move out to Dublin where everything is brand new and cookie cutter :-)

I’ve lived at 1514 Jackson for just over a year and have had several unacceptable maintenance issues that have not been promptly and professionally addressed. For example:
— kitchen sink flooded when I was out of town, it took 2 days after I returned to get the mess cleaned up
— elevator has broken 3 times so that it operates, but makes a loud noise in the apartment
— door to our hallway (shared with 10 other units) was locked shut, forcing a long detour around the back of the building to exit (can you say fire hazard?)
I’m not planning to be a customer much longer. 2^nd star is for Sarah, who is a friendly and helpful employee of the company.

Frist of all, most property managers are evil. They take so much money from tenants and don’t do much in return.
Ma Properties for the most part has been friendly and has tried to work with me on all issues that I have had. I do not agree that they are slum lords, as I have heard terrifying stories of managers in NYC and am thankful I don’t have those problems.
My only concern is that they could do better with their finances, as I was previously billed for numerous months of late fees all at once, which they hadn’t charged before. They were willing to let me pay in installments, but it made me think that they were trying to get as much to accrue during that time and it made me feel like they are dishonest. And I have had them ask me for fees that they have already collected (and cashed), so I feel like I need to keep records of what I pay and when, which can be frustrating, but is not the end of the world.
If you make the effort (which you will have to) but they will attempt to meet you half-​way.

In 2008, I lived at the Westlake, 1560 Jackson St Oakland. I had been there a year and a half when I was laid off. I burned through my savings and had just got a new job. I asked the onsite managers if I could pay 1 week late (waiting on 1^st paycheck) and they said no problem. I had always paid rent on time up until that point. The next week I got an eviction notice. I absolutely would have moved out if they had just asked. Instead, Ma screwed me over, evicting me without an warning. And he didn’t even do it to my face, he had the sweet Filipino couple that manages the property do it.
Sanford Ma is a str8 up shady cat. Don’t rent from them.

You know, I think most people who complain about Sanford being a «slum lord» and the properties being poorly maintained are used to comfortable suburban living places where the building were all constructed in the early 2000’s and parking is included in their sky high rents.
I currently live at Ma Properties and I’ve never experienced an issue from Sanford, Marco or Gloria. Everytime I call with a maintenance issue (and trust me, no matter where you live, no matter what the company is, you will always have some maintenance issues) Sanford personally comes over to check it out and it is resolved quickly. To boot, Gloria makes followup calls to make sure that everything was taken care of.
Before choosing to move into our property, we checked out Lapham Company and got nothing but rude, high pressure people on the phone who scoffed when we told them our price range. Being students, we can’t afford to pay 1150 for a 1 bedroom the size of what we are currently renting from Ma in the same neighborhood for 200 bucks less. And parking is a privilege, not a right. Nobody is forcing you to get a parking spot, especially when there is ample street parking throughout the day. However, for peace of mind, I’m fine with paying the fee. If you’re so bent out of shape about paying for it, then don’t pay it.
That being said, Ma Properties is not the evil company that they’re made out to be by these reviews. Some even look a tad bit suspect to me, but that’s just my opinion.

I wanted to believe that Ma Properties were good people despite all of these bad ratings. It only took 8 months to realize how horrible they are.
I have been paying $ 50months to park at their Lenox location. Yesterday, I came home after taking a final only to find a random car parked in my parking space. The space next to my parking spot had not been rented out since I moved here so I parked there temporarily and went back to school. When I got home, I found that Sanford had called to get my car towed.
Sanford could have easily called me to have me move my car. My vehicle information is provided on the parking agreement with Ma properties. I have contacted the managers about this situation and have gotten no apologies or compensation, only a $ 250 bill from the towing company.
So now I’m in agreement with the rest of the previous tenants. Ma properties does not care about their tenants. They are helpful until you sign a one-​year contract. After that, it’s all about taking your money.
PS: Sanford is a cheap landlord. The complex needs a lot of work, but won’t happen under this cheapo. The «laundry» at the complex has continued to have problems, but they aren’t willing to replace it. Now I understand why their rent is so cheap.

Pros: Cheap rent. Cons: You really are living in the Sanford Arms, and you will find yourself humming the «Sanford and Son» theme whenever Sanford is around. I appreciated Sanford’s DIY aesthetic, and he might be able to fix a window, but he cannot fix a water heater, and it sounds like he couldn’t fix bigger problems like the odor of decaying bodies (gasp!) and toilet trouble, nor was he willing to hire people to fix these bigger problems. I have no problem with a place being old or «charming,» but if something breaks, Ma Properties was slow to fix it.
I never spoke with Gloria. I’m glad she’s cool. And Dustin was okay, but they need to invest more money in maintenance.

I’m moving out.
You should not have to call a building inspector, health inspector, legal aid, neighborhood supervisor, housing board, etc to get leaky windows repaired and a damaged carpet replaced. You should not have to pay for an apartment with a patio that floods into the house when it rains.
If you do have to do these things, you should be able to reach your landlord by more than just a voice mail, and he should not call you a «picky person» for requiring 24 hour notice before a repair person comes into your house (by the way, that’s actually the law, not just a personal preference). And finally, he definitely shouldn’t just decide to ignore you if he doesn’t like one of your requests. I stood there as he just completely ignored everything I said about the damaged carpet in our living room. He knew that water had flooded in, and nobody took the proper steps to dry it out — he never sent a fan or a heater or ANYTHING. He told me he would caulk the door. Unless he plans to seal the entire sliding glass door shut, caulk is not going to keep the water out.
Here are the responses I received from the various reps I talked to:
Building Inspector (who came to inspect our flooding patio last year) — «It doesn’t surprise me that it’s still a problem. He was difficult to work with and his solution didn’t seem like it would last long.»
Legal aid: «You mean to tell me he didn’t give you any heaters or fans to dry out your carpet?»
Neighborhood supervisor: «You should make sure you fill out a petition for decreased rent.»
Decreased Rent/​Housing Board: «Hang in there.»
I have had enough. He had me move all of my stuff — bed, dresser, bookshelves, couch etc — into the vacant apartment across the hall while he and a couple workers are working on my room. He refused to send anyone to help move my stuff, citing it as some kind of liability. I hired someone from Craigslist. It’s amazing how I continue to have to pay for things that are Sanford’s responsibility, or rather, come as a result of his lack of taking responsibility for his own building.
Make no mistake about it: Sanford Ma is a slumlord. It’s a real shame, because the space itself has great potential, and you can tell the original builder put great care into the design. I had high hopes for this apartment, but now I realize that even if Sanford were to fix everything he is truly obligated to fix, it won’t change the fact that he is an abominable landlord. And beware — Ma Properties owns A LOT of spaces in the area.
I don’t feel right giving my rent money to this man anymore, so I’m out.