SAN ANTONIO, Tx — Residents at The Riley Apartments on the northwest side are pleading for help. Many residents feel they were abandoned by property management, who they accuse of packing and leaving while still requesting rent. Kiersten Rodriguez has lived at The Riley Apartments for almost two years says a letter was placed on her door at the end of May.
“Suddenly, we get this notice on the door that says they changed ownership, and that rent is due via check or money order and not available online,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez says that was one of the last times they heard from their previous property management.
“None of us wanted to pay with money orders because we didn’t now where it was going,” Rodriguez said. “We didn’t have any proof of who was receiving the money. Not only that, we didn’t have a way to pay the money because the office was never open every single day. So, we started writing letters and putting them on the walls of the office. Nothing changed.”
According to Rodriguez the condition of the property quickly went downhill with no property management onsite. Rodriguez says the grass wasn’t mowed and extermination services stopped. The tenant says she also had to do her own repairs.
“I did briefly have a plumbing issue,” Rodriguez said. “I had to fix it myself just because I had no one to call.”
Another resident who did not want to be named says squatters have also become an issue since they’ve been without property management.
“When I came back from work, I found a homeless man sleeping in my bed. He broke into my home, eating all my food.”
We reached out to the Riley Apartments previous property management, DJE Texas Management Group multiple times, but they have not answered our calls. Their website djtexas.com is also down.
We contacted District 8 councilwoman Ivalis Meza Gonzalez, who told us the city is aware of the situation at The Riley Apartments and has issued the previous management two dozen code violation notices.
Development Services told us the property was under foreclosure and they have issued violations for overgrown yard and trash, dumpster maintenance, water leaks, maintenance issues, and electrical panels missing covers in several buildings.
The Riley Apartments was taken over by Implicity Management Company last Wednesday. We are told they are working to secure the apartments to create a safe home for residents.
