Hammett Properties

I have since written a letter in regards to everything, and to my surprise, Ron was on it at first as always. Although Ron advised me that he did not see the issues that i mentioned in my letter and thought i exaggerated my letter and a little blame was thrown my way, as to keeping my animal food out only when the pet is eating, which i thought was a little funny, since i never had issues with the bugs in the 3 of 4 years that i have lived here with the pet food out. However, I have actually since removed the animal all together now. In addition, Ron did have the exterminators come to do the inside of my unit and also advised me that another person was going to contact me in regards to my peeling tub… The exterminator did come and say that they would revisit with a follow up spray as it was needed. However I have yet to hear from the Person on my tub and the follow up has not been acknowledged as of today.

every experience is different but mine is like the majority. i was scammed out of application fees and holding fees. they never ran my credit for the apartment and stopped answering the phones. and continued showing the unit. very bad business and heartless. people arw trying to provide a home for their families and they just screw you over… never will deal with them again

I’m currently a tenant of Hammett Properies and have had nothing but good experiences in the past 10 months. Obviously still living here I’ve not gone through the process of getting my deposit back (which seems to be the cause for a lot of bad reviews here), but I’ll update this review when I do move out.
The property is well maintained in terms of landscaping, and the couple times I’ve had issues with the property they’ve been handled within 24 hours.
For example, last night 1÷25÷16 around 9:30 my bathroom ceiling began leaking due to a running toilet in the unit above me. I emailed Jennifer this morning then called Ron and left a message as it was before they arrived. I received a return phone call from Ron just saying he got my voicemail and someone would be coming out to fix it today. I got home and the leak had been fixed, the trash can/​bowls I’d had to catch the water had been put away/​washed, and my bathroom was clean. Far above and beyond of just fixing the leak.
I am sorry to see other people have had poor experiences, but they are great as far as I’m concerned, and my neighbor Tony who has lived here 3 years also has only good things to say.

Renting from Hammett Properties is like being in an abusive relationship. Everything goes smoothly at first but you soon realize the contract you entered into was built on lies and when you confront them about it, they threaten you.
–1^st warning. The lease clearly stated that you had until the 5^th of each month to pay without penalty. So imagine my surprise when I paid on the 3^rd thinking I had plenty of time and receive a notice on my door demanding a $ 45 fee. No call. Just a letter slapped on my door. I called them to discuss and never received a call back.
–2^nd warning. I was out of town and came home to another notice. A noise complaint. I called and left a message to inquire as I had not been home for almost a week. Jennifer called back to ask me about it and I explained. Thought it had been understood, but I have now been denied by a landlord because Ron (who I have never spoken to) said I was a noisy tenant.
–3^rd warning. ROACHES. Yes, ROACHES! It took 3 calls to get a response and when they came to spray, I had to move out for three days. No compensation. No apologies. Not even a verbal response. Just another letter slapped on my door to be out the next day for fumigation.
I stayed for a year. They tried to say that I had asked to extend my lease for two weeks into May. That was not what I agreed to. They just knew that the closet I rented from them was almost impossible to rent it again. Check out the pictures. They want $ 895 for that! I paid $ 100 less. Without air conditioning in la Mesa, I feel sorry for the sap who moves in. I paid my rent and have a great landlord reference now. I just want to be closer to work. Ron who wasn’t even my point of contact, someone I have never spoken to is now acting like a scorned ex boyfriend because I moved away. And as with many people posting on here, I never saw a penny of my deposit. Ron is a scam.

RUN AWAY!!! SERIOUSLY. RUN AWAY!!!
First of all, to the positive posters, there is more to the story than deposits. This business, and Ron, are terrible. PERIOD! If you’ve had a good experience, it’s likely because the owner is more involved with the property and Ron has to be on his best behavior (or you were paid). With us, this was far from the case and we suffered while dealing with this guy.
I have never dealt with a property manager this bad! Any review that states otherwise is hard to believe.
** Our garage was broken into and we had no lock attached to our garage door after the break in. Ron told me to fix it myself. Only after explaining to him that we’re not liable for things gone missing due to no lock did he offer to fix it. But later he threatened that we’d need to find a new place when the lease was up (because I «complain too much». I was only complaining because Ron told me to fix something myself when supplying locks is the property manager’s legal responsibility).
** We had a water leak in the roof which took THREE separate calls over 3 – 4 weeks to get it fixed. I’m sure the owner of the property would love to hear that (public records here I come).
** There’s no emergency phone number. If there’s a problem that needs to be fixed immediately, too bad! Deal with the fact that you won’t get a call until the next morning around 11am if you’re lucky. I would sometimes wait days for a response to anything.
** If they do choose to do work they will not always tell you that they got your message and are doing something. Common courtesy.
** They would send the maintenance person without informing you. I’ve always happened to be home but if I wasn’t? Not sure.
** Any time I’ve complained to Ron, his immediate response was to push the responsibility back on us as if it was our fault. Ron, let me explain something to you. It’s about your job, Ron. You ready for it? YOU ARE A «PROPERTY MANAGER».
** I was told that my attitude was the problem. My attitude was only there because of their crappy service.
** And NOW onto the deposit. We were charged for things that are not our responsibility. Period. We got charged for landscaping which we never paid for. We got charged for re-​stuccoing some things that are due to the house’s foundation. We received an itemized list of things Ron chose to charge for even though he provided no receipts (just his choosing things and writing). We were even charged for things that we complained about while we lived there that Hammett chose not to fix. Not only is what he did unjustified, it’s ROBBERY! We paid a deposit in good faith and due to his mismanagement (and whatever he makes up in his head) he decides it’s ok to steal some of that. That’s NOT ok.
Hammett properties, you’ve avoided phone calls, you’ve deflected the issues, you’ve insulted me, you’ve been generally lazy, you’ve been 100% disrespectful, and you’ve stolen from us and expected that I show you the opposite (he even told me to apologize once). You have a general apathy toward your tenants and it shows. Our neighbors shared the sentiment. Not only do you represent the owners of the properties, you represent the property itself which includes your tenants. Unfortunately all of this just goes over your head. You are incapable of decency.
Hope karma catches up, slum lords.

When I first started renting from Hammett Properties over a year ago, I was nervous because of all the reviews I read here, but a year and half later, on the other side of my experience (security deposit returned and all) with Ron and Jennifer, I am so happy to report that my experience with them was 100% positive! From the start they were honest, fair and even generous — they installed new appliances before I moved in, and EVERY SINGLE TIME I turned in a repair request, it was completed the next day! When my closet door kept falling off the tracks, they ordered a new track and replaced the old one very quickly and with no problems. They were very professional every time I was in contact with them and always very prompt to respond to my concerns. When I had to move for work, I tried to find another Hammett Properties place, because a good landlord is hard to come by! But when I couldn’t find one of their properties near my job, they made the move out process very smooth and they gave me back 100% of my deposit, in a timely manner. I’m very grateful for my experience with HP and would recommend them to anyone!

Ron and Jennifer were always extremely prompt and courteous. My condo needed several major appliance replacements and a couple of repairs which were done immediately. Others need to remember that they are managing the property and some things are beyond their control. My owner was a bit «unusual» to say the least but Ron and Jennifer seemed very adept at getting her to follow through. I have not received my security deposit yet, honestly I expect to pay for new carpet they made a rule exception to allow a cat for my son, carpet which the cat scratched severely. After three years you do need to paint. FYI, we cleaned the cat litter we did not expect Hammett to do it for us:) I was so happy when I needed to move closer to my office I asked Hammett first if they had anything in the area. Thumbs up all the way! Update, Recieved my security deposit last week, accurate and very generous!

I realize most people only post when they are upset. I would like to post after an end to an incredible 3 years with Ron and Jennifer. I also want others to keep in mind that most of the time we are upset with our on site apartment manager rather than the Property Management Company.
This being said, Ron and Jennifer have always been flexible, understanding, helpful, and easy to reach-​something I had not experienced living in San Diego. Myself, being a very busy student and working 2 jobs have always managed to get my work orders (the very few I had) and paperwork sent to me via Email.
From the get-​go Ron had been flexible with my deposit and pet policy. I believe that if you take the time to explain any situation he has always been willing to listen and accommodate within reason.
I can honestly say when I move back to San Diego I will reach out to him first to see if he has open placements because I felt taken care of. After 3 years they did raise the rent, but it has been my experience anywhere else I had lived that rent goes up each year.
Would definitely recommend to friends and family.

Lived under this property management for 2 years. Ron is an asshole, and he actually threaten me a few times via voicemail or on the phone. Hammett Properties is a piece of s**** company. Rent goes up after 2 years of living there? Usually a good renter discount should apply. I lived 12 blocks from the beach and other properties who lived closer paid that much. He also threaten one of my roommates at the time too.
Security deposit situation SKETCH! I put a $ 1000 deposit down and the only thing that needed to be done when I left was carpet clean and cleaning services. Unfortunately, I got charged $ 800 basically for them to upgrade the apartment. For instance, they charged me for a new toilet seat? Lol, who does that? I tried to call them to discuss and they never got back to me. I only got $ 200 back.
Horrible upkeep of the place. They raised the washer and dryer fee as we’ll. Which was already high as is. I was spending about $ 40 a month in drying and washing. Also, the dryer broke down a lot and we couldn’t use it for 2 – 4 weeks. Luckily, I was cool with the neighbors who let me wash my clothes over there. So much dog shit in the yard, you couldn’t really enjoy the yard they did have. My neighbor downstairs ha mold growing on the ceiling of her bathroom and it took them 3 weeks to get out there and another 3 weeks to do whatever they needed to do.
The fire place was a piece of shit as we’ll. it was cool to have it, but it was broke and they never came to fix it. It was mainly used as an ashtray for cigarettes.
They do leave you alone and let you do your thing. I guess that was my only positive experience.
Do not rent from him!

I suspect that most people only bother to review property managers when they’re pissed off about how much of their security deposit it took to repair the damage they did. While the place that I send my monthly rent check to isn’t the most glamorous and fun thing to write a review for, I feel a need to offset what seems like an unfair balance.
I’ve been living in a property managed by Hammett Properties for 5 years now. I have been on a month-​to-​month lease since the beginning and in that 5 years they have raised the rent exactly once. Two months ago. By under 8%. Every time I have spoken with them they’ve been friendly and courteous.
I pay very cheap rent for my neighborhood and weigh my expectations against that. With that in mind, my expectations are met. For the most part, I don’t bother them and they don’t bother me and I like it that way. I do the minor repairs and maintenance myself (if i was paying top dollar for a ritzy condo I’d be calling them everytime a lightbulb went out — but I’m not so I don’t) and as such, when I call them to let them know a part needs to be replaced or needs professional repair, they usually address it promptly. I have felt out where that ‘line’ is between ‘we’ll be out with a replacement garbage disposal tomorrow’ and ‘no we’re not upgrading your counter-​tops’, and I feel that it falls appropriately given the level of home I’m renting.
I have yet to deal with the security deposit situation as I haven’t moved out yet, but (coming from someone who’s lived in a dozen or so apartment complexes in my time) feel that is never a pleasant situation. I want my money back and the landlord wants my money to pay for everything that needs to be done to ready the apartment to rent again. It has always taken my due diligence and documentation to get what I feel is a fair amount back, and there has ALWAYS been a cleaning and carpet steaming fee deducted — so I’m not sure what these one-​star review people are comparing them to.
All in all, I’m happy with my situation and would definitely rent from them again. I feel like Ron and Jennifer are honest people who aim to please both their renters and their property owners, and do a fairly good job at that balancing act. Raphael (the maintenance guy) is also a total sweet heart and is so careful about not letting my cat out, etc. when he has to come in while I’m at work. Trusting the maintenance guy enough to not have to take a day off of work whenever I need urgent repairs is a new and pleasant experience for me.
I’d be a lot happier if they accepted payments online though. I am tired of driving to La Mesa because i forgot to buy stamps in time to mail it every month. LOL

I am writing this Unilocal in response to the unwarranted and harsh tongue lashing that was made against Ron Hammett and his Property management business recently on the Unilocal website.
I have had Ron manage my properties for the last 22 years and in all those years, he has been extremely helpful, conscientious, organized and honest. These negative comments are not indicative of this man or his services. He has been working for years as a property manager with numerous properties that he cares for and never had a bad word expressed about him.
These Unilocal criticisms are rude, uncalled for and inconsiderate and show the ignorance of the people writing these negative comments.
I highly recommend Ron Hammett Properties for a job well-​done!

Thankfully, my experience with Hammett was short lived. I feel sorry for any current/​future tenants that need to deal with this company. My landlord, the last 2 months of our rental arrangement, decided to give Hammett control of her properties. We did not sign anything with Hammett, which was good. The property was 8038 Culowee St., La Mesa, CA.
My complaints:
1) We damaged one set of cheap metal blinds. We chalked that up as something we would need to get charged for. However, Hammett charged us for 2 nice sets of faux wood blinds – not one set of cheap metal blinds. In addition, he charged us $ 45 for one of his laborers to install the 2 sets of blinds. And in addition to that, he charged us $ 45 for the labor of going to the store to buy the blinds. Yes, that’s right, $ 90 labor to install 2 sets of nice blinds when we were only responsible for one. This $ 90 was in addition to the charge for the blinds.
2) We lived in the property for 2.5 years. The carpet showed normal wear and tear. We had the carpets professionally cleaned (not a requirement) when we moved out. At first, Hammett said he would have to charge us for cleaning the carpets with his preferred company if we didn’t provide a receipt from the carpet cleaners we chose. Now, that’s not what renter’s rights law say in California. Still, we gave him the receipt. Then, he charged us for carpet cleaning anyway, citing stains and telling us that he warned us not to pick our own company and that he wanted to use his preferred company.
Man, what a nightmare. A nickel and dime-​type company.
Here is how we recouped all the money from our deposit which was due to us:
1) Document everything! Save all receipts from cleaning. Also, we took extensive photo and video evidence that we left the property in good condition – as good as when we moved in minus the normal wear and tear on carpets. We were completely ready to go to small claims court because we had this photographic and video evidence.
2) Avoid dealing with this company! Thankfully, we knew the contact information of the owners. They were the ones we signed the lease with. I basically had to directly contact the owners with all of my concerns, my evidence, and threats of litigation in order to get the security deposit that was due to us.
We ended up paying for the single set of cheap mini blinds that we were responsible for. In reality, they were jerry-​rigged above a window poorly and they fell down one day when we were opening them. Still, it happened on our watch.
We put hundreds of dollars into the property – especially the back yard. All that amounted to jack when Hammett took over. Avoid this company like the plague. If you can, find out who owns your property and deal directly with the owners. If you’re already involved with Hammett, document every… little… thing. When you move out, be prepared to show up to small claims court when they try to charge/​overcharge/​fabricate charges.
Finally, be prepared for the fact that they will push the envelope with it comes to sending your deposit back. We received part of our deposit (we had to argue for the rest that was due to us) on the 23^rd day after we moved out – not on the 20^th as the law requires.
The positive? Lesson learned: when dealing with rental companies, it’s a good idea to take pictures of everything upon move out. You never know when you’ll have to deal with a real «Hammett.»

Ron is a scam!!! I remember living at 6929 Mohawk street and he rent out the two bottom garages to random people that come over at all hours of the night one guy has sex with prostitutes in there and uses our electricity and so did the second garage renter who even added a refrigerator this guy is not to be trusted and will take most of your security deposit.

Short Version:
We found old, crusty fingernail clippings in our carpet when we first moved in — he did not give a damn– and he took $ 655 out of our $ 700 security deposit.
Thorough Version:
First of all, I would like to state that I was also a resident of Ron Hammett’s property 3930 Louisiana St. My boyfriend and I were residents there during the same time as Eric H., and there were indeed three days around Thanksgiving that there was no hot water. For those three nights we had to shower at somebody else’s house. Without being able to clean our dirty dishes, pots and pans from Tuesday night’s dinner we had to eschew cooking in our own kitchen and go out to eat each day, Thanksgiving included. Hammett, in his infinite generosity, gave everyone a $ 50 rent credit. Now, does that seem like a reasonable amount considering NOBODY had hot water?! And we had to shower at someone else’s house and could not cook in our own house?!
Now, I understand that it might not have made sense to credit our rent fully for each day (by my calculation, about $ 30 per day) since it wasn’t as if the apartment was completely unusable. We were able to sleep there and stay there after all. But I feel that a meager $ 50 is not nearly enough of a recompense for the trouble we were put through, especially on a holiday. We e-​mailed Ron the Dirtbag about this and were basically told to f*ck off. Nobody else in the complex seemed to have a problem with the $ 50 credit, but I called a lawyer and they agreed that that was not enough. We decided to ignore that and move on with our lives because who can afford a lawyer?
My boyfriend and I moved out of 3930 at the end of January and were in such a rush to get everything out of the apartment for the moving truck that we definitely left some stuff behind — stuff that could EASILY be picked up and placed into a garbage bag. But guess how much he skimmed off the top of our deposit? Our deposit was $ 700 — that’s SEVEN HUNDRED dollars — and he refunded us $ 45 — that’s FORTY-​FIVE DOLLARS. He took $ 655 out of our security deposit. FOR WHAT?! He claims we painted our apartment — we absolutely did not. And when we moved in the apartment had a horrific stench because the previous tenant had a huge Scarlet Macaw or some such bird and he did not do anything about the smell. AND, when we first moved in we felt sharp things poking our feet whenever we would walk around barefoot in our apartment… That’s because there were lots and lots of OLD and CRUSTY FINGERNAIL CLIPPINGS EMBEDDED IN THE CARPET (we have pictures!). We called him about this as soon as we noticed, and what did he do? Nothing.
Ron Hammett is the worst landlord I have ever had and the worst person I have ever met. He is a condescending, rude, entitled, selfish and inconsiderate prick. I hope he gets his. If you want to take a chance and rent from him, remember this: FINGERNAIL CLIPPINGS. In the carpet.

I generally disagree with the consensus here. I was a resident at 3930 Louisiana St for 2.5 years and had no real problems with Hammett Properties. They’re not perfect, but not by no means terrible.
Like others, I didn’t get my sec. deposit back within 3 weeks, but I find that most landlords will take their sweet time unless you bug them about it. In my case I called around 3.5 weeks after move out and the deposit showed up a day or two later. It was *extensively* documented — several pages of work orders and receipts regarding my unit. The actual amount they hold back did seem to be «made up,» but it also seemed fair to me as they had clearly put several hundred dollars into other repairs. I know, by law I’m not obligated to pay for normal wear and tear. But I still feel they gave me a break, especially considering how I spilled bleach all over the carpet and thus pretty much ruined it.
Our hot water heater broke down for a few days around Thanksgiving. They had workers there for about 3 days in a row trying to fix it, including on Thanksgiving day. Then we all got some cash off our rent for the month.
One of my neighbors tried to screw me out of my parking spot, and I did spend a week or two arguing with Hammett Properties trying to keep my spot. I definitely didn’t feel like I got treated fairly in that situation.
All in all a decent landlord. Nothing to run away from if you find a place you want to rent.

I second the previous comment… I was also a tenant at 4351 Alabama apts and was totally screwed on my deposit. About 8 months into living in my unit carpet bugs showed up and he blamed me for the bugs and I was charged to have the place sprayed when I moved out a few months later. However I did notify them of the bugs and was told the spraying would be done when Ron Hammett NEVER followed up and acted like the bug issue was new news to him when I was getting ready to move out. I have NEVER had issues with any previous rental companies because I have always been diligent when moving out. When I tried to defend myself in a professional manner he was condescending and told me he wouldn’t deal with me anymore. I have never dealt with a property company so unprofessional and unorganized. Make sure you request an itemized list to mark anything broken or damaged in the apartment when you move in and make a photo copy of it for your records… but if I were you I wouldn’t rent from this guy… he’s a jerk!

I was a tenant at Hammett’s 4351 Alabama apts.
He is a landlord to AVOID!
He is notorious for screwing tenants out of their sec. deposits.
He does not accurately itemize the damages, nor show the actual labor charges and actual time spent on repairs. You just get a blanket amount withdrawn. It’s very random and is a «made up» dollar amount.
His policy is to «automatically» withdraw a carpet cleaning fee, regardless of time lived in apts, even tho sec. deposits are not supposed to automatically cover cleaning costs for the next tenant. Their explanation is, «if the carpet was shampooed when you moved in, it needs to return to its original condition»
Honestly, the carpet falls under normal wear and tear. I have NEVER had any other CA landlord automatically charge for carpet cleaning.
He does not follow the CA civil code 1950.5 law in sending back the deposits within 21 calendar days. This is evidence of his amoral low ethics:
He backdates the check and the paperwork to the exact 21^st day, but then mails the check out well past 21 days. He mailed mine 10 days past.
skeevy…
If he is your landlord, MAKE SURE to get a detailed itemized inspection. He’s supposed to inform you in writing that you have this option, but he never did. I made sure to request an appt. as the onus is on the tenant.
This paperwork i think helped me to get a reasonable amount back.