Royal Rose Properties (Detroit) review

[Rivy S.]

I used Royal Rose Properties to manage my properties in Detroit because they had a very good reputation on here.  My experience with them was less than awesome, so I'm posting this so that others know what they're getting involved with in advance.

Here's the TL;DR (If you want the gory details, read below):  They are honest,  but inefficient, snarky and poor communicators. 

First, the good:  

• They don't steal from you.  It's unfortunate that this has to be called out, but this was actually better than my first management company, which charged me for work they didn't complete, and never transferred my tenant's security deposit. I should really be taking that company (Cameron Group of MI) to small claims court, but I don't have the bandwidth to deal with that. 
• They also provided video proof as well as invoices for work completed, which was great. 
• They use propertyware, which gives very nice reporting and statements. 

Now, the not-so-good:

• Their communication left a lot to be desired.  This both with the tenant and with me.  
  • The tenant that was in the property had an eviction judgement that required her to pay an extra $200/month until the balance was even.  When I transferred to Royal Rose, it took a few months until I got them the correct documentation to justify the increased charge.  When that was cleared up, they just added it to her bill, without calling to let her know that it would be coming, and why.  The tenant called up really angry and gave 30 day notice.  Now, she may have left anyway, but I think a little communication would have gone a long way.  
  • With me: there were many, many times that questions I would ask via their owners portal would not be responded to for days at a time, and sometimes not at all.  
• It took about SIX MONTHS to do a basic renovations/make ready on my property. (Six of those weeks were my fault, it took me a while to approve the work because I wasn't sure about my strategy for the property) This despite initial estimates of make-ready and placing a tenant being accomplished within 2-4 weeks. 
• Even after the work was done, they were extremely lethargic about getting it tenanted.  
  • The listing only went up about a *month* after the work was completed, despite my prompting 3 days after the work was done.
  • They listed it for more than I thought was appropriate without consulting me.
  • They sent me a marketing report every other week telling me the level of activity.  However, after 6 weeks when they said the level of interest was sufficient, so they weren't going to do anything different, the property was *still* not rented.  

• They are snarky, rude and condescending.  I can give numerous examples of this, but I will just share the one that broke the camels back.  I was considering selling this property, which I acquired with a quick claim deed.  To do that, I first wanted to clear the title.  I asked for assistance with this.  Royal Rose told me they would find a real estate attorney to help me out with this, and get a bid.  They eventually came back and told me they had someone who could do it for $1500.  I asked what the name of the attorney was so that I could do some research.  The response I got was:  

Now, if their response would have been something like "It is against our policy to share the information of our providers until you sign xyz" or whatever, I would have completely understood. But I don't think I was unjustified in double checking their choice, and this response was just unprofessional and uncalled for. 

So that's my experience.  If you have any questions, you can reach out to me.  All in all, investing in Detroit was definitely a learning experience, and one that I am not eager to repeat. 

[Saul L.]

Thanks for sharing @Rivy S.

I never used Royal Rose- but used 3 others in succession when I was in the Detroit market. In the end they were all disasters. I have said before that if there is a good PM working in Detroit I havent found them . Now that I know all too well what owning C-D class properties in Detroit entails- I also understand why there are no decent PM's- It cannot be done properly and profitably- its one or the other. After a long and hard learning experience I do not believe that SFR investing can be effectively done in Detroit from out of state.