Caravan Properties

Absolutely awful company that I highly recommend everyone from staying far, far away from. Even though I had written proof, as well as pictures, of every single thing wrong with the house before I ever even moved in, they still kept my full deposit and charged me more. When I got the itemized bill, all the things that were initially wrong with the house were on there. I was told that it was my responsibility to fix all of these issues (from the previous tenets) myself and since I didn’t, I was being charged for them. Once I got a lawyer involved they did back down but it was such a hassle! They are crooks and thieves! The staff is rude and uneducated. They will take your money, do not do business with these people unless you want to be out thousands of dollars!

Caravan was the property manager for a Colorado Springs home we rented for 7+ years while we were stationed in other locations. At retirement, we returned to the home. There were 3 renters. The landscaping was devastated. We paid to have the front and back yards re-​sodded, more than $ 200 for a tree service in part to clear sucker roots that had been allowed to proliferate from a cherry tree, and there was a rip in our living room carpet as well as bleach damage to the master bath carpet. A large hole had been put in the bottom of the built-​in for the TV and covered but not textured in the manner if the surrounding area. The same for a hole in the guest bathroom wall. The house was so dirty, the baseboards were black, bottom of master bathroom tub was grey, food particles were stuck to stove, microwave, wall around the stove, and kitchen miniblinds — just for examples. The front of white stove and microwave were yellowed as if fires occurred. ALL OF THE TENANTS RECEIVED THEIR ENTIRE SECURITY DEPOSITS BACK. I would never hire them again or recommend them to another homeowner.

After contacting this company twice regarding interest in a local rental and getting a canned response one time and no response the second time, I’ve moved on. It’s not peak rental season, the home has been listed 6wks, and I’m working to rent a place prior to returning from deployment.
The company has listings on a military-​specific rental site, as well as other sites, and ZERO questions answered. Good luck to the homeowners using this company. I would want to know whether my property management company was actively engaging potential renters.

I had such a good experience with this company for many years, but when I was forced to move due to my job relocating across country, everything went downhill fast.
After hiring cleaners to ensure the property was returned in good condition, I was billed $ 90 for «small holes in the wall». Did my cleaners leave small holes in the wall? They say no, but am i going to fly across country to prove that?
I was charged $ 150 for fence repair and yard waste removal, never shown an itemized bill for this, and oh by the way the fence was 15 years old. I never damaged the fence, but was charged for repairs.
The kicker for me was that I was charged for a month’s utilities after I had vacated the property and terminated the lease. The lease clearly stated that the contract could be terminated with 30 days notice, I gave 44 days, but they keep claiming that there is a 60 day notice required that was discussed… it doesn’t appear in the lease I signed but somehow I’m responsible.
In my opinion, they came after my money because a) they know I have some, and b) they are having trouble renting the property. By the way, they never advertised or put up a yard sign or asked me to show the property once during the 44 days notice I gave.
I would have ranked them lower over this latest experience, but the owner is genuinely nice and has made some effort to find a middle ground, wanting to settle this (Middle ground being $ 700 in their favor). It has been over a month in discussions and I’m just beat down to the point that its not worth it to me to fight much longer. If I still lived in Colorado, I’d have paid and filed suit in small claims.
I won’t do business with them again, and I wouldn’t recommend them. They do offer a discount on rent, which is done because they have no maintenance people on staff, which means every fix has to be contracted out. They were quick to make repairs when needed, but not having maintenance on staff comes back to haunt you if you ever need to break the lease.
My experience has taught me a couple things. 1) Always discuss, and agree to the terms of ending a lease prior to signing it. 2) Only rent from a property management company that has a regular security deposit. The security deposit comes with requirements under the law that this company can skirt because they have «performance bonuses» and not security deposits.
One of the benefits to renters is that if your landlord screws around with your deposit you may be eligible to receive damages equal to 3x the security deposit in small claims… I wish I didn’t have to know that, but now I do. When you’re a good renter as I am, you should never need to consult a lawyer over these situations. I wish I could say I haven’t.