JJ Land Company

I had a friend who lived in a studio apartment for two years owned by JJ Land. Her apartment was okay, though not stellar, and she didn’t have any major complaints, so I thought why not check out their properties. Here is my experience:
1) The agent (Ryan) was very friendly over the phone. However, he was not well informed about the unit in question and was unable to tell me details of the property, such as square footage, bedroom size, whether the stove was gas or electric, etc.
2) The leasing agent who was scheduled to show me the property was 15 minutes late. I had to call Ryan at the office to find this information out and to get an estimated time of when the other agent was going to show up.
3) The common areas of the property were in sad shape, and quite frankly, filthy.
4) Upon entering the unit for rent, I immediately regretted wasting the 15 minutes waiting for the agent to show up. It was disgusting. Now, I know the cleanliness of the apartment is not under the direct control of JJ Land, but this was a health hazard. There was trash spilling over in the kitchen, dirty dishes in the sink, on the stove, and covering the coffee table. There were items all over the floors and furniture. I was so distracted by the filth that the current tenants were living in that I couldn’t get a good idea of the space. It also smelled foul. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had a pest problem.
5) What I did notice about the apartment was that it was in poor condition. There were tiles missing/​falling from the ceiling. The bathtub/​drain looked rusty and poorly maintained. The appliances were old and not pleasing to look at. The carpet was dingy. The lighting was awful.
6) The unit was overpriced for the location, size, and condition. I’ve been living in Pittsburgh for 5 years and I can tell a rip-​off when I see one.
From my experience, I would not bother looking at JJ Land properties. Maybe I just got unlucky with my viewing. I hope that others have a positive experience. But, I have to give this 1 star, 0 if I could.

Have been renting in the Friendship area of Pittsburgh from JJ Land for about 8 years. Very reasonable rent, maintenance performed fairly quickly, and office staff has been attentive to my needs. All in all very good to rent from.

DO NOT RENT FROM JJ LAND. This company is the most unprofessional and unorganized rental agency I have ever dealt with. I paid $ 700 for a security deposit and heard nothing back from the office. Every time I called they had lost my pay stubs and application and had no idea what property I was talking about. I told them I would not be renting from them (mind you I never signed a lease or any kind of documentation) and that I wanted my deposit back. They said they would return it however I would be charged an inconvenience fee. Meanwhile I was the one who was being inconvenienced. Another week passed And I heard not a word from anyone in the office. I finally ending up going into the office and demanding my deposit back. They still have no idea who I was or what property I was talking about. Thank god I kept the receipt. STAY AWAY FROM JJ LAND

I would highly recommend NOT RENTING with JJ Land. We have rented with them for the past 4 years. There are some pleasant individuals with whom I have interacted. Sadly, overall, the staff is extremely incompetent, rude, and inconsiderate. Perhaps if they hired new people who obviously did not hate their lives so much, the experience of their tenants would be much improved.
Pros: good locations; cheap rent; water can be included in rent; off-​street parking may be available
Cons: stop by their office and notice everyone ignores you and is miserable; give them a call and notice they are rude on the phone do not want to talk to you; maintenance requests frequently go unaddressed despite multiple calls (e.g., we placed a bucket underneath our leaking ceiling for 4 months until it stopped leaking and NOT because someone came to fix it); poor upkeep of the property; the staff required to take out trash cans from the back of the property to the front often never do, leaving piles of overflowing trash covering the back parking lot (it’s particularly gross in the summer); inconsistent handling of maintenance requests (e.g., JJ Land had replaced 4-​foot linear light bulbs in our kitchen on a previous occasion but refused to do so on later occasions)
As other reviewers have mentioned, you get what you pay for. Be aware that the cheap rent comes at the cost your apartment’s quality and your experiences with the landlord in actually caring about your time with them.

Folks,
Please do not get carried away by the lower rental prices this company has to offer unless you are ok with water leaks, ceiling collapses gas leaks, a broken garage door and losing heat all in a short span of a year and half. The properties are not all maintained well and the lease agreement is certainly created perfectly to protect the company. I don’t blame them but beware that you get what you pay for.
If you want to live hassle free which most renters would prefer, please do not rent from JJ Land.

I rented from JJ Land for two years. I had a small apartment with a low rent.
JJ was extremely receptive to my needs while moving in and moving out.
When I called maintenance, they performed the service I expected given the cost of my rent.
I feel JJ Land is an adequate budget landlord. You get what you pay for. My rent was cheap. They seemed to try to do a triage when it came to repairs. They were extremely quick for one emergency I encountered and inadequate for another emergency when we suffered a communication breakdown and they didn’t understand the scope of the issue.
Per word of mouth, it appears Mozart is the best. Forbes Management is my favorite landlord based on my renting experience. I’ve heard nothing but bad regarding Lobos.
In summary, my rent was low. The quality of the apartment and quality of their service matched my expectations based on that rental price.

I lived in a 2 BR apartment in highland park from JJ Land for 9 months. They were great because they offered short-​term leases, were prompt with repairs, and overall had great customer service.
99% of the people in the leasing office are really nice and friendly. They even waived the late fee when I paid the rent late by accident. They also entertain all requests with patience, which my roommate and I appreciated.
If you’re picky and used to «luxury» apartment living, this isn’t the place for you because the majority of their units are very old. However, it worked great for our short-​term plans and was spacious and CHEAP! 625/​mo split between the two of us. It was also in a safe neighborhood. (although I will say it was insulated quite terribly which made for either a very COLD winter, or a very EXPENSIVE winter… ask current tenants about heat bill)
Things probably won’t be absolutely perfect with the building and/​or the unit when you move in, but all you need to do is politely make a request and JJ land will most likely take care of it.
Good luck!

I had a really positive experience with them. Maintenance requests were handled quick and my unit was cleaned well when I moved in. They have a lot of buildings to choose from all over the city — lots of converted mansions with charm.
They really worked with me when I needed to end my lease early — they showed my unit and found somebody to sub out my lease. The staff was always nice and really helpful. I would definitely use them again.

I’d like to first say that I deal with several landlords on a daily basis through work and have a lot of compassion for their work and I wrote this review with that in mind.
Pros: Their prices for urban living are fair. I’ve never felt «ripped off» by JJ Land.
Cons: Every interaction (and I mean every single one) I’ve had with JJ Land is a frustration. Even when dealing with general building repairs that impact the safety of the building (i.e. front door not locking) you have to call several times to get the issue looked into. My experience with the office staff at JJ Land hasn’t been positive. They tend to be dismissive when requesting service and don’t really take time to figure out the importance or the real issue (especially with maintenance requests.) Even when it’s your third call and you’re a little hot under the collar and want answers, they don’t really care. What’s worse is that their maintenance staff is incompetent. They use terrible temporary repairs that are bound to break in a few weeks. Honestly, I could be a lot more tolerant of this if the office staff was more compassionate and made me feel like my problem is a priority but they just don’t care.
I definitely won’t rent from JJ Land again. As far as recommending the company to a friend, I would have to consider the situation. If you’re looking for cost efficiency from a company that’s not going to scam you above anything else, you’re in luck. However, if you expect something other than a hole-​in-​the-​wall apartment, you will not be satisfied.

I recently rented from JJ Land for less than one year and while I had few issues during my time living under them, I’ve come to regret this since I moved.
First of all, I have not yet gotten my security deposit back, despite being told it would be put right in the mail a few weeks back. I’m pretty sure I should have received it by this point if they’d sent it when they said they were going to and no one is returning my calls on the subject.
I also need them to send me proof that I paid rent to them for the several months I did and they refused to release such information to me, despite every single month I paid being my individual share and under my own name, because I was not on the lease. I would be more understanding of this if they didn’t offer the alternative solution idea of sending in someone I’d lived with who was or is on the lease to obtain my personal financial records. And I understand that having no one who can do this for me is my problem and not theirs, this still comes across as very shady business practice.
Add this to the fact that my main complaints living in an apartment they managed were continuously losing hot water and faulty electrical outlets they apparently couldn’t fix, I would highly recommend going with ANYONE ELSE if you’re looking for a new place in Pittsburgh. Their rent is very reasonable, this is true, but it’s honestly not worth it in the end. Go with Lobos, in all honesty, you’ll have better luck.

Pro: J.J. Land has many properties in the Highland Park, East Liberty, Shadyside, Friendship area for reasonable rent prices. Think $ 400.00 (for a 1 bedroom) +.
Con: Honestly, 1 star is way tool fair for this con artist of a slumlord. Like the other posters have mentioned, if your rent includes utilities (mainly gas/​water), heaven help you. They don’t turn on the heat until Dec, and that’s only if you complain multiple times. When they decide to turn the heat on, they temperture never rises above 65 degress– you will definitely need to invest in a good electric heater. Hot water, the building that I rented, lost hot water for almost 2 weeks straight– there is no emergency line– so when I needed to call the office I had to leave a voicemail message Saturday night, and I had to HOPE that someone would call me back Monday after 10am. The buildings are ratty and filty. Due to the low cost of rent, also brings scum tenants that bring all types of pests, from roaches to the rats/​squirrels in the walls, to bed bugs. After renting from them for a little over a year, I started seeing roaches, I called JJ Land, and they told me they would spray my apartment and set traps. They’re not aggressive w/​the treatment of pests– I told them multiple times that they should also treat the entire building. They assured me they would, but that never happened. They are slumlords to the fullest extent– do not sign w/​them, you will be burden w/​all types of unnecessary problems

Pros —
Great Location
Reasonable Rent
All utilities included in rent
Staff are ok. Maintenance issues get fixed fairly quickly
Cons —
Apartments are super old. The oven doesn’t work too well.
Within 10 months of our living we ran out of hot water at least 3 times and this one time it lasted for 2 days (During Jan or Feb. I dont remember). It was a major hassle
The maintenance isn’t that great. Some parts of the complex feels really dirty
Heating isn’t that great — They control the heating and there have been days when I didn’t want to go home because of the mediocre heating. Its not nice and warm as it could have been but I guess you get what you pay for.
Good for cheap student housing though. Not terrible place but nowhere near nice.

I rented an apartment from J J Land about two years ago, had the 2br for about two years. Overall, a good experience, I just didn’t have Unilocal back then. They are pretty reasonable, they returned our deposit in full (we did spend a weekend cleaning the place but we still didn’t know if they would keep the deposit regardless), and they were always easy to get a hold of. When I had to sublet my bedroom for about 8 months they were very helpful and understanding. One star off only because they did not always follow up on our maintenance requests in a timely fashion, but it happens. I’ve lived in several different apartments over the past few years and J J Land is not a bad place to rent from.

I love these guys. I have been renting off of them for 4 years now and now am moving to another building. they always fix the stuff i ask them to and although the buildings arent beautiful they work and are worth the price. they stay out of my business and you dont hear from them unless you call them, which i love. I will prolly stay with them until i buy a house in the next couple years.