On Monday, February 9, State Attorney General William Tong joined Rocky Hill Elected Officials and staff to announce his office would open an investigation into Concierge Apartment management under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act.
According to the accompanying press release, the investigation “seeks detailed records and answers regarding tenant complaints, work orders, inspection reports, leases, relocation efforts, and documentation regarding the $2 million in repairs Concierge has told the Office of the Attorney General it is undertaking to replace pipes, insulate the building, and replace damaged sheetrock, among other demands.”
At a press conference on Monday February 9, Tong stated that the disruption of people’s lives “is the result of years and years, it’s clear to me, of deferred maintenance and neglect.”
“Concierge and their corporate owners, a $15 billion private equity backed real estate conglomerate all the way in Los Angeles… are in breach of their obligations. I think, as a contractual matter, they’re in breach of their obligations to their their tenants, their renters. And I believe that a Connecticut court would find these leases to be voidable.”
At the press conference, Tong shared a positive recent response from RK Holdings, the owners of Concierge Apartments. Tong shared that the General Council representing JRK communicated in writing that they would meet in part some of the Attorney General’s demands. According to Tong, the lawyer stated:
“…that Century Hills will also provide one month rent credit to all residents, and an additional one month rent credit or ability to break leases without penalty for residents who have lost hot or cold water, and reimbursement of residents out of pocket costs, including for lost food, medication, alternative child care during the period that they were displaced from their apartments. Residents will not need to file claims with their renters insurance carriers.”
Tong reacted:
I appreciate the response. I want to credit their responsiveness to my letter, but I don’t have to tell you that notwithstanding this letter and the good faith in which I receive it, there’s not a lot of trust right now. In fact, there’s no trust between at least me and I know I speak for the Senator and others in this community and Century Hills and JRK. They have a lot of work to do to restore trust that has been eroded for a very long time.
But my hope is that this is the start of a discussion and a negotiation about how they are going to make this right, and we are not going to stop until they do final thing I’ll say is they have offered to send senior leadership, the very most senior leadership, to Connecticut to meet with me as part of my investigation. I will take that meeting, and then I will then
take it from there and see whether that meeting gives us, and frankly, the residents, any more relief and the relief that they deserve.
The announcement was accompanied by a press release on the Attorney General’s website:
Attorney General William Tong today announced an investigation into Concierge Apartments management, sending a civil investigative demand under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act seeking documentation and answers regarding the landlord’s management and response to deteriorating conditions at the Rocky Hill apartment complex.
The civil investigative demand seeks detailed records and answers regarding tenant complaints, work orders, inspection reports, leases, relocation efforts, and documentation regarding the $2 million in repairs Concierge has told the Office of the Attorney General it is undertaking to replace pipes, insulate the building, and replace damaged sheetrock, among other demands.
“Concierge management is sitting on billions of dollars in assets while Connecticut families cannot safely remain in their homes. This crisis did not happen overnight. This is the result of years of callous mismanagement and broken promises. I appreciate that it looks like Concierge is finally making progress, but we have a lot of work ahead before tenants are safely home. We are launching this investigation today to get real answers to how conditions got this bad and what Concierge is doing now to make sure this never happens again. We will not hesitate to use the full weight of our law enforcement authority to hold this multi-billion dollar out of state landlord accountable,” said Attorney General Tong.
“I am grateful to Attorney General Tong for launching this formal investigation. I am going to continue to hold JRK’s feet to the fire, doing everything I can to secure compensation for the displaced residents and ensure accountability for disinvestment and mismanagement. I see Attorney General Tong and his office as critical partners in that effort,” said State Sen. Matthew Lesser.
“Since Attorney General Tong became involved in this crisis, I have witnessed JRK prioritize timely repairs, address outstanding safety concerns, and expedite the restoration of fire safety systems. While this is a positive step toward returning tenants to their homes, it is still not enough. It remains to be seen whether JRK will pivot from the management practices that contributed to this crisis,” said State Rep. Kerry Wood. “A civil investigation is an important step in exposing the long standing mismanagement of what was once a stellar property, and I applaud the Attorney General for taking this action. If JRK is willing to make amends to their tenants and to the town of Rocky Hill, and restore this property to its once recognized level of quality, it will be a win for everyone.”
“Our priority has always been the safety and well-being of the residents who call Concierge Apartments home. Over the past weeks, our fire, building, health, and human services teams have committed significant time and resources to addressing conditions at the property and supporting residents through a difficult and disruptive situation. We appreciate Attorney General Tong and his office for taking these concerns seriously and bringing the full resources of the State of Connecticut to review the circumstances surrounding this property. The State has tools and investigative capacity beyond what is available at the municipal level, and we welcome their involvement as we continue working toward solutions that not only address the current situation, but help prevent similar issues from occurring in the future,” said Rocky Hill Mayor Allan Smith.
Concierge has been the subject of multiple code enforcement actions and tenant complaints over the years, including loss of hot water, and failure to keep the property cleaned, plowed and accessible. According to tenants, lights, appliances and elevators are routinely out of order, and work orders ignored, among other complaints. Freezing temperatures have now caused pipes across the complex to freeze and burst, resulting in loss of hot water and extensive damage to buildings and personal property. The Town of Rocky Hill has been forced to issue evacuation orders as the town has determined the complex is unsafe for occupancy.
Tenants have received callous and unhelpful responses to pleas for assistance with property damage and alternative housing.
The civil investigation is the latest in a series of actions taken by Attorney General Tong in response to the deeply indifferent and callous mismanagement of conditions at Concierge. The property is owned by J.R.K Property Holdings, a private equity-backed Los Angeles-based real estate empire with $15 billion in real estate assets under management in 23 states.
On Wednesday, February 4, Attorney General Tong, State Rep. Kerry Wood and State Sen. Matthew Lesser wrote attorneys for Concierge, demanding that the company provide written responses to: (1) how the company would pay for lodging and prorate rent and utilities for all tenants who have been unable to consistently access hot water or other essential services; (2) a detailed plan for reimbursing tenants for loss of personal property; (3) a detailed plan for making both immediate emergency repairs and ensuring long term maintenance of the apartment complex; and (4) a written policy permitting residents who wish to seek other long-term housing to terminate their leases without penalty.
On Thursday, local counsel for Concierge responded. Attorney General Tong then sent a new letter to Concierge on Friday, responding to the company’s callous and indifferent response as conditions worsened. Concierge responded again on Sunday, apologizing for the tone of their prior letter, and stating that they expect repairs to be completed by the end of the week. The company offered one month rent credit to all residents, an additional one month credit or ability to break leases for residents who lost water, and reimbursement for out-of-pocket costs without the need to file claims with renters’ insurance.
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