Hines Criticized by Tenants Over Apartment Junk Fees

Hines is facing criticism from tenants in Pasadena less than a year after it became the owner of an 140-unit apartment complex.

On Wednesday, members of the Pasadena Gateway Villas Tenants Association said they have faced multiple junk fees at the Pasadena Gateway Villas after the Houston-based firm acquired the property in March, Pasadena Now reported.

Tenants allege that under Hines’ ownership, they were subjected to new fees, reduced services and retaliatory treatment by the real estate firm. Residents say management pressured them to sign new leases that force them to pay for previously included amenities, such as parking, pest control, trash collection, hot water and package delivery.

The tenants association members, representing 34 households at the 290 North Hudson Avenue complex, said they have started paying an additional $400 to $500 per month in new fees, as well as rent increases between 8 percent and 20 percent. The residents claim the move is Hines’ way of skirting California’s cap on annual rent increases, generally limited to 10 percent per year.

“Before Hines took over ownership and management of the building, housing here was stable and predictable,” eight-year resident Terey Ross said during Wednesday’s press conference, per Pasadena Now. Ross claims tenants were given little notice of the new lease terms and felt cornered into signing the new agreements without enough time to review them. “Tenants are not asking for special treatment. We are asking for lawful rental practices, transparency, and for housing terms not to be unilaterally changed,” Ross said.

In response to tenants’ claims, Marisa Monte-Santoro, Hines’ public relations director, told Pasadena Now that answers about the allegations are forthcoming.

Hines purchased the Pasadena Gateway Villas from Washington Capital Management in March for $60 million, or $428,571 per unit. That figure made it the priciest sale in Pasadena in the first three quarters of the year, according to Los Angeles County tax assessor data. More than 40 entities submitted offers on the property out of a desire to avoid the City of Los Angeles’ Measure ULA real estate transfer tax, said Newmark’s Kevin Shannon, who helped broker the sale.

— Chris Malone Méndez