Zelri Properties has sub-standard management and even worse operating procedures

To whom it may concern, I am writing this because Zelri Properties has given me the worst experience I have ever endured under a property management ever. I stayed in Acacia Park in Kempton Park. I moved there in June of 2023 when the property was still managed Trafalgar Property management. When I moved in, under Trafalgar services were rendered, there was a what’s app group that would communicate to tenants if services were failed to be rendered. In the middle of 2024, Zelri Properties took over management of the property and things drastically became unsatisfactory, and the property became dilapidated. The what’s app group in which property management communicated to tenants about services was no longer used, and services such as electricity and water became more inconsistent and without warning. This continued to get worse in January 2025. The drainage system of the complex began to fail as it would rain and the parking lot would flood and the water would not drain. This was frustrating as in January 2025 they sent a notification to tenants that an additional R300 common area charge would be added to the rent beginning March 2025. In March as they would add this common area charge, the complex only became more run down as damage the buildings would increase, grass would not be regularly cut, and water damage from the flooded parking lot would only continue to grow. My final straw was the rent statement and the end of February 2025 in which they gave me a R2000 water charge. In the previous 20 months I had stayed in my 1 bedroom unit, my water charge never exceeded R650, so I served my notice that I would move out at the end of March. I moved out on the 29th of March, went through the exit inspection as directed and was told to wait 21 days for my deposit refund. I waited the 21 business days and heard nothing from Zelri Properties. On day 23 I contacted them for feedback only for them to tell me they had not done any work on it and the invoices for repairs still need to be done. I phone them for 3 consecutive days and even emailed their repairs department and had to ask for the repairs to be personally mailed to me. They told me they would send it to me. I only received the invoice a week later after phoning them every single day, 3 times a day during that week as well as emailing. During this period, I asked to speak to repairs manager in which I was told she either not in the office or she was in meetings. Upon them issuing the repairs invoices a week later they said the finance department would then process the deposit refund immediately, and this was on a Friday at lunch. I received no communication that day. I sent an email the following Monday with the managers of the repairs and finance departments attached to the email, and I received no response. I then phoned them 4 times the following day in which I received different excuses at to why the finance manager was not available to be contacted. They would tell me she is in a meeting, she is not at office, or she is in the building, but no one knows where she is. I asked multiple times what their business continuity procedures were for such an event in which staff would tell there isn’t one and I would have to wait for her to be available. I left multiple messages asking her for to call me back, as well as emailing her for feedback. I was never phoned back, and my emails were ignored. It was not until I had to send to a physical representative to meet with their management team. My representative went there, and they tried to give them the run around multiple times. They even said my representative needed documentation to speak on my behalf. Luckily, I was on the phone and sent everything they requested without haste. It was only until management had to face my representative face to face is when they continued the process. I received my deposit refund within and 30 minutes of my representation facing management.

Their headquarters are in Pretoria, and not everyone has the resources to physically go there. If you are one of those people who do not have the means to physically go to their headquarters for them to render the services they guarantee but eventually break, I highly recommend you never rent from a property managed by Zelri Properties. Not only will they give you sub-standard service while living there, but they do everything in their power to prevent you from receiving your deposit refund once you move out of their property. It will only be stress for you and the chances of them acting accordingly is very limited. Once the process was concluded I even asked them for the Standard Operating Procedures of this process in which they failed to produce a standard uniform process.

DO BUSINESS WITH THEM AT YOUR OWN RISK