“The fact that the management company is telling us to make regular rent payments like usual; why should we have to pay?” said Gloria Giefer, a tenant of Wilshire Hills 1 Senior Apartment Complex. Giefer said there’s not much that seems regular since a water pipe burst on Jan. 8 damaging 18 units, including hers. “There was 2-3 inches of standing water in here,” Giefer said as she pointed to her floorboards. “In the bathroom, I opened the door and saw all these things floating in there … water just gushed out.” She said property management, which would not comment about the damage to KMBC, organized four fans to be placed in her apartment to help dry things. The water pipes show visible repairs, and some of the runner boards along the long hallways have been removed. There are bits of blue painter’s tape on some doors of the units that read, “Prolly pack.” “I don’t know what that means. ‘Probably pack’? They won’t tell me what that means,” Giefer said. She isn’t staying in the apartment due to health concerns. Her carpet, cabinets and walls are dry but have evident water damage. Her renters insurance has allowed for a stay in a nearby hotel but only for 10 more days. She is unsure where to go after that date. “I have asthma and a heart condition. My main concern is mold,” she said. The property owners are Fairway Management, Inc., based in Columbia, Missouri, and Clayton, Missouri, and Atlanta, Georgia. The group owns 137 properties in Missouri. It currently has a rating of “F” on the Better Business Bureau’s website. The management group did not comment about the issues at Wilshire Hills 1 or its rating by the Better Business Bureau. JES Holdings, the company in charge of helping process insurance claims for the apartment complex, did respond to KMBC’s request for comment saying that “it has been helping mitigate the water damage from Day One … we are trying to help tenants as fast as we can and are establishing a timeline for repairs. We have been told property management is communicating with every tenant. If tenants need more communication, we will relay that to property managers.” Giefer said she and her fellow tenants need more and more specific communication about the scope of repairs. She just wants a safe, healthy place to live. “We need the help desperately, and we’re not getting it,” Giefer said through tears. “I’m overwhelmed. It’s very difficult. Who can help us seniors?”
“The fact that the management company is telling us to make regular rent payments like usual; why should we have to pay?” said Gloria Giefer, a tenant of Wilshire Hills 1 Senior Apartment Complex.
Giefer said there’s not much that seems regular since a water pipe burst on Jan. 8 damaging 18 units, including hers.
“There was 2-3 inches of standing water in here,” Giefer said as she pointed to her floorboards. “In the bathroom, I opened the door and saw all these things floating in there … water just gushed out.”
She said property management, which would not comment about the damage to KMBC, organized four fans to be placed in her apartment to help dry things. The water pipes show visible repairs, and some of the runner boards along the long hallways have been removed.
There are bits of blue painter’s tape on some doors of the units that read, “Prolly pack.”
“I don’t know what that means. ‘Probably pack’? They won’t tell me what that means,” Giefer said.
She isn’t staying in the apartment due to health concerns. Her carpet, cabinets and walls are dry but have evident water damage. Her renters insurance has allowed for a stay in a nearby hotel but only for 10 more days. She is unsure where to go after that date.
“I have asthma and a heart condition. My main concern is mold,” she said.
The property owners are Fairway Management, Inc., based in Columbia, Missouri, and Clayton, Missouri, and Atlanta, Georgia. The group owns 137 properties in Missouri.
It currently has a rating of “F” on the Better Business Bureau’s website.
The management group did not comment about the issues at Wilshire Hills 1 or its rating by the Better Business Bureau.
JES Holdings, the company in charge of helping process insurance claims for the apartment complex, did respond to KMBC’s request for comment saying that “it has been helping mitigate the water damage from Day One … we are trying to help tenants as fast as we can and are establishing a timeline for repairs. We have been told property management is communicating with every tenant. If tenants need more communication, we will relay that to property managers.”
Giefer said she and her fellow tenants need more and more specific communication about the scope of repairs. She just wants a safe, healthy place to live.
“We need the help desperately, and we’re not getting it,” Giefer said through tears. “I’m overwhelmed. It’s very difficult. Who can help us seniors?”
Alice J. Roden started working for Trending Insurance News at the end of 2021. Alice grew up in Salt Lake City, UT. A writer with a vast insurance industry background Alice has help with several of the biggest insurance companies. Before joining Trending Insurance News, Alice briefly worked as a freelance journalist for several radio stations. She covers home, renters and other property insurance stories.