It took us a solid week for them to contact us to try to get an appointment. Then my wife and I made an appointment to come view one of their apartments, and we’re assured that the apartment was available. We then drove 5 hours from our house to be met late by one of their representatives, just to be told that the property had already been rented out. We wasted 10 hours worth of driving, and two nights worth of hotel fees. Very unprofessional, just do yourself a favor and look somewhere else.

The agent promptly returned my call. He was very courteous and professional.

What seemed like a pleasant connection turned into the worst experience ever! I found a few of their properties for rent on Zillow and reached out through that platform. They replied the next day through email letting me know they got my inquiry and asking a few general questions with the properties I was interested in. Before I even had a chance to check the email I received a phone call from Kristina. We had a very pleasant conversation and she seemed really nice but when she started telling me about their strict credit rules about having at least a 650 I told her that my husband and I bring in over $9k a month net but probably wouldnt meet their score requirements. She was very nice and said sometimes they relax these requirements a little just depending on the situation. I said ok that I would call back if we changed our minds. End conversation. My husband noted we should at least schedule to see some of the places, besides it wouldnt hurt. So I called Kristina back; literally 20 minutes after we hung up. No answer, no worries I left a voicemail. That was Friday afternoon on June 11th. Monday rolls around and I call all day long throughout the day and the phone just rings and rings with no answer. I tried the multiple extensions and cant seem to get anyone to pick up. My husband tried calling from his work phone and he talks to some guy who was very rude to him and kept trying to transfer him to a property manager because hes just the office guy and doesnt schedule showings. So I decided to email Kristina that afternoon to let her know I left a voicemail and was interested in seeing 3 properties. I listed the address for all 3 properties. Gave her my cell number and asked if we could schedule a showing in the next couple of days. (I was on leave that week from work and we live two hours away so I was really trying to get ahold of someone). No response. Tuesday rolls around, my husband and I keep calling all day long........ no response. Wednesday morning rolls around and I just happen to check my email. Apparently Kristina emailed me at 8:50pm Tuesday night letting us know she would be at one of the properties between 1-1:30pm the next day and if I could make it, great! So at the last minute I got my family up and we made the 2hr drive to meet Kristina. We get there and we politely wait as shes talking to an individual (I guess it was an open house type of showing?? Although we were never told that). No biggie. In a break in the conversation, I walk up and ask if she was Kristina and introduced my family. She smiles and says hello and then continues talking with the other person as people are walking in and out of the duplex. Another person drives up and Kristina walks away to talk to them! Okay..... We finally get her attention one on one and ask her about the other two properties in my email. She looks at me blankly and states she doesnt have time to show us those could we schedule the next day? Furious my husband blurts out, no we just drove 2hrs to be here today! And I did remind her I listed all the addresses in my email that she responded to. So she looks at my list and says, well that one is already rented and the other one I might can squeeze you in at 3pm but no promises. Make sure I get your number before you leave and Ill let you know. Okay so hang around in a town we dont know for another 2hrs to see if you MIGHT be able to show us another property. I dont think so. I gave her my number but we hightailed it out of there and didnt look back. Yeah she called at 3pm and left a voicemail but I didnt give her the time of day. Its such a shame because there were a lot of really nice houses they are managing. I wonder if the owners have just as much trouble??? Oh and the three listings I was interested in??? They are still listed on Zillow, Hot pads, AND the Carolina Cottages website as vacant.

Some of the nicest rental managers I have ever worked with. My boyfriend and I stayed in one of their rentals for a year until we decided to do camper life and travel. During that year we worked with Nicole and Gary and they were extremely helpful, professional, and took care of any issues we ran into as tenants. They are also LGBT friendly and do not discriminate at all. If you are a responsible tenant looking for a great rental in Henderson County, definitely check out their rentals. Thank you Nicole and Gary for making our rental experience the best it could be!!!

Paid for application fees. Got a house tour. Was lied to and told we were first in line to sign a lease for a property. One week later after not hearing anything, I was told told my application was never submitted, and that the property was rented to someone else. Also, the property manager showed up to the house tour WHILE POSITIVE FOR COVID-19. I cannot suggest anyone do business with these people.

Dont waste your time. These crooks will gladly take your application fees and then never respond to you. Worst leasing agency Ive ever dealt with, and Ive dealt with some bad ones in Boone, NC.

AVOID AT ALL COSTS, WILL STEAL YOUR APPLICATION FEE AND RENT THE PROPERTY OUT WITHOUT NOTIFYING YOU! ALSO GARY WAS SHOWING HOUSES WHILE COVID POSITIVE, ABSOLUTELY DISPICABLE, NEGLIGENT, AND UNPROFESSIONAL!

Carolina Cottages has been managing my rental property for 7 years. They have worked hard to procure tenants for me and have been responsive to my concerns in a professional and timely manner. Since I live in the area I have introduced myself to each new tenant and have asked them to let me know if they have any issues or unresolved problems with the management team. In all these years I have not heard one complaint. And every tenant has gotten their security deposit back.

So rude. Emailed them in regards to understanding what their application requirements were on their posting. They proceeded to respond with, Unless your credit is 650 or higher, dont even bother. We currently dont accept section 8 applicants....... Excuse me? Funny thing was, we never told them what our credit was. I guess they just assumed since I wanted to know what they meant by Credit Restrictions that I was unfit to rent to. Real Classy Carolina Cottages. Guess people must be scum of the earth to want to rent with a low credit score?

Can’t get anyone to respond to emails or return calls. Beware. Now I’m looking at other reviews and I see why!!

Ive asked for a showing and havent gotten a response. Its been a week

Negative stars from me! Didnt want to travel because there was a pandemic. All they said was they wouldnt refund any of the money that was paid to them because they didnt have time to re-rent it. Was going to go leave a review on VRBO and guess what? They pulled their cabin from there so they wouldnt have to abide by a recommendation of VRBO to refund clients or offer a later trip when travels resume during Covid-19. They never responded to my last email. Out $800 and will not ever stay with these people.

Ive been renting from Carolina Cottages for over 6 years and I couldnt be happier with them. They are very easy to work with and have always provided excellent customer service. Although Ive had very few maintenance related issues, any time that Ive called for service its always ended with good results. I also appreciate the courteous newsletters sent out that are filled with helpful hints and reminders. Its a great working relationship that I hope continues for many more years.

Ive been working with Carolina Cottages for years and have been very pleased with their service. Tammy is polite and professional, and always returns my calls in a timely manner. The maintenance folks have always done a good job.Bridget

Couldnt find what I needed

At a loss of words and scared with my families future. I wish we could find a nice landlord and affordable rent. Was considering going through this place but after reading the reviews I dont even want to risk it! So if anyone needs a good tenant private message me please, Im searching for a good landlord.

I just heard a terrible story from an elderly friend who rented from the Lee and Lynn Linhart team who own Carolina Cottages. Shame on them for trying to keep this persons deposit, plus adding damage/work/ repair fees for which the Linharts were responsible. Beware! Heartless....

Theyve had a listing up for weeks that my boyfriend and I were incredibly interested in. It took 3 phone calls and 2 emails to finally get a call back only to be told rudely that the property wasnt available . The listing is still up on multiple sites. After reading other reviews I definitely wont be using this company.

Terrible communication. NO urgency on maintenance requets. HORRIBLE experience all the way around. Do yourself a favor and go elsewhere. I wish I could rate lower than 1 star.

Definitely the worst rental agency Ive rented from. Office management is not polite. Feels impossible to get your deposit back. Wish I had listened to other reviews and not rented from this company. It feels like they dont care about you as a person whatsoever, only about getting your money.

The absolute worse company Ive ever tried to deal with. I wish I knew the owner Id love to make him some money, because no one running his office/business knows what the tech their doing. You can tell by all the bad reviews.

Very professional and give excellent service, I would recommend them to everyone.

For ten years we have relied on Carolina Cottages to manage our rental property. During that time, the staff and management of CC has proven time and again to be both professional and personal. Whether it is screening potential renters or handling the unforeseen maintenance issues, they performed with utmost efficiency and transparency. A class act!!

Thanks to Penny Self we had an amazing visit with our family!! Penny responded to every message, email and text that I sent very quickly and could not have been any more helpful! So we will be sure to contact Carolina Cottages again in the future. The house was exactly what we wanted and needed, and our trip could not have been any better!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!

I have filled out property applications once a year for the last two years. I pay $100 in application fees for myself and my fiance, so that our application will even be looked at. After that there is no communication, if there is any it is short and rude. In a market where rentals are in high demand, I hope the property owners know these people are not advocating to get their homes rented, they are only in it to get as many dollars from application fees as they can. Terrible customer service, we will not be fooled again.

Agent did meet me at a property and followed up with a phone call that the owner selected another application. However, we filed two applications that had a 90 day active status. The company never responded with my inquiry on other rentals. I believe they collect application fees with no intention of applying them to new rental properties. Is this legal?With high competition for rentals please be careful. I was told first come first serve. Also, the applications ahead of me were not real positive. I took that as a hint to apply. You would only loose the application fees. How many others took the same bait???? Renters beware!!!!🤔

I listed my place with carolina cottages in 2014. Initially, I was very impressed with their service to their property holders, but the luster soon faded. Once my property was rented, communication was nearly impossible. While I was still a property holder with them, I recommended my friend to list her house with them. They failed to return her calls, and soon lost her interest. She listed with someone else. They arent the worst company to deal with as a property holder, but I believe there are better choices out there. The benefit is that their management fee is fairly low.

We had a wonderful move in experience with Carolina Cottages. Thanks to the team for making a quick transition easy.

Nice people.

My wife and I moved into a home on Substation st November 1st 2015. Prior to moving in we were told that there was a nice storage building outside that came with the home for us to use. We were also told that the owner would get us some gravel asap because other tenants has issues getting their car stuck. Carolina cottages knew I drove a tow truck for a living and insisted I had room to park it. Today 1/02/16 the owner of the home shows up very upset. The yard has ruts in it where my work Truck and wifes car has both been stuck. She informed me that Im not supposed to have a Comercial Vehicle here. (She will get over it because thats my job) She also was quick to let us know that the stuff in the building was hers and we dont get to use it! As far as getting some gravel she said she would try to get to it when she could because she didnt have a lot of money! I am very unhappy with Carolina cottages.... I feel as if they lied just to get us to rent the home. I will not recommend them to anyone and as soon as We can find a place were out!

Start far away from this place. They seem nice as first but when push comes to shove they will try everything they can to milk as much money out of you as they can. They hardly ever return phone calls and never listen to ANY complaints.Customer service is sub par at best and if you happen to have a roommate that doesnt pay his or her half they still hold both of you accountable. Regular less, of proof that you paid.

This Property Management company (Carolina Cottages) does not have your best interest at heart and in my professional opinion is extremely unethical. Its amazing how slow they are to get things done and how many reasons they find a reason to nickel and dime you. I was given a date to vacate the premises they decided to keep billing me for another 10 days. Anyone that is interested in renting or leasing their property with this firm needs to know you are dealing with a very shady business.

Ive rented many apartments & houses in 5 different states, towns and cities. I rented a house from CC for 3 years and this is one of the few rental agencies Id happily rent from again. Theyre nice people and they take care of problems.

Worked with Gary who showed me several houses. He was easy to contact and always pleasant when in company. He helped me find a rental that worked - showed some that definitely wouldnt. There are a lot of negative reviews blaming them for the awful rental market in the area. Thats a complaint for the city/county councils. I cant attest to any of their property managing skills as they wont be doing that part, the home owner will be taking that role. AS for the searching process though, I have no complaints with my experience.

We found a listing we were very interested in. I had to (very) proactively contact the company, meaning several phone calls and email before I got a response. Come to find out, the property is no longer available. Over a week later and it is still listed on both Hot Pads and their website. Its either negligent behavior, or a fake listing to get people to call and be talked into a different property.

I found a home that we wanted to rent, We loved the house, When I looked at it last week it was $850 a month, when I tried contacting them, one week later the rent had gone up $45 dollars...Thanks to all of your reviews I did not pay an application fee and I would have been two points away! She also told me they dont accpet section 8, what I have never been on section 8. We are great renters who can no longer afford to live in this town. That in it self is a shame, my familyives here..So much for the working class anymore!

See why this place got a low rating, pulled into the office the woman locked the office(early) looked right at us and left. Guess we’ll find some place to give our money for four months to.

If I could give these people 0 stars I would. We rented from them for almost 4 years they never fixed anything that was broken. When we moved in the place was extremely dirty and I cleaned it myself. Then when we moved they charged us a ridiculous amount for minor repairs. The invoice actually claimed that they paid someone $40/ hr to make said repairs. If I had more time and money I would take these criminals to court!! Do not rent from them!! They will rip you off!!!

They may sit behind a desk, but what they really are is a theif. They have found ways to pocket money by creating bogus reasons to keep your security deposit. Yet when asked for proof they cant provide it. Sounds like spending money to take them to court is in order, especially after all the other bad reviews. I refuse to let them keep money that doesnt belong to them. Do yourself a favor and never rent from these rude liars.

After much difficulty of having an agent return my calls/emails, I was finally shown the house that I was interested in. It was in a great location and appeared to be a nice place from the outside. Once inside the house, however, I threw up in my mouth a little. It was so filthy and the smell of mold and mildew was overwhelming. There was still dirty cooking oil bottles on top of the kitchen cabinet, and I was very apprehensive about bugs coming out as I opened the oven and refrigerator. Thank God that it didnt happen, because I would have ran, screaming. The agent, Nancy Butler, told me that the owner was out of state, but expected a 625 or better credit score and for the tenant to maintain the yard/land. There was a barn type, outbuilding that was in shambles, with a bunch of junk in it. This place was so unbelievably bad, I had to take my daughter-in-law back to look at it through the windows. I still cant believe that they would show a property to potential clients in that condition. But, Im not done yet. I found another home on their site, and again with the unreturned calls/emails. My son (I had gone back to NJ), was finally able to get in touch with Nancy, after a week to see the new place. He was the first person to be shown the property. He took alot of pictures and said that it seemed like a decent place, so I applied for it. I didnt hear anything for over a week, so, I started a campaign of phone calls/emails. When Nancy f i n a l l y returned my call, she said that it was given to another applicant. I asked how that could be, when we were the first to see it and apply? This is where the Witch Nancy personality came out, and she was rude stating thats not the way it works, they had application in for another property that they didnt get, your fee is good should you decide to apply for another property with us. Really, lady? Number One, $40 for a background/credit check is outrageous. They can be done for $19.99 and Im positive your agency pays significantly less, since you do them on a consistent basis. I wish that I had read these reviews prior to throwing away $40. It would have been far better to throw two $20 bills out of my truck window. Number Two, after two bad experiences, do you really think that Im going to go for a third?

Do not rent from these people! They are unethical, deceptive, unprofessional and untruthful! We have rented twice to provide them a second chance, shame on me. They do not honor there own lease agreements and terms. They invade privacy, dodge your requests for service and disappear once they have your money! They do not clean between tenants as they say they do. Can I say maggots in the kitchen sink, roaches in the shower, bugs and dirt everywhere. SLUMLORDS!!! HORRIBLE!!!

I am in complete agreement with the previous reviews. Have dealt with many management companies and this one is the ABSOLUTE worst! Had them manage a property of mine and last year I decided that I had had enough of the ridiculous maintenance fees and arrogant owner. Look elsewhere for an honest management company and run from this one if youd like to be profitable with your rental.

Laughably bad. If you have any problems, it can feel like talking to a brick wall.

I agree with the previous reviewers. This company is a sham!I had them manage about a dozen properties for years and all they did was run them into the ground while charging exorbitant repair fees. The owner Lee Linhart is as arrogant and vindictive. He is afraid to speak to you on the phone and is always hiding behind his employees which always appear to be changing. In the end I had to fire them.The motto at Carolina Cottages should be “Screw the owner… Screw the tenant… Always do what makes Carolina Cottages the most money”.Here are the things Carolina Cottages does well:1. Rents to unqualified people who move out in a few months. This causes more leasing fees for the company. Also costs hundreds to thousands to bring the property back up to standards which the owner bares.2. Charges a 20% lease break fee which the the company not the owner gets.3. Charges EXORBITANT hourly labor fees which the person doing the labor only receives a portion of… The rest goes to Carolina Cottages. This is where #1 above really comes in handy for them and in my opinion represents a conflict of interest.4. Don’t actually manage anything other than crisis situations and collection of rent.My years of experience with this company were NOT PLEASANT OR PROFITABLE. Companies like Carolina Cottages and Tons of Rentals (which is rumored to have been purchased by Carolina Cottages) are in it to take as much of your cash as possible. There are many other options available for property management in Western North Carolina… Just search the web and read the reviews before signing with them.

Just tried to call and ask a simple question about a rental. Whoever answered the phone admitted she did not have the answer but could not tell me who could answer. She was very rude and unprofessional.Told me to just fill out the application and whatever happens, happens. I was left speechless by the lack of common customer service skills the receptionist had. As a consultant who trains front line customer service representatives, this company needs a consultant FAST. Property owners BEWARE, this could be the reason your property is not being rented. Moving on, avoiding all properties handled by this company.

I was just shown an apartment on 3rd ave. When I talked to the agent (over The Phone) about my dog, she said that she felt that the owner would allow her. On the day of the showing, I mentioned that back was rather trashy looking and she said that it is what it is, but I could keep my area clean. If I moved in I would have someone living above me and they would be throwing stuff down.Ill clean my own trash but not someone elses. I also ask again about my dog and she couldnt give a definite answer except that theres $200 nonrefundable pet deposit. Needless to say Im not renting the apartment.

The property is very nice.

Made an appointment to view an apartment and when I got there the rep wasnt there. I then called the rep and she said she was in Asheville picking up her kids. Why make an appointment you know you cant keep? The real kicker is the appartment I was there to see was rented earlier that day! Couldnt have called to let me know so I dont take off work early to get there and drive all the way there?

Thanks to other reviews I wont be bothering with this place.. You can always tell a company is crap if you look at the first review and its a blank 5 star(obviously from the owner/worker) and the rest are customers with problems. Id have gladly clicked on your link but after seeing this crap.. no way. 1 star review, simply because you treat your customers like crap it seems.

We rented a nice house in a nice neighborhood, cleaned the gutters ourselves, fixed minor problems ourselves, kept the yard immaculate and left the house perfect when we moved out. Even had the landlords stop in last year and thank us for being the best tenants they ever had! After 5 years we had to move for health reasons and we were charged to haul away junk, a dryer and some wood and fence debris, from the garage that was there when we moved in! They also charged us to cut back the neighbors trees and bushes that grew over the driveway, which is right on the property line. They charged us to replace bad bulbs in the house, none of which were burnt out, and to replace blinds, none of which were damaged. They also charged us to take down fencing that was added by the tenant before us who had two very large dogs. We removed everything that was ours to remove and the landlords just thought theyd let us pay to haul off their old dryer and other junk. They also charged us for tearing down a raised bed that was there when we moved in and had rotted, the landlord had seen the rebuild and approved it! We had no problems while we lived there, but God help if you move out!

This is a troubled property management company. Very confused about who is the customer and who comes first. It should be the property owner and tenant, but they have it backwards. Its all about them and you and the property owners are the enemy! Have to watch them close and get things done with film and in person as they will charge the owner, then you cleaning and repair fees and not touch a thing. Deposit refund policy, even when unit is vacated and cleared of any issues and vacant, but paid in full, before the end of the lease is crazy. Vacated mid January with lease ending the end of the month. No cleaning or maintenance required, yet say the deposit refund will be processed ( I really dont even understand the term processed ) in March. Really............I am in a professional where I am asked about property rentals almost daily - wont be recommending this bunch ever. Did actually enjoy working with my leasing agent however - just management is a mess.

I agree with the other property owners reviews. I trusted Carolina Cottages to manage and care for my property when I lived in another state. They allowed the home to fall into disrepair - trees growing from the gutters, grass so high that they needed to bring in a bush hogger to mow it (and then charged me $800!) and kept a tenant in the house that destroyed the interior. What happened to their annual walk through? Clearly they never did one! When I ended my relationship with Carolina Cottages to manage it myself, I had thousands of dollars in repairs to make the house habitable - from replacing subfloors soaked with animal urine to ripping out the the kitchen sink that was caked with dirt and animal hair. I would never recommend Carolina Cottages to a property owner!

If you do not have a credit score over 700, DO NOT BOTHER! Your application is based solely on credit. And the application fee of $40 is non refundable.

As a business owner I tried to handle a situation of them lying on my company but Lee himself can not talk. We repeatedly tried calling, emailing, & no response for 3 wks in the meantime we are still taking care of tgeir properties so we seen them out at & went to ask & got door slammed door in our face & kept repeating words as he sent his balls out the door to say it too. Now remind you weve work for them for 3years! Just Rude! So we was like ..We Out ..so Id watch my back if you work or rent from this company.

Took days to get back to me on a home we applied for and then was told the home was already rented even though it was still listed available on the website. Was later warned by another local real estate agent not to get involved with this company.

Slumlord crooks. Dont rent from them they will take you for as much money as possible when you move out.!!

If i could rate them 0 stars I would. Dont rent from these people, they use shady business tactics and theyre amateurs in running a bussiness and customer service.

Mr. Gary had us in a lease in two weeks in a nearly impossible rental market. We couldnt be happier with our rental! I read some not so good reviews but they hit it out of the park for us.

This was the worst long-term rental company I have ever worked with. The property owner refused to make necessary repairs, delayed two weeks giving permission to have our electricity fixed, refused to replace broken door knobs, blank stove knobs, broken fridge drawers, malfunctioning drawers, broken screens, etc. They also made constant harassing phone calls over legitimate use of the property and driveway.At all times, the staff at Carolina Cottages took the side of the owner, or claimed there was nothing they could do despite acknowledging that the owner was being unfair. Even though we took pictures of the state of the house when we took it and made repair requests for existing damaged fixtures, the Carolina Cottages team allowed the owner to charge us over $700 in made-up repairs (many of which were broken or missing when we moved in) after we moved out. They also refused to contact us or return our calls.All in all, Carolina Cottages was NOT a good property management company for the rental side. They were not impartial advocates, and did NOTHING to force the owners to honor their contract with us. I would not advise renting anything from them.

$80 for an application fee for a house that I didnt get. Really limited choices of other houses I did not have interest in. Im glad I didnt end up renting from this company.

HORRIBLE!! WATCH OUT!! BEWARE!!!WARNING, WARNING!!!!! RED FLAGS EVERYWHERE!!!! I wish I could give ZEROS!!

Had the displeasure of speaking with Nancy. This woman was a total witch. The fact that they have someone as condescending and obnoxious as her helping customers try to find a place to live is beyond insane to me. I called back to try and complain about her behavior but ended up talking to one of her coworkers whos obviously friends with her. Im going to make sure I tell everyone to avoid this place from now on.

It’s been a week since I’ve applied & paid the $50 fee. Haven’t heard anything from anyone ‼️

Stoped in for my first visit today as soon as I entered . I was ask may I help you . This lady work with me to find a saddle that fit me and my budget . When I went in had no Plans to buy a saddle was just going around checking out for used saddles . So my husband and I left went around to a couple more saddle shops . And then we came right back to the Caroline Carriage not only did she help me to match up everything she took the time to also set up so when I got home all I had to do is put the saddle on my horse and ride the rest of the evening Also I came out with a New saddle not a used on .Thanks

Any property of theirs I ever called about never received a response. Once I walked in and stated this face to face, was promised a call and it never happened. You can imagine the response you’ll receive when you need help with an issue. Oh wait....none.

Nice clean home with reasonable rent!!

This company is JUNK. The owner is RUDE. I am actually going to court and have the Attorney Generals Office investigate this horrible company. RENT FROM SOMEONE ELSE!!!!!!

They are extremely rude people and arent very accommodating. Wouldnt rent from them ever!

They are despicable bullies. They.are.the.worst.in.town.

Really shirty place to find a place to live. All about them and ridiculous expectations. Not everyone has good credit!! POS.

I am still waiting for a call back and I havent rented yet!!

Impossible to get a hold of them

Gr8

Realtor office

Avoid.

Horrible!!!!!!!