I am not happy with the new company that took over operations for The Miami Dade County Housing Authority Section 8 Program. The new company in Doral that took over is not doing a good job. I was informed that the new company would streamline the Section 8 voucher program and daily operations would run smoothly. Rent checks are late or not sent at all, initial inspections take more than a month, the staff is poorly trained and managers are inefficient and lack customer service skills. Miami Dade County must make changes soon or most landlords will refuse to rent to Section 8 tenants.
The following are my complaints in a three month period since the new company took over operations.
I did not receive the rental checks for August 2009. No explanation was given. I have been to the new Doral office numerous times to no avail. The people that answer the phones are not the same that are in the office. The wrong information is given over the phone. They said to go to the Doral office to get a replacement check. No checks are issued in that office and they mail the checks instead. No checks have been mailed as of today.
The rent increases for four properties for 2008 have not been processed. Section 8 is supposed to send the rental increase retroactive for the year 2008 but they only gave me an increase for 2009. When I ask about the rental increase I was told that Miami Dade was handling the increases for 2008 and the retro active increase would not be coming any time soon if at all.
The inspection department is very slow and not very experienced. It took one month for an inspection to be performed in a property in NW Miami. They said to the tenant that her paperwork was misplaced. Landlords would have to wait two months in order for the inspection and survey would be completed. I am still waiting for the initial inspection to be performed.
Management is inefficient and not trained properly. Not one manager or supervisor has returned any of my calls. Every time I asked for a supervisor I immediately go to a voice mail system in which you can’t even leave a message. The staff must be trained so they know what to do. Customer service representatives and receptionist personnel are not people friendly and lack basic communication skills.
Landlords now must schedule an appointment to see a customer representative. The appointment is usually within a two week period of the request. I had to wait two weeks in order to request a replacement check. There was a landlord in the Doral office that even called someone in Washington to complaint about the situation.
The Doral office is a zoo where hundreds of frustrated landlords and tenants alike must wait for hours to see a representative. Landlords and property managers should not have to ask for appointments that take two weeks. We must see a manager or customer service immediately. Rent payments and rent increases must be done right away. Initial inspections and surveys must be done fast so the tenant can move in and we can get paid.
It is a very frustrating and exasperating experience to deal with the new Company. Actually, they changed the name so is not even Section 8 anymore. Miami Dade County should look at the way the new Section 8 Company is handling operations. Maybe privatizing Section 8 operations was not a good idea after all. Changes must be made fast so that landlords would continue to rent to Section 8 tenants.
Hector Lesende is owner-licensed real estate broker in Miami, Fl. Serving Miami real estate, Miami Lakes real estate Coral Gables, Hialeah, Miami-Dade and Broward Counties. We provide a South Florida Foreclosure List. We are HUD registered brokers. We offer Miami South Florida Eviction Services.
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I wrote an 
