Consumer complaint received 2024-04-10
Product: Debt collection — Rental debt
Issue: Attempts to collect debt not owed — Debt is not yours
Company: Rowland Avenue Management, Inc. A/KA Columbia Debt Recovery, LLC d/b/a Genesis (CA)

This is the XXXX compaint we are submitting against Columbia Debt Recovery as we have more information to add. 

There are XXXX issues here where both XXXX ( they leasing office ) that sent us to collections and Columbia Debt Recovery ( the collections agency ) seem to be in violation of laws in this situation. 

1. The number one issue in this entire situation is that the landlord, XXXX XXXX at XXXX XXXX  apartment complex notified us past the date they were legally supposed to about renters assistance before it was too late to have a chance to get our application in on time. We stilled filed immeditately once we were made aware, however, this put us at a major disadvantage for having a chance to have assistance on this rent. It's stated in the COVID 19 tenant relief act SB91 that it " Requires landlords to notify all tenants who owe back rent about the availability of their rights and the rental assistance program via an informational notice by XX/XX/XXXX ''. The screenshot of the email from the landlord, XXXX XXXX, shows that she first notified us about this on XX/XX/XXXX as shown in the screenshots from the email I've attached. Both XXXX and I would like all of these derrogatory marks whiped clean from our credit reports XXXX leasing office did not reach out to us by deadline that the SB91 law stated and put us at a major disadvantage for getting our relief application in on time during a time where it was absolutely crucial to know as soon as possible when the opportunity to file for this. There were probably hundreds of thousands of people who got this notice from their landlords before we did in the city of XXXX XXXX, and therefore were able to get their application in on time and receieve relief from the govenrment. We had been waiting for months to get a reply on our application, and had continued to let XXXX XXXX know that we were reaching out to XXXX  about the status of our application. XXXX said that they were still reviewing applications for months and months. We had continued to let XXXX  know that we were still waiting to hear back about the application, and then they just ended up sending this to collections while they didn't even legally contact us about the rental relief opportunity by the deadline. This could have prevented this entire situation in the first place if they would have abided by the governments deadline. I do not beleieve we should be liable for this proposed debt, when XXXX  didn't give us the proper opportunity to get assistance from the government. 

2. Also, Columbia Debt Recovery LLC DBA Genesis has informed charging interest 7 % interested on this " rental debt '' and have tacked on hundreds of dollars already on top of the XXXX. They are not allowed to do this however since we filed for economic hardship under the COVID 19 tenant relief act SB91 which clearly states " Landlord may not charge late fees for nonpayment of rent between XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX to tenants who have attested they are experiencing a COVID-19-related hardship ''. Our rent that this claim is about falls within those exact timelines. We filed for this hardship this on XX/XX/XXXX. Our ERAP Application number is XXXX however the Columbia Debt Recovery has claimed they are charging us 7 % interest as a late fee on this debt they are saying we owe. I have attached the application number in my screenshots. I dont see how late fees can be enforced on any level with a situation like this if the law states that landlords arent able to charge their own late fee in this situation. Even if the landlord hired a collection agency, I dont see how this now means that the collections agency should be able to charge late fees or interest while there is a law specifically designed to not make the tenant responsible for late fees in an exact situation like this. 

3. Columbia Debt Recovery LLC DBA Genesis appears to be in violation of the FDCPA because they failed to send a validation notice or otherwise communicate about the debt before reporting it to the credit bureaus. I had absolutely no notification about this before they took action. My roommate XXXX also had absolutely no written or verbal communication from them in away way before they took action and we went back and retroactively checked. XXXX XXXX from Columbia Debt Recovery disclosed to me I was on a recorded line that he tried multiple ways to contact me. He said he texted and called me on XXXX certain dates in XXXX and XXXX. I forget the exact dates he mentioned, but I went back in my text and phone history live while I was still on the phone with him, and had no messages or calls on either of those dates. I confronted him on that and his response seemed very shady and seemed like a straight lie when it was addressed. I never received a phone call or text. I received any voicemail, letter to my address, or any official notice before he filed this derogatory mark on my credit score. I literally just happened to check my credit score one day and saw a huge decrease. By this time, hundreds of dollars of interest had already been added to the charge. Then I called XXXX after finding out the collections company that filed this. This was the first time I ever contacted with Columbia Debt Recovery or knew anything about this mark being put on my credit score. XXXX 's number is XXXX https : //www.consumerfinance.gov/rules-policy/regulations/1006/34/ XXXX XXXX XXXX