RentX, a property rental company that deals with Binghamton University students, has finished its first year of operation in the area amidst a variety of complaints.

Several students renting homes off campus were surprised last winter when they were notified that RentX would be taking the place of their previous landlord. After the management change had been made, student renters have complained about a general lack of service and attention from RentX.

Ellie Farfaglia, president of the Landlord Association of Broome County, said she has heard many complaints from RentX renters about the level of cleanliness of the properties when students moved in at the beginning of the school year.

“People have been very unhappy with the condition of their homes,” Farfaglia said.

Zachary Berkowitz, a BU student living in a RentX property on Oak Street, said even after repeated requests, the state of his residence saw no significant improvement.

“Our house was not clean when we got there and it was barely cleaned after we asked them many times,” Berkowitz said.

Sara Dougherty, a student renting a RentX home on Clarke Street, agreed.

“We had this guy who was supposed to clean the house out for us and he dropped off the face of the planet,” Dougherty said. “It takes a long time to get anything fixed.”

Dougherty added that it has been difficult for her and her housemates to get in contact with RentX.

“They just don’t answer the phones,” she said.

Wendy Schmidt, a representative for RentX, said that the company was “certainly not without growing pains this year.”

There were several unknown maintenance issues and damages to the properties when RentX acquired them, and it took the company several months to find a sufficient repair team, Schmidt said.

Schmidt attributes the lack of communication with their tenants to an inefficient phone system that “put messages into a black hole, never to be received.” RentX has recently replaced their phone system in an attempt to resolve this problem.

Despite problems in their first year, RentX maintains that they are proud of their growth. Schmidt said some of their current tenants have renewed their leases for next year, and that the past few months have been a trial-and-error period.

“We know that working with the tenant’s best interest in mind is also in our best interest,” Schmidt said.