Maverick Realty - Livingston, Montana

H M.

Michelle Becker and Maverick Reality were the worst rental agency i have ever worked with. Michelle will talk down to you and treat you like a lessor. That is when you can get in contact with her, the office rarely answers phone calls. Be careful when you move out of a rental property,  Michelle will lie and steal your money. Its been 2.5 months and she keeps coming up with bogus excuses as to why she hasn't returned my security deposit but hasn't even provided me an itemized deduction list. I followed their vacating procedures and left that house spotless Please read other reviews before you use this agency. I wish I had. Its a shame Michelle is so  dishonest and uncooperative her motive is purely dollar signs. Beware !
Updated since Michelle Becker response: we didn't break our lease we lived in that house for 3 years. Me moved out in November and gave full proper notice. Michelle stated thats the hardest month to rent out the house, meanwhile we allowed them to show the house while we were moving out . Also they had a waiting list for people already approved ready and waiting for a rental to become available. She rented the house , the month after we moved out but proceeded to act like she didn't. She refused to talk to me on the phone because she couldn't come up with any more excuses as she was in the wrong.
B E W A R E

Per Michelle: This provision is perpetual & intended to avoid a vacancy in the winter (9/1 to 4/30).

As I stated , she showed the house and proceeded to rent the house before we were moved out and continues to act as if she didnt. There was no vacancy. She also tried to charge me for approximently 10 days of utilities after I moved out saying I was responsible because the house wasn't rented out (it was) meanwhile they were doing upgrades before the new tenant moved in.She will just find any way to keep your money!

Miah C.

This is the worst real estate agent in the Bozeman area. Rented a house from these a holes. They kept the deposit and tried to sue my brother because of some dog hair. Said that it would cost 3500 to clean. Ridiculous. Michelle is condescending and manipulative. Don't recommend at all.

Ryan W.

Michelle is quite possibly the least professional person I've ever had to endure in my adult life. We've worked with Maverick for several years (bought two homes, sold a home, rented a home, and lastly used their services as a property manager).

I had never met Michelle prior, but will 100% never use or recommend Maverick Realty under her oversight. There was very little communication (which as a property management company is an issue) and when we were finally able to connect, she was very disrespectful, and discourteous. She had made a mistake with who we were during a phone call (she thought we were another realtor/hadn't bothered to listen to messages or save our phone number) and cited that as the reason she spoke to us so harshly and unprofessionally. Regardless, I'm not certain why you would use that approach in any communication style with anyone.

She and Maverick have a pretty on-point reputation with folks in Livingston whether they've had to experience her as a renter, landlord, or fellow real estate agent, though I'd suspect you'd get the best version of her if you were buying or selling a home with them.

Livingston's small enough that you'd probably get a similar synopsis from 1 or 2 out of every 3 people walking by. My hope is that you don't make the same mistake we made.

neither of the other folks we've utilized in the past work there anymore so that may also be a sign of what it's like to work with/for her...

Noah M.

They get an extra star because they never tried to cheat me out of a security deposit. Unfortunately cant give more than 2. This is not a local friendly agency. They pay no mind to years of consistency or anything else. Its all strict rules designed for their profitability with no exceptions. I rented through them for about 3 years, and never was late or short on a payment ever. No communication issues or otherwise. My process on or around the 20th of every month was to take my paycheck to the bank 2 blocks from their building, and cash it with my rent amount in cash back. I would take that money, in the sealed bank envelope, straight to them with no other stops. I would keep the receipt through the first week of the following month and then if not notified of payment issues, assume it was all good and toss the receipt. One month they wrote the receipt incorrectly, which i noticed and had corrected immediately. I didnt think much of it since everyone makes mistakes. About the 16th of the next month, they emailed me claiming my previous months’ payment was $100 short. They attached the image of their copy of my receipt (not corrected on their end) and said i owed the $100 plus a late fee of $120. I explained what had happened and what my process is, but they would not even hear me out and threatened eviction if i did not pay it. Being so late in the next month, I didnt have my receipt anymore, but i showed them my bank statement that showed my deposit minus the rent cashback, as usual every month. Made no difference. They would not even agree to call it a misunderstanding and waive the late fee. (I was willing to give the $100 to keep the peace but didnt want to pay a late fee i KNEW i didnt owe). They refused to budge and lost a customer and many referrals, as i had no issues before then.

Grant M.

I’ll echo what others have said, Michelle is hands down the worst professional experience I’ve ever encountered. She was our property manager for a home in town. She “found” us a renter. She didn’t give us any of the details about this renter though we’d come to find out later, Maverick Realty had provided rentals to them before (and after).

When the tenant was late on rent, Maverick never reached out to us or the renters until we prompted the question (typically weeks later). No late fees were retrieved. The third time this happened (it was 3 weeks late) we called again to see why the rent had not been deposited. This time we spoke to someone other than Michelle and consequently got some actual truth (though I suspect she got in a bit of trouble for “over sharing”) - that the renter was “frequently” late with their previous rental and that they even had to hold an extra month of rent for the constant problem.

This rental payment history was not shared, the fact he previously rented with them was kept hidden, and the “solution” to this “constant problem” was not offered to us prior to signing the contract.

We clearly did not renew this rental agreement and decided to sell our house instead. Clearly, we chose another realtor than Michelle Becker/Maverick Realty. This made Michelle palpably upset and she approached interactions and communications with us and our realtors accordingly. This seems to be her general demeanor as depicted in other reviews.

At the end this disaster, more facts came out.
• We learned that there were 11 people staying in our house and Michelle was aware. This was never communicated.
• There was damage to the property and items left behind. When we reported the damage, Michelle then informed us she had “lost” the rental inspection list we completed and couldn’t compare with the damages reported.
• She claimed the ladder built in the garage and the couch left in the garage crawl space (as one of the 11 was sleeping in there) was ours - though we had emails from her reiterating the property had been emptied by us prior to renting)
• She also agreed to extend the contracted move-out date upon renter’s request without asking or telling us. She “didn’t have any reason not to believe the renters.” This was not approved.
• If that’s not enough, she is renting to this family of 11 again to another unsuspecting home-owner.

Since this experience, we’ve chatted with others about it and quickly came to find that this is Michelle Becker’s (and now Maverick’s) reputation among owners, landlords, renters, and realtors alike. I realize Livingston is a small town so you may be in a position where you’re forced to work with her - if that’s the case, ask all the questions (even ones you think would normally be silly) AND get everything in writing.

Good luck!

Michael H.

Sat for a half an hour to look at an apartment and no one showed up, no phone call or text. When I reached out to them the next day they said they had a "rush" at the office. Worked out for me anyways found a much nicer place in a better neighborhood. Do not recommend.

Rene C.

Danice was amazing, from the moment she rented me the house. till the moment I moved out. everyone in that office made me feel at home, before I even moved to Montana. There aren't enough words to express or gratitude. Thank you guys you are the best!!!!

Janet

At Maverick, you will find trustworthy, hard-working agents who go the extra mile. I have bought and sold other properties near Livingston using a couple of other real estate agencies in Livingston. Some day I hope to return to Montana, and when I do, I will contact Maverick.