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The New Dark Investors Plaguing the City of Oakland, CA

by Katalina Mendoza
The First class Lodi LLC, and The Apartment Group Inc are examples of Owner Investors whose only goal in the real estate market is to flip houses. They will violate as many laws as possible in order to make a quick profit. The buildings they purchase are nothing more then ATM machines they utilize, to further expand their criminal empires. The communities they prey on are the true losers, who are displaced by these investors. Those that can afford these units are forced to pay exorbitant amounts of money for overvalued housing. Oakland is under assault by a new breed of property investors, who only see people as untapped capital potential.
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On June, 12th of 2014 The First Class Lodi LLC, and The Apartment Group Inc became the new owners and property management group for Lake Park Apartments. In addition to the acquisition of this multifamily building, the commercial leasing office was renovated in order for The Apartment Groups Inc to relocate its headquarters in the heart of Downtown Oakland's Lake Merritt region.

The TAG Inc office is now located at Lake Park Apartments and is comprised of a full staff, which has inconvenienced many tenants who reside in this building. In reaction to negative publicity, they have removed their signage in hopes of detouring angry community members from visiting their headquarters. There are many local residents who claim the primary issue with The Apartment Group Inc and The First Class Lodi LLC along with their other affiliate LLC's, is their excessive time and energy applied to illicit a culture of chronic non compliance. The desire to reach high profit margins has outweighed their responsibility to properly serve the tenants; whose rent amortizes their property expenses.

Reduction in housing services is a normative MO utilized by the current large investment Real Estate Groups, who implement many tactical techniques to supplant long-term tenants with higher capital earners. The Apartment Group has set a precedence, which permits unsatisfactory housing services to be provided to tenants. There are many atrocious violation, and some of these negligence includes: Not notifying tenants about building or unit work 24 hours in advanced, the insufficient tackling of waste management, the lack of or improper pulling of permits for major projects and renovations, the lack of sufficient sanitation of their properties, and lastly the deception and opaqueness management subjects their residents to. This is detrimental to the relationship between tenants and landlords, which could spell disaster in a climate where there is a growing sentiment and disdain for Owner investors as the income wealth disparity gap continues to grow.

There was a tenant in Lake Park apartments who posted a Yelp review to inform the public of the unethical deeds and violations committed by the First Class Lodi LLC and The Apartment group Inc. Harassment was imposed on this tenant along with diligent denial of culpability by the owners and management. There is a long list of code violations that these two institutions have breached. The original awareness was kick started by a published article in the Eastbay Express in their June, 2014 edition. A correlation was drawn to explain how the Lake Park apartments incidence, was a microcosm of a larger issue of predatory investor owners plaguing the city of Oakland, CA.


FCL. LLC and TAG Inc are examples of opportunistic real estate investors who flip properties, and are not truly invested in the communities which expand their profit margins. Tenant’s rights are being dismantled, and a precedence of avoiding accountability is becoming a normal practice, as the city of Oakland takes a blind eye to serious Landlord violations. LLC’s and LLP’s are in return rewarded in Oakland’s housing market to arbitrarily mistreat and remove tenants.

While investigating the First Class Lodi LLC, I discovered an RPA report, which stands for the Rental Protection Agency. An RPA complaint case number 23-4991 was closed on December, 12th 2014 and generated a negative report, because the First Class Lodi LLC and The Apartment Group Inc refused to reply to serious allegations of harassment and retaliation against a tenant for exercising their first amendment rights. Apparently the tenant wrote an unflattering Yelp review, which seems to have vanished. Several individuals have confirmed that there was unfair consequences reigned down, by the management and owners of Lake Park Apartments.


The Apartment Group Inc, websites license expired, and eventually was pulled off all major web browsers. This coincided with the removal of a Yelp posting, many Lake park Apartment tenants and community members speculate was a tactic executed by The Apartment Group Inc to cover up what might include illegal conduct not yet exposed. This was also synchronized with a complaint involving the Property Management group not posting its real estate license number associated with the company or the broker, who would supervise the non licensed employees. These incidences of irresponsibility furthermore provide a strong argument that the owners and property management have the primary intent of displacing old tenants, and replacing them with higher earning professionals to fulfill their profit yield lust.

There have been complaints by local community groups, that several members of the Apartment Group Inc have been harassing, threatening and in some cases sexually harassing tenants. Vickie Corely one of the spokes persons for The Apartment Group Inc, involved in managing over 34 buildings, has been the focal point of unethical and unlawful conduct. There has been a consistent level of complaints involving Vickie Corely using racial epithets and derogatory comments in reference to specific tenants under her management. One of the greatest derelictions committed by Vickie has been her inability to post work notifications 24 hours in advance. While some tenants are vehemently opposed to Vickie’s practices others are unaware, because there is a selective and tactical implementing of treatment distributed to create a divide within the buildings under TAG’s oversight. In fact this is not an uncommon practice to minimize the tenant’s impact against the owner’s unethical practices. Vickie has been inert in her actions against employees accused of sexually harassing and threatening tenants.


Several outside agencies have attempted to contact the First Class Lodi LLC and The Apartment Group including: the ACLU and City Council members to address issues of sexual harassment and threats being imposed by the Landlords onto tenants. Several of the members responsible in maintaining and repairing properties and units that house their tenants have been treated unfairly. There has been a growing concern amongst citizens in Oakland, who are observing the misconduct that is ongoing at Lake Park apartments. The ongoing denial and avoidance of mitigating serious matters, further raises community members radar onto the chronic misconduct by The First Class Lodi LLC, and The Apartment Group Inc.

There have been a plethora of violations that have been committed by The First Class Lodi LLC and The Apartment Group Inc. These violations include Federal violations in non compliance with EPA and OSHA regulations. On the state level many Fire code violations, Health and Safety codes, and renters rights have been violated. Other incidence occurred where the California Franchise Tax Board and California secretary of State have had to forfeit the California state license's of some of the Construction companies hired by TAG Inc and FCL LLC. A few major violators Includes American precision Builders Louis Cherry, and Gillikin Constructions, who many community leaders claim completed unsatisfactory work at the time of completion. There have been several stop work orders under the management of The Apartment Group for not pulling permits when initiating projects, or posting a permit that does not pertain to work being completed.

On several occasions locals in the community and residence at Lake Park Apartments both present and former, have made the claim that Martin Higgins and Vickie Corely have made comments about a desire to attract young middle class single white professionals. This type of covert talk has caused outrage amongst many civil rights groups, who suspect there is a racial component involved. The Apartment Group Inc and The First Class Lodi LLC are trying their best to diffuse the anger and concerns by masking their true agenda. Sadly many of their illegal and unethical practices have become increasingly covert, with a facade of good intent showcased to the public and their many investors. There are several organizations that are demanding that the FCL LLC and TAG Inc end their discriminatory practices and be inclusive to all people regardless of their race, creed, class, or sexual orientation. Several community groups believe minority staff members have been hired to give the illusion of equal opportunity employment and leasing practices.

A few proponents believe companies such as The Apartment Group Inc and the First Class Lodi LLC, are only practicing fair real estate tactics to make a decent profit margin. The problem with that argument is that these LLC's and LLP's are disregarding tenant’s health and safety along with avoiding the proper government agencies, in order to speed up the process and reduce overhead cost reducing municipal funds. This is also a matter of fascism vs. free market capitalism; under true free market capitalism no one is guaranteed a profit. In fact if most of the municipal financial oversight was removed, it would force many of these LLC's to compete on a more equal playing field. This failed rental housing market produces over priced housing that does not correspond to the quality and integrity of the properties being placed on the rental market.


Today is a time for real reform to be adopted in the residential rental market. Many young post college graduate professionals are struggling to pay for housing, on top of increasing student loan debt and higher cost for retirement and health care benefits. This further leads those replacing the baby boomers to delay many events associated with adulthood such as purchasing a car, a house, getting married or starting a family. This is an element of the sociopolitical system that has dire consequences for the United States and those not yet born. If Oakland looses the battle for quality and affordable housing the nation will follow; change will only occur if the people prioritize their true intrinsic values. Unfortunately this is a national problem which is bypassing currency in the hands of asset holder’s and away from the true mainstream society.

The battle will be arduous and take ample amounts of time and resources, but someone has to prioritize their life and ask themselves fundamental questions. When is corruption out off hand, and at what point does one reach their threshold point? Unless you are wealthy with a large estate, these are issues that you cannot avoid. What else are you willing to be deprived of? Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely, (The words of John Dahlberg-Acton). Do not wait until the pot is boiling, this is class warfare which does not discern your race creed or sexuality. Stand up for your basic rights and oppose such insidious and malicious companies whose interest does not include the communities they conduct business in. Housing is a basic human right that cannot be compromised.
§Capital improvements or house flipping?
by Katalina Mendoza
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§The lack of health and safety
by Katalina Mendoza
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