Renter Beware: Avoid This Property Management Company
I rented through this agency for over 4 years, always paid on time, and left the apartment in better condition than when I moved in. Despite this, they withheld most my security deposit and tried to charge me for furniture that was never even provided in the unit.
This wasn’t an isolated incident of poor service — I had requested replacement curtains after mine fell apart, and it took the agency over a year to follow through. Communication was consistently unresponsive and unprofessional throughout my tenancy.
What makes this worse is that I now own a rental property myself. Having seen how this company treats tenants, I would never use them — not as a renter, and not as an owner looking for a property management company. They seem far more interested in squeezing every dollar from deposits than treating good tenants fairly.
If you’re considering renting from this agency, think twice. And if you’re a property owner considering hiring them to manage your property, look elsewhere.
Kehau
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April 20, 2026
Royal Realty's Michelle Lum changed my bad luck with property management and showed me that experienced and professionalism still exists in this industry. She genuinely cares about her work and makes her clients a priority. After 3 months of vacancy, I switched PM's and hired Michelle to upgrade my kitchen and find tenants for my house. She understood the sense of urgency and with every conversation, she gained my trust and respect very quickly. With her extensive experience, she offered valuable insight, fiscal resolutions, preventative maintenance strategies, and went above and beyond my expectations, which is hard to accomplish, considering I am a PM and Realtor myself. She is intelligent, efficient, compassionate, and detail oriented. I am truly blessed to work with her and grateful for everything she has done for me.
Elizabeth
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July 01, 2026
My experience with Michelle Lum was extremely disappointing and unprofessional.
Before moving forward, we received a 19-page agreement that, in my opinion, was heavily one-sided and overwhelmingly favored the property manager rather than creating a fair balance between the parties. Because I have a legal background, I carefully reviewed the document and identified several clauses that I considered unreasonable and worth discussing before signing.
We approached the situation professionally. We did not reject the agreement outright; we simply requested that certain provisions be discussed and negotiated. We made it clear that we were open to a conversation and willing to work toward terms that were fair to both sides.
Instead of engaging in any discussion, we received an email stating that they no longer wished to proceed with us as clients. To me, that is not how professional business relationships should be handled. Contract review and negotiation are normal parts of doing business, especially when significant legal and financial obligations are involved.
The agreement itself was probably AI-generated, that’s what it looked like at least.
The overall experience left me with the impression that questions, scrutiny and negotiation were not welcome. As someone who took the time to read and understand the agreement before signing, I found that concerning.
My advice to anyone considering working with this company is simple: read every page carefully, understand every clause and do not sign anything until you are comfortable with the terms and fully understand the financial and legal consequences.
Based on my experience, I would not choose to work with this property manager again.
ceo88
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January 11, 2026
One of their realtors Michelle asked for $100 “admin” fee to her private Venmo, on top of the $40 application fee paid through the online portal to add someone as an occupant. She initially approved the occupant and then months later returned the fee saying “denied” once questioned, watch out for scammy practices. If they ask you to pay an extra $100 fee, just try to double check it’s a real, legal fee.
Michelle also falsely marketed the rental as a fully furnished apartment with roof top amenity. The apartment turned out to be partially furnished and had no roof top access.
Roger Tomihama
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October 20, 2025
Jennifer Peele at Royal Realty was absolutely amazing in helping me sell my condo in Aiea. Even in a slow market, she got the job done. Jennifer was always responsive and kept me informed every step of the way. Since I was out of state, she took care of all the details and made the entire process smooth and stress-free. I couldn’t have asked for a better agent to handle my sale—highly recommend her and Royal Realty!
Renter Beware: Avoid This Property Management Company I rented through this agency for over 4 years, always paid on time, and left the apartment in better condition than when I moved in. Despite this, they withheld most my security deposit and tried to charge me for furniture that was never even provided in the unit. This wasn’t an isolated incident of poor service — I had requested replacement curtains after mine fell apart, and it took the agency over a year to follow through. Communication was consistently unresponsive and unprofessional throughout my tenancy. What makes this worse is that I now own a rental property myself. Having seen how this company treats tenants, I would never use them — not as a renter, and not as an owner looking for a property management company. They seem far more interested in squeezing every dollar from deposits than treating good tenants fairly. If you’re considering renting from this agency, think twice. And if you’re a property owner considering hiring them to manage your property, look elsewhere.
Royal Realty's Michelle Lum changed my bad luck with property management and showed me that experienced and professionalism still exists in this industry. She genuinely cares about her work and makes her clients a priority. After 3 months of vacancy, I switched PM's and hired Michelle to upgrade my kitchen and find tenants for my house. She understood the sense of urgency and with every conversation, she gained my trust and respect very quickly. With her extensive experience, she offered valuable insight, fiscal resolutions, preventative maintenance strategies, and went above and beyond my expectations, which is hard to accomplish, considering I am a PM and Realtor myself. She is intelligent, efficient, compassionate, and detail oriented. I am truly blessed to work with her and grateful for everything she has done for me.
My experience with Michelle Lum was extremely disappointing and unprofessional. Before moving forward, we received a 19-page agreement that, in my opinion, was heavily one-sided and overwhelmingly favored the property manager rather than creating a fair balance between the parties. Because I have a legal background, I carefully reviewed the document and identified several clauses that I considered unreasonable and worth discussing before signing. We approached the situation professionally. We did not reject the agreement outright; we simply requested that certain provisions be discussed and negotiated. We made it clear that we were open to a conversation and willing to work toward terms that were fair to both sides. Instead of engaging in any discussion, we received an email stating that they no longer wished to proceed with us as clients. To me, that is not how professional business relationships should be handled. Contract review and negotiation are normal parts of doing business, especially when significant legal and financial obligations are involved. The agreement itself was probably AI-generated, that’s what it looked like at least. The overall experience left me with the impression that questions, scrutiny and negotiation were not welcome. As someone who took the time to read and understand the agreement before signing, I found that concerning. My advice to anyone considering working with this company is simple: read every page carefully, understand every clause and do not sign anything until you are comfortable with the terms and fully understand the financial and legal consequences. Based on my experience, I would not choose to work with this property manager again.
One of their realtors Michelle asked for $100 “admin” fee to her private Venmo, on top of the $40 application fee paid through the online portal to add someone as an occupant. She initially approved the occupant and then months later returned the fee saying “denied” once questioned, watch out for scammy practices. If they ask you to pay an extra $100 fee, just try to double check it’s a real, legal fee. Michelle also falsely marketed the rental as a fully furnished apartment with roof top amenity. The apartment turned out to be partially furnished and had no roof top access.
Jennifer Peele at Royal Realty was absolutely amazing in helping me sell my condo in Aiea. Even in a slow market, she got the job done. Jennifer was always responsive and kept me informed every step of the way. Since I was out of state, she took care of all the details and made the entire process smooth and stress-free. I couldn’t have asked for a better agent to handle my sale—highly recommend her and Royal Realty!