Down Home Properties

Negative experience: Where do I start!!!! My husband was offered a short time job in Florida. from May 26 - August 30 2026 he was at the property for 2 weeks due to job shut down. We had to pay all 3 months in advance along with the trip protection. Total was $7,449.25 . I got the run around on who to call finally called the insurance company and they denied the claim. Now we are out $7,000.00 unless they can re rent the place. How are we suppose to know if they rent it? We also have not received the $500.00 Damage refund. DO NOT RENT FROM DOWN HOME PROPERTIES.

Fantastic experience: Even though our deal didn’t end up going through, I have nothing but respect and appreciation for Dawn Silver. Throughout the entire process, she worked with integrity, always had my best interests at heart, and navigated every twist with calm confidence. She’s highly knowledgeable about the market, sharp in her instincts, and negotiated in good faith at every step. I genuinely felt like she had my back. If you’re looking for an agent who’s professional, attentive, and truly committed to getting the best outcome for her clients, Dawn is someone you want on your side.

Negative experience: This company needs to get on the ball they're lazy and don't get back with you and follow thru

Negative experience: Tried to call them 5 times, needed some questions answered before renting. Not one return call. Big red flag !!

Negative experience: Twice January was rented in early of previous year and twice whoever rented property cancelled. Neither month was rented even though they had over 8 months to rent. It's may of present year and already I'm making $5000 less than previous year

Negative experience: down home property is very inept. They rented a house for the following year while we were still living in it without asking us first. This was after we spoke to the owner, Stacy, who absolutely had no interest in helping us. They rented for the month of February when we were willing to rent for three months. We have used down home property for six years. No loyalty to their customers. Look somewhere else for a management company that will do a better job for you. Jill wilson

Negative experience: I'll make it short and very simple. This outfit is inept. You call about one of their listings and Bambi or Pixie or whomever answers the phone has no clue.

Negative experience: Just wanted the listing. in two months, not one person came to look at our home in Wildwood. Had two open houses. His excuse was lower. The price of the home more people would look at it. What a copout. I said bring me one offer and we’ll see about reducing the price.

Negative experience: We contracted with DownHome for home watch. They did NOT come close to fulfilling their duties. My calls were not returned in a timely fashion. Thankful for neighbors that notified me that our golf cart had been sitting outside for 3 days and that deliveries were blocking the front door. Lisa, the managing partner, had told me the deliveries were placed inside. That is just one of the many untruths she told me. We had no problems getting out of the contract because they did not do one single thing that was promised. Beware of this company and keep looking for another one. They can not be trusted with your home.

Negative experience: House was nice and clean. However, it advertised a golf cart included but when we arrived it was not there. Contacted DHP who stated it was in the shop and to rent one ourselves and they'll reimburse. We did same (losing over a full day). We were only partially reimbursed for the golf cart rental being that we didn't use their recommended company which they didn't make clear. They also failed to respond to my wife's email. I'd think twice before using DHP again...

Fantastic experience: I locked myself out and they rushed over to let me in. Also, the house was very well cleaned.

Negative experience: I had a realtor in this office not only lied to me but Stonewall me which is not surprising according to the poor ratings.

Negative experience: We are buyers that just attended an open house with Kevin Russell. He was on the phone when we got there and never got off to talk to us. We were serious buyers interested in the house.

Fantastic experience: They are very responsive and take care of you

Fantastic experience: Great staff and service. Avoid the apps and go straight to down home for best rates.

Fantastic experience: Always a great stay

Fantastic experience: Nice experience. Will use them again.

Fantastic experience: If you are renting a home in the Villages, DO NOT, DO NOT, use this company. The workers are very nice and polite on the phone but that is where everything good ends. Filled out the contract online, said it was complete, and submitted, days later told they did not receive it, had to do it again. When I told them I already had they said their record shows that but they can not pull it up so I had to do it again. On Friday afternoon, before the Sunday I was checking in finally got notification it was received. Was told my resident ID card was ready but Villages had no record of it. Days after checking in they finally, after more calls to them, said they will submit for my ID, after telling me they already did. The lock box with the keys was so worn out we needed a flashlight in the daytime to see the numbers. The forms they left in the house actually had the wrong address on them, also the wrong network name for the internet, luckily someone left behind a notebook with the correct network name. I just left a rented place i had the month before with full access to the local mailbox, found out after I had something delivered they do not provide this, their suggestion on how to get my mail, stand outside the postal station all day until a mailman shows up. Then since our first night here, in a no pets home that we specifically chose for that reason because of cat allergies seems to come with a cat living in the backyard that whines and cries all night, and i mean all night, long. Their answer was well the yard is not the house so its not their problem. Just spent a very enjoyable month just across the street from my current location through a different company and very hands on owner and now in just under a week this company has been nothing but one aggravation after another. If you plan on renting in the Villages, DO NOT, repeat, DO NOT, use this company.

Negative experience: We have stayed in the Villages for the past six years and loved it, unfortunately that was not the case here. Because we chose to book at the last minute we did not check it out as much as we should of(our mistake). There were three bedrooms and they all had televisions but two were not hooked up to cable or any other devise (I assumed it was just overlooked). When I contacted the management company they said that they needed to contact owner, then let us know that the owner said no they were not going to have those televisions connected. The wash machine sounded like it was going to blow up when it went into spin and they told us it would be four days to repair after review, so we took care of it ourselves. Not a place I would recommend if you want to stay and relax. Ed P

Fantastic experience: Very nice place to rent. Perfect with three queen beds. Good place to have children gifts for a short period of time

Fantastic experience: Brandon Shrout with Down Home Realty is the best!!!!!! He waisted zero time finding us multiple houses to look at, answered all our questions, and our offer was accepted very quickly. With the way houses are flying off the market, we didn’t think we would find our dream house but Brandon made that dream come true!!!! We cannot thank you enough Brandon!!!

Fantastic experience: Very professional

Negative experience: I rented a place in The Villages for January 2021 and paid the deposit. The next payment was in July and we were concerned about COVID so Michelle gave us until August to decide what to do. In August I called and said we weren’t comfortable about coming. She said if we weren’t comfortable in December we could move our lease to January 2022. I asked her to send me an email to that effect and she said no but she would put it in our file. I wrote down exactly what she said and the date of August 15. When I called in December to ask her to change our reservation to January 2022 she said she couldn’t because nothing was closed down in Florida. Nothing had ever been said that things had to be closed down in Florida in order to change our reservation. We were coming from Virginia and would have many stops on the way to Florida. With so many people getting COVID I didn’t want to take the chance. We lost our deposit and our second payment. About $2000. We got back about $400. I feel I was lied to in order to get me to pay the second deposit. I will never use Down Home again and I promise to tell all my friends about them. I would say the lesson learned is if they won’t put it in writing don’t believe them and get out.

Fantastic experience: Great service and friendly staff. They went above and beyond to help us.

Negative experience: While the property in the Villages was ok, it was advertised as having a hot tub. During my very expensive rental for the month of Feb, 2020, the tub never functioned. After several phone calls, it was “cleaned”, but still did not heat or even hold water. I made numerous calls during the month, but no one ever returned my calls. Upon departure I was told there was a note in my file regarding the issue and my request for $250 rebate and someone would get back to me. I made another 4-5 calls and always got the same story they “would look into what could be done” and call me back. It’s now April 3....... They talk a nice game and say the right things, but zero follow up. If the answer is “no”, just say so!!

Fantastic experience: Hanna did a nice job of meeting our needs

Fantastic experience: I have used Down Home Properties for about 18 months. They are very professional and responsive to their owners' needs. Literally everything is taken care of for this out-of-town owner. I highly recommend Lisa Joy and her team for all of your property management needs.

Fantastic experience: nice place

Negative experience: Very disappointed in this company. They use your home to profit and leave you with just the leftovers.

Fantastic experience: Down Home Property has been handling the rental of our Florida vacation home for three years. They handle everything seamlessly from reservations to cleaning, and have even fixed small repairs. They have been very responsive to our questions and all our requests, and always contact us if there is something that requires our input. The staff is very professional. When we come down to stay we have always found our home spotless. Down Home Properties really cares about the homes they are entrusted with.

Fantastic experience: We have been using Down Home Properties for over a year now to manage our courtyard villa rental in the Villages, Florida and they have exceeded our expectations. Being new to the rental market, we had numerous questions with regard to our property. They were always available to assist us and handled every detail in a professional manner. Thank You !!

Fantastic experience: Wonderful company, thank you Kim Weber

Negative experience: I rented a home from 2 January thru Feb 28. When I picked up the keys, I was assured everything was ready, only to find out that the golf cart did not work. It took several days for "Down Home" to try to fix the problem; all I got were excuses. The homeowner arranged for a repair and a "loaner". During my stay I broke a 10oz water glass, which I duly reported. Yesterday, I received a letter stating my security deposit was being held for $19.95 in damages (even though I took out their insurance policy!) I called their office, spoke to a manager who told me "You signed a contract." I wouldn't advise anyone to rent through this organization.

Fantastic experience: Great company to use for vacations

Fantastic experience: Highly recommended!

Negative experience: I arranged a house and paid for it in full. Was told I could come pick up the keys on Saturday morning. When I arrived at 10:30 AM, I was then told to go to the visitor center and pick up my guest passes as the house could not be occupied until noon. Wouldn’t it have been nice to know this before hand??? When I got to the guest center, they knew nothing about me or my guest passes. So I went and had lunch. I went back to the guest center and they still knew nothing about my guest passes. Meanwhile Down Home Property management calls and says I must sign the contract before I pick up my guest passes. Well wouldn’t it have been nice to know this before hand??? So after about two hours of running around, with my dogs and my cooler, I finally get into the house.Given the multitude of options around here, I would definitely take my business elsewhere… OK here’s an update after three days. The management company had spelled my name wrong!! All this time giving me the runaround. And on top of that the carpeting in this house is absolutely horrible. I asked to have a clean and they have neglected to call me back about it. You would think after a $275 cleaning fee, I could get some sort of service… Oh BTW I’m a retired military officer and I’m not used to being treated this way…

Fantastic experience: Melanie is wonderful! TAS Environmental