leasing consultant

groundskeeper

maintenance technician

night manager

community director

Lewis Group of Companies

Following the sale of their homebuilding division, I was transitioned to assist one of the Lewis partners, who was an extraordinary individual!  He had a "type A" calendar with a "type B" consideration for people!  VERY sought after by media and as a speaker, facilitator and brainstorming genius.  Also an extremely generous contributor at all levels of government, education and performing arts.  While he was known to be a messy whirlwind, his leadership style was admired by all.  He graciously entrusted me with "his life"--including wallet, calendar, correspondence, family, vehicles, homes, and enormous circle of contacts.  He was (still is!) truly a visionary and I continue to realize just how much I learned by osmosis.  He achieved what he wanted/needed by genuinely helping others achieve what they wanted/needed.  He could have thrown his weight around but he (and his colleagues!) were gentlemen through and through!  The hardest part was keeping up with the mounds and mounds (literally!) of papers, magazines, emails, brochures...

The Lewis culture was amazingly positive.  They hired the best, valued their people, and maintained an open-door/first-name atmosphere.  I can truly say I thrived during the years I was there!

I would have to say the best part is the skills that you will learn.  Although the company wasn't the right fit for me, you will learn some valuable skills.  Such as; creating action plans, pushing yourself beyond limits and learning how to shift directions as the company sees fit.
The uniforms that are turned in from employees who have left either by choice or by the ax is enough to clothe a third world country.  


Although the company has deep pockets, they have vast amount of employee turnover.  This results in low morale amongst the employees.  The employees at the corporate office will ask for your opinion on what they can do better, but they fail to actually listen.  If they did, then they would make the changes, not just allow for tattoos to be shown.  Oh and do not believe the false information that is told to you during interviews about hiring within or the opportunity for promotions.  That too is not accurate.

You cannot continue losing your key players and expect to have a winning team.

While my experience with this company was extremely unpleasant, I would like to speak about its management staff. They create an environment of gossip and distrust in their offices. They often belittle and refer negatively to the characters of their employees. It is shame that their behavior goes unpunished and no workplace sensitivity training is offered to correct their behavior. 
The pay is awful, they keep hourly rates low and promise that you can make plenty in commissions. What they do not tell you is that they will raise rents so high that no one will lease. Granted this is a property management and you never want to be 100% occupied, but $75 per lease, when you can't lease (because rents are exorbitant) is discouraging. 
There is a high amount of turnover based on pay and culture, but corrective action is never taken. I highly encourage people to apply elsewhere and leave Lewis for the uneducated, with poor work ethics. 

A typical day at Lewis Operating Corp, The Homecoming property consisted of various office responsibilities, filing, answering phones, paperwork, computer work, ect. We gave property and apartment tours to prospective residents and handled the needs of current residents. We ran credit checks, went over leasing documents as well as renewing leases for current residents. The company had great commissions and incentives for leasing apartments. Lewis seemed to be struggling at the time finding good management and there was a high turn-over rate. The co-workers relationships with one another was very team oriented and helpful. The most difficult thing about working for Lewis was the high turnover in upper management and once again the disappointment in regards to the denial of a prospective resident. The best thing about this job was the goal oriented line of work, excitement of closing a deal and the incentives offered for high closing ratios.

There are many upstanding and dedicated employees, but it is a shame so many feel they are underpaid and overworked. Management varies slightly from community to community, but will generally take their own interest to heart, rather than support those working under them. Many open positions will me remain unfilled for months at a time while the burdens of that position weigh on the rest of the team. This can be a great opportunity for OT. However, with lower than average base pay rates and overbearing work loads it rarely seems worth the extra effort. Especially when employees are not recognized for their success in these chaotic circumstances. Many of the employees are great people and carry their management. It's sad this is more often ignored than reciprocated.

What is the best part of working at the company?
It's definitely a toxic work environment and s terribly ran property. Managers are desperate to appease every resident with whatever outlandish request they have just to get a good review and throw their employee under the bus any chance they can. Sad place.  Also, they don't let you speak Spanish. So if someone comes in asking for help in Spanish you need to tell them you don't  speak it. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Management is terrible, Residents are awful. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It is very toxic. Constant disagreements between management. Employee do try to make the best of it. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
It is usually very stressful and have some sort of chaos by 10 am

Depending on the department you work for, Lewis can have an outstanding culture.  Especially with the Residential Property Management team, they have outstanding leadership, training, and promotion oppurtunity.

For the department I was in, IT, the culture has lasted despite the efforts of its current manager. There are monthly free lunches, which he doesn't participate in. His office is on the other side of the building from everybody in the team. He micro-manages, but is also unavailable for immediate discussions because he's in meetings or for personal reasons.

To be quite honest I will never quite forget my time at Lewis Operating corp. I was a groundskeeper and it was the worse position I ever held in my life. For some reason, I stayed there for almost 2 years...My coworkers felt more like snakes then actual co workers, my manager was an incompetent oaf. The meetings were awful and pointless (many issues that were spoken of, were never truly handled). There was a burden of performance placed on you that I found quite high compared to other places I've worked...They will try to sweat you for every last drop you have.

I still have nightmares about working here, I wake up in sweat sometimes.

Don't do it.

Great friendly office staff, where you can grow within the company. Great place to learn maintenance skills and classes are provided for  Appliance repair, electrical and HVAC. Management is a lil shaky and does not communicate that great. Co-workers are down to earth individuals who come to work with a lot of enthusiasm. Hardest part of job i would say is time management, where the most enjoyable is making the residents happy.

After putting 5 years in I found out the starting pay for my position was raised to more than what I was making. I brought this up when I asked for a raise and was written up the next week for sharing private information about a previous employee. It was BS. The regional director will lie to your face and acts like the employees don't compare notes.  Everyone is miserable and is constantly looking to leave.  I have never worked for a company that consistently went out of it's way to screw over it's employees.  It explains the short staffed properties and constant turnover.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Leasing consultant 51 salaries reported	$22.60 per hour
Groundskeeper 30 salaries reported	$21.52 per hour
Maintenance technician 53 salaries reported	$26.29 per hour
Night manager 22 salaries reported	$22.95 per hour
Community director 16 salaries reported	$27.14 per hour

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