Excel Property Management lawsuits and investigations fall into a few distinct buckets: a North Carolina law firm has investigated the company for charging tenants eviction-related fees that state law did not authorize before June 2018; a Raleigh tenant filed and lost a federal fair-housing suit; and the company has drawn scrutiny over housing conditions at properties it managed, including a week-long water outage at a Wilmington senior housing complex. A separately named Texas entity has faced personal-injury suits but appears to be a different company.
Investigation Into Illegal Eviction Fees
The most significant legal exposure for Excel Property Management involves an investigation by the North Carolina firm Maginnis Howard into whether the company systematically charged tenants unauthorized fees during eviction proceedings. According to the firm, Excel regularly assessed filing fees, service-of-process fees, and attorneys’ fees against tenants after filing complaints for summary ejectment, stacking those charges on top of standard late fees. For tenants only days late on rent, the added costs could reach hundreds of dollars.1Maginnis Howard. Investigating Excel Property Management Inc.
The legal question turns on timing. Before June 25, 2018, North Carolina landlords were prohibited from recovering these eviction-related expenses from tenants. On that date, Senate Bill 224 (Session Law 2018-50) took effect, amending N.C. General Statutes § 42-46 to allow landlords to recover court filing fees, service-of-process costs, and reasonable attorneys’ fees capped at 15 percent of the amount owed in summary ejectment cases.2North Carolina General Assembly. Session Law 2018-50, Senate Bill 224 The bill was enacted in direct response to class actions in state and federal courts that had challenged landlords’ right to pass those costs along.3NC REALTORS. Senate Bill 224 Summary
Maginnis Howard’s investigation focused on tenants charged these fees before the June 2018 cutoff. The firm stated that affected tenants may be entitled to a full refund of the fees plus a statutory penalty of $500 to $4,000 per violation, along with attorneys’ fees. The firm has said generally that it has “recovered millions of dollars on behalf of tenants for the illegal assessment of eviction-related fees,” but no specific settlement, judgment, or recovery total against Excel has been publicly reported, and no class action against the company appears to have been filed or certified based on the available record.1Maginnis Howard. Investigating Excel Property Management Inc.
Elabanjo Fair Housing Lawsuit
In 2018, Samantha Elabanjo filed a federal lawsuit against Excel Property Management, its Calvary Trace Apartments complex in Raleigh, and several individual employees. Representing herself, she brought claims under the Fair Housing Act along with breach of contract, breach of the covenant of quiet enjoyment, and gross negligence, seeking $10 million in damages, punitive damages, and injunctive relief that included mandatory fair-housing training and a four-year ban on the complex receiving tax credits.4vLex. Elabanjo v. Excel Prop. Mgmt., Inc., No. 5:18-CV-356-D
The case was dismissed. On May 2, 2019, Judge James C. Dever III of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6), finding that the complaint offered “labels and conclusions” rather than the specific factual allegations needed to state a plausible claim.4vLex. Elabanjo v. Excel Prop. Mgmt., Inc., No. 5:18-CV-356-D
Taylor Homes Water Outage and Code Violations
In January 2023, residents of the Robert R. Taylor Senior Homes, a public housing facility for low-income seniors in Wilmington, went nearly a week without consistent running water while Excel managed the property. The outage began around January 5, and when water did flow intermittently, residents said it appeared rusty or contained sediment. The Cape Fear Public Utility Authority traced the failure to a backflow system on the property, placing responsibility on the owner and manager. Tenants told reporters that pipes had been leaking for seven to eight months before the full outage.5WHQR. Taylor Homes Still Without Consistent Running Water Despite Excel Property Managements Claims
Excel said it was unaware of a systemic problem, reported making temporary repairs on January 10, and expected a permanent-repair part by January 12. The company arranged bottled-water distribution but declined to say whether tenants would receive any rent reduction for the days without service.5WHQR. Taylor Homes Still Without Consistent Running Water Despite Excel Property Managements Claims
The property’s owner, the Wilmington Housing Authority, took over direct management in August 2024. As of December 2024, CEO Tyrone Garrett said the authority was still assessing conditions inherited from prior management. Code violations had been issued to the housing authority and related entities for properties formerly managed by Excel; the city’s chief code enforcement officer said some violations had been corrected, but none of the cases had been formally closed. No regulatory fines had been imposed as of that date because city hearings had not yet taken place. Separately, Excel’s contract with the Pender County Housing Authority was not renewed in September 2024 following mold-related complaints at properties it managed there.6Port City Daily. Mold, Water Leaks Found in WHA-Owned Housing; CEO Points to Prior Management
The Texas Excel Entity Is a Different Company
A separate entity, Texas Excel Property Management Services Corporation, has faced multiple personal-injury lawsuits in Harris County, Texas. Court records show at least four cases classified as “Other Injury or Damage” filed against the company by Jose Tovar Jr., Jesus Garcia (individually and on behalf of a minor), Milagros Maldonado, and Maria De Jesus Alcazar as independent administrator of an estate. The estate-administrator capacity in the Alcazar case suggests a possible wrongful-death claim, though the publicly available docket does not specify the underlying incidents.7Chancellor Firm. Appearances
Other Harris County filings link the Texas entity to specific apartment complexes. A consumer-protection and debt claim filed by William Ausbie in August 2024 named Excel Property Management alongside Woodscape Apartments, an individual named Ahmet Kalkan, and Kalkan Capital.7Chancellor Firm. Appearances The Texas entity appears to be connected to Kalkan and the Kalkan Capital group rather than to the North Carolina firm founded by Ann D. Hanson in 1994, so these Texas suits do not reflect on the Raleigh-based company covered above.
What Tenants May Be Entitled To
North Carolina tenants who were charged filing fees, service-of-process fees, or attorneys’ fees in a summary ejectment proceeding before June 25, 2018, may have a claim for a refund, a statutory penalty of $500 to $4,000 per violation, and attorneys’ fees under N.C.G.S. § 42-46 as it then read.1Maginnis Howard. Investigating Excel Property Management Inc. Tenants with current habitability complaints at a property Excel managed, or that has since changed management, can report code issues to their local code enforcement office, which is the route that produced the open violations at the Wilmington properties.6Port City Daily. Mold, Water Leaks Found in WHA-Owned Housing; CEO Points to Prior Management