JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – More complaints are flooding the News4JAX I-TEAM about one of Jacksonville’s largest landlords, People’s Choice Apartments, run by real estate investor and podcast host Jarek Tadla.
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The I-TEAM visited a quadplex on Ryar Road tied to Tadla’s network of companies and found residents describing mold, leaks, and prolonged maintenance problems in units they pay nearly $1,000 a month to occupy.
The owner, Tadla, calls himself a self-made billionaire. He owns 14 apartment complexes, seven single-family homes, and nine multifamily properties or duplexes.
Inside the quadplex, tenants pointed out water damage seeping through the walls and clothing stored in boxes to protect it from mold. One resident said he went without a working refrigerator for two months and lived two years with a broken air conditioner before buying a replacement.
“It’s horrid,” a tenant who asked to remain anonymous told the I-TEAM. “You’re glued to the phone hoping they’ll call.”
The city has inspected the property and documented violations, according to enforcement notices shown to the I-TEAM. But tenants say getting timely repairs has been slow or nonexistent.
“I feel ignored, and it’s not right, because everybody out here is older or disabled, and we try not to cause too much fuss because we don’t have another place to go,” another anonymous resident said. “Some of it just needs to be fixed so it’s habitable.”
News4JAX visited People’s Choice Apartments’ main office off Jammes Road and attempted to get answers from staff. When asked about the state of the properties and why residents cannot get help, an employee declined to comment.
The I-TEAM has asked the city for complete records of code violations at the Ryar Road duplex and for an explanation of when municipal authorities can take action if a property owner does not respond to citations and fines.
Tadla and several of his LLCs are also tied to multiple foreclosure lawsuits in Duval County, court records show. The I-TEAM has repeatedly sought comment from Tadla and representatives of People’s Choice Apartments and has not received a response.