“It’s not that we come in overnight and suddenly everything changes,” he said. “It’s a process. And we are trying to get through the process. It’s taking longer than maybe we expected.”

Of the 11 apartment complexes T.E.H. Realty owns in the region, five are in unincorporated north St. Louis County; seven of them have F ratings from the Better Business Bureau, mainly for maintenance issues and rental deposits. Some of the complaints were filed before T.E.H. purchased the properties.

But the Housing Authority of St. Louis County, which has paid T.E.H. Realty $1.25 million in rental subsidies in the past five years, said it has seen a common trend with the firm and its affiliates. Property conditions go downhill after T.E.H. buys them, so much that the housing authority is cutting back on placing people in the complexes.

“I have only seen them partially improve property when they are getting prodded,” said John Fraser, deputy director of the housing authority. “That’s the only time I’ve seen them move.”

In March, T.E.H. Realty was forced to abruptly vacate a building at the 174-unit Crown Manor Apartments that had 20 families living in it. County officials said the building flooded from a “rogue” roofing job being done at that time.