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When Vantage Properties bought two portfolios of residential real estate in Queens, they hoped to bring a new approach to managing apartment buildings long-neglected by their previous owners. By operating nearly 5,000 units, most of which are rent-regulated and therefore previously seen as undesirable investments, Vantage says it hopes to provide better service for less money because of its scale – something akin to Wal-mart or IKEA, but in the realm of building management.

The offices of Vantage appear to function like a centralized command zone. The company operates a 24-hour, seven-day call center that handles repairs and maintenance. The system was designed by the architect of 311, the City’s own complaint line, and has been praised by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development for meeting its standard for an acceptable alternatives to superintendents.

In a letter to Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Sunnyside), the HPD Commissioner Rafael Cestero wrote that the plan, “by providing accountability through central oversight, could improve the triaging of requests and more efficiently track the response to complaints.”

All 87 buildings in the company’s Queens portfolio have been outfitted with video surveillance that feeds into a central, round the clock security center that monitors the facilities for any suspicious behavior. Each building also includes a call button that residents can hit to automatically point the camera to their position and get the attention of the security personnel.

Vantage says it is in the process of updating this system to combine motion detecting capabilities, so that unusual activity would automatically attract a camera’s attention.

“The hundreds of men and women who work in Vantage buildings are an absolutely critical component of our determination to provide the highest quality service to our residents, and along with our unique 24/7 phone hotline and precedent-setting 24/7 security headquarters, they ensure our residents our safe and comfortable,” said Neil Rubler, the president and founder of Vantage.

Vantage has only been operating for three years, but it says it has already cleared 9,244 of the 10,842 citywide housing violations that it inherited from the previous owners. According to the same letter from Cestero, Vantage has 4,626 total violations currently open in its entire 136 building portfolio. The letter also said “the properties overall were well maintained.”

Rubler said the company’s business model is to “dramatically rehabilitate buildings that were once shining examples of affordable housing but under previous owners fell into disrepair – and we’re committed to them for the long-term, as are our investors.” The financing for the purchase came in the form of long-term, fixed rate loans, so the company’s strategy has not been upended by the credit crunch.

Vantage has drawn criticism and legal action from housing advocates, and an ad hoc tenants group formed throughout the Vantage properties, fostering accusations of harassment and unjustified efforts to kick out rent-controlled tenants so the values on the apartments could be raised to market rates.

Rubler strenuously denied the allegations and said that the higher turnover rates are a result of illegal subletting and other violations that the previous landlords did not bother enforcing. After the accusations were raised, Rubler instituted a moratorium on legal action against tenants to review the process and ensure it was functioning properly.

The case brought on by housing advocates is still pending in the New York County Supreme Court.