I moved into this apartment complex about 7 months ago and at first it seemed great but then real problems started. I moved in to my apartment in April 2002.
The first problems was my refridgerator was constantly filling up with water. I made my first complaint about a month after I had moved in because after constantly cleaning the water out and seeing it fill back up again it needed maintenance work. It took forever for a maintenance person to come out and fix it and then it was only properly fixed in july or august after I got Navy housing after them. Since I have been here every major appliance has been broke.
The first problem is the way they false advertise and mislead. Their advertisement in the apartment guide states ceiling fans. I have no ceiling fan in my apartment. Everytime I call the rental office to inquire about the ceiling fans nobody seems to know what is going on they tell me all apartments have ceiling fans. I have had friends call and ask if all apartments have ceiling fans and they are told yes.
The other misleading statement in the apartment guide is access to 4 pools and tennis courts. When summer came I went to the rental office to get my pool pass and to ask where all the pools were at because driving around the apartment complex I did not see any. Not to mention there is a sign when you enter the apartment complex that states pool/tennis courts. The reply I got from the rental office is that they were members off the Green Run home owners association and they were public pools. When I did go looking for these pools I thought at least one had to be within walking distance but to my dismay the closest on was about a 5-10 minute drive.
I have called the management company about these complaints and they advised to that access does not mean at the complex but that's funny every other apartment complex I looked at that had access had the pools and tennis courts at the complex.
The way they scam you out of money is on your water bill every month. I pay between $30-$35 for water every month. Now take into consideration that I have no washing machine, use my dishwasher 4 times a week at the most, and my boyfriend and I take combined 15 minute showers a day. I have friends who live down the road who have a washing machine, use thier dishwasher every day, and take longer showers and only pay about $25 a month. The difference is they get there bill directly from the water company. Mine comes from the apartment comlex with an added $2 admnistrative fee. I have been told they take the total of the cost of all the apartments that have the same square footage as yours and divide it. I want to know that they are subtracting the office which has the same square footage and taking the laundry facility that we have to pay extra for out of the cost.
They have repeatedly come into my apartment when I'm not here after I have told them I don't like that. I went home with my boyfriend and came home to find a new stove and my microwave moved and not placed back in its original spot.
I big problem that I was having for months was squirrels in my walls. There was never anything that could be done by the exterminator because he dealt with insects. Everytime I asked what progess they were making on correcting the scratching from inside my walls they were still waiting for a reply from the management company. The problem has for the most part stopped but it should not have been going on for 4 months.
The upkeep of these apartments is also horrible. My tub is rusted and has a hole around the knobs. It looks like somebody tried to fix the hole with molding but couldn't and then let the molding drip down the inside of the tub and not clean it up. The maintenance manager had come out to look at the tub. The only thing he did was put some white stuff over a few of the rust spots and said we had to come to a happy medium because these places were 30 years old and they can't jsut go and replace the tub. This is far from a happy medium.
My apartment complex is also not complying with city codes. Fire codes state that grills are not permitted on second floor porches. After I heard this I saw 8 grills on second floor porches on one side of the complex alone. We also have no fire extinquishers in the apartments. What are we suppose to do if a small fire starts just get out and let it get bigger until the fire department gets there. I don't think so. Shortly after I moved in the smoke detector out in the hall had a low battery and started to beep every 30 seconds. It took them 3 days to fix it and that was only after somebody broke it and I had to get Navy Housing involved.
Also the management company Great Atlantic doesn't care about it's residents. I guess as long as they get thier money they are happy. When I called to complain about the false advertising and water bill thier response was what to you expect us to do about it. I have send the a written letter and told them we have until December 10 to get these complaints worked out. If the problems are not worked out by then I have told them I will get the city code enforcement involved and whoever else I need to,
I just thought I would warn everybody before they moved to this place. Don't make the same mistake I did and think it looks nice just wait till you move in.
Andrea
Virginia Beach, Virginia