My wife and I have lived here for 18 months and we are happy to finally move out.
The straw that broke the camels back for us:
- ROACHES!! Disgusting. We had our apartment sprayed but it only helped for a couple months before they returned. Getting the apartment sprayed is a real pain - it is almost like moving all over again. We had to empty all the cupboards in the kitchen and move the furniture off the wall. Very time consuming. In the end, it probably doesn't make a difference for us to spray our apartment if our neighbors have the same problem and don't get it sprayed. We just had a baby and the most frightening sight was a roach next to him while he was sleeping.
- For the last 6 weeks, we have not had hot water in our shower. We have made multiple complaints. They sent multiple plumbers. We hope this last fix will do the trick but we have been fooled in the past. For not providing something as significant as hot water, you would think that it is reasonable to request a reduction in rent. The owner offered a generous $50 discount - what a pathetic show of sympathy!
But wait - the list of minor nuisances is much longer. Keep reading if the above alone has not convinced to save your money and look elsewhere to live.
Specifically, we lived in unit 108 (at the front of the building on the first floor).
- we live above the garage. The thundering sound of the garage door opening and closing means you will not get a good night sleep. Ear plugs don't help.
- but there are other reasons to wear earplugs. Willaman is a busy street on weekdays and the front facing apartment means you hear every car and bus passing by.
- for some inexplicable reason, the fan for the half bathroom is built into the wall separating it from the master bedroom. whenever you turn on the light, the fan turns on (there is no option to only turn on the light alone). This fan is so loud it reverberates through the entire bedroom. Out of courtesy, we end up using it in the dark at night so as not to wake up people in the master bedroom
- living on a first floor apartment has other unique plumbing issues. I feel like once every 3-6 months are so, the pipes get clogged. We wake up to a sink or bathtub backing up with foul sewage that smells up the place. The plumber comes and snakes it but we are still left with disinfecting the sink and tub so it is usable again
- this 2 bedroom apartment only has one parking spot. it is impossible to finding parking on the street during the weekdays because it is open to non-permit parking.
- the walls are thin. Our neighbor upstairs has hardwood floors and we know when people are walking with shoes on
- the walls don't also provide much noise insulation - I wish I didn't have to hear their music blasting at 2am on a sat night when I just want to get some sleep
- the walls also don't provide much temperature insulation either. The effect of the a/c or the heater is immediately lost once we turn it off
- there is a funky smell in the hallway in front of our apartment. it has been there for months. no idea where it is coming from. I try to hold my breath until I walk into the apartment
- there is very little natural light in the living area. we pretty much have the artificial lights on all day. The lack of natural light doesn't help the general feeling of dysphoria we experience every time we walk into this apartment
Hope this helps. Happy apartment hunting.