Living at Highland Park Apartments is, for the most part, a pleasant experience, tempered only by a management that tends toward the frustrating—and sometimes just plain silly. One perennial favorite: The "market rates" they quote to tell you why they're still giving you a good deal despite raising your rent substantially, to be direct about it, preposterous. I’m sure the numbers come from somewhere… But they lack any credibility or relevance, like setting rent by citing the GDP of Malaysia.
Some of the clauses in the lease agreement are blatantly illegal in most other states, but they can get away with it because of the tremendous lobbying power the industry has in the Colorado state legislature... So they have $50 late fees and a whole bunch of other nasty clauses that are absolutely legally sound and ethically lacking. The posted office hours are 9am-6pm, but I rarely see anyone before ten or after five, and the newly installed rent drop box, like the mailboxes, isn’t particularly secure. So if you want to mitigate the risk of having your check stolen by leaving it overnight, I’d suggest that you pay your rent in person. Of course to do this, or to see the office staff for any other reason, you’d better not have a “nine to five” job... While I’m not actually aware of checks being stolen, the mailboxes are a different story. Don't leave your mail in the boxes overnight, because it isn't tough to yank the boxes open. Our mail has been stolen more than once, but nothing has been done, (apparently, at least), to improve their security.
The exercise room, pool, and hot tub are very nice and are quite well maintained. As are the laundry rooms. The repair folks are pretty good: they take care of problems quickly & professionally if they happen in your apartment during convenient hours, though the more general “community repairs”, (the motorized gates, potholes, etc.), get neglected. Union can be surprisingly loud much of the time so try to get an apartment facing the other direction. Not all parking spots are covered, so make sure to stipulate that as a condition prior to occupancy if you want to avoid the snow in the winter and the potential for hail damage the rest of the year.
If all of this seems like stuff you can put up with, than I’d recommend living here. Just be diligent and keep an eye on the office staff. Be prepared to recognize when they’re being, shall we say, less than forthcoming, but be mindful of the fact that they are probably nice people that are, (at least presently) understaffed and forced into a tough position... So be firm but polite, I suppose...

User Responses
From: beforenoon	Date: 02/08/2006
You are an idiot. Get a life and stop wasting your writing talent
From: sissajack	Date: 03/07/2008
Market rates often reflect the taxable value of the property as a whole. As far as rent increases go, most communities increase rent annually. Last time I checked, which was probably June of 2005, Highland Park was not rent controlled. If you don't like the increase, complain to the community's Regional or District Manager. The whole late fee thing....it's not in place to make things difficult for residents or to be mean, it's a scare tactic used to get people to pay their rent on time. With a value in the tens of millions of dollars, Highland Park probably has a fairly large mortgage payment to make each month. If you don't like the rent increase, get in touch with the community's District or Regional Manager.

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