Having lived in an apartment complex on the border of East Hartford before moving to the Woodbrooks, I can say that there are certainly worse places to live. There are plenty of young tenants with no respect for their neighbors, but there are also plenty of neighbors so quiet you wonder if they're still alive in there. Not a very social environment though; no facilities on premises at all (decent little park across the street, though). This discourages people from meeting their neighbors. Safe (and quiet) enough overall, just be ready for a neighbor annoyance or two at some point during your tenancy.

I enjoy the townhouse-style units - 2 or 3 levels, bottom floor opening up onto a patio (varying in size - look at this before signing). Rooms are decent sized, especially the den on the bottom level. The units in which the bottom level is split evenly between den and storage area are nice (pay attention to the electrical outlets in the storage area, however, to ensure there's enough for your needs).

Most of the grass areas are mowed regularly, and the overall landscaping work looks good.

Parking spots are more narrow than average; have a neighbor with an SUV who can't park and you're in for some headaches (most tenants seem to be good parkers though).

Garbage dumpsters in some places are inadequate and overflow. Keep this in mind if your unit is close to one. They also have no side doors. I'm tall so I have no problem, but my short neighbor has to struggle to take out the garbage every day.

Snow removal is decent; most storms they're plowing by mid-morning. Street areas are plowed first, then you're expected to move your car - in some cases to visitor spots (which are fairly generous and usually close) or the side of the street while they plow the parking spots and sidewalks. If I don't have a chance to do it myself, my steps are usually cleared while they're doing the sidewalk areas. The street areas are usually plowed fairly quickly, the parking spots and sidewalks can run into the afternoon though.

Maintenance is good over all (with caveat of repair being the motto vs. replace, see below, but this is more management than maintenance). The maintenance staff (and most office staff as well) are friendly and seem to try to do their best. They're generally quick to come over, and frequently can do so at times that are convenient for you (within daytime hours, of course). A couple times I've waited days, but only for non-critical items.

Walls are pretty thick between units; if your neighbor has the bass turned up sure you'll hear it. If they're stomping up and down the stairs, and those stairs are on your wall, you'll hear that too. Other than that, they're pretty soundproof.

The hot water is HOT. Hot to the point that you could end up with serious burns if you're careless. I've learned to be careful about this and don't complain too much, as we don't run out of it much (as I have in previous apartments) The water pipes are pretty noisy in the winter. I'm no plumber, but I think these 2 facts are related.

Rent increases moderately and keeps up with starting rent for new apartments (right now I pay $5 less per month than starting, after 3 years of renting).

One of our neighbors took over a unit previously rented by heavy smokers. Santini did some work to clean the place up, but not enough; another reason to check your place carefully.

Speaking of smoke, if you're at all sensitive to cigarette smoke, you may find yourself using the A/C quite a bit in the summer if any of your nearby neighbors smoke; with the windows open, there's a bit of a windtunnel effect. The result is that a neighbor having a smoke 3 doors down will quickly FILL your unit with the odor).

My biggest beef here though is the appliances; I should have insisted on viewing the actual apartment before signing (I saw a model). What I moved into was a kitchen of ancient appliances. Both the fridge and stove are over 20 years old. After calling management to request a new fridge, I received a message from Mrs. Santini indicating that they only replace appliances when they break, and that essentially "they just don't make them like they used to anyway" (I hope not, since I did the research, and this one uses TWICE as much energy as the average new fridge!).

The stove had an issue that required a GE technician to repair. The tech indicated that the part in question had worn & corroded so badly (primarily due to age) that we were lucky it didn't start a fire. Yet still the motto is to repair until it's dead.

I wouldn't be so steamed about this if they didn't advertise on their website that they offer "modern appliances". A politician couldn't claim these are modern and keep a straight face! So, moral of the story, check out your ACTUAL soon-to-be-apartment's appliances, and get it in writing that they will replace, if necessary.

I listed a lot of complaints here, but I did so primarily to ensure you'll know what you're getting yourself into. No rental is perfect; if you're careful about the details before you sign on the dotted line, and other details above don't concern you much, then you won't go wrong here. Overall, this is a decent place to live.

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