I've lived at Post Lake for two years now, and so far, my experience has been excellent.

Parking: There is certainly no lack of spaces, at least in the back section where my unit is. Parking is unassigned, and there are spaces along all of the secondary roads, with a few spaces on the main road. Sometimes parking gets a little crowded in certain spots, but chances are you can find a space fairly close to your door easily. I usually come home around midnight, when most of the residents are already home, and I've still never had a problem parking within feet of my front door. Only downside is that a lot of spaces are under pine trees, which tend to drip sap on your car. Most of the parking areas are kept very well lit by streetlights.

Noise: I've never had any problems with noise from neighboring units. The walls between units seem to be quite thick and well insulated. The glass door in the bedroom doesn't provide much sound damping, though, so on a street-facing unit like mine, you do get some car noise. The landscaping crews can also be noisy, but they usually work during the late morning hours, at least around my place.

Grounds: One of the thing Post likes to brag about is their landscaping, and it's not without reason. The grounds are very well-kept, and the landscaping is very nice. Any litter usually gets picked up within a day or two. There are plenty of trees and bushes around the complex, and they are well cared-for. The layout is very uncluttered, unlike many apartment complexes around here. There are over 750 units in the place, but you'd never guess that from walking around here. From most locations, there are half a dozen buildings in site at most.

Safety: The grounds are well lit in most places, but there are some areas with a lot of bushes around walkways and front doors. Doors are also hidden from the street on almost all of the units. However, there have never been any problems with crime in the complex that I've heard about, beyond the occasional kid breaking a streetlight and similar minor vandalism. I've only seen the police around my unit once in the two years I've lived here. The complex is gated, although the gate is fairly easy to bypass if you really wanted to. The biggest problem around here seems to be fire, as there have been four major fires since the complex opened. At least two of them, including one this past summer, were sparked by lightning strikes, so it would seem their lightning protection could use some improvement.

Construction: My unit is in a building that had been renovated very recently (due to a fire). The building itself seems very well constructed. Walls are solid and thick, both interior and exterior. The doors all close and latch fine, and swing freely (although the bathroom door sticks slightly after a shower). The storage room door on the porch, however, was not installed correctly and did not latch properly without some alterations. The fixtures and appliances inside are solid. Never had any problems with anything except the AC, when I first moved in, and that was quickly fixed. Water works well, although the water pressure has always been a little low. There have been no problems with the electrical wiring, and I've never tripped a breaker, but during this past summer there have been numerous complex-wide power outages. At some points, the power was flickering nightly, and would go out for an extended period (an hour or more) at least once every week or two. However, that may be the fault of the electric company (Progress Energy), rather than the apartment complex. Aside from those few months, however, I haven't had any problems with electrical service. The apartment is well insulated; last winter, I only had to run my heat a few days. It can get warm inside during the summer if the AC is turned off, but where doesn't it in Orlando' My electric bill runs $50-$70 per month, and that's keeping the AC on 24/7 at about 76 degrees in an 850 sq. ft. apartment.

Maintenance: I've had no real problems with maintenance, but I also haven't had anything broken in the couple of years I've been here. I did have a problem with the AC when I first moved in, and that was fixed very quickly (the air handler and the compressor were both replaced). The only other time I've needed to call them was when I had a clogged AC drain line that caused a small flood in the utility room before I noticed it and shut off the AC. I called their after-hours maintenance number and was told that they were not allowed to send anyone out to fix the problem until tomorrow, which I found odd since air conditioning was on Post's list of "emergency" repairs. However, the problem was fixed first thing in the morning, so I didn't see much need for complaint.

The biggest maintenance headache around here seems to be the front gate. During the rainy summer months, it broke at least once a week. Don't know how long it took them to fix it each time, but I'd usually find it broken when I came home at midnight, and their maintenance answering service wouldn't seem to know about it when I called them.

Office Staff: Everyone I've worked with has always been friendly and courteous.

Other: The complex is located on 436 (with it's own traffic light) a few streets away from 434, so it's very close to just about anything you'd need. The rent is fair for what you get ($609 for an 850 square foot apartment and a very nice complex). The interior layout is nice as well. The kitchen is small, but there's plenty of cabinet space, and tons of storage (a fairly large "hall" closet, a walk-in bedroom closet, the utility room, and a large outdoor storage closet on the patio). The utility room is small, but I was able to squeeze a full-sized washer and dryer in there. The living room and the bedroom are both very spacious. The bathroom is small, but not cramped. There's a very large window in the living room and glass doors to the patio in the bedroom and the dining area.

Overall: Post Lake is a great place to live. I have very much enjoyed the last two years here, and have no plans to leave any time soon. If you're looking for a place to live in northwest Orlando, I'd highly recommend Post Lake.

Your thoughts? Post a response to this review. Display my response: with my username anonymously Responses appear below reviews and one response per user is permitted.

   Free estimates on moving trucks      Find apartment share/roommates