I'd like to start off by saying the Keeneland Farms is not by any means the greatest place to live, but I haven't had the horrible experiences that everyone else has had. We've lived here since February 2007, and have just resigned a 6-month lease (hopefully we can buy a house after that).

The buildings are old, so there are going to be problems, but our 2-bedroom townhouse has been relatively well maintained through the years. The carpets are older, but were clean when we moved in. The closet and bathroom doors stick a bit, and the appliances are old, but for the price, you can't beat it. We're paying $780 for a townhouse - we looked all over Smyrna and couldn't find a townhouse for that price.

Keeneland Farms is pet-friendly (we have 2 cats and a dog) and children-friendly. The landscaping is very well-maintained and our section of the complex is very quiet (we're in the back). Our neighbors are all very nice and everyone on our row looks out for one another.

We had some plumbing issues when we moved in (our dining room flooded every time we used our washing machine), but maintenance came out and fixed it immediately, and they sent the carpet cleaning people the same afternoon. Several months later we had a plumbing issue in our living room, but again, maintenance fixed it immediately, and our carpets were cleaned the same day. From speaking with our neighbors, plumbing is a big problem in the buildings, but they ARE old buildings - what do you expect' As long as the problem is rectified quickly and efficiently, I can't complain too much.

We have digital cable, DSL service for our internet, and a phone line through Charter, and have never had any problems like the previous reviewer. The only thing I don't like is that Charter is your only cable option in this complex.

The leasing staff is basically worthless after your sign your lease. Don't bother trying to get them to do anything about any issues you may have - they're just going to tell you that they can't help you. You have to call the business office to get anything done. They've been pretty good to us - there have been a few times my husband has had to call them and get a bit belligerent with them when they ignore me - but all it takes is one call from him and people are scrambling to help us.

All in all, this complex definitely has it's issues, but it's not a horrible place to live. Keep in mind when you visit that the buildings are old, and they come with their problems, and if you don't want to deal with it, then you should probably go elsewhere. They are in the process of putting in new appliances, etc. in all the units and are making improvements all over the property, so we'll stick with them for a while.

User Responses
From: wmthomas28	Date: 12/27/2007
I understand what you're saying and I respect your view. However, go thru nights where you have to remove feces infested water from your carpet and bathroom, only to have someone come in and leave a machine in your home for YOU to clean the water up. Then go thru two days without any water what so ever, (in 80 degree weather) with no help until someone decides to contact the news. I am willing to bet that your view (although well respected) would change dramatically. You are paying 780 dollars of your hard earned money to that place. Your husband should not have to raise his blood pressure to get things done around there. But it's been over a year so maybe they HAVE improved somewhat. Wish you the best.
From: Anonymous	Date: 12/28/2007
I agree wholeheartedly with wmthomas28. It sounds to me that your tolerance level is extremely high. I agree with the concept that paying with "hard earned" money does warrant some reasonable expection of an adequate return. I am the mother of a young professional who moved into Keeneland Farms this past summer. Oh, the leasing staff presented such beautiful roses when they showed the model apt. Once my daughter signed the lease, they didn't seem to remember the color of the roses they presented. Needless to say, my daughter experienced over 2 months of stress in dealing with the problems she inherited in that apartment, i.e., plumbing, water leakage, insects, incomplete repairs, inability to utilize appliances, and the list goes on. The most amazing part of the whole ordeal is that once "management" finally responded to her complaints (2 mos later), it was exactly as described previously in these reviews, the woman/manager(?) walked in and had basically blamed everything on my daughter and acted as though she was high on something. Because my daughter had lost her motivation to live there, she couldn't and refused to unpack her belongings until the problems were rectified. She was basically living out of her boxes. She kept her kitchen items contained in the moving boxes. The manager stated, "it was the condition of the way she was living that caused the insect problem." Was she serious? After 2 months of complaints and no response??? Total disbelief!! Actually, we knew immediately this woman or place had some serious issues. In any event, my daughter's persistence and manner of doing things (documentation of every effort), slightly paid off to where she could slowly begin to accept the fact that she was stuck for the duraton of the lease. They did a 50% job of fixing the problems. I grieved for her daily, or anyone who had to go out and deal with the day-to-day challenges of work, school, etc., and come home knowing there is no peace. I check with her from time to time about those problems, and she's basically accepted things as they are with the only hope of moving out at the end of lease. It's just so sad. But yeah, you're blessed with a high tolerance level. And your poor husband should just be able to relax in his home.
From: Anonymous	Date: 01/18/2008
Way to stick up for your Complex!! - Whatever. Did they actually clean your carpets or just have the water sucked up like in my unit? I stayed at home to watch what was going on that day, so I know it wasn't cleaned. When I asked about actually having it cleaned, I was told how clean the water in the toilet actually was. Maybe yours was cleaned because you pay $780/mon. I guess my rent isn't high enough yet for them to make me feel at home...And they are not in the process of upgrading all of the units. They are in the process of upgrading the empty units. You are given the opportunity to have your unit upgraded, when you re-sign your lease, in exchange for paying the market rate on the rent. I asked about moving to another unit the last time my townhouse flooded. I never got a response to that. My friend was going break her lease to move, because she was tired of the neighbors above her making noise. They offered her another unit. They pick and choose what they want to do for the tenants. I've asked for them to do something about my painted marble countertops (smearing). I was told a contractor has to come out for that. I'll see what I end up with. I'm sure it will just be re-painted. I'll be shocked if they at least upgrade that one thing. Don't worry, I'm looking to move. I liked the management better when I moved in over 3 years ago. Yes there were problems then, but they were definitely more friendly and more responsive.
From: kennelandtenant	Date: 02/10/2008
To The Poster from 1/18/08, They cleaned the carpets - I was home on maternity leave, so I saw the whole thing. They tried to just suck up the water, but I threw a fit until they replaced the pad of the carpet and actually cleaned it. Perhaps you are right - they do pick and choose what they want to do for each tenant. We are not the type to sit back and be ignored. When Mandi and Ty didn't respond to us quickly enough, we had our lawyer call First Communities...believe me, they take good care of us now. I'm not by any means trying to say that this place doesn't have it's problems, because it definitely does. There has been more than a few times that I've been ready say that I've had enough. But, it seems as though we got our problems ironed out (we had to fix it - we had a newborn and just didn't have the money to break our lease and move again), and now, I really don't have any current complaints. I agree that you shouldn't have to go through all of the hassle with your apartment complex, but the reality of the situation, is that you do. I've never lived in a place where management is falling all over themselves to help you, the paying customer. Although that's the way it should be, it just isn't. We're making the best we can out of the situation until we buy a house. All of our stuff works now, no flooding, no cable issues, we've never had a solicitor, they've never turned the water off in the whole unit, and we've certainly never been without water for two weeks. We've thrown a big enough fit that management does help when we need it - although that's not what you should have to do, sometimes you just have to. Perhaps you're right - we just haven't experienced the horrible problems the rest of you have, and if we did, we'd change our opinion. But, right now, I don't mind coming home for work at night, and I don't stay awake worrying about my home, or the safety of those in it, so I figure we're not doing too bad. It might help that we have a REALLY big dog.

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