I still live in this complex and plan on renewing this July. I've been reading some reviews and thought I would add my own opinions. First off, no this place is not perfect. I've had PLENTY of negative experiences with the complex as a whole, but I'm going to try to say one good thing for every bad thing in this review.

Con: Expensive. The rate they charge is definitely too high for this area and what you get. At face value, $1,199/mo for a 2bed/2bath might not seem unheard of. What you need to know is that you pay for everything; NOTHING is included in the rent. You pay additional for gas, electric, water/sewage, trash, and (more understandably) cable/internet. I keep everything in a spreadsheet, and I what I found is I pay an average of $81.10 for these things every month (not including the cable). The most was $186.15 (Jan. '08), the least was $47.61 (Aug. '08).

Pro: Because it's expensive, it tends to keep the riff-raff out. Also, they don't accept section 8. I know this may sound wierd, but there are a lot of Indian people leaving here which I view as a good thing. In all of the places I've lived, I've never had problems with any Indian people. The ones I see here look like young professionals and enjoy the complex peacefully. I'm caucasion, by the way.

Con: Dogs. They tend to let dog owners get away with murder. I love dogs. I don't have one, though. I fought and fought with one of my neighbors whose dog barked all the time. They didn't care, and neither did the complex. Finally after enough complaining they basically forced the dog owner to make their dog shut up because I wasn't the only one complaining.

Pro: They do now limit the breed of dogs that can live here. This is their policy: "Maximum of 2 pets per home. Dog rent is $30-$40 depending on weight and breed. Cat Rent is $25 a month. Our pet friendly community can accommodate dogs up to 70 lbs on the 1st floor and dogs up to 20 lbs on all other floors. Because certain dogs do not thrive in a community environment, we cannot accommodate the following breeds or mixes: Akita, American Staffordshire Terrier, Bull Terrier, Chow, Doberman, German Shepherd, Husky, Pitt Bull, Presa Canario, Rottweiler and Wolf Hybrid."

Con: Maintenance. From my experiences, their maintenance crew are all inept. They can't fix basic things like toilets, and one guy took 20 minutes to change the AIR FILTER on the furnace. I would have done it myself had I known the guy would (what I assume) teach himself how to change an air filter on the spot. One time our toilet was running water every 5 minutes and it took them 4 visits (that I had to schedule) to get it fixed.

Pro: During the summer, the grounds are pretty decent looking. They having a lot of plants and flowers and it's generally good looking. At least the guys they hire for landscaping can be mistaken for professionals.

Con: In-unit furnace. It's as loud as a rocket engine. It needs to run the fan or whatever every time it needs to blow hot air or air from the A/C sitting on the patio (which is also loud when running). It's so annoying to have to constantly turn the volume up and down on the TV because the furnace sounds like a space shuttle launching when it's on. And it will be on- a lot. Even though they have put new exterior doors and windows in every unit, they are extremely inefficient. I don't think they put insulation around them when they were installed, and because of that you pay for it.

Con: Clubhouse. Yes, it's new. But it's also not maintained and can't be reserved. Their reasoning is so anybody can use it whenever they want, but honestly, that's ridiculous. It's perfect for throwing parties, but if you have some friends over and are watching the big screen TV or enjoying a small party, nothing is stopping a bunch of little kids from running into the room or anybody really doing whatever they want. You can assume to find food and crumbs on all of the furniture anytime you go. For some reason there is a large kitchen space with completely empty cupboards. You also can't control the thermostat.

Pro: The clubhouse has a small gym in it with I believe 4 treadmills, an elliptical, two spinning bike-things and free weights. The machines have TV's hooked up to them but they don't always work.

Cons: There's another post in here about how the laundry services suck. The post is accurate. Ditto what they said. I take my clothes to a Laundromat now.

I have a lot of anecdotal stories about bad experiences, but I don't want the management to figure out who I am and treat me differently, so I'll leave you with the reason why I'm renewing and would recommend this place to a friend: This place isn't overrun (yet) with gangs of young black thugs leaving beer bottles and cheap cigar wrappers all over the place. It's happened to a lot of communities in the West-Chicago area, unfortunately. Because they don't accept section 8 and the rent is high, I don't see that happening for a while. Call me racist if you want. I do prefer living around some races more than others because of my own personal experiences living in 4 different complexes in the last 4 years. Once my girlfriend finishes college we're getting a house. My advice is to only live in an apartment as a short-term option or last-resort, because it's a waste of money. Besides, a mortgage payment would be about the same as this rent, probably cheaper.

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 03/31/2009
I think this review was accurate except for the overall rating. After all the reviewer lists more Cons than Pros so it should really be No to Recommended instead of Yes. I think if you recommend this place to a friend it must only be for the $100 Lakeside gives you for a referral lol.
From: Anonymous	Date: 04/04/2009
Okay I guess I will call you racist. First of all most HUD voucher section 8 carriers, fixed income low lifes in the chicagoland area are caucasian (I work for the Public Aid Department so I should know) Secondly, stick to the issues and evaluate the apartments not racial ethnicities. It is 2009 not 1909 but with some of you out-of-touch in the closet bigots in conserverative Dupage county I'm not surprised. Anyway, Lakeside is overpriced, the staff overpromises and under delivers on service. Parking is the worse and rental increases average about 8% a year. The AIMCO company-the parent company-is imfamous for huge rental hikes.
From: Anonymous	Date: 04/06/2009
I agree with the pros & cons listed, although I have nothing against other races (I am not caucasian) I have noticed several young looking thugs in the area as of late. There seems to be some suspicious activity going on such as a car parked in front of one of the tenants buildings & one of these guys comes out goes in the waiting car for a few seconds & leaves. Now mind you, we've noticed a strong smell (not cigarettes) so that should tell you what seems to be going on. Another individual mentioned that there seems to be a theft of cars as well as satellite dishes in the area so I hope that AIMCO starts having the police patrol the community more often.
From: Anonymous	Date: 05/31/2009
Hope you enjoy paying $1199 on your renewal. Your new neighbors are only paying $950 but they will never drop your rent. It's against their policy; at least that is what they told me.
From: Anonymous	Date: 06/01/2009
I am unsure if I will renew after my lease is expired. There is a large number of inconsiderate members of the Lakeside community. Loud stereos, loud verbal disputes, animal dropping everywhere, high energy costs, reckless drivers just to name a few things... really just because you live next to the fire lane does not mean it is yours to play basket ball and lounge on. Maybe I have a faulty idea of how an apartment complex should be a place for you to live in privacy without being disturbed by neighbors parties and domestic dark sides or someone trying to inform the world of their taste in music by blasting the stereo of their car or home at all hours of the day and night. After all if I should want to hang out or spend time with a neighbor I will make it known or visit the pool or gym.
From: Anonymous	Date: 07/15/2009
if you want silence and no one playing go buy a house not a place you share with thousands of people

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