If you've investigated apartment living in the area, you may have already read my comments regarding Nelson Estates. If you have not read my comments about Nelson, I urge you to read them since that property is managed by the same company that manages Griswold. I've read some of the comments posted by other "residents" here at Griswold and I can assure you, any good comment listed there was written by the staff, most likely, a past manager. One comment I read here indicated that they had felt like Griswold promised them the world right up til the moment the lease was signed. He/She couldn't be more accurate. Now, I'm not going to rely on my instincts as to why these properties are poorly managed, I'll let facts speak for themselves. First of all, the maintenance staff on site earns between 6 and 7 dollars an hour and the apartment manager earns about 21K. However, the manager may be required to work as many as 80 to 100 hours per week in certain circumstances. A little quick math will tell you that with those kinds of hours, the salaried manager is going to be earning roughly $4.04/hour. Now you tell me, do you think the staff is really going to be concerned that the property is kept up and the residents are kept happy. I don't feel there is a whole lot of loyalty, then again, you might. If I can give current and future residents at Griswold Estates a little advice' It would be this. When you decide to move out, make sure your apartment is in better condition than it was when you moved in. For instance, the drip pans below the burners on your stove. If they are even slightly dirty, you will be charged to replace them. The cost to you is $10.00 for the small one, and $12.00 for the large one. To make matters worse, the drip pans are an odd size and most department stores or retail chains do not carry the ones that fit on your stove. Secondly, do not leave any burned out lightbulbs. If there are any burnt out and you do not replace them, the normal light bulbs will cost you about $4.00 to replace and the ones above your vanity I believe are $6.00 each. About the carpet, if there is even the slightest food/beverage stains, you will be charged $35.00 for each stain and it will be listed as excessive stain removal. Clean out your fridge, both sinks, stove, toilet, cupboards, and all window sils. You could be charged extra to clean them. Also, don't forget to repair/replace broken or bent slats on your mini blinds and vertical blinds, you will be charged with a replacement fee for each one that is not damaged. They are between 4 and 12 dollars a piece. My nezt bit of advice is for you to request to be present at your walk-through. You will want to make sure that you will be present when management assesses damages. By being there, you can dispute and scrutinize any charges that seem wrong or excessive. Next, once your apartment is empty and clean, I strongly suggest you either take detailed pictures of the apartment, or better still, if you have access to a video camera, record an entire walkthrough of the aparmtment making certain to feature all of the areas that I listed above. If you still aren't sure why you should do this, know that it is common for past residents to receive damage bills as high as $2,000.00. And unfortunately, the court systems in both Noble and DeKalb counties are extremely landlord biased. If you are hoping to debate charges before a judge, you will more than likely find you will still be required to pay unless you can submit accurate and concrete proof that your charges are inaccurate.

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