I needed a good place to live during a transitional life event (i.e., end of my marriage in divorce). Ashton Woods turned out to be a safe, pleasant place to live. I have no regrets in choosing it over alternatives.

The physical condition of the apartment was okay, not stellar. Most appliances were new, and the non-functioning heat pump was replaced with a new unit on request. New management arrived during my stay and they seem to be doing a better job on maintenance than the previous company. Specifically I've seen them reseal the asphalt parking lot and install guttering, which signaled to me a long-term mindset. Parking BTW is ample.

Thin, scenic woods border the property and I enjoyed seeing a good number of birds and fauna. Lots of tenants have dogs. Most are good about cleaning up after their pets.

Staff were friendly and generally responsive. My only maintenance complaint was that it took three weeks (and two follow up calls) to get a corridor light replaced (a 5 minute job). But, this was right after the management change, and there was a change in maintenance staff shortly thereafter.

There was one notable security incident during my stay. My neighbor had her apartment broken into during the daytime when the building was empty. The Howard County Times publishes a crime log and it is archived and searchable online. If you correlate road names and complexes, I think the obvious conclusion is that apartments in general attract some amount of property crime. If security is your top requirement, I think the only solution is controlled access and video surveillance. Ashton Woods doesn't seem to be set up for something like that. I am male and I felt secure walking my dog at all hours of the day or night. The grounds are well lit.

My neighbors were polite and friendly. There were many professionals and a few families with young kids. I left to resume occupancy of my townhouse. If I hadn't had a mortgage (and one that was cheaper than my rent) I would happily have stayed longer.

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