I am finishing up my year's lease at Willow Lake. (Recently moved into a townhouse). The apartments are actually in pretty good condition. They gave me one called a "re-mod" that had updated kitchen/fixtures for a little more $. So maybe mine was one of the nicer ones. Either way the apartments themselves are not bad. Could have done with a more substantial lock on the door. The neighborhood is a little iffy. But I only had an attempted break-in to my car happen once. Someone stuck a screwdriver in the keyhole. Had to get another key cylinder made which cost $ but nothing was stolen. There were no attempts to break into my apartment that I knew of. I put simple alarms on the accessible doors and windows, charlie bar on sliding door, and stickers that said I had an alarm on the doors/windows to try to prevent break-ins. Don't know if that worked, but like I said I never had incidents with that.

Some of the people there look shady but I respectfully said "hello" when I saw people and received the same treatment so I honestly could not complain about the other residents. Occasionally there was a loud party or something but not enough to complain to management. Walls are extremely thin and you will hear everything from your neighbors no matter how quiet they are, so be warned. Had two small roaches and that was it, so no problems there. I did have a cat so maybe he kept mice/bugs away if there were any.

Maintenance was generally OK. One time I blew a fuse and I called the emergency line and 10 minutes later a worker was in my apartment fixing my electricity at 9PM, so that was great service. Other simple stuff was fixed in two or three days. The kitchens are indeed extremely small/lacking cabinet storage space, but the remaining rooms are pretty spacious and the layouts are pretty efficient in their use of the limited space you have.

Didn't use the porch much but I had a second floor balcony that was really big. Also be aware that you will have tons of windows and sliding doors that contribute to the high BGE cost because they just bleed hot/cold air. The heat is gas-powered so will cost you huge amounts of money in the colder months. I am probably an average user of the heat in the winter, leaving it off when I can, and I had several bills over $200 in the cold season.

Rent for a one-bedroom was $902/month plus $25 for "pet rent". Kind of high, but seems like average for a 1BR in this area. You will save rent with a 2BR and a roommate.

Laundry rooms in the basement of each building. I used it one time, then just went to a friend's house nearby after that. The machines were all broken when I moved in, I called the company's hotline that's on the machine to report it. I never really used them again so I can't say whether they were working. Other residents were using them this summer so I assume at least one machine was back to working order. It is a "dorm"-like feeling walking down to the laundry room to do your wash.

Lights in the entry-way were sometimes out, making for really dark hallways, not the safest environment. And the entryways themselves are dingy, but they get a lot of foot traffic so I guess they can't always be very clean. Lawns are actually pretty well taken care of, getting trimmed weekly. The "lake" area is not very well maintained. It's overgrown around the edges so residents can't even really get near the lake or view it. It's a shame, because if they took care of the landscaping around the lake and had some nice sitting areas, it would be a real asset to the community.

Overall, it's an OK neighborhood. You have to just understand that apartments will always have some shady residents. My interactions with them were all fine and no-one gave me any trouble. However, during the summer there were several notices reminding residents that it's a "drug-free" community, so I don't know if they are having drug-related incidents. Also, I recently received some kind of notice that the management company that manages this property and several others across the country was in some kind of bankruptcy trouble, so I don't know if that will affect this property in any way, just be aware of it.

So I know I'm not really saying whether I recommend or not. I guess I'd have to say "No" just based on the drug stuff/bankruptcy/shady residents, etc. If you only have the means to rent (which I did) then this will suffice as long as you don't expect everything to be perfect. Show people respect and they will probably respect you also. And break-in-proof your place with alarms/locks and alarm stickers and hopefully nobody will mess with your place. You will probably not feel too secure with your car in the parking lot but it's a risk you will have to take. Hope this explains some of the Willow Lake experience. Good luck!

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