I have lived here for about 9 months. When I looked at the place, I was very impressed with the landscaping, the floor plan, and the luxury-style features. They really are beautiful apartments. The price was a bit more than what I was hoping to pay, but I thought it was worth the "luxury." It seemed like, and is, a safe neighborhood and very convenient to the Fallsgrove shopping center (you can walk) and the Ride-On bus stops. You can drive the Shady Grove metro in about 7 minutes, and the bus ride is about 15-20 minutes in traffic.
After a few weeks, I complained about my neighbor next door - his alarm was actually waking me up at 5am, and I could hear him talking on the phone. I could also hear loud music, sometimes actually feel the bass, from the apartment underneath. Finally, after a few more weeks of complaining, it stopped, for a while. However, I ultimately discovered that it's not just the neighbor and his loud alarm or the music...it's the walls. Just this week I heard from the next-door apartment thumping against the wall, coughing, telephone conversations, kids crying and screaming, and music. The walls within the apartment are very thin as well. There is very little privacy if you are living in a 2 bedroom, even when the bedrooms are on opposite sides of the apartment.
Insulation is poor. I can actually see through the bottom of the front door, from inside the apartment, the outside hall light, which causes a serious draft. Most of the windows don't actually shut all the way, and when the wind blows hard, my bathroom fans rattles!
The ventilation and circulation is also poor. In the summer, my room can be 80 degrees while my roommate's room is about 60, when the a/c is 65. They actually put the ceiling fan in the her bedroom that doesn't get any sun, which doesn't make any sense. There is absolutely no circulation in the apartment, even after having the maintenance "fix/clean" the vents and ducts. Our thermostat is basically broken. I set it at 70 and it sets itself to 60-65, even after maintenance "fixed" it. This winter I had to use a separate heater in my room to keep it warm (and to keep the gas bill down), even when the heat was set to 70 ...and even at that temperature, the common areas were very cold.
I started out in this 2 bedroom for about $1700 per month, on the 4th floor with a fireplace - no utilities are included, not even the water or trash pick up. I recently asked about 1 bedrooms and they are at least 1300/month. The price is way too much for the actual quality of the apartment. I mean, it looks nice, but when you actually live in it, you start to realize that they cut corners.
Another issue is parking. Nothing is reserved or assigned, so anyone can park anywhere at any time. This may sound nice, but if you get home during the week after 8pm, good luck finding a space. During the weekends it is better, unless you come home after 11pm.
The floor plans are nice, and the general look and feel of the place is nice and safe, but I am glad to be moving out. If I made more money and didn't care about quality or noise, I would probably stay.

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