The Good, the Bad, and the Honest:
From:
-Anonymous-
Date posted:
3/18/2008
Years at this apartment:
2007
-
2008
I moved to Equinox last Summer from out-of-state, initially, the leasing agent was extremely accomodating, telling myself and my partner that we would start paying rent as of the day we were slated to move in- which was the 29th of the month. Well, when it came time to get everything rolling, I was told that I would be responsible for paying rent as of the 20th... To me this was really frustrating seeing as how I wouldn't even be living in MN for a full nine days (This cost me around $230). Beyond that, the days that they prorated were based on a '30 day month' despite the fact that August has 31 days (In the end, the '30 day month' was only a few dollars different, but I hate getting nickled and dimed). When I called in from out of state to complain about the extra nine day charge, I was told "We don't usually let them sit for that long without anyone occupying the unit", I argued that true as that may be, it's what I was TOLD that should count, I recieved a rebuttal that I felt was akin to calling me a liar, this is what caused us to cut the lease down to 6 months as opposed to the whole year, was an extra nine days rent worth it to them' I don't know. Needless to say, I gave in a paid the money. Here is how my experience went:
Pros: 1) Grounds are clean, well-lit, and apartment is close to Cub Foods, WalMart, and the whole St. Anthony Villiage. 694 is just down the street one way, and 35W is just down in the opposite direction. 2) Parking was readily accessible up until around 9-10 in the evening, after that, I'd ususally have to drive around to find a spot. 3) The apartment interiors aren't anything special, but they're functional with good counterspace in the restroom. The halls were clean, but they usually smelled like whatever was being cooked by the other occupants. 4) During the daytime, the place was very quiet (though I suppose that has a lot to do with your neighbors).
Cons: 1) The walls were very thin, granted my neighbors were pretty loud, but even so- I still shouldn't have been able to hear them as well as I did. 2) On-Site laundry is $1.75 to wash, and $1.75 to dry- You had to pay for laundry by check, and they would only accept even dollar amounts as payment. I've never found a business in the world that only takes even dollar amounts on checks. 3) The driveways were plowed but never very well, most of the maintainence guys were friendly and helpful, but Equinox really needs to invest in a proper snow plow (even just mounted to the front of a truck). 4) As far as move-in/out is concerned, there are no buildings with elevators. 5) I found that one morning when I was walking out to my car my garage had been locked, I don't know who did it, or why; but I had to go back upstairs to get my garage key, this was pretty frustrating as my arms were full and it was -9 degrees outside.
Application Fee: We were charged $45/person.
Security Deposit: I paid in $400, and got back the full $400 plus a little bit of interest. We cleaned the heck out of the apartment though, so it did feel like a nice reward getting all of it (and then some) back. The manager did a walk-through at move out with us, and was very respectful and thorough. We definitely ended our relationship better than how we started it.
Overall my experience was good, but not great. Would I reccomend Equinox to a friend' I would, but only if you were going to move in on the first of the month. I always paid my rent on time or early, so I really didn't have many dealings with the front office folks- When I did, the interactions were positive, but I still have a bad taste in my mouth from the way I was treated before I moved in.
That's as honest as I can be, and I hope that someone finds this useful!
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