I have now lived here for more than 2 years. As much as I like the place, I have the impression that the current management has not done a good job with this place. Usually I deal with nice people at the office, but when I ask for a non-urgent repair, it seems that it gets entirely forgotten and no one knows about it except the person I talked to. Also, costs have risen because new expenses keep being added to the rent. However, I visited numerous complexes, and this was the one I liked the best. The area is a bit too suburban for a European city dweller like me, but it has its advantages (the main one for me is that it is close to work).

Bottom line: I guess I still recommend this place but there are several cons, and they seem to keep piling up... More detail below.

PROS
1. Good size. I live in a one bedroom with sunroom, and it is spacious (declared as 870 square feet). The one problem with this floor plan is that the living room (beyond the sunroom) is rather dark (but this is a pro in the summer).
2. When I got into the apartment, it was overall clean (with few exceptions), and the carpet was in reasonably good shape, and had just been thoroughly cleaned.
3. Nice landscaping. The area is wooded and the complex does not give the impression of a beehive (VERY important for me). The complex is relatively small and the buildings and entrances have some space in between, with an overall sense of privacy (although maybe not if you live in the front at parking level).
4. Maintenance: the few urgent calls I made were responded to very promptly, with both the previous and current management. I already talked about the non-urgent ones...
5. For an apartment, it is reasonably quiet, except when someone is having a party, but that does not happen very often.
6. The apartment has gas for hot water, cooking, and heating. A mixed blessing (see below), but I like cooking with gas, and hot water and hot food may be had in an ice storm (hopefully, I will not experience one, though).
7. I do not use it much, but the pool is nice, and the pool area is pleasant.
8. Never had any problem with parking.
9. I feel reasonably safe here.

CONS
1. The major problem I have is that management will not allow you to add one or two months to your lease without charging an arm and a leg for it. The previous place I lived in (West Village) allowed me to add an extra month at the same (high) rent I was paying, and Ticon is also quite magnanimous about this (I asked: never lived so far in a Ticon property). If I leave this place, it will be for this reason (all else remaining as it is).
2. I had some problems because the property regional managers do not seem to have much experience with visa holders.
3. You cannot walk anywhere from here, unless you are in a suicidal mood, because 751 is your only option and it has a lot of traffic, but no sidewalk. Another BIG minus.
4. Gas: even before Katrina, the fixed fee made it probably more expensive than electricity (which you need anyway for heating). After Katrina, I can only be thankful for a relatively mild winter, otherwise I would feel the pain.
5. Windows and door are pretty leaky.
6. You have to pay for water and sewer service, and with the new lease the same company will also start charging $10 a month for garbage collection (Ticon at least the properties I visited- does not charge for water, sewer service, or garbage).
7. On top of all that, renter's insurance is now compulsory.
8. Fireplace: this would not be a con if it were not that, for a while, cockroaches would come in through that, and I do not dare open the flue again because I do not want to deal with their corpses. Also, when the downstairs neighbor lights hers, my apartment fills with smoke. I complained with management (the old one) the first time this happened, and was told that ALL fireplaces work like this (not in Europe, is all I can say), so I just sealed the air vents around mine with duct tape. Now things are better, and I pretend it is a decoration.
9. Bugs: I occasionally got fairly large (and very stupid) cockroaches. I also had a minor, and short-lived, ant invasion. Overall, not a major deal (but, then, I do not live close to the ground, even though I keep my windows open quite a bit -but they are screened. But there is a lot of 'nature' around here, as Monk would say, so the management cannot be faulted on this.

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