My overall experience at Orchard Gardens is a positive one and I would highly reccommend it to anyone wishing to live in Highland Park. Before moving here I looked at virtually every other apartment complex in Highland Park and found Orchard Gardens to have the highest quality and value for the price. I was spoiled because I had the luxury of moving into an apartment that was completely renovated, so I had a brand new kitchen including all new cabinets, countertops, and appliances. The hardwood floors also looked brand new and neatly polished when I moved in.

The Orchard Gardens community is very diverse, and is comprised of many young families. It is a very quiet, safe neighborhood where you commonly see children playing and people walking outside. Highland Park is a generally safe and quiet town and I have never heard of any crimes taking place in this neighborhood.

The maintenance staff here is helpful, although occasionally you need to bug them to get things done. Other than a leaky pipe in my bathroom I have had no major problems though. I have never had any major problems with bugs in the 4 years that I have been here. As long as you keep your apartment clean you should not have any problems.

If you have the choice between a first or second floor apartment, I would highly reccommend getting a second floor apartment. I live on the first floor and due to the hardwood floors I hear footsteps upstairs all day long. Sometimes it sounds like there is a herd of elephants up there! The other drawback is I have neighbors that run up and down the stairs and slam the door to the outside. That gets very annoying, especially at 7am on a Sunday morning. I also have neighbors that think midnight is a good time to vaccum.

There is no reserved parking at OG unless you have a garage, which I believe costs about $60/month if there is one available. There are several parking lots and plenty of on-street parking that is usually only a problem late at night. The lots do not require a parking permit so it is nice when you have guests over. When it snows the parking lot is plowed but they don't make people move their cars (that can be good and bad). So you need to have a shovel to dig out your car after it gets plowed in. The grounds are well maintained year round.

The best part about OG is that heat (and hot water) are included in the rent. The apartments are VERY warm in the winter and sometimes you might have to open a window as there is no thermostat to control the temperature. Each apartment has an air conditioner in the living room which works pretty well. If you want one in the bedroom(s) you need to purchase your own unit and have the maintenance staff install it (for a fee) because the windows are not standard size. There are laundry facilities located throughout the complex. The only bad thing is they are located in the basement and are sometimes not as clean as they could be.

The location of Orchard Gardens is pretty convenient as you are within walking distance to downtown Highland Park's shopping and restaurants. The neighborhood is also easily accessible from Routes 1 and 18, and the NJ turnpike. The Edison and New Brunswick train stations are each only about a 5 minute drive away. Downtown New Brunswick can be easily reached by car, bus, or cab.

Overall Orchard Gardens is a great value in a great location.

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