I moved into The Cedars in 2005 during a rent special on the Efficiency 1 bedroom. The staff was very helpful in getting me setup and provided the necessary documentation. The night I moved in was very cold and for some reason the heater did not work in my apartment, so I called emergency maintenance who called me back within 5 minutes and told me that the circuit breakers were off. I flipped them on and everything was working fine then.

The complex is located in a residential area on the east side of Norman, so you aren't likely to have any trouble with traffic. There is a middle school nearby, so at 3:30 on weekdays it can take some time to maneuver past the parents waiting in their cars parked on the street (this only affects the entrance to the complex from one side).

The apartment itself is fine for the average person (or college student in my case) to live comfortably. The apartment is carpeted (except the bathroom and kitchen), the walls are painted a neutral white, and the kitchen appliances work fine. The range/oven is a mini-size, but I haven't found it to be a problem with my cooking. The oven heats accurately, the dishwasher does its job, and the refrigerator keeps food cold and the freezer doesn't frost up. In the efficiency I was in, the kitchen counter space was pretty small, so you'll have to improvise when you keep appliances out. The cabinets will hold most food items and dish ware, but don't expect to be able to store a dutch oven in the cabinets above the stove or sink.

As far as lighting goes, there are two ceiling fan/lights in the apartment. One is above the dining area and the other is in the bedroom. Both worked fine, although one was sort of noisy when in use (which was rarely). The bathroom is well lit, with a small counter for the sink, a cabinet under the sink and one above the toilet. There is a tub with sliding glass doors for shower use. Water pressure was excellent in the entire apartment, the toilet flushes strong, and hot water was plentiful enough for washing dishes and taking a hot bath right afterward.

The heating/cooling system I think is overkill for the apartment as it'll really blow out the vents. It is rather loud too, so during the coldest winters or hottest summers, expect to have to adjust the television volume to accommodate. (it is loud in the sense that you hear air blowing, the actual furnace unit is in a closet and sounds normal). Most times of the year, though, I go without using the heat or air and I'll open the window if it's too hot, or rely on the apartments next to mine for the heat.

The cost of utilities wasn't too bad. The electricity (everything is electric, no gas) bill varied from $50 up to $90, and water/trash/sewer averaged around $30 per month. Rent is due at the beginning of the month.

Now that I have laid out the details for any prospective renters, I'll give details on some of the less-desired aspects.
- The on-site laundry seems as if it doesn't work efficiently as the washers barely drip hot water, and the dryers just don't seem to dry efficiently. There are other options for doing laundry so don't make this the deal breaker.
- In the apartment, I found that the moulding used where the carpet meets the wall was unattractive. I guess it is cedar wood, but it is basically unfinished slabs of plywood nailed into place (no big deal, really, just don't expect to impress your friends).
- The heat/air works sort of odd in that during the summer, it'll bring the temperature way below your setting and in the winter it'll raise the indoor temp above your setting. What this means is that if you like to live at a very specific temperature, you'll either be wearing more or less clothes to compensate. I guess it may have just been that the thermostat was bad, and I could have called maintenance to fix it, but I didn't mind too much.

These next problems I describe are NOT something the management can directly control.
- As with any apartment, you'll have noisy neighbors. I guess the walls are thin, as you'll know when a neighbor is listening to music. Overall, it was comfortably quiet 80% of the time. If I had a noise complaint, I spoke with the nice management who promptly fixed the issue by notifying the loud tenant. At the time of this writing, there is a night-time courtesy patrol who will come and address noise complaints.
- Animals. There seems to be a lot of cats that freely roam around the complex. I don't really mind them; I just hate it when I step in their gifts in the grass. None of the animals have been violent, though. Most will stare at you and walk on.

Finally, and probably the reason I am thinking of moving out, is smoking neighbors. It seems that each unit is not sealed tightly from other units, so if a heavy smoker moves in next to you, you'll be getting a nice dose of smoke in your apartment. Currently there is no law that says renters can't smoke in their own home, so I have no options, and management has no options. It's a shame that I spent a few years living comfortably at this apartment and I'll have to move out because someone is so inconsiderate as to not vent their smoke outside.

So as you can see, living at The Cedars is HIGHLY dependent upon your neighbors. The management and maintenance staff are EXCELLENT people who help you as much as they can. It was nice to have an apartment where I could come home after work, turn on the tv and relax, take a hot shower, and sleep comfortably in a quiet and temperately-sufficient apartment. If you rent out an efficiency unit, you'll learn how to be resourceful with space and cleaning the entire apartment takes an hour at most. I'm sad to say that I'll probably have to move out due to the smoker, so keep this in mind if you plan on moving in.

Thanks for reading!

User Responses
From: bhmanager	Date: 04/23/2008
thank you so much for your nice comments I wish everyone felt that way but you can not please everyone

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