Make no mistake; you'll be paying for the Westboro's great location next to Vanderbilt University, not for the amenities or service. There is no good reason to pay the high rent at Westboro unless you really like the location.

It is not always the case that apartments are cleaned up after an old tenant vacates and before occupancy is assumed by a new tenant. We're not talking a little wear-and-tear here; it's more along the lines of paint* and grime all over the floor, and possibly some fleas (since the former tenant may have had a pet).

*For my apartment, it looked like they told the painters to paint everything in the apartment (including the floor, doors, cupboard doors, and light fixtures which resulted in many of the hinged doors and windows being painted shut).

Parking:
During the day, it shouldn't be too difficult to find a spot to park. After 7:00pm on weekdays, parking can become rather dicey, and you might possibly have to end up parking off of 32nd Ave. To my knowledge, towing isn't actually enforced. There are also apartment residents who ding doors, but who don't bother to take responsibility for it.

Noise:
The advantage of the old construction is that it's very hard to hear your neighbors, even when they're doing noisy things. That said, there are at least four hospitals in the area, and Westboro's proximity to I-440 means there will be plenty of police cars, ambulances, and fire trucks. I got used to it pretty quickly, but if you're sensitive to noise, it's something to keep in mind.

Grounds:
Not much to say here. It's not great, but not too bad. Sometimes, the shrubs can get a bit overgrown and spill out onto the walkways.

Safety:
West End is fairly safe, as is Westboro. You may want to have management install/repair/replace window latches since some of the old windows will no longer latch shut. While the doors all have deadbolt locks, most of the door knobs do not feature locks. The number-lock combination at the complex entry doors is largely just for appearances. The sprinkler system installed in 2008 should now be functional, but I'm told that's only because the fire marshall got very concerned that all of the paint over the old sprinklers would cause them to fail in the event of a fire. Metro Police also often run a driver sobriety checkpoint at the intersection of West End Ave. and 31st Ave. (and they arrest a lot of people) so if you're walking/driving late at night, keep an eye out for drivers who've been drinking.

Construction:
Westboro was probably quite nice when it first opened during the early part of the 20th century. Unfortunately, it would appear that maintenance and updating of the complex has largely been neglected with the exception of a few apartments. A number of the appliances have seen far better days, and don't be surprised if you get a gas stove with a manual pilot light (i.e., no electric ignition, there will always have to be a flame on). Some apartments don't have dishwashers, so if that matters to you, make sure your apartment does have one before signing a lease.

The free T1 Internet service is a joke, and it's no coincidence that it's not mentioned anywhere in your lease document. The connection gets slow during evening hours and often simply doesn't work at all for days at a time. If you do more than just check emails, you'll want to get DSL or cable Internet.

The on-site laundry facility costs $1.00 per wash cycle (28 minutes) and a variable amount for dryer ($0.25 for each 18 minutes of dryer time). Certain dryers work better than others. There is no change machine so make sure you have enough quarters (since the machines only take quarters).

Some apartments experience some form of water trouble, including low water pressure, major leaks/flooding, and leaking ceilings/walls.

Maintenance:
The maintenance guys are nice and usually quite competent, although there can be a notable delay (of multiple days) when outside contractors have to be brought in. If making a maintenance request, don't even bother talking to the property manager (more on that below), go straight to the central office.

Staff:
The on-site property manager often gives the very distinct impression that she couldn't care less about her job or its related responsibilities. She's often not in during the afternoons (despite listed business hours of 9am-5pm M-F), and sometimes her solution to maintenance requests is to brush them off and ignore them. And without face-to-face contact, don't expect a quick response (or sometimes, any response) to emails or voicemails.

Overall:
Again, rent at Westboro for the location, or don't rent at Westboro at all. If it wasn't for the location, there would be no justifiction for monthly rent in comparison to what you're getting.

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