I've always enjoyed finding older places in Austin, where you could find better construction, bigger floorplans, and a good price for the location. The days of finding a place like that in this town are probably gone. I thought this place was one of them, but it isn't. It really really isn't.

Let's start with the hot water situation. This place uses a shared central boiler, which means all the hot water comes from one place and goes to all twenty-odd apartments. You are rolling the dice every time you take a shower or try to wash the dishes. I don't know if it's related, but my former downstairs neighbor (who seemed to smoke ten cigarettes all at once, and be running a meth lab in the bathroom) told me the previous tenants had some sort of big water disaster, which ended up bowing out the walls of the stairwell.

Then there is maintenance. They were prompt to see to my complaints for the first couple of months, but on the last one, the guy came out, looked at them, and said he'd fix them. That was FOUR MONTHS AGO. Each time I paid rent, I would mention it, and managers would acknowledge it. And here I sit... no light in my bedroom, but plenty coming in from underneath the front door. On the other side of the door, you can feel the breeze, as my AC cools off my doormat. By the way, I don't blame the maintenance guy. He is spread way too thin, and it's just him and his waifish helper. The management should care more, and get him extra help when he needs it.

It's mostly young, quiet folks at this place, which I enjoy. But a couple of families live here. They are loud, boorish, they leave trash all over the staircase (literally, like beer cans and rotting banana peels), let their kids run around all over the place (very loud on the 2nd floor balcony) like lunatics, and blast Tejano music in the parking lot. And, as usual, management does nothing.

I'll be leaving when my lease is up, and I can't recommend this place in any good conscience. It's too expensive for a student, and too crappy for a grown-up. Stay away.

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