The main advantage of this complex was it was very cheap. However, it was( and perhaps still is) subsidized housing and thus there were income limits required to qualify. For $540/month, we got a huge (1040sf) 2 bedroom/2 bath apartment with a washer/dryer and even a microwave. Despite the repuation of the area, I always felt relatively safe here. There was a security guard posted at night and several police officers lived in the complex and occasionally helped solve problems and situations while off-duty. Another advantage is it is almost next-door to an SBC central office (AUSTTXWA) so you will likely have no problems getting ADSL.

However, the management and maintenance staff were not the easiest people to deal with and were often very slow in responding to maintenance issues. For example, we had a leaky toilet that they failed to properly fix on numerous occasions. Finally, in the middle of the night it flooded our apartment and the one below. My roommate did not notice it until he woke up in the morning and as he was getting out of bed, stepped into an inch of water. We were actually pleased that it only took the management a week to replace all our carpet (although of course they did not reimburse us for any damage to our property as the lease was pretty clear this would only be covered by renter's insurance) finally replace the toilet and its pipes instead of the usual 2-3 week delay to fix most problems. However, this satisfaction with their apparent performance improvement ended as soon as we got a bill for $1400 and a polaroid picture taken of the toilet bowl after the manager and her assistant came in at 9am and dumped an entire roll of toilet paper into it in a transparent attempt to manufacture evidence that this leak occurred due to a tenant caused stoppage. After presenting them with expert evaluation, analysis and opinions in writing from both an attorney and two plumbers, they still refused to drop their absurd claim. They even refused to provide me with the name and address of the owner as required by the Texas Property Code.
Fortunately, the complex was sold a few months before I moved out and the new owners and management company wisely decided to drop the claim and returned my deposit in full.

There were also problem with the water being frequently shut off, sometimes for more than a day, without any notice or the notice being delivered so soon before (for example, residents notified at 9am that water will be shut off indefinitely at 11am). This was apparently due to undisclosed continuing problems with the water pipes serving the complex. I have no idea if these problems have been completely resolved but I wouldn't be surprised if they still exist.

This complex does have security gates but as seems to be typical, they often did not work. The exit gate required a card to open which, although it might theoretically minimally inconvenience a car thief, more often than not caused problems for departing visitors and even tenants when the gate was not working properly. I have seen water closets bigger than the tiny 3-person maximum occupany "fitness center." The pool was slightly better but it was usually closed if one waited to use it until the loud and unsupervised children had departed.

Despite all the negatives, I would still reccomend this apartment if you are looking for a cheap and spacious apartment and don't mind living in NE Austin.

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