I've lived at The Place for the past 2 years, and I will be living here next year too. My rent was $450 and is increasing to $475/person, which is high but not unreasonable.

The Perks:
- reserved parking spot (but they don't always assign them right infront of where you live)
- concrete floors (help with electric bill)
- newer appliances (never had any trouble)
- washer/dryer in the apt (very convenient)
- maintenance quickly responds
- strict pet policy
- gated community

The Bad:
- The entry gate can be opened for friends, but the system they use can only be used if you have a land-line telephone. So, I have a land-line phone that i pay $15/month for, just so my friends can get into my apt complex, even though they "can't park inside the gates." I think the least The Place could do is provide this telephone service for free, as it's their fault for having an expensive, flawed system that isn't useful for most students. Who uses a land-line anymore anyway'!

- This year (Fall, 2007), they have cracked down on towing peoples' cars that don't have a valid parking sticker. Make sure you let your friends and family know.

- The "Workout Center" is anything but great. They only have 4 machines -- 2 treadmills, 2 bikes. While the machines are nice, the room that they're in is either too hot or too cold. There aren't any windows, so it's pretty claustrophobic, as the space is pretty tiny. It's just a converted apt in the Bear Grounds apts next door to The Place. This facility is for The Place and Bear Grounds' use, so you're sharing 4 machines with A LOT of other residents. There are cameras in the room too, which is uncomfortable because you feel like someone's breathing down your neck as you exercise.

- The two lady managers are really rude and awful. Whenever I call or go by to report a complaint, ask a question, or submit a maintenance request, I get the feeling that I'm bothering them. They are very choosey about who they like and dislike. If they like you, you'll get away with a lot of things. If they don't like you, they'll hound you for everything. I tried to stay under the radar, but as you'll find, they don't like most residents.

- I painted my apartment walls because several other neighbors did the same and had no issue with the managers. I did the same and a month later, got a notice that I wasn't supposed to paint the walls and that it was against my lease. They also said my porch was "cluttered", so I had to clean and remove everything from it, or else be charged for someone else to do it for me. The porch was not dirty -- it had supplies that had to stay outside, but wasn't an eyesore. Other people keep beercans, ugly chairs, even astroturf on their porches, but the managers overlook those things. They just like to peg those they dislike for every little thing.

- The Place just started letting pets live here ("under 30lbs"), which is nice. However, the pet deposit fee is $600, and you only get $250 back when you move out (maybe it's $350' I can't remember). Your rent also increases $25 per month. The pet deposit and extra rent fee is also per pet. So, technically, if you had 3 goldfish, you'd have to pay $1800 $75/month to have them. Some people can get away with hiding pets, but it's hard because the managers can come into your apt at any time, and if they find a pet, they won't say anything. But, the next days, you'll get a rude, highlighted letter about evicting you and your pet if you dont do ____. The rude highlighted letter goes for any problem or complaint. In my opinion, they could at least approach you in person or over the phone to hear your side of the "complaint". Sending highlighted notes is really annoying and immature.

- The managers hate animals, and that's really obvious. I think they were forced to have a pet policy in order to compete with the newer apts springing up around the area. The maintenance men don't like the pets either. You can't let your dog in the pool area now either, so your dog won't have any way to be outside. The managers have not been understanding of pet owners.

- The pool area is pretty loud, but not intolerable. I don't like the double-standard that the managers take though; they allow noise, trash, and glass alcohol to be left in the pool area, but dogs would "cause too much of a mess"...I've found underwear left in the hot tub, so I'd say that's worse than having a cute puppy lay next to you in the sun.

The hot tubs are ALWAYS not functioning properly. They also never clean them out -- they just use "shock" treatment for the water, which is disturbing.

- Noise levels depend entirely on your neighbors. This year isn't bad, but last year, I had bass stereo systems shaking my whole apt most of the time.

- The people who live here are more wealthy than most, and I guess that's why there's NO social aspect to this apt complex. I think it's good in some ways, but also bad. In college, I want to have a family/friendly-atmosphere around me. The Place is so isolated and not for the social. I enjoy the atmosphere at apts like University Place much more, even though their apts are awful.


In conclusion, I have lived here for 2 years and will another year, so obviously this place isn't too awful. The Apts are okay, clean, and it's nice having your own bathroom and walk-in closet. One negative though is that if your friend wants to use the bathroom, they have to walk through your room to get to it.

There are definately annoyances, and most could be avoided by just replacing the two managers. They'll be nice when you're signing your lease, but once they have a contract and money, it'll be a different story. Watch out -- if you sign a lease, they have a $250 "Processing Fee", and they've never told anyone what it's used for. So, I think that's shady and weird. I've seen 5 leases signed, and they've never said what it's used for.

I'd recommend living here, but I think you might be able to do better if you're already willing to pay this much money per month.

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 03/30/2008
Enough is enough with apartments at Baylor pushing students around because they "can"! STAND UP for yourselves and submit a complaint to the U.S. Attorney General! If enough complaints are received, this apartment will be in REALLY big trouble. http://www.oag.state.tx.us/consumer/tenants.shtml http://www.oag.state.tx.us/consumer/complain.shtml

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