I moved into the Monticello building in May 2005 and have not had a single complaint thus far.

The grounds are reasonably well-kept and there is not a problem with trash, abandoned vehicles, or loiterers at night. The parking lots are well-lighted and frequently patrolled by security/parking enforcement trucks. It can be hard to find a parking spot after 9:00 in the evening, so you may have a bit of a walk through the vast parking lots if you're out late. You may not always get to park next to your building, but you can always find a spot somewhere on the grounds.

There is not much guest parking (only 25 guest spots per building), and it's doled out on a first-come first-served basis starting at 5 pm once a day. You cannot reserve guest parking ahead of time; you must wait until 5 pm that day. This could be an inconvenience if you often have overnight guests.

I can't speak for the other four buildings, but Monticello is clean and well-kept. I have never seen a roach or any other crawling insect in my apartment or any part of the building. The hallways are vacuumed and the laundry rooms are cleaned every day. My neighbors are good about not leaving trash on the floors, and the trash room is always clean. People's TV sets and stereos can seem loud in the hallways, but once you're inside your apartment, the sound does not travel through the walls, so it's quiet inside.

I can't speak for the efficiency of the maintenance staff beyond the general upkeep of the building, as I haven't had anything in my apartment need fixing yet. Perhaps I am just lucky.

In nine months, there have only been two occasions where there was no running water in the building; one was scheduled in advance, and the other, an emergency, was taken care of by the next morning. This is a pretty good track record, I think.

It would be nice if there were more washing machines and dryers; there are only two washers and two dryers per floor (each floor has 40 apartments). Still, this has not proved to be a major inconvenience.

It's easy to get mail and packages: USPS packages are left at the front desk for you to sign for and pick up, and UPS packages (no FedEx) are left with the valet, which is open until 7 pm on weekdays, which is convenient.

The front desk is manned 24/7, which is nice, although I often see people hanging around in the vestibule, waiting for a resident to enter so they can follow the resident through the open door, and the front desk people won't challenge or question them. They won't buzz anybody in, but they won't ask anyone any questions, either, even if they see them waiting around and following a resident inside. This is, admittedly, kind of annoying. Still, the building and grounds seem quite safe, without the loutish or thuggish element that characterizes all too many Alexandria apartment complexes.

Overall, for the price, I think Southern Towers is hard to beat (at least the Monticello building). It's not fancy, but it's clean, reasonably well-maintained, reasonably quiet, and a safe place to live. It's a genuine Northern Virginia bargain.

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