I had scheduled an appointment over the phone a few days ago to check out the property on 8/1. The woman I scheduled the appointment with told me she wouldn't be there, but that one of her two associates who would be there would gladly help me.

I get there Saturday, ten minutes early, and walk into the leasing office. Neither was aware that I'd made any appointment and I was abruptly told to wait in the lobby. The female leasing agent told me she had two appointments ahead of me, so I got to sit in the lobby by myself while she and her male associate kept walking back and forth with potential tenants. I sat there miserably while residents kept walking back and forth to go to the lovely pool area in the back.

I also noticed that the majority of the residents seemed to be white. I don't remember seeing one minority resident pass by. I wonder if my being a minority is the reason for my rude treatment (though the female leasing agent is a minority herself).

I was frustrated and about to leave when the male leasing agent finally approaches me. I was told over the phone that a Buchanan model studio was available at $1130, but in person was told no studios were available and there was a one-bedroom available for $200 more. Ridiculous.

I was shown the one-bedroom just to get a feel of the place. The appliances seemed outdated and the storage space was lacking.

Another thing I didn't like was all the fees they kept throwing at me additional to the security deposit if I were to sign up: parking (though I don't have a car), a hold fee, a non-refundable community investment fee, a utility fee. You've gotta be kidding me.

I took an application and said I'd think about it, but I'm going to pass. The new rental rate they threw at me was out of my price range, and the dismissive attitude I received at the leasing office was a real turn-off. It sucks because I liked the neighborhood the apartment was in, but doubt I can find something else affordable there.

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 08/03/2009
A few things to note: - As a leased community the rates and availability change daily (hence receiving one story on the phone and another in person). - Appliances here are older, but maintanence will fix any problems you have with tyhem within 48 hours guaranteed. You want new appliances in this area, be ready to pay higher rent costs. - The storage space in the smallest 1 bedroom unit (which I currently live in) is generous. I have a large entry closet, plenty of kitchen cabinet space, and an even larger hall closet. Studios may be a different story - but get real - you're agreeing to live in a 1 room apartment, how much extra space can you expect?! - If you have issues with a secutiry deposit, good luck finding a rental without one - they're not only standard but are refundable. - Parking is not something you pay for here, unless you insist on having a space designated to you (it's really not necesessary, as parking is easily available). - Point is, you get what you pay for at Sheffield Court. If you expect more in North Arlington, plan to pay more... some place else.
From: Anonymous	Date: 11/06/2009
to the defensive anonymous response: way to ONLY address issues you have an answer to. If you are going to go down a list item by item, at least do so. Maybe instead of being defensive, you should be more positive and explain the perks of the place, since you are an apparent tenant yourself. I actually was not the one to post this and am also a potential tenant but if all of your tenants have attitude like that then I do not want to live there.
From: Anonymous	Date: 12/02/2009
This is the original poster responding. The first response did nothing to answer to what I had to say. Where in my post did I complain about having to pay a security deposit, like s/he claims?! I knew I had to pay one, duh! If you had read closely, you'd see I was complaining about fees ADDITIONAL to the security deposit that I'd have to pay to move in. And I have seen studios that are bigger and more affordable than that one-bedroom I was shown. They are out there if you look hard enough. I managed to find a nice place in the area that was in my budget and didn't have any hidden fees. I agree with the second respondent---if you're going to defend where you live, you can do so without being so rude towards people.

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