My wife and I lived in Archstone Woodland Park for 3.5 years. The first couple of years were great. The staff was awesome, no bug problems, nicely landscaped, and great location. We recommended Archstone to dozens of our friends. We really liked the 9-foot ceilings and the crown molding, the layout of our apartment and the fact that the complex was gated. We truly felt safe and comfortable. It was our home. They even replaced light bulbs for our tract lighting for free. During our first couple of years, the only complaint we would have had was that our apartment was a little drafty (you could feel the cold coming in during the winter). I just went to Home Depot and purchased some of that foam tape to put in the doorframes and that seemed to help.

We can't pinpoint the exact time that things started changing, but things definitely took a turn for the worse. We started getting notices on our door that somebody would be coming into out apartment every other week (it was never clear why the notices always said routine maintenance or something vague). A little while later, they did major construction in our apartment that required 3, 4 and sometimes 5 workers in our apartment all day for two days and partial days for 3 more days. It was incredibly inconvenient and uncomfortable for us and we couldn t understand why the construction couldn t wait until we moved out. That was about the time we decided it was time for us to move out.

The other things that changed: (i) the few times we dealt with the new manager, she seemed generally unwilling to listen to our questions/concerns (the rest of the staff is GREAT we even would stop in just to say hi sometimes to them), (ii) they stopped changing the tract lighting (this is not a big deal, but we were a little confused why the policy suddenly changed), and (iii) the complex was not as keep as pristine as it was. The point is that something changed and it was not for the better.

We had two bad experiences towards the end or time at Archstone. I will only tell you about one. This happened after we moved out. We were sent a bill for carpet replacement and a few other small items. This was not a big deal and we paid it less than 10 days after we received the bill. Exactly 30 days from the date of the bill, we got a letter from a collections agency for the amount of the bill. We were shocked, confused and upset. In my entire life I have never had a bill sent to collections. We called the collections agency and they said that Archstone cancelled the account a few days after sending it to them, so we could disregard the letter. My first question is: why did they send a bill to collections less than 30 days after sending the bill to us' Second question is: they had my cell phone #, my work phone # and our new address, why not just give me a call and talk to me first or send a past due notice' Getting a letter from a collections agency for a bill that you already paid is like getting a slap in the face.

We just recently moved out and part of us misses our home at Archstone . . . but we also have this bitter taste in our mouths from the last year or so. We are going to put that we recommend Archstone, but only if Archstone can get their act together and fix the current situation. Please go back to how things were in 2003-2005. Hope this is helpful.

Your thoughts? Post a response to this review. Display my response: with my username anonymously Responses appear below reviews and one response per user is permitted.

   Free estimates on moving trucks      Find apartment share/roommates