We lived here from April of 2007 until January of this year and really enjoyed it! We moved out to live in and try to sell a house we built, and after we sold it, we came right back to The Lodge because we loved it so much. The best part is the staff (well, mostly Emily), but in general the staff is great! Very very helpful, very friendly, and they seem to actually care about and enjoy their jobs. Emily is the best!

The apartments are the nicest you'll find in Federal Way (I've lived in The Heights (now The Reserve) and The Shores) - other apartments in the area have gone through or are going through renovations, but you'll still get the gross popcorn ceilings. The Lodge was built much more recently, and it's obvious. The facilities are well-maintained, there's a great tanning bed, and the best gym out of all of the complexes I've ever lived in. The apartments are the most quiet of all the complexes I've lived in, although you will hear some noise (it is an apartment complex after all - you kind of have to expect it).

The only issues are parking and some, shall we say, "suspect individuals" living in the complex. If you don't want to stress about parking, you'll have to rent a covered one. That's all there is to it, and although it's unfortunate, that's the way it has to be. The other issue is there are some slightly less classy people living here, but again, it's Federal Way and an apartment complex, so that's to be somewhat expected.

Overall it's a really excellent living experience - it used to be more expensive to live here, but with all of the complexes doing renovations and upping their rent, I think the rent here is comparable now. And it really is the nicest, best-maintained, and comfortable complex in Federal Way. Obviously I really like it!

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 05/05/2008
Its funny how anytime there is a bad report someone jumps on and sends a good one. Also its pretty obvious its either staff or someone close to staff when they are referring to someone being "the best" be real you know the place is new but it SUCKS!!! I know staff who have actually left and gone to new places because of other staff and how poor quality the complex is for being new.The staff is so worried about chatting with each other they fail to even realize when someone is standing there. As for paying for parking yeah what a rip off the spots get parked in anyway so its a waste of money. Yeah its an apartment complex and its not gonna be perfect but lets face it this is one of the worst places to live in Federal Way just because its new means nothing. Dont let it fool you. Maybe you should check out the Ballera (sp) now those are nice and new and they actually have a security guard that walks the complex at night calling towing out for people illegally parked. Now thats a complex that cares!!! THE LODGE SUCKS there is nothing good to say about it period!!!
From: Anonymous	Date: 07/12/2008
The Lodge is actually a very nice place to live. My husband & I lived here since October '07. The staff isn't the best in the world, but Emily has always always been very helpful. A little word of advice: 1- Avoid asking the girl (who's always at the front desk) any questions. She's doesn't know anything. 2- Always have them make a copy of your rent payments. 3- Get a covered parking spot. Otherwise, this is a really great place to live. Maintenance staff is great. Everyone pretty much keeps to themselves around here. We'll be moving into a house shortly, but will definitely miss the convenience of being so close to both 167 & I-5. BTW- I'm not a staff member or even remotely close to anyone of them. Thanks.
From: OneTwiceThreeTimesARenter	Date: 07/13/2008
I'm the original poster, and actually this wasn't a fake review. My name is Brandi and I really, and absolutely, love living here. Ballera is too far away from anything convenient. We thought about moving there a long time ago, but it was a pain in the ass. Emily has since moved to a brand new complex managed by the same company as the head manager so she can get her feet wet, and I've been told it's so that she can eventually come back. We miss her! Maybe we love it here because we have such a great relationship with the staff, I don't know. We've never had to make copies of our rent payments, although it's probably a good idea (even so, you can just contact your bank to get a copy of the check). Seriously, the only problems I've ever had living here have been with RUDE tenants who don't know how to behave in in common areas, i.e. the gym and pool.
From: Anonymous	Date: 07/15/2008
I definately have to agree with you, the Ballera is definately too far. It would probably add an additional 10-15mins to my 25min commute. We suggest everyone make a copy of their rent check, becuase we ran into a situation where the girl at the front desk insist that we didn't pay rent (give them a check). Since we didn't have any proof that we did give it to them, we ended up writting them another one. Unfortunately, they cashed both checks & we ended up getting an overdraft on our account. When we went to go explain the situation to the gal at the front desk, she would pretend to understand what we were talking about, but the conversation resulted in no action. Emily saw how frustrated we were & took over the problem. We were able to get our money back for one of the checks. And she's been very helpful every time we had a problem.

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