My partner and I went to stay in Olympia for the legislative session, so we were renting in two cities. It was hectic and we were not careful enough but we ended up living in a poorly managed property as a result.

First, I'll talk about basics. The apartments are "remodeled" which means that the laminate floor looks like tile or wood. Our bathroom sink was nice; it had a large mirror. The shower was (real) tile. However, that's the extent of this "remodeling" business.

The windows should have been replaced years ago. I know that living in the northwest means that you have to be particularly careful about mold and condensation on the glass, but it was an unrealistic expectation. The manager told us to wipe the windows down when they got condensation on them. We lived there through the winter, so the option was to either wipe the windows every 15 minutes or open them letting your heating out. You know how you can fix this problem' You change out the windows. I would say that an apartment/house with good windows is the only way to go and should be an expectation with new energy guidelines. Under the law, housing must be "reasonably weather tight". Anyway, our mattress got moldy because we had it on the floor (we didn't want to move everything for just 4 months!). Needless to say, we had to buy a new bed.

The kitchen had those particle board cabinets that fall of their hooks, while also falling apart. It also had a single sink with a garbage disposal (which frequently broke), a crummy dishwasher, but a decent fridge.

There was decent closet space and ceiling fans in the bedroom and dining room nook as a plus. But there was no outgoing mail (for some reason'). We asked the mailman where it was one day, he said, "there isn't one here".

However, I would discourage renting from Peterson Properties (which owns more than just this complex; they own everything listed here http://www.mynewdigs.net/.) Here's why:

My partner and I took out a four month lease, which the manager agreed to initially when my partner saw the apartment, again over the phone, and again when we signed the lease. Under the law, when your lease expires, unless there is something in the lease stating otherwise, you are not obligated to give any notice. However, when we went to sign the least, the manager said, "I only have ten minutes to show the apartment and do the lease." I didn't read the lease and it cost me big.

Even though at the top of my lease, it says Jan-Apr 2009, I ended up paying rent for May because also in my lease, on the last page, it says that I must give them 20 days notice prior to moving out. This is just another reason why it is so important for people to sit down and read the 10 pt font with 0.5 inch margins. It cost us $675! If she had given us a notice, like every other apartment complex I've ever lived in, we would have told her that we would not be there for May.

But the manager is never there. (Although you know she comes around at night or something because these hot curt pink notes appear sometimes). I suspect its because she manages 6 different complexes. She will tell you upon signing the lease that she will never let you in your apartment if you lock yourself out. Unfortunately, it happened to me and she kept her word. While you want your landlord to be hands-off, this was too hands-off.

Ultimately, the apartment is basically like every other one, although it says "remodeling". For the price, you can find better property that is more professionally managed for the same price, or even a better price. Plus they still haven't returned our deposit or even bothered to call.

Also when I try to edit the typos you see, it doesn't work. So they aren't mine... The system is down...

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