El Dorado has two sections, one of wood construction, the other of stucco. All are townhouses. We rented a three-bedroom in the wooden section for one year. Although it had some advantages, namely a private courtyard, two covered parking spaces, and a storage shed, the disadvantages were many and serious.

Firstly, the units are not insulated and have single paned, aluminum framed windows. Your heating and cooling bills will outstrip any advantage in lower rent, and you will have problems with mold. The owner is aware of this, but it will not be mentioned except you will have to sign a mold statement as part of your lease. Our electric bills ran to over $200 each month, despite keeping the temperature set low (65F) in the winter and high (80F) in the summer.

Secondly, though billed at over 1000 square feet, the space is awkward and poorly designed, especially the kitchen. The cabinets, while plentiful, are so deep that half the space is unusable. The dishwasher is situated so that when it is open, you can't put dishes into the cupboards. We had to remove the doors of one cupboard to be able to utilize it at all.

Thirdly, the stairway is narrow and the turns in it make it impossible to get normal furniture (such as a queen-size boxspring) up and down the stairs.

Fourthly, the pet fee, at $200 per cat, is not refundable. This will also not be mentioned, but notice it is called a "fee" not a deposit.

Fifthly, the private courtyard will be usable for the spring months and late fall, but the pounding summer sun on all that concrete is too hot for words. Remember it actually can snow quite a bit here and you will have to shovel your own way out to your car.

Management is through Crown Property, and the current manager (Brandy) is good. The woman prior to her was inadequate and unprofessional. The woman who was manager when we moved in (Paula) was excellent. So, three managers in the course of a year, with only one inadequate one, which I suppose is a decent track record.

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