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Hickory Ridge Apartments


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anonymous

Resident 2002 - 2005

8/2/2005

I have lived in various apartments throughout this complex for about 3 years. Overall the community is great, and the landlords are very kind people who make sure things get fixed asap, which (if you call in the morning) is usually the day you call or the day after. <br><br>One of the landlords and some of the repairmen (who are employed for that complex..so there is always someone onsite to help) do the work themselves. There are, I think, 5 buildings in the complex. The landlords generally get to know everyone by at least first name and they are a lot of fun to get to know.<br><br>The complex is located on the west end of town. It is about 2 miles from campus and around 4 miles from downtown, both of which are a straight shot east on Lincoln Way. The buildings are very clean and well lit inside. The outdoor lighting is best around the garages, with the rest of the complex being lit to a lesser degree, and rather dark.<br><br>The parking is off-street in an open lot unless you rent a garage for around $35/month. The garages are in long sheds with no dividers between cars, so if someone does manage to get in, they have access to any car parked in that particular garage. All the parking is next to the buildings so it is a very short walk to get to your car. I have parked outdoors for all but one semester of my staying here and have had no problems with damage to my car or stolen property. The only time it is difficult is in the winter when the lots need to be plowed. My car has been completely buried once and I've had to scoop out lesser piles of snow pretty much every winter. <br><br>The quality of the apartments varies a lot from one to the next. My current apartment is excellent, with new carpet and kitchen tile, fairly new appliances (probably less than 5 years old) and freshly painted walls. I have a walk-in closet and both my living room and my bedroom and quite large. I also have a small patio to grill on (no charcoal grills allowed though) Some basement apartments have walk-out patios, some don't. Even the older apartments I have had were sturdy and well built, though they looked a little dated.<br><br>My one complaint about every apartment I have had is that the windows suck. They are very old and don't stay aligned quite right in the frames. Usually either the latches don't hold them shut or the springs don't hold them open. There are storm windows that tend to work somewhat better, but those usually pull out easily too. The worst of them so far was very leaky in the winter and I had dozens of Asian Beetles getting in in the fall. The patio doors, thankfully, don't suffer from the same problems. Those have always worked well.<br><br>Each apartment comes with a small storage cubbord that is about half the height of the wall and a few feet wide and deep. The units have their own small room and you access your storage unit with your apartment key. There is also a small laundry facility with 3 washers and 3 dryers on the second floor of each building. (Tenants are allowed to do laundry from 7am to 10pm). They are great as long as they work. The washers seem to have the most trouble with breaking down because people overload them so often. There is also a large sink in the laundry room. If you live on second floor, this room is where your storage space will be also.<br><br>The grounds are well kept but not spectacular. There is a small area to take pets out and some nice trees on the north and west sides. The other sides view either the street or the trailer park and aparments just down the road. The complex is located on a small side street so that most traffic doesn't come down that way. Except for the high turnover days (August 1st, mainly) it is very peaceful. <br><br>There is a church across the street to the south and a small playhouse just beyond that, also on the south side. The rest of the street is taken up by apartment buildings. There is also a gas station a block away to the west and to the east there is a small strip mall with a 24-hour Hy-Vee, a Subway, a pack-and-ship (boxes, tape, bubble wrap...) a fitness center, a driver's license place, a goodwill, a small hair salon, and one other store I can't think of right now.<br><br>There is a no keg rule (which I like but may be a deterrent for some)...and the low noise rule is enforced, so that the apartments are suitable for professionals and students. Being an older student, I enjoy the quiet atmosphere. The walls are also well insulated so that you can't hear your neighbors unless they are extremely loud. I practice my violin in my apartment and so far my neighbor has only heard me one time and only faintly.<br><br>You are allowed to hang as much as you want on the walls with nails, screws, whatever, as long as you are willing to either do a good job of spackling them all when you move or to have the landlord do it after you're gone and pay for the labor out of your deposit. <br><br>Most of the units have vertical or horizontal blinds and berber carpet, though I think there are a small number of apartments that haven't been upgraded yet. <br><br>The prices of the apartments fall into the middle range for Ames, but if you go cheaper you generally get cheaper quality. I've tried looking around, and I know some of the $300 apartments are garbage. They are usually the ones right by campus that have been heavily abused and never repaired. <br><br>There are also more expensive units, with two bedrooms usually costing a minimum of $650 and going up to $1300 for an apartment with a general living area and 4 seperate bedrooms and usually two bathrooms to be shared among the roomates. Those sorts of places usually also have a shared gym area, a pool, and some other amenitites. Most of those buildings are loud and the construction can be flimsy, but the amenities are great. <br><br>Pretty much any apartment in Ames will be on a bus route. Hickory Ridge is on the red and purple routes, both of which are basically right across the street from the complex. During the school year the red stops every 12 minutes or so in the morning and afternoon. The purple usually runs once an hour. The buses also go in all directions downtown, so they are useful for more than just getting to campus.<br><br>Cats and small dogs are allowed for a fairly small fee, and the dogs have to be under a certain weight (40 pounds I think?) I had a pet cockatiel when I first moved in and was not charged extra, though this may have changed since then.<br><br>The buildings are security buildings so that only tenants with a key can get in. When the doors do malfunction the landlords always get them fixed immediately. <br><br>The landlords are also willing to accept small packages and keep them in the main office if the mail carrier can't fit them in the mail box and you aren't home to receive the package in person. You will get a note in your mailbox letting you know it was left at the main office. The landlords do appreciate it if you pick them up as soon as possible though. If you don't they sometimes call to let you know they have something for you. <br><br>There is a small (emphasis on small) pool that is open in the summer and part of the fall. Guests have to have a tenant with them to use it, and like I said, it isn't very big, but it's refreshing in the summer. It is kept very clean except in the fall when the leaves tend to get in. <br><br>Every year there is a sort of "getting to know your neighbors" party by the pool where the tenants come down for dinner and drawings are held for small things and sometimes a free month's rent. Sometimes during lease renewal seasons they will enter your name in a drawing for a free month's rent if you renew your lease early, and if you refer someone and they sign a lease you get a discount on a month's rent. <br><br>The landlords also distribute a newsletter at the beginning of the month with information on important dates and happenings around the complex. They usually tape them to your front door. Notices about when maintenance will be stopping in to do work are generally posted a day or two before they need to stop by, and these notices will also be taped to your door. <br><br>You can pay rent either in person in the office or by using one of the little envelopes they give you and dropping it in a rent drop box found by the mailboxes in the middle building. There is a strict deadline on the rent that is going into effect this August, so you are fined something like $10 for every day you are late. You are allowed to pay ahead if you want.<br><br>Cable and internet are included in the rent, as are some utilities. The air conditioning tends to get pretty expensive in the summer, especially in the larger units. The internet company that serves the complex is very good about getting your service moved around if you change apartments within the complex, which many people do. <br><br>The internet is accessed through your phone line, but when you move in you get a box so that the internet doesn't tie up your phone line. There is no high speed internet in the rooms.<br><br>There are some quirks that I have noticed as I have moved from building to building within the complex. Some apartments have long cable cords, some don't have any at all. In my current apartment, I have several electrical outlets but only the bottom ones work (no idea why) Some apartments have two phone jacks but only one works...I've learned that it's a good idea to check and make sure you know exactly what's functioning before you arrange your furniture.<br><br>Overall I really enjoy living here. There is a wide variety of people, all ages and ethnicities. Everyone is usually very friendly, and the location is great. <br><br> <br>

    Review 23 out of 24

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    Hickory Ridge Apartments

    March 2024

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