We called Bromley Park home for the last year.
We'll summarize the pros and cons we found:
Pros:
- we moved to NC fairly quick and Bromley Park was able to accommodate our short notice and get us in even sooner than expected!!
- we didn't pay a security deposit upon moving in, which was nice.
- location. We loved being close to pretty much everything: mall, grocery stores, the highway, etc
- affordable. We paid around $700/mo for a 2 bedroom, 2 full bath apartment...
- Spacious 2 bedrooms, large living room, and 2 FULL baths. (Our previous apartment had 1.5 bath but 2-full is clutch!)
- Pool and fitness room. (Have to admit we didn't use the fitness room at all but we did use the pool a fair amount of times... Until we got too annoyed with the usual crowd, kids splashing and not being aware of their surroundings, etc.)
- Management was very nice. We especially loved Angie, the manager. She was terrific! Very warm and friendly and helped out whenever there is an issue.
- small fenced in dog park. We don't have a dog but this would have been a pro if we did.
- fairly quiet. Can hear the "whoosh" of cars on 40 but I didn't notice them much over time. And once said noisy neighbors (from our con list) were talked to, it was pretty quiet from then out.
Cons:
- 3rd floor is a double edged sword. Great b/c no one is stomping above you (hooray!) but pain in the A** when: moving in/out, bringing groceries up, having small children you have to tote up and down, etc. Seriously, we almost died upon moving in and out due to the stairs.
- (as to be expected with apartment living), we ran into our fair share of "annoying apartment living issues": loud neighbors, etc. (BUT- when we brought issues up to management, action was taken quickly).
- no grills allowed. Well, they have 2 community charcoal grills in the "picnic area" but who wants to lug everything over there when grilling dinner 3-4x/week?? We had a small propane grill and another family had a small charcoal grill out back and one day we all got notices saying NO GRILLS ALLOWED. So we got rid of it. Boo. Sucks having to cook on only a stove/oven.
- Not ideal for walking. We used to LOVE going on walks at our old place. This apartment complex is limited to just one short loop. :-(
- Pulling out onto Ebert Rd is usually impossible at certain times of day. And when pulling into the complex off of Ebert, someone is usually right up your a** causing you to take your turn at like 35mph on 2 wheels and a doorknob.
- Cheapest commercial grade finishes/appliances/cabinets/etc. Eh. We especially hated the kitchen sink with the duel hot/cold faucets and it didn't have a sprayer. Also wasn't a fan of the tub surrounds. There were many seams for gunk to hide making cleaning a pain.
- People drive about a billion miles per hour through the complex. And the traffic circle here, yeah... People don't know how to use it and will make a left turn and nearly crash into you head on instead of going around it to the right like they are supposed to.
- Units don't come with a washer & dryer. They have washer/dryer hookups but you have to either rent from them or bring your own.
- would have liked to have our own balcony/patio. There is a small cement area in the back of each building but it's not private.
All in all, Bromley Park served it's purpose. It provided us with a safe and affordable apartment for our first year in NC but we are happier to now be moving into our FIRST HOME!!!! read more