My fiance and I lived in an apartment furnished by Christy Living from 10/1/12 to 5/15/13 while we built a home. Upon moving in to the unit, I paid a refundable deposit of $150 to cover damage to the unit while we occupied it. Monthly rent was $1800 or $60/day.
We received a closing date on our home for May 16. I was very communicative with Janene, the owner of Christy Living, during this process, and we agreed I'd pay $900 for 1/2 a month's rent to stay in the unit through May 15. My fiance and I vacated the apartment the evening of May 15, and I emailed Janene that night to inform her. She replied it was "fine" and expressed no concern nor communicated anything about incremental charges.
Twenty days after vacating, I still hadn't received my deposit back, so I emailed Janene to inquire. She mailed me an $80 check, $70 less than what I paid up front. Included with the check was a note saying I was charged $10 for an ethernet cord and $60 for staying a night beyond when we should have vacated. I immediately emailed Janene and offered to send her a brand new ethernet cord, as I had no idea what she was talking about; neither my fiance nor I knowingly removed one from the unit. I also asked Janene why we were being charged an extra night in the unit, as I paid through the 15th of the month, and we vacated the 15th. I gave Janene 16 days to respond and after I didn't hear from her, I sent the email again. She finally then responded and said the charges are "reasonable & justified". Charging $10 for a cord that costs a few dollars is not justified, nor is it reasonable to charge $60 for an extra night when we vacated the day we paid through - the day Janene agreed we would vacate when we were discussing our departure.
Deposit aside, our experience living there was sub-par which is probably what the majority of readers will want to know about. Paying $1800 a month for an apartment is not cheap by any standards; one would expect a certain level of quality in the furnishings and/or service. We did not receive either.
I wouldn't describe the furnishings as "outdated" - I would describe them as "past their prime". I was pregnant with our first child while living in the unit and sleeping on a queen bed that literally had a mysterious downward slope (think 45 degree angle) the last 3 feet of the bed. The shower had mold embedded in the caulking. The bath mats, shower liner and sheets were so stained, we bought our own at Target, which is disappointing when you are paying for a "furnished" unit.
Another criteria we were looking for when apartment shopping was washer/dryer in unit. About 2 months after moving in, the washer/dryer combo unit broke, and it took nearly a month to get it fixed. Janene told us we could simply use the washers and dryers in the basement in the interim. I understand we have a back up solution, but we were paying a considerable amount of money for this ammenity in the unit, and I didn't want to then have to pump quarters into the public machines in the basement nor did I want to haul a laundry basket full of clothes down 4 flights of stairs when I was 7 months pregnant.
Probably most appalling was when the toliet broke. The unit had 1 bathroom, and the toliet ran 24/7. The bathroom also happened to be right next to the bedroom, so you would hear it running all night long. Several weeks after emailing Janene to get it fixed, the only communication I received back was from her handyman who would give me a 15 minute lead time before wanting to come over and fix it. This was going on the same week I gave birth...don't get me started on that.
I'd sum it up by saying basic necessities were not present (functioning toliet) during our time living in the unit so be wary of that and do not expect any "above & beyond" experience, service or communication from the owner. read more