Mac Properties owns 1/2 the real estate it seems in Hyde Park, Chicago, IL, USA. They have many new and moderate properties to choose from varying in rent according to what you can afford and heat is included. The PROBLEM is many uncouth hood ghetto women working in management. My roommate and I had a unit. I moved out 3 months before the least was due and my roomy agreed to take all the furniture, but didn't upon them moving and I didn't know that. 2 years later I go to Mac Properties I thought I had go standing with and found out my roommate left a balance over $3500. I paid immediately because they said the unit was in both our names and to get another unit that had to be paid. I moved in the new unit and paid 3 months in advance because of my work schedule and there after physically hand delivered signing a log book of my visit and spoke personally with an accounting person who would take my rental payment. So, I inform management I need to move they said I owe $1200 and i asked what for? She told me that i was $1 short in month 5 on a late fee. So that meant that the rent balance was never paid in full and it offset for the end of the lease and the it fees added to the $1. The she yelled and told me I was a lair and I new I owed. I shared with her I never received a call, email a notice on my door or when I came in person to pay my rent NO ONE ever said anything about that. She said I put it on your report. I gave the management office all my receipts and never responded. after the 10th time reaching out they reduced it to $369 and said I have to pay something as a inconvenience fee. I am still disputing with them because they are in the wrong. read more

I used to live in a wonderful apartment that was staffed by a team of friendly, helpful people. MAC Properties took over the apartment, and immediately, the quality of service at the apartment declined steeply. The MAC staff at the apartment did not even know where the fire alarm was, and many older residents who used to live at the apartment for decades were being ignored when they needed help. Rent went up by hundreds of dollars over the next few years, and a garage that used to be attended by a smiling attendant 24/7 was automated. Hundreds of residents circulated petitions protesting these moves by the incoming MAC management. Town halls were organized where those hundreds of residents showed up (about 20~25% of the residents of this large apartment complex) and literally screamed at the CEO of MAC's parent company for hours. Among these protesters, there were old African American residents of Hyde Park who had been living at the apartment throughout decades of gentrification, and there were conservative-leaning law school and business school students at the University of Chicago who were anti-union and pro-market. MAC somehow managed to unite these two groups and turn them into allies fighting against MAC. This was not a one-time occurrence. During the past 14 years I've spent in Hyde Park, I've seen MAC buy up one property after another with their massive capital, and ruthlessly pursue profit at each property while lowering the quality and standard of service. I've seen the same consistent pattern through many friends who lived in MAC managed properties, who all share my opinion after many years in Hyde Park. But MAC has bought up so many properties in the area that local residents are stuck in a quasi-monopoly and seldom have little choice but to live in MAC-managed apartments. I personally try to go out of my way to live in one of the few remaining non-MAC apartments in the Hyde Park area, if by any means possible, even if that means my choices are severely limited and I have to compromise a few things I am looking for in an apartment. I recommend you do the same. Disclaimer: I do not have any relationship with MAC that could present a conflict of interest. MAC reported my previous review of their company to Yelp and had it removed, claiming that I was writing about employment issues as someone related to an employee. This is not true, and I am rewriting and reposting this review to clarify these points. I have no personal relationship with any employee that had issues with MAC. I was simply a resident at a building that was taken over by MAC, and an extremely dissatisfied customer who simply observed that the previous staff was amazing and the MAC staff after the takeover was terrible. P.S. One possible exception to this review: There are actually a small number of well-managed MAC properties in the area. All of those are new or recently renovated properties that are among the most expensive in Hyde Park. If you are looking for the highest-end properties in the area, MAC will still offer you poor value for your money, but these will at least be good places to live in. read more

Whatever rent you think you're paying, add an additional $100 for gas, for both winter and summer. It doesn't matter how much or how little gas you use- kiss the Benjamin goodbye. You can look forward to cockroaches in your residence, slow fulfillment of basic work orders (although this is management's fault, not the fault of the actual maintenance personnel, who are nothing but helpful), and a $50 lock-out fee. Welcome to the neighborhood housing Macnopoly. read more

I have had nothing but wonderful experiences with Mac Properties. I've been with them for a little over a year and a half and receive great service. I have had to call maintenance for issues in the past and it is always speedy and endearing feedback. I once even received a mass email that was sent to all residents on an issue I complained about that affected the entire unit. I look forward to another year of great service with them. I have worked with Courtney numerous times and he always does a follow up after maintenance does work to make sure it was to my liking. I highly suggest residents to go with Mac Properties. With appreciation, Danielle K read more

Horrible experience. Please do not be naive like me and give this company the benefit of the doubt. They lack customer service skills on all levels. The people who show you the apartments are obviously kind and attentive to any questions and needs but that is only because they want you to sign a lease. My apartment was broken into, at first they tried to charge me for the broken window until I showed them a police report. I was promised bars would be added to my windows a month ago, not only has this not happened but the staff has been completely ignoring me when I ask for updates (happy to share email chains upon request). Resident safety is in NO way a priority. Aside from that the front door that lets into the units does not lock, and the laundry room doors are not secured and locked either. It's just unsafe. Malarie Williams is supposed to be one of the higher up staff but is outright rude. Jenette who is the boss over everyone is rarely responsive either although she is kind if you get the rare call back or email. I have been having issues with noise regarding my basement neighbors the entire time I've lived here and nothing has been done about it. Jenette claims they are pushing them through the eviction process but it "takes time". As a result my own peace and quiet has been taken. These neighbors have even destroyed property. In the winter I had mice, several. Please just don't do this to yourself. I fully regret it. read more

I have been living in a Mac Properties apartment for 2.5 years now and have very mixed feelings about them. On one hand, I have many complaints about management and their billing policies. I would give 2.5 stars if I could. When we got this apartment passed down from friends, no one at Mac told us that we had to call the electric utility company (ComEd) to sign up our apartment with them, or else we would be billed Vacancy Fees. These fees did not get billed to us until 3 months late - so we did not even know that we were being charged $50 a month for this bogus fee until living here for 3 months!! Mac told us that our Resident Manager, Valerie Kasten, was supposed to tell us explicitly when we signed our lease. However, she pointedly did not tell us this, and when we complained about this, 1) Mac told us that there is no way they can reimburse us for the $150 we lost, and 2) Valerie blamed her failure on us, saying, "Why didn't you read the 50-page lease document in detail? It's your fault that you missed that." In addition to this ridiculous situation, Mac has recently raised utility fees to a flat rate of $100 per month. Last year we were charged based on how much water we used, and being an environmentally conscious group of students, we tried to conserve. We would only pay about $60 per month. We are extremely displeased that Mac would rip off their tenants like this, and in doing so, also encourage residents to waste water recklessly. On a final note about management: last year we had people living downstairs who smoked weed 24/7, and the lobby was so thick with smoke that I, my roommates, and all visitors would cough or even choke upon entering the lobby. It was horrible having to hold my breath every time I came or left home. We all complained to Mac a dozen times and they said they would address the issue but nothing ever changed, and they never followed up. Thankfully those neighbors have moved out, and our current downstairs neighbor is great. On the other hand, my other experiences living here have been positive. Our service requests always get addressed within 24 hours, and if it's an emergency, someone usually comes within a couple or few hours. Right now our building is maintained by Stefan who goes above and beyond to fix our apartment's problems. The people who clean our buildings and maintain the landscaping are also extremely friendly and polite. CONCLUSION: My living experience is mostly enjoyable here, thanks to the diligent maintenance staff. However, in my opinion, management seems to take advantage of residents for more money whenever they can, and is lazy on issues that they don't see to be big problems. read more

I am so grateful to MAC Properties for making our move into our new rental as stress free as possible. Everyone is so willing to help. Rebecca Kobe showed us availability in a timely fashion and problem-solved along the way. Ruth Hamilton is a God send! Anything information we asked was immediately provided and we were guided through the paperwork in an effortless manner. Both Rebecca and Ruth checked in to see how we were doing. Such pro-activity is deeply appreciated! read more

I've since moved out of this apartment and I have to say there initially seemed to be an attempt to improve things but it wasn't enough. We still had washers and dryers in our laundry room that I put 5 different repair requests for and never seemed to get fixed. They made an attempt to improve communication about repairs, but then I had a repair on my sink done and I got like 3 emails, and 4 phone calls telling me my repair was done. Nice try, the system needs some work. My husband passed away April 2018 and my lease was up end of May and I already had another year signed for. Initially I called and asked if I could move to a different Mac building for that year (my husband died in our apartment- it was cancer). They were very kind on that phone call and agreed to let me move. So I told them I wanted to move and they told me they would start the process and get back to me in a day or so. Didn't hear back from them for 2 weeks. I thought about it while I was waiting and realized that getting up right away and moving wouldn't be a great idea and I should just stay and figure my stuff out. I would move a year later anyway because I was done with Mac by then. I kept calling that first person back and never actually talked to them again. I left several messages and said I would be staying and asked if my husbands info could be removed from our account as he was the primary on our account so his email and phone were the ones they usually contacted. Never got a response and quickly learned that she never removed my husbands info. I could access his email so I could check in there but still a bad experience for me. As a widow, it's painful. I gave up trying to fix it. One night during those dangerous cold days my upstairs neighbors pipe burst in the middle of the night. They called Mac and apparently Mac needed to access my apartment to turn their water line off. So I wake up at 2am thinking someone is breaking into my apartment and call the police. Once it all gets straightened out the guy says Mac was calling me repeatedly. I didn't have a single phone call or voicemail on my phone. I guarantee they called my husbands # which was disconnected for months by then. Again, my husband was still the primary #. Fast forward to my moving out. Now I'm getting emails addressed to my husband when they have apartment showings. As a widow, let me tell you, this sucks. I'm so glad this relationship is over. I will say again if you pay on time and have limited repairs needed you and Mac can just ignore each other and you can live fine. If you ever need their help, especially if it is not repair related, good luck with that. Nice basic apartment. The repair crew is wonderful. The ppl at the front desk are nice. But when you need to talk to someone with power, it's impossible to get to them. Would not recommend, would never ever rent from them again. Ever. I bet if I did they would look up my account and put my husbands name on the account as primary again. Oh yeah, and when you move in they link your phone with the front gate so you can buzz someone in. I moved out of that apartment May 2019 and I since have gotten 4-5 phone calls from the front gate. Clearly my name is still on the door directory connected to my phone. I'm not even going to bother trying to call and fix the problem. read more

Do not move into a Mac Properties unit. I've lived in Maple Court at 1120 E 47th Street. When touring the place, the unit was fine, but the area living on 47th street near the lake made it a very desirable place. On the tour, I was told that their would only be one gas people through People's Gas, only to find out there was an additional $100 bill on my account for a separate gas bill. $150/month for gas, plus electricity, was not worth the $1,300+ I have to pay a month for a unit less than 500 sq. ft. On move-in day, (after already making my deposit and receiving a confirmation email) I was promised that my keys would be ready, only to have to wait in the lobby for over an hour because no one was available to leave my keys and they weren't left at the front desk as promised. I've only lived here two months and already had the following problems: 1) Two issues with my water being cut-off with no email notice 2) Work orders that weren't completed 3) Gas bill not under my name and unable to be identified 4) Falsely charged an additional $50 fee on my bill because they couldn't find the gas bill under my name (after I had already paid a gas bill.) 5) Hidden fees (additional bills that were added) that I wasn't notified of at the time of seeing the apartment when I asked explicitly about it. 6) My name not listed in directory, causing me to miss several packages. 7) Piss and pubic hair on my brand new toilet seat the day I moved into my apartment. 8) An angry manager who blamed me for my problems instead of listening to what was going on. 9) A chalky substance that overflowed my bath tub and turned the whole tub gray, causing me not to be able to take a shower, bath or use my tub for hours. Management is extremely unresponsive and don't seem to care about any of these issues. They seem extremely disorganized and lack great communication skills. I've been transferred to the wrong department several times and wasted hours on the phone because of their lack of professionalism. Do NOT move here. If you must live in the Hyde Park/Kenwood area, seek other management companies in the area. Mac is completely overpriced and the management is poor. Wish I would've read these reviews beforehand. read more

Be mindful of any review that gives 5 stars. Even the most high-end apartment complexes rarely get 5 stars---and this management company and its properties are far from high-end. Every negative review on here is pretty much spot on. From water being cut-off without notice to sub-par aesthetics, my unit in particular is well below acceptable. MAC Properties Management LLC and its partners are definitely working towards being on the defensive end of a class-action lawsuit pursuant of almost all of the tenant remedies under 5-12-110.Unfortunately, management only seems to take notice when there is talk of "legal action". If that's what it takes to bring clean, stable, and acceptable living conditions to the Hyde Park community, then so be it. read more

If I were you I would avoid moving into a Mac property at all cost. When my roommate and I first moved into our apartment on 47th and Woodlawn we loved it due to what we thought was inexpensive rent ($1250 thinking everything was included) and convenience to downtown. What we later learned was that utilities and gas was not included in our rent despite what Ken told us. We found out four months after we moved in from a phone call by a Mac representative not only telling us about the late payment, but also a huge fee. If you see we are paying the rent on time every time why wouldn't you guys call us earlier for the other fees instead of putting a $500 late fee on top of it? Mac properties is greedy! This was not our only issue living at the place. We also had two unwanted mice stay with us during our in Hyde park. Mac took a week in a half to come spray the first time we had a mouse due to a lost order. This was disgusting to us! Other things that bothered us: no central air or heat. The heat radars only came on if it is winter months under 40 or 50 degrees outside. Our apartment was either freezing cold or burning hot. Two very uncomfortable climates. Also, the water pressure in our bathroom sucked! It was too low. If you're moving out make sure you don't leave any trash. Not even one article because they charge you a "light trash move out Fee." $100 to carry a few articles of clothing? This property is a joke! I advise all to look somewhere else. You can get way more for your money! read more

Shoreland is a wonderful building with amazing people working there! I have filed 2-3 service requests in my time living here and all were finished in 1-2 days, including my most recent service request which was quickly completed by James Wilson. All of the people that work at the front desk are helpful and wonderful people, but Mia always goes above and beyond and makes everyone feel welcome at Shoreland. read more

This is actually the sh*ttest company I have ever lived with. No service what so ever. My AC doesn't work and it took 2 weeks until somebody comes and fixed it. You know what they did? They put a freaking window-kind AC from the 1930s and claimed it is fixed. I haven't able to sleep for 2 weeks. Later they fixed the AC but didn't take away the sh**ty 1930s noisemaker. I have to call them again. No service what so ever, the regional leasing manager just doesn't respond to your call and email. It is so fascinating that some service-oriented companies can just ignore you. Seems like they just don't care after you signed it. You have to pay for the default fee anyway. There are much better options out there. Speak from my heart, this is the one and only worst option. I noticed that there is people from Mac responding to the reviews. I live in St. Louis, and if you don't do anything about the service team and St. Louis Manager, there is something wrong with you guys. read more

So far, Mac Properties has been great! They are quick to respond to service requests and even follow up once the work is done. Special shout-out to Courtney for being awesome! read more

My experience with Mac Properties' Drexel Grand complex has been awful. It is infested with rats. At nights, you can hear them running through the walls, and a little more than a week ago, a bunch came in and set up shop in my stove! They skittered, jumped, caused such a ruckus, and shat so much that I had to move out of my apartment. Pretty much everything in my apartment now smells like rat shit. I called Mac Apartments that Friday to update them on the situation, and followed up every day of the week to insist on service. This all occurred while I spent hundreds of dollars to stay out of my apartment. Only on the following Tuesday (Tuesday!) was a request put in to their outside pest control service. As of the following Friday, the treatment of my apartment is yet to be completed. Mac Properties has refused to offer any sort of compensation for the rent I had to pay during this time, or anything for the significant amount of money I have had to spend after essentially being constructively evicted, due to their poor ability to maintain the premises. While their customer service representatives are friendly, and are assuredly doing all they can, they can't fix that Mac Properties seems to want to slow walk crucial maintenance. Tl;dr: The cheap rent isn't worth the struggle. read more

I was trying to get my airconditioner put in and Tanisha Dennis was such a great help to me navigating me through the process. She's polite, professional and friendly. My experience with her just solidifies the fact that I made a great choice in choosing Mac properties. Thank you again Tanisha. read more

Avoid this company at all costs. One of the worst business experiences I have ever had. I've been living on a friend's couch for a week while I try to figure out where my keys are so that I can move into the new apartment I'm paying for but can't move into because this incompetent company won't give me my keys. They email me only three days before my move in date telling me I can pick up keys from the 53rd St location from 12:00-12:30, a HALF HOUR WINDOW that I certainly can't make because I work during the middle of the day like the vast majority of people. They then proceed to give me the run around for a week while I try to schedule another time to pick up my keys, each person I speak to giving me different answers. In one particularly memorable sequence of phone calls, I was transferred back and forth between two different locations, each claiming the other was responsible for scheduling a time to pick up keys. I was finally told I could pick up my keys at the 53rd St location at 8:00 AM on June 16, so I went at the appointed time only to be told that the keys were not ready yet and that I would have to pick them up at 9 AM at the Shoreland location. So I went to that location at the appointed time, only to be asked "are you sure your roommates didn't already pick up the keys?", which I then assured them was an impossibility because I am the only one of my roommates who is even in town. This resulted in a comical sequence in which three different representatives of the company began simultaneously attempting to track down the location of my keys while also giving me different explanations for why they didn't have my keys. Somebody finally came out and informed me that my keys had mistakenly been sent to the 53rd St location, even though I had been told explicitly that they would be at the Shoreland location. So now I'm waiting in their building lobby, where I have been for over an hour now, for somebody to run my keys over to this location. I'm writing this review to pass the time and hopefully warn other people about dealing with this company. Still waiting on those keys! read more

Received an email explaining the utility costs and how they are divided up in conjunction with the square footage of your apartment in relation to the actual usual of the building. Still makes no sense because i pay the EXACT amount towards People's Gas every month. Nonetheless, They still have not even begun to rectify the countless other issues with the apartment and building as mention in the initial review. They do not care. This is unfortunate because I do love the Hyde Park community - but i absolutely cannot put up with another year of this inconsistency and discomfort. read more

I am very thankful for the patience and thoughtfulness delivered from Tanika B. on this cold night. My HVAC unit went dead on me and Tanika politely and diligently assisted me with having my unit repaired. Her team gave me superior support and they emphasized with my situation which took much of the stress and discomfort away. I greatly appreciate Tanika's support and I'm confident that if any other issues occur, Tanika will be there to support and see to it that the matter is resolved in a timely manner. read more

Pricing has gone up, no more free wifi, you can hear people upstairs walking and talking on the phone, I can hear when she turns her light switch on. I've been woken up several times in the middle of the night by my upstairs neighbor using a hammer at 11:30 atmospheric gut to put together her dresser. Vacuuming at 10:30 at night. It's horrible. read more

Mac Properties itself can be pretty unresponsive sometimes and can take a long time to respond to service requests. I had an urgent issue where my fridge broke down and maintenance couldn't come for over 24 hours. I had to reexplain the issue several times over with no follow up until I got in contact with my resident services associate. My resident services associate, Ruth Hamilton has provided exceptional customer service and did her best to reconcile the issue in a timely fashion to her best capability. I have rented various apartments with Mac for several years and can't say I'm very satisfied with the company as a whole but am leaving this review because Ruth's services deserve a 5/5...not so sure about the rest of the Mac. read more

MAC might be the most incompetent company I've ever had the displeasure of working with. Not only do they overcharge for rent to dangerously unmaintained facilities (when I say dangerous, I mean walls which collapse suddenly), but they do so with no ability to give proper landlord services. For example, I spent a day off work because the MAC offices promised me a maintenance person would come by. Not only did no one show up, but there was never any record with the office that the work order had been filed. So I had to take another day off of work. Essentially, it comes down to this: if you can find another renter in Hyde Park, use it. MAC is incompetent, sleazy, and greedy. Crap facilities and service for too much money. Shop elsewhere. read more

Oh, where do I begin?..... Mac Properties has a huge presence here in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago, which is a pretty decent part of town to live in. I have been living in an apartment (The Paramour) ran by Mac Properties since September of last year, and in these short 5 months I have managed to somehow have the customer service number stored as a speed dial in my phone because I always have to call about SOMETHING... When I first got the "tour" of my current apartment, it was short, sweet and to the point. The apartment's beauty and updated appliances sold themselves. It kills me that the property's amenities such as the laundry room, intercom system and fitness center (which I never knew existed until 3 months in) were never even explained to me. When I did finally move in, after we went over about 3 different rent changes, I was without cable for about a good two weeks. Directv is contracted in my building, and they did their part in getting me all squared away with an appointment, but had to keep coming back because they could not find the AV panel in my unit. When I called Mac to have them locate it, they told me to look around the apartment myself and that the issue wasn't "priority" for them. After week two, I got an email from Mac saying they found the box and to reschedule with Directv. Talk about great customer service! *side eye* Ever since I moved in, there has been an odd stain on my bathroom ceiling, indicating a leak of some sort. When my ceiling finally started to bubble up, I called to report the leak issue. About a week later (speedy service) someone came to simply patch the ceiling up and repaint. Awesome job guys putting a band-aid as a temporary fix on the ceiling. Let's just say the ceiling has had to be repatched just about every month since the first patch job. Finally, I called with a little umph in my voice. They said they'd send someone to FIX the problem this time. I came home from an international trip to find a super large (check the photos) hole in my ceiling. No note left or anything. Days went by. I figured they'd realize a black hole was left in a resident's ceiling and that would prioritize the repair. WRONG!!! I called back in to hear the representative say "Oh, there's a hole in your ceiling?!" Super Professional, guys. Finally the ceiling was repaired and sloppily repainted, eluding to the fact that the problem was solved. Can you guess what happened one month later?? Take a wild guess.... So now it's going on Day 6 of having a super large, unhealthy, STILL leaking hole in my ceiling. Called in to issue a complaint to a guy named Irving and inquired about an inconvenience credit off my monthly rent for having to live in these conditions, only to be hit with "Well if there's a hole there the problem is being already addressed?" .....Excuse me? Irving must have many leaking holes in his ceiling too that have left him desensitized to people's living areas. Glad to know that Mac's first and only priority is their money. The American way. Other things that have concerned me: *People will KEY into your apartment "on accident" while the system shows no notes on someone supposed to be coming in. *Don't expect a note when maintenance comes for repairs, just look for the foot prints tracked on your floors. *The laundry machines SUCK! My clothes are usually filthier after going through a wash cycle. *Security is non-existent. *Mail/packages are very much so at risk for theft (I have my packages mailed to my job). I gave them TWO stars because the apartment itself (maintenance issues aside) is gorgeous. I always feel proud of how my apartment LOOKS. But, it's just a fiscade. I could pay a few hundred bucks more and get an apartment in the Loop somewhere which seems more appealing at this point. You have let me down Mac. read more

Mac Properties - Chicago Apartments - The super, leaking black hole left in my ceiling for going on a week at this point. - Apartments Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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My roommates and I have been living in the same unit for roughly a year and a half now, and have been generally unimpressed with the service we received. To be fair, MAC DOES have some redeeming qualities: -MAC office in Hyde Park is easily accessible, and staff can usually squeeze you in without an appointment -Online resident portal makes it easy to pay rent by e-check or credit card, and to monitor past payments, which is helpful when splitting rent between several roommates -Maintenance request form online allows you to receive SMS txt updates when requested services are completed Cons: -...BUT, those maintenance requests you submit may never be addressed -VERY inconsistent quality in (what is generally poor) customer service Since the very first day we moved in, we've experienced a slew of problems with the building itself--which is unsurprising considering the age of most buildings in Hyde Park. To MAC's credit, the first several were addressed in a very timely manner: the pipes under our kitchen sink were broken when we moved in, the outlet in our bathroom didn't work, and our refrigerator stopped running a few short weeks later. All of these were replaced within 2-3 days of our original complaint, and that was that. However, the problems--and MAC's service--have worsened considerably as months went on. Our entire building, for example, was without consistent heat (attributed to a boiler problem) for the entirety of September, October, November and December 2013, as well as about half of January, 2014. Despite countless calls and maintenance requests, maintenance workers rarely showed up when MAC said they would, and when they did, the problem was never fully addressed. For my unit in particular, the radiator in our living room would occasionally work after one maintenance worker came, but this was the only unit. MAC provided 2 space heaters for the 4-bedroom unit as compensation, but these units to little to heat an entire apartment, and run up our electricity bill. I'm sure a broken boiler is a complicated issue to fix, but it clearly wasn't a priority for MAC, as it was only fixed (hopefully permanently) this morning after nearly 4 MONTHS without consistent heat, while the cost of our rent--which explicitly includes heat--has remained constant. Our most recent gripe has been with our laundry appliances. Our entire building shares 2 washing machines, both of which are currently flooded with murky water. As of this review's posting, this has been the case for almost 5 weeks. Multiple maintenance requests have been canceled or ignored, and calls to the office have been unanswered. When confronted about the issue in person, our building manager, Ervin, was extremely unhelpful, and only agreed to figure out a timeline for fixing the problem when presented with paperwork saying that residents would begin to withhold rent if the problem weren't addressed soon. I'll update this listing as the situation progresses, but frankly, I'm not confident that the service we receive will be any better than what we've already seen. While MAC owns most of the buildings in the Hyde Park area, I would absolutely recommend putting in the extra time to find accommodations with a different company. When things in the apartment are running smoothly, day-to-day interactions with MAC are totally fine, and several staff members are very friendly. However, things WILL invariably go wrong. And when they do, my experience suggests that you cannot expect MAC to place much value on addressing serious problems (no heat in the winter, no laundry appliances for 4+ weeks, etc.) if doing so isn't convenient for them. I'm not sure if this is because MAC's customers are mostly college students with little financial leverage/knowledge of legal recourse for MAC's very obvious shortcomings in service, or if MAC is genuinely an incompetent company, but several older students warned against renting from MAC when I arrived at college, and I can definitely see why. I'm excited to move out at the end of the academic year, and plan on never renting from MAC again. read more

Mac Properties - Chicago Apartments - My building shares 2 washing machines; both of which are currently flooded, and have been for almost 5 weeks now. - Apartments Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I would never recommend this company to anyone. The customer service is horrible. The representatives lie to you and pass off issues to each other. They don't care how they treat their tenants. I have been without heat all day and no one can give me a straight answer. We have had mice in the past. I have experienced way too many firsts with this company that I never want to experience again. There are far better landlords that charge less or equal to the same costs. They are a monopoly on Hyde Park so they think they can treat people any kind of way. read more

I'm completely shocked at how poorly my apartment is managed. My biggest complaint for the past SIX MONTHS has been the noise - at first I let it slide that I had a neighbor who liked to play their music loudly. But when it became a daily thing, and to the point that I could feel the music, I finally decided to say something to the front desk person. To their credit, she was very empathetic and agreed the noise was an issue. However, after the fourth of fifth trip to the front desk (sometimes as late as 11pm), I asked to speak to the property manager. I was told she was would get back to me on Monday. 2 weeks later, still no call, I had to complain again about noise - the person who leased me the unit was at the desk at that time and told me "Noise is to be expected and there is nothing [they] can do about it." Oh really? The second issue isn't necessarily anyone's fault, but I have absolutely ZERO cell reception in my unit. I asked about at transfer because the building relies on phones to let in visitors (and I've missed deliveries and family members more than once) and, after 2 weeks waiting for a reply, I was told, "We only have one unit available" and was told its very expensive to transfer, but no one would tell me how expensive exactly. At this point, I'd rather know what the cost of breaking my lease would be. And finally - don't rent Shoreland. It looks like a great building in the lobby, but my apartment itself is awful. Besides the paper thin walls, there are TONS of things UNDER the carpet - and these aren't little things. The finishes are cheap, especially for the cost I pay. I was also told there would be screens on the windows by the time I moved in. 6 months later, still no screens. And there is *NEVER* parking during the summer months. Its the Hunger Games on a nice afternoon after work trying to find a spot. I regret moving here 100%. 6.5 more months and I'll be free. If I last that long. read more

I have lived in an apartment managed by Mac Properties for about 1 year and I cannot wait to move out. They do nothing when complaints are issued and have a nonexistent background screening for their tenants. My neighbor actually steals my mail. My advice is to find another place to live if you are moving to Hyde Park. read more

This review is me imploring you to please please _please_ NOT rent with Mac properties. Everything about this experience has been absolute nightmare and the company seems to have protocols in place to screw you out of your money. The Resident "Success" team that is supposed to advocate for people renting with Mac is trained to make your life a living hell. Just a small sampling of the crap I've had to deal with since stupidly signing a lease with this company: I've had Mac threaten to evict me because of a failure to process a rent payment on THEIR end. Their rent payment portal has regularly resulted in issues with how payments are handled, and the company willingly lets your check bounce so that they can charge you a fee for it instead of helping you resolve the issue. Employees are deceptively kind when showing your apartments prior to signing the lease, but incredibly rude once you are contractually bound to them. Roaches upon moving into a new unit. While the monopoly they have on apartments in the area makes it difficult to avoid being sucked into an agreement with them, I promise you that it is worth the extra legwork to hunt down a place with an alternative property management company and save yourself a lease's worth of misery. These people are unreasonable. read more

Don't do it. Mac Apartments owns a huge portion of rentals in Hyde Park which is unfortunate. Similar to the other reviews on here, when I went to pick up my keys the apartment wasn't ready. It was so bad they wouldn't give me the keys - and my movers were on their way... The gas also wasn't turned on which they didn't tell me (although they were quick to point out it was in my lease!) and it took half a month to get People's Gas to come out only to have their maintenance department not show up to let the technician into the basement. My first two weeks, the cops showed up twice to the dueling couple across the courtyard. When I tried to get in touch with my Resident Manager three times, I received no phone call back. I finally sent an email demanding a month's rent for the chaos. She returned my email with a rebuttal and then finished by stating "I hope I answered all of your questions." I didn't have any questions. I finally got in touch with the COO who argued with me for 20 minutes and ultimately refunded me $250.00. Now in my 3rd month, I have a new "Gas Usage" charge on my bill for $20.00. When I called to inquire, my new Resident Manager informed me that...wait for it...this is in my lease! I told her I understood that the gas bill would be capped at $20.00 and I received a bill last month for $58.00 and then clarified that Mac Apartments wants $20.00 ON TOP of that payment - she confirmed. When I asked what it was for, she couldn't answer me. So, the rent I thought I agreed to is actually $20.00 + $3.95 processing fee - that's right folks, they charge a fee to get paid rent. The walls are super thin, the floors creak hard core, and dirt flies in the windows and cakes on the floors. I haven't even unpacked. I'm counting the days until I can call movers again. Don't do it. read more

Mac overcharged my rent by $200 and charged utilities TWICE. My roommates and I have collectively emailed mac ATLEAST 6 times, with ZERO responses. This is outrageous. It's been over 3 days since we first attempted to contact them, and atleast 5 days since we noticed the incorrect bill. Who are they trying to trick? We literally have a copy of the signed lease in our hands with the rent/utilities written on it. Are they not aware that this is illegal? Just to add: After that comment from the manager, I've given my email address, and I STILL haven't gotten any responses! Good stuff! read more

Okay, 2 again...for kind of a good reason. (This was an apartment I lived in from June 2012 to December 2013 - and subletted until June 2014.) Here's a tip: when you get a very nice, refurbished, 3 BD/1 BA apartment...in a basement...for $1650...don't take it. Don't take any garden apartments, ever. Admittedly a large part of this ordeal was because we were Foolish College Students, but when we were taken to see the apartment it was never mentioned that our heating was going to be electricity-powered and that, by virtue of being in a basement, we would get no heat rising up into our apartment. I'm confused how the management/lady showing us the apartment didn't know that to heat an apartment of this size to liveable temperatures (I'm saying just over 60 F) it would be $250-$350/month to do this -- Hey! Here's an idea! How about you mention that? There was also no mention of the apartment being prone to flooding -- yes -- I know that with Life Experience and maybe some Googling we'd realize it would have flooded easily but hey! They could have mentioned it. This is a company that deals with first-time renters (college students) and so not mentioning the flooding hazards is a Jerk Move. Our apartment flooded in September 2013 and I had to spend a few days getting people to scrub the carpets, then manage floor fans to make sure the apartment didn't grow mold (it still grew some mold). It also flooded again the next spring. Here's the plus side: The people at MAC are reasonable (As a reminder most problems aren't because of evil people but because of the sum systemic effect of many slightly-unknowingly-disorganized people). MAC paid for people to scrub the carpets. They also handled installing something that prevented flooding sewage from spewing from the boiler room as quickly. We had no problems paying rent, and MAC even gave us some rent credits for the electricity (the reason we didn't realize it was so expensive was because of miscommunication about the meter - we didn't know to set up the meter with ComEd after it got installed in September (we didn't get a notification) and so we got back-billed in May for over $3,000). Also our address on file did not exist with the city. This meant we had to register under Comcast with the wrong address (hooray!) and made life hard when trying to register with ComEd/etc. It also made things confusing when trying to cancel. All of that aside: the apartment was really nice (minus flooding and being dangerously cold in the winter). --- So my main suggestion to MAC is that you need to be more transparent with customers on the utility costs, hazards, and communication with companies as well as any sorts of Address problems. This isn't even hard, it's a matter of just making a spreadsheet at some point of "Apartments with flooding hazards, heating problems, or weird address things!" And then you tell the person renting about it, by giving the person showing the renters the apartments a spreadsheet. read more

I DON'T RECOMMEND THIS PLACE TO ANYONE!!! They have the worse administration team. I leave in the New Bern. Everything "looks nice" and they treat you really well. But, you can't delivery package to this build because there is an easy access to the mail room and people steal package, there is no security camera in the mail room. If someone steals your package you are the responsible for, this is BS. Yesterday someone tried to break in my mailbox. The elevator is constantly breaking. The main doors are always getting stuck. To do laundry you have to walk to the main building to load your laundry card (This is a pain in the ass). There is no front desk in this building. I have tons of other things to tell but I would need a book to list them all, so I hope who reads this think twice before renting from them. read more

I'm at my wits ends. Although, they're great at communicating and regular maintenance. The living conditions of my unit have drastically declined. After just one month of living here I experienced a cockroach infestation. I'm currently six months into my lease and have already had three and a fourth upcoming pest control treatment. Not to mention I spray my unit regularly. It's clear that the root of the issue isn't being addressed. After a thorough examination I realized my unit has plenty of nooks and crannies for them to hide in during the day. I wish I would've noticed this before I moved in. read more

I am updating without upgrading. I want to be clear: not all is bad about MAC. I don't live in a tenement or anything. And, if you complain above line staff (which must be very unhappy people and they do their best to make residents unhappy), you can get somewhere. But what is line staff for? One should not have to constantly elevate everyday concerns. So, a couple of recent experiences have inspired me to share. One very objectionable issue is a stinky one and an unsightly one: yes, the garbage. We get frequent pickups, so that is not the source of the problem. It's more that between residents not knowing to not put boxes in the Dumpster without breaking them down/flattening them and maintenance staff/contractors using them for building materials and furniture, garbage overflowing into the alley is a frequent problem. The second issue is simply a very simple one: follow through. Follow up. Return phone calls. Do what you say you will do. And acknowledge when you don't. Don't fear the apology; I would be so generous if you would simply say "Oops, I'm sorry, let's work on this now." I'm left seething in the dark, not knowing what the status is. Lastly, just because no one else in the 6-unit wing complained does NOT negate the value of my concern! So don't waste time looking up that data. My concern is important to me, so guess what? You should at least fake like it means something to you. Things have been on a downward trend (new building manager) and I am not confident about the future. I don't feel like I have someone to take my concerns to. read more

I am not paying for private parking so that mac employees can park in my spot. No matter how often I call to have them towed or call to complain to mac it happens over and over and over again. Not cool. Not okay. Train your employees and stop letting this happen!!!! What will it take for you to make this stop?? read more

These people have the worst customer service I have ever experienced in my life. THE WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE. Every time I need a service repair or there's a problem paying rent I need to call back multiple times to reach anyone. Most recently I needed to get a copy of a new key for my apartment. They sent me from office to office forcing me to spend all afternoon simply getting a copy of a key. I also needed to call back five times to get a status update on the washer that was broken in my basement. THE SINGLE WASHER that serves more than 24 units. Pathetic. If you're a student try to rent from ANYONE BUT MAC. read more

We live at the Shoreland, supposedly their "luxury property". MAC properties has ZEROOOO customer service and really doesn't care at all to try and accommodate resident needs or requests. They have a monopoly here in hyde park (they own every decent building here), so they know that people have nowhere else to go. If you DO end up moving into one of their properties, MAKE SURE you don't have Tracy Velasquez as your leasing agent. If you get her, request a change to somebody else. She screwed up our entire lease, never bothered to show us around the building (gym, conference rooms, etc.) when we moved in...and is extremely rude if you ask her for help with anything. In general, I'd have to say this place is wayyyyyy overpriced for what it actually is and the services you receive. Update regarding Greg's comments: The front desk staff here in this building is not who I have had problems with...It's the MAC properties office that is a nightmare. If you had read the comments I sent to MAC properties when I was emailed and asked for feedback, you would have seen where I SPECIFICALLY praised the front desk staff, and explained my specific issues with the MAC properties management office. I'm sorry that the front desk staff was misled in your meeting, however I do hope that the issues surrounding the hideous work and behavior of Tracy Velasquez were properly addressed. Thank you for your consideration, Greg. read more

Do not rent from MAC. They recently pulled on site management and didn't inform residents. Or maybe they consider a notice taped in the lobby notice but I don't. I emailed them about in November and have yet to receive a response. They've turned the water off in my building no less than 4 times in the 9 months I've been here. Today's notice was dated 12/17 and said immediate cut off on 12/18 but no time listed. That's not helpful for people that need to use water in the morning, which is the ENTIRE building. I'd email them about this but since I've never received a response to my previous email, this seemed more effective. And the fees...those will get you. A fee for this a fee for that. Surprised there isn't an email fee. read more

We moved to Hyde Park from Berkeley, California this summer. Needless to say, moving half way across the country is especially hectic. We didn't have the luxury of driving around and looking at apartments; the only tool we had was the internet. We reached out to Mac Apartments and were connected with a leasing agent, Ken. Ken absolutely bent over backwards to learn about what we were looking for and get us into the perfect apartment. I called Ken one morning, nervous about settling on a place, and he said "I don't have any appointments this morning, let me go out and take a few videos of apartments you might like." Within an hour we were watching walk throughs of actual apartments (not demo units) we might like. This level of service really alleviated a lot of our fears, and was done for us at absolutely no charge. Later, when my moving company required that I tell them how many stairs the new apartment had, Ken happily walked over to the apartment and counted them for us. No other potential landlord / rental agency we contacted gave us anywhere near this level of service. The helpfulness continued throughout the lease signing process. Everything was done online, was very streamlined, and leasing agents (in particular Danielle and Monique) were always available by phone when we had questions or needed help. On move-in day we were late to the leasing office because of a delayed flight and heavy traffic, but Monique was patient and waited for us, letting us get our keys even past the time we were told was the last possible moment we could get them. The apartment itself is wonderful! We got a unit that had recently been remodeled inside, and it's obvious that when Mac renovates their units, they do a top notch job. We've got granite counter tops and new appliances, central heat and air... pretty much everything I had been hoping for. My only minor gripe would be that they picked a cheap dishwasher that'll probably serve more as a storage rack, but in my experience that's pretty typical for rental units. I see a lot of the negative reviews on here are regarding maintenance, and I can address that too: when we moved in there were a few problems (rips in two of the screens, dishwasher door wouldn't shut, etc.). A maintenance man was in our apartment within 3 days and completed all of the repairs quickly and professionally. Mike said that he was personally responsible for this building, and that I should feel free to call on him any time. I have full confidence (at this point) that if anything should come up, Mike will be here to fix it. Overall, I can't say enough about how great it has been to have access to Mac Apartments' services. I realize I'm starting to sound like a paid spokesperson at this point (you can check my other Yelp reviews... I'm typically a very picky reviewer), but when you're faced with the stressful prospect of moving across country, to a city you don't know at all, getting the kind of help that we did from Mac makes a person want to share their experience. I'd wholeheartedly recommend Mac to anyone looking for a new apartment in Hyde Park. read more

Following Anna K.'s review which will go hand in hand with mine - we both have similar complaints regarding the unfair gas bill that is for "communal" purposes. I already pay gas for my unit for cooking and heating was suppose to be supplied BY THE LANDLORD. But that isn't the case with hidden fees (which was made apparent to me prior to signing my lease) but I didn't expect to be charged the full amount EVERY SINGLE MONTH OF WINTER. I used to live in an apartment complex where the gas bill was my cheapest bill to cover. Why am I paying $20-30 already for cooking gas and then an additional $50 on top of that for communal energy when the landlord was suppose to cover the heating? Like Anna said, we cannot control this bill whatsoever to mitigate the cost making the overall rent higher than anticipated and that doesn't include other utilities. My reason for the low score is that the rent increase is becoming absurd in addition to this communal fee that each unit pays. I understand that rent goes with fluctuating market prices. But you cannot expect to advertise that monthly rent, expect the gas bill to be $70-80 a month, a monthly pet fee, and other additional bills would justify the increase. Also, there are indeed many problems with the units that are not told to the incoming tenants. I implore you to do your research prior to living there. Our issues didn't rise until winter when our heater acted up all across the apartment. See how you feel when you wake up at 3 AM trying to sleep and have an 8 hour work day coming up by metal clanging from the heaters and valves that are loose causing property damage due to hot water spillage. My next complaint is that there are only two washers and dryers in the complex next door to us. Each complex has six units.... Imagine trying not to find a busy washer and dryer. If there were units in each complex, I think our experience would have been slightly better. Who wants to walk out in the middle of winter to get their laundry when it is cold outside? All in all, I thought I would give MAC apartments a try, but this experience makes me never ever want to sign a lease with them again. read more