I lived here for five years with my kid, and mostly had a good experience. It was overall a great…read moreplace to raise a kid on a budget, commute to a nearby tech job, and enjoy the trail and park nearby!
Pros:
-As I mentioned, it was a safe place for a single mom like myself. I had a select few very caring neighbors that I actually miss since I moved, and the staff always seemed involved, and kind.
-We never once used the heat in our apartment. Being on the 3rd floor, and in a well-sealed apartment, we just never had to.
-The gym was amazing. Even though I belonged to the Pro Club, I often found myself hopping over to the Reflections gym instead while training for my ultramarathons -- it was super convenient! Especially when the weather was too terrible to run on the trail.
-Speaking of: Sammamish Lake Trail is literally across the street. I LOVED this aspect of living there! I'd hop over for a run nearly every day in summer, and most of the year tbh. That was one of the biggest benefits of Reflections!
-Marymoor park was SO close. We'd walk to concerts, and I drove my dogs over to the dog park literally every day (that was a bit too far for my older dog to walk).
-Management was always lovely with me. Collin and Christian helped a TON when a pair of newer neighbors kept letting their highly aggressive dogs run off-leash in the early morning, when I'd walk mine. They handled it quickly and with grace...considering I unleashed my inner New Yorker on them, ha
-The apartment layout was fabulous. We had a garage downstairs, and TONS of storage closets. I liked the inside entry, which felt really safe. The only time we had issues with neighbors was during the pandemic when they smoked on their balcony -- I caught them on film! Not Reflections' fault, but needless to say, we barely ever knew our neighbors were there.
-The fireplace was one of the best features! Power does go out often on that side of the lake, during winter storms -- but we'd flip on our fireplace and stay warm!
-I didn't have a lot of issues with move-out. I did use their cleaners as I've had a ton of bad experiences in the past when you get your own cleaners and apartments use that as an excuse to charge you... word to the wise.
-The location is SUPER convenient in suburban terms -- meaning you can drive to literally everything you could need. Whole Foods was a half mile away. Fred Meyer, Costco, Home Depot and Target were a short drive! Ditto with RTC.I miss the Brown Bear car wash and Family Pancake House! Suburbia is nothing if not driveably convenient...
Cons:
-I was paying around $2500 (including parking etc.) for a teeny apartment (600ish sq ft) with outdated decor. A couple of times I inquired about moving into a larger unit, but they were going for ~$3700 -- having lived in NYC, Vancouver BC, Paris, SF and other major cities -- this price was pretty funny. It's not like you're getting the culture and walkability of an amazing city! I had to stay due to my son, but now I live in a 4-story townhome in Seattle proper and get tons of walkability plus a more multi-cultural environment (though not by much -- it's still Seattle, lol) for not much more than that.
-Neighbors are mostly transitory, and often unfriendly. This is likely because many move there for just a stint at Microsoft, or on their way to buying a home. There's no real sense of community -- not management's fault (they try!), but just the vibe of the East Side. A big reason I couldn't wait to get out.
-The traffic noise is real. As a former New Yorker, this didn't bother me too much; it did make our outside deck unusable. There were often accidents right outside our window as it's where lanes merge on the Pwky and people honk multiple times EVERY. DAY. All the noise of New York, none of the restaurants or museums or cool things to do...
-No AC. We were west facing, and the summer sun was unbearable. I bought portable AC units which only partly worked.
-The parking situation is as bad as everyone says. For an East Side place, it's odd to have to pay for garage parking (usually a benefit of living in the burbs is having more free parking, yeah?)
-You can walk if you don't mind being around tons of traffic -- one lady literally walked to Whole Foods daily -- but walking around there is no fun.
-This isn't management's fault, but the East Side is a place I'd never live again. Too much homogeny (all white/Asian, everyone dressed like they're gonna go hiking); not enough interesting things to do or cool spaces. I chose to travel with my kid as much as possible so that he could see multi-cultural cities that value the arts, and not think Redmond/Seattle are how the rest of the world is. It's super techy and super nouveau riche, with only STEM prized in schools (what happened to balance?). I only stayed because I had to...
Overall, I'd say RBW is great if you have a family, are working in tech nearby, and want a quiet, safe suburban space to live near Lake Sammamish and Marymoor.