Stonehedge Village

my family and i have lived here for over 6 months and are extremely happy with the management team as well as the maintenance guys and the grounds crew! this apartment is more spacious than my previous condo and you cannot beat having all this green space around us! if i need assistance or have a question, the awesome stonehedge team ia ready and willing to help. these bad reviews dont sound in the slightest to me like they are legit so i still think its a 5 star place and great for families!

Called in inquiring about breed restrictions because on their website the only restriction listed was «pitbull». I have an Alaskan Malamute. Apparently Malamutes are a breed restriction even though they are not listed. No big deal, I’m used to the rejection, I’ll look elsewhere. I thanked the woman for her time and she asked me if there was any way I could get someone else to take care of my dog… I had to ask if she was serious… What dog owner would give up a precious life just so that they can rent an apartment? It became very clear to me that this complex does not care about anything but making money off of people. I’ve never been asked that before. I was honestly shocked. Bad sales practices…

I am surprised about the bad reviews as my experience has been the opposite here. I have been here closing in on a year now and still no complaints. Management has always treated me well, maintenance has been great the few times I have needed help and always respectful and courteous. My neighbors have all been wonderful as well.
I am still very happy here. Overall nice neighborhood, beautiful layout of the complex (think more townhouse style than apartment complex).

Talking to the manager won’t do any good– she finds a way to blame things on the tenant that complains, and nothing will change. We can’t leave our window open for long in the spring/​summer or the apt fills up with smoke smell. This is a smokers’ apartment complex.

The smoking. They don’t tell you it’s a smoking apartment community, but it is. Apparently, they value the right of some tenants to smoke over the right of other tenants to live without secondhand smoke billowing in their windows and doors. Also, the lights are so bright in the parking lot outside, you can’t sleep in those rooms that face the front. Otherwise, it’s fine. But look elsewhere if you value your health and/​or ability to sleep.

Decent apartments in Kirkland/​Bothell area, but there are better options out there. I’ll start with the positives. It is a great location. Lots of grocery stores and restaurants just down the road and Kirkland waterfront just a 5 – 10 minute drive. We lived here for 2 years and always felt safe. There seems to be a lot of families and older people living in the complex. Office staff was helpful whenever we had questions. The apartments are pretty spacious and ours was 2 floors which was nice. The area is private and provided a nice view of a forest like scenery from our balcony. Now for the issues we had. They significantly increased our rent each year we renewed our lease. Initial rent was in the $ 1200 range. After the first year it increased to over $ 1300. We opted to renew and the following year saw another increase to over $ 1500. We finally had enough and found a new apartment. Our apartment did not warrant these prices after the increase. It was not updated, as many of the other apartments in the complex had been. Kitchen, bathroom, and appliances were all very outdated. It was old and run-​down. We would have no problem paying higher rates for an updated apartment, but it seemed very unfair. In our new apartment search, we found much higher quality at those prices in the same area. Additionally, we were not happy with the amount we owed at move out. We are a clean young couple. We spent an entire weekend cleaning the apartment from top to bottom and left it in what we thought was the condition we got it in. Typical to any apartment complex, we expected the usual carpet cleaning and oven drip pan fees. Of course they managed to charge us ridiculous added fees for cleaning and «partial repainting.» Even with our deposit we owed over $ 100 extra.

GOOD STUFF:
— timely responses when you ask questions, maintenance needs, and general issues *not always solved, but to be positive, same-​day responses*
— i was allowed to move into a different apartment when i had a neighbor that i was told was being discriminatory against me (i had to pay the difference to move, but they allowed my rent to stay at the same cost).
NOT SO GREAT:
Management does not have the power to actually address issues (the common response is «i can’t control who has guests over, can’t control if people are loud, i don’t keep track of who is here) which tends to be frustrating when this is the response to… .well, pretty much everything when quality of life is questioned. As an example, my neighbor likes to have 6 friends park in our parking lot (the max amount of cars per apartment is 2), and then leave for softball tournaments in one vehicle, so parking close to where you live is not always available. also, when these guys all come back, i can only assume we help him pay for water, sewer etc since it’s pro-​rated per occupancy, and i assume he doesnt have 7 people on his lease). however, since it’s not their «job to know who is there/​who isnt»; there’s nothing they can do about it. You will be told to call the security service, and that’s that.
Why i won’t renew my lease or live here again:
— lack of holding people to their leases, which you will have to deal with as a tenant. it’s not «their problem» (i.e. if you like to be loud and not give a crap about living in an apartment community or being courteous, LIVE HERE!!! you can do anything you want and not be held accountable!!!)
— dog poop EVERYWHERE my kids try to play (dog friendly, as a result though, this may be a bonus if you don’t like cleaning up after your large breed dog!)
— if you bring something to management’s attention, you’ll feel like it’s your fault for noticing something, or complaining about something.
— VERY THIN WALLS — you will hear your neighbor cough, snore, and make other «noises».
— i will not be renting from any essex property in the future, nor will be renewing my lease. counting down the months… again.