Gardens At Nova

The apartment complex itself was decent enough and the location is convenient BUT the MANAGEMENT IS ABSOLUTELY HORRENDOUS, if not unethical and underhanded. For the longest time, they had 1 old lady (Helen) in the office who didn’t know how to work the copier and once asked me how to spell «review». I actually felt too bad for her to say anything to upper mgmt. It took forever to get anything done but I put up with the annoyances.
I bought a ceiling fan because they said they would install it for me free of charge. However, after I bought it they said that they no longer installed fans. I was obviously upset so they said they would make an exception. However, when Chris, the shady «handyman», installed it, he then tried to extort $ 40 from me, saying that it was «a favor he was doing me».
The last straw was when my toilet started running. I asked them to come fix it several times throughout the month. They continually told me it was fine and that I just needed to flush it a certain way. My monthly water bill came out to about $ 500 as opposed to my usual $ 40. Of course the old lady in the office had no idea what to do so she recommended that I speak with Carrie Perez, the property manger. This is where things got very sketchy.
Ms. Perez tried to say that I had actually used all of the water purposely and that I would need to pay the full amount. I brought in all my previous water bills and showed her that something was obviously wrong. She did not change her view so I asked to speak with her supervisor. She REPEATEDLY REFUSED TO GIVE ME HER SUPERVISOR’S INFO. even after multiple explicit requests. She became very unprofessional and tried to blow me off, saying that it was not her problem anymore, but instead was between «me and the water company». After speaking with the water company, we both agreed that some significant plumbing issue was to blame. I then presented all this evidence to Ms. Perez and she still refused to even work with me or give me the information for her supervisors.
It was then that I contacted an attorney and had the attorney contact Ms. Perez. Suddenly, Ms. Perez’s entire attitude changed. I don’t think she expected to be called out on her BS. She became very irate and harassed me on my personal cell phone saying I had «crossed the line». Eventually, the property company’s attorney got involved and agreed that Ms. Perez was incorrect and that I would not be held responsible for any of the excess charges. Ms. Perez did not apologize in any way and made no effort to make things right. What’s more, I had to call after I moved out because she did not send my deposit back on time. After it was late, I contacted her and she once again became upset, and unprofessional.
MS. PEREZ IS ONE OF THE MOST INCOMPETENT, UNTRUSTWORTHY, AND UNETHICAL PROPERTY MANAGERS I HAVE EVER HAD THE DISPLEASURE OF DOING BUSINESS WITH. Despite the decent facilities, price, and location of The Gardens at Nova, I would absolutely avoid these apartments all together due to the willing and aggressive nature of Ms. Perez’s deceitful attempts.
I was a resident there from 2013 – 2014 and my roommate can corroborate the entire unbelievable sequence of events that transpired. Please save yourself a potential mess and DO NOT RENT HERE AS LONG AS MS. PEREZ IS STILL PROPERTY MGR.