Union SLU

I lived in Union SLU for a year and I will give this property 0 star. Terrible customer service and horrible staff members who don’t even attempt to listen to tenant’s concern.
Since last year’s management change, the property has been through numerous staff changes and every time I go to the office there is somebody new who doesn’t know much about the process and the building. I am so glad I moved out since my move out process once again proved my right decision.
At Union SLU tenant cannot book service elevator. Regardless if the unit is professionals cleaned (with proof receipt) or not, the management will request it’s cleaner to clean again and you don’t find out the charges until after. The management charged me +$ 500 move out fee, even I always paid my rent on time and full. After reviewing the final statement, there were inadequate service chargers. Upon reaching about to the office, they pointed me to a 3^rd party debt collector who couldn’t do anything.
— — — — — -
Tina from the management office replied and communicated that feedback is important to the management team. I have spend +6 hours with the management and related parties to communicate and proof the inaccurate move-​out fees, however nobody from Union SLU were willing to help me (not even tried to listen to my issue and feedback). I finally got Seattle Light to call the management team directly and explained the situation to have the management reverse inaccurate chargers. Even the management team agreed to remove these charges but incorrect info were still sent to the 3^rd party debt collector, thus I am still mandated to pay for these inaccurate charges. The management explained that all information has been sent to the 3^rd party debt collection agency, thus the management does not have my records and cannot control this situation. However the management office were able to sent adjustment statement via mail after I received the debt collection agency’s mail, l (clearly the management office still has records). Tina called «valued past residence» in her reply, however if a management cannot even fix its own mistake and overcharges its past tenant through a 3^rd party debt collector, I don’t understand how this management team can value its current and past residents. If you want to save yourself some trouble and headaches then don’t live here. I learned it the hard way. There is a reason to numerous negative reviews on this place and its management team.

The Pinnacle company took over about a year ago. The leasing office and management are terrible and are very rude to their residents. I have tried to talk to them in person and over email to try to resolve issues with fixing things in my apartment. They were very rude or condescending to me, either ignoring me or treating me poorly. Definitely not the «exceptional» customer service that they boast about on their website. Don’t move here. It’s expensive and the management doesn’t care about their residents. And Facebook moved next door so the traffic on Dexter will be horrendous.

Unfortunately our time here has decreased our satisfaction. We will be moving in about a month and will be happy to be elsewhere. I just wish they would keep some regular staff at the office instead of switching people around all of the time. I will say that our maintenance woman is awesome though. She is thorough and gets to requests quickly. I think the package receiving and shipping policy here is awful too-​or at least the way they let us know their rules is. The emails are not friendly. Also-​there has been weird plastic covering all over the elevator and an apartment on our floor and no one knows why. A notification email would have been nice – because it looks weird and makes me wonder strange things…

Update 6 months after move out: After we moved out on November 10^th, we turned off our electric through Seattle City light. For some reason though it was not disconnected from our name. Fast forward to the end of December. We received a bill from Seattle City Light showing that December was the highest bill of the year. We proceed to call Union SLU, specifically TINA CASTRO. We explain the situation and how we should not have been charged for UNION SLUs electricity. Tina agreed w us and said it would be taken care of through corporate. Fast forward to May, we received a letter from a collection agency for the unpaid bill that Tina assured us would be taken care of. We reached out to Tina asking what happened and she proceeded to lie to us and how she never said it would be taken care and that corporate has nothing to do with the power. So who pays the power when there is no tenants in the apartment? Again to reiterate, Union SLU is the absolute worst run apartment community in Seattle. Tina claims to be from corporate so I guess the same could be said about Pinnacle mgmt. company. Beware anyone who has to deal with Pinnacle or Tina Castro you are in for lies and horrible customer service.

TLDR; Don’t live at Union SLU. Further details as below:
— The walls and ceilings are very thin. Expect to be bothered at late hours by noisy neighbors. Loud footsteps from above, wall-​rattling bass, people above you vacuuming and moving furniture at odd hours, you name it.
— This building gets HOT during the summer. Even spring or fall days can get uncomfortably warm. There is something about the building’s construction that traps heat in and doesn’t let it go, so even when it’s a nice 70 degrees outside, it’s 85+ inside. And no, there isn’t any air conditioning. If you’re contemplating buying a portable A/​C, the windows don’t slide vertically or horizontally, but rather open inwards to your apartment — making installing a portable A/​C difficult.
— Expect to see pet waste in the elevators. It’s not uncommon.
— Parking spaces are small, and expensive. Many tenants here have trouble staying within their spaces.
— The management here (Pinnacle) is truly awful. Apathetic on a good day, and downright rude on most days. Approaching them with any issue will result in short, curt sentences and sighs and eye-​rolling. Trying to sort an issue out via e-​mail? You may not get a reply, or management may stop replying to you in the middle of an email thread. Yes, both of these have happened to me. Really miss the days when Holland Residential was managing this building.
With all of this said, are there some positives to living here? In the interest of being fair, there are:
+ The gym is generally clean and not very busy. A media room and game room are available, but I didn’t use those so can’t comment on them.
+ The appliances, cupboards, and countertops are nice. Lighting is plentiful and bright.
+ The point above about the apartments being way too hot? This results in them being comfortably warm during the winter. Most winter days/​nights I didn’t need to use the heater.
+ WaveG (formerly CondoInternet) offers service here. Internet speed was 100 mbit as advertised.
+ The woman who works Maintenance is very kind.
In summary, if you are looking for a place to live in this area, do yourself a favor and pass on Union SLU. Don’t make the same mistake that I, and many others, have. If you’re still on the fence, look at the other reviews — so many complaints are repeated by multiple different people across a long period of time. Despite the large volume of feedback that tenants have given, much of which has been superficially acknowledged by management, these complaints persist. There has been no indication that this will ever change.
Don’t live here.
Don’t live here.
Don’t live here! (Sorry to repeat myself here but hopefully this will be more memorable).

Really enjoyed living here until the sudden and abrupt change in management. Holland was great. Pinnacle could not be more inept. I was not going to leave a review as I’ve moved on to a new apartment already, but a letter from a collections agency changed my mind.
In short order after the management change, all amenities fell into disarray and maintenance suffered.
— BBQ grills on roof, toast. Out of three usually only one or maybe two were operational.
— Cleaning suffered. Staircases and common areas usually gross.
— The elevators/​doors are periodically non-​functioning.
— No air conditioning in the hallways so in the summer either you cook in your apartment or cook in the common spaces. They probably do in the lobby so they don’t cook themselves.
— I almost forgot to add that they have a ridiculous package policy. Nothing over the size of a carry on, and only hold for 72 hours before being sent back. Yes, that’s what their actual policy is. Oh, the office also closes at 6PM so if you work late like most Seattle tech industry, too bad. Better hope your family doesn’t mail you anything when you’re on vacation. Under the previous (and competent) management, you could arrange to allow access to your home if you have like a furniture delivery. Not happening under Pinnacle. It’s not like we could take the 5 mins out of their busy schedule to accommodate residents.
— Staff rented me a storage space but forgot to provide keycard access to it.
— Took them two months to accept direct draws from checking, functionality we used to have setup. I had to order a box of checks because apparently we live in the 20^th century.
— Lack of supervision/​security during major holiday events on the roof terrace. People can (and do) apparently break stuff and leave a mess.
— Decrease in services/​amenities, rent increases.
I could deal with all that, fine change management kinks, I get it. What really crossed the line for me though was the move out process.
— When I moved out they refused to allow me to reserve an elevator so they can put up pads to prevent damage to the elevator, which even the movers found strange. The lady at the desk even told me «We don’t do that.» Well, you used to, and this is just one reason why I left.
— Dock reservation hours are limited and the timeframe you can reserve is also limited
— Finally I paid their fees for cleaning/​repairs etc. A month later I have a letter from a collections agency for that fee that I already paid. So apparently the management sent me to a collections agency because they’re too incompetent to do proper accounting.
++ Update — They resolved that they sent me to collections in error. However, I am letting my review stand as this should never have ever happened in the first place.
Just too much, avoid this place. I found better housing for slightly cheaper and much better service not so far away if you just shop around. It’s not like you don’t have better options even in Seattle.

Updating this review to one star. I moved to a new apartment two months ago and it is drastically different to Union (in a good way). My concierge and front desk staff respond promptly unlike Union and I pay close to the same price. Also, after I moved out Union charged me a ridiculous cleaning and shutter fee which I was completely blind sided by. DO NOT LIVE HERE, there are much better apartments in Seattle at a better price.

At first I was quite hesitant with the number of concerning reviews, however, after having moved in, I haven’t experienced issues. The place itself is very new and comfortable. I believe most of the negatives as of late are stemming from the transitional period — but so far it’s been good!
Furthermore, I had a few issues with organizing my rental payments and management was very helpful in assisting me and setting things right.

Complained to them about dog pooped in front of my apartment window (we live in 1^st floor) for almost a week. They told me they will have somebody go clean it up. Today go through that side walk and surprise!!! Poop is still there! Hella big poop though. It makes me sick! I need to close my window all day to keep my eyes out of shit.
And neighbor is extremely loud.

Be warned! Three months later… No security deposit returned…
They have horrible accounting and are trying to double charge us for the water bill we already paid!
Update to come as soon as they get back to us which is most likely mid next year…

TERRIBLE! THEY ARE TERRIBLE! DON’T GO TO THIS PLACE! The place USED TO BE awesome when it started! It was perfect. Everything you need you could ask for the crew and they were ready to help you!
THEN the build was bought by a company called «Pinnacle Living» and all the crew changed!
THIS CREW IS TERRIBLE! Whenever you need anything they won’t help you. It’s a lack of respect how they treat you. When you need a document, they don’t know where they stored. They lost one copy of my keys! They NEVER answer e-​mails from anybody. They made a mistake of double charging me after I left the apartment threating to reporting to my credit. And then I called many times and sent e-​mails, they do whatever they can to NOT HELP you solve the problem that THEY CREATED! The maintenance of basic things are not working anymore. THIS COMPANY REALLY F**** UP WITH the build that used to be awesome!
READ THE OTHER COMMENTS! Everybody complaining!

DO NOT LIVE AT UNION SLU. I REPEAT PLEASE DO NOT LIVE AT UNION SLU
I am able to write this review today thanks to the management that basically returned me from their door saying we are not open yet. Well, if i visited a Govt. office or a court or a Jail i would have accepted that response, but unfortunately this is my house where i live and i expect a little bit courtesies here and there.
So let me explain why i went there. I went there to help the management manage their package situation for which they keep sending us emails and reminders about. I received a Gift yesterday (it was a gift so it was delivered to the management, else would have gone to an Amazon locker or to my office) and by the time i got back from work the office was closed. So, i decided to pick it up in the morning before i leave for office. So, at 9:50 AM i walked down and requested them to give me my package and the response was we are not open till 10 and our systems are not up yet.
This is the latest issue out of the many, few days back it took them 2 months to replace my blinds and obviously i had to make multiple visits to them and at least 2 times the response was that the vendor hasn’t sent the blinds, we can’t help it.
Well here is how it works «I Pay rent to you and You are paying the vendor, what a vendor doesn’t do is not in my hands but it is in yours»
I could go back in history and find all the issues i have had here, but overall my idea of Home is a comfortable place with nice people around and Pinnacle Management isn’t one.

For 1.5 years I was one of those tenants that actively tries to make a community better by helping management with simple improvements to make thing better. I drop by the front desk often to say hi and keep an eye on things. I’ll even pick up trash and tidy up a bit as needed.
Unfortunately Pinnacle, the new management company, is not interested in suggestions. They always expect immediate action from their tenants but either ignore requests or do the minimum required when reminded. I hope they become more accountable.
Maintenance keeps things clean and fixes problems in the unit promptly but they don’t raise the bar. They ignore larger requests (recycling in the common areas/​yellow striping next to the driveway/​free motorcycle parking areas/​no dog poo signs near entryways/​better security with locking stairwells).
Some of the other tenants are not respectful. Some smoke near the entrances or even in the stairwells/​parking, others don’t clean-​up after their pets *even inside* and leave garbage in the hallways or common areas. It’s worse here than even some short-​term stay buildings I’ve lived in. Likely due to the high-​turnover rate of residents.
On the plus side: the units are comfortable, booking an amenity is free, you’re down the street from QFC and lake union park, the building is located right on the bike route and there’s still parking nearby for visitors. Dry-​cleaning across the street and Herkimer coffee are top notch. I’ll miss those guys.
Cost is what you can expect for the location and if you don’t need a car or are willing to park on the street then you can save hundreds of dollars.
In summary, if you can manage your expectations and stay in your unit/​ignore everyone else you’ll be fine. But if you like a «community» as I do search elsewhere.

Update 12/​01/​2015: Ever since the new management (Pinnacle) has taken over, the experience here has gone bad.

If I were you I would RUN not walk to any other apartment complex. Although the facilities are decent and the location is good… The management and facility are crap. This is actually my first time writing a Unilocal review because I’ve had such a terrible experience in the past 3 months of living here.
I could go on and on about the terrible service, over charging, ridiculous uneducated crap that happens here but I’d be wasting my breath. Look elsewhere and believe the majority of the last tenants reviews. This place is the equivalent of an expensive dump

It was good until they changed management. Rude staff, acting like they do you a favor, no way to pay online, the entry door is broken so you, the one living here have to enter through the garage’s side door.
They dont answer emails, seem to be busy all day. I got robbed twice in this building, both times at the garage (left gloves and left bottle with oil for the car). First time I bothered because it was the old staff, now I didnt even bother telling these guys because they havent even shown me a paper where I can confirm that they have received my monthly payment.
The price is unreasonable at this point.

If it were possible, I’d award Union SLU a negative star rating.
We moved into Union under Holland management and very much enjoyed the service, location, the building, and our unit. no issues. We’d probably still be living there if it hadn’t been for the change in management.
In June-​July of ’15 the building ownership changed property management from Holland to Pinnacle. To describe the transition as a «rip-​roaring dumpster fire» would be the understatement of the year.
Holland out, Pinnacle in and all services immediately halted.
No trash, no cleaning, no maintenance. nothing.
After about a week trash service came back online (but not before dealing with clogged trash chutes, overflowing garbage cans, garbage in the hallway).
About another two weeks after that, cleaning services resumed — though not at the same daily frequency as under Holland, now only twice weekly.
Some time later, maintenance comes back online.
The above described month-​long lapse in services could have possibly been overlooked just enough to renew for another year if at some point the new Pinnacle team made a recovery and began to offer a level of service on-​par with other apartments in the area, but that never happened. In fact, service only worsened as time went on.
The worst part of living at Union SLU?
Without question — the front desk staff.
Every time I made a visit to the front desk, I knew I could expect to be let down. Each coming with a progressively lower expectation, yet somehow each time being let farther and farther down by a staff who had managed to best (or worst?) their previous low.
Totally inept — Need a spare key to allow movers to use the elevators? Sorry they can’t help [insert computer related excuse here]
Need help booking the loading dock? — sorry, they don’t know how to [insert excuse here]
Blatantly disrespectful if not downright rude or confrontational — I had a maintenance man threaten to fight me.
Still teetering on the fence about whether or not to move in? here are some other perks of living at Union SLU that new tenants can look forward to:
— Those shiny stainless steel grills up on the patio area — all three were broken from June ’15 through October ’15 at which time they fixed only one. To this day (December ’15) ²⁄₃ grills are still out of order.
— «Special Delivery» — Want to buy something online and have it delivered? Better check and make sure it’s not bigger than a carry-​on bag otherwise Union SLU front desk will refuse the delivery (not kidding).
Out of town over the holidays? Better reach out to all your loved ones and ask them not to ship you anything — packages left in the package room for more than three days will be returned to sender (also be sure to let them know not to send you anything bigger than a carry-​on).
«Like two ships in the night» — Hopefully you (and anyone who ships you anything) are the kind of people who are on top of shipping notifications, because at Union SLU you wont receive email notification when your package shows up, and you already know what happens if that surprise apartment warming delivery from mom and dad sits in the package office for three days.
Post-​move update:
My deposit was promptly returned, but only after the cleaning fee was deducted (most other apartments include this in the cost of doing business, at Union SLU it’s a profit center, so prepare yourself for that).

I moved here 6 months ago and loved the property and the management team. They also had a cleaning staff 7 days a week. This is no longer the case. Our property was recently purchased by Pinnacle and the building has fallen apart.
First, the staff is rude, degrading, unresponsive, and lies. They have been here 4 – 5 weeks and just last week hired a cleaning crew. That only comes 3 DAYS a week. The common areas outside are filled with trash, dog area is disgusting, the property doors are never windexed, and there are trash and urine markings in the elevator.
Second, these buildings do get hot. And while we do not have AC our hallways do. When Pinnacle took over, the hallway temps exceeded 85 degrees and were switched to «heat». They claim that the hallways don’t have AC but they use too — if it got hot in your unit all residents would open doors to let the air flow in. Again, this staff is not knowledgable or professional at all.
Today was he final straw. Our hot water went out throughout the entire building. Of course the office staff stumbled around and had no idea what to do… they finally got ahold of maintenance. We were first told this was a city issue. After walking to 2 other properties next door it was clear they were making this up because all properties had hot water. They finally admitted that both boilers were out. Maintenance was concerned because it’s unlikely both flames go out at the same time. However, when confronted about it in front of the office staff, more lies.
It’s unfortunate this has happened to a property that use to be so pleasant, friendly, and clean. Many residents are having leases reviewed so they can move (this property is a safety and health concern).
Please do not choose to live in a Pinnacle property — no matter how good the deal is.

This is the worst place to live, the apartments are 96 degrees all day and all night, even with an air condition ²⁴⁄₇ the temperature is the same. New management don’t do cleaning, don’t give any solution I just hate this place, it’s THE WORST PLACE DO NOT COME TO LIVE HERE overall it’s overpriced.
The other day I say a vomit in the hallway and was there the next day, after a bad cleaning the vomit smell remained for days…

I lived here since almost a year, recently they change the management and the building is always dirty, i saw a plastic plate on one of the gardens since 5 days, and the gardens are now dry. The new management is rude and heedless. Before the building was secure, now all the electronic security on the doors has been disabled, even during the night. If you receive mail or a package, they never tell you, you need to ask every day, and the guy at the door answer in a really rude way without even look if the package is there. If you order food to amazon fresh, blue apron or any other similar, be prepared because this guys will never tell you the package already arrive, and then if you try to discuss because the food isnt good (the frozend is gone), then they threat you like if you are an stupid, even when the box said «keep the food frozen».
Finally, for the price, my recommendation is look somewhere else. Before i was thinking on extend my leasing, but now, i just want to finish the leasing and look another place.