The Stax

I just moved in this September, and I've already dealt with way too many issues, both before and after becoming a tenant. The leasing agents and property manager never seem to pick up the phone when you need to reach someone. No one in the management office answers calls. The only person who picks up is the operator, who just takes a message and passes it along to the office staff. He won't even transfer your call. Unbelievable! This building also seems to have no regular cleaning or maintenance. The elevator has a horrible stench, just like the trash room, where I've seen urine and poop on the floor. The smell is so bad that I've had to take the stairs just to avoid it! Even before signing the lease a month ago, I raised concerns during a quick tour about how little the windows open, especially during the hot summer months. I specifically asked the leasing agent Michelle, to confirm whether the unit I was interested in had an AC vent opening on the exterior wall. She quickly confirmed by text that it did, which gave me the assurance to sign the lease. But after moving in, I discovered there was no AC vent opening in my unit at all! When I brought this up with the property manager and leasing agent, they were slow to respond and brushed off my concerns like it was no big deal. Given my experience so far, I wasn't surprised at all to receive the recent notice about a change in management. Hopefully, the new management will take these issues more seriously.

I stayed at The Stax last year as a freshman at UW. I paid over $80 a month just for utilities for a studio, on top of rent. You also get charged for “amenities,” which were basically the two rooftop chairs that were never clean. Laundry was another $10 per load. It has been two months since I moved out, and I still have not received my $1,000 security deposit back because of the “high volume” of move-outs. The area was constantly noisy with construction and fire trucks day and night. When I first moved in, my window got sunlight, but by the time I moved out, there was a wall three feet away blocking it. It is not worth the money. It might say $1,400 on the website, but you will end up paying over $1,600 a month once everything is added. If you are a freshman, please think twice before signing here.