Town Square At Mark Center Apartments

We are in receipt of your letter dated July 6, regarding the above referenced complaintUpon review of our records, we have no evidence that Mr [redacted] reported any issues regarding his carpet or the walls upon move-in, as he allegesFurthermore, we have no record of him requesting to be present during the move-out inspection of his apartment.Contrary to what Mr [redacted] claims, his apartment was left in an extremely dirty condition with damages well beyond wear and tear, which is why he was charged for cleaning and paintingNote that we have pictures to evidence the damages as well as invoices to support the actual costs we incurred, and subsequently passed through to Mr***Lastly, the water, sewer and trash charges are valid and are owed.We were within our rights to apply Mr***'s security deposit to the damages we incurred.After applying that deposit, Mr [redacted] still owed the community $Mr [redacted] has paid the amount in fullAs a result, no further adjustments will be made to the accountThank you.Sincerely,Alex S [redacted] Community Manager

Dear Revdex.com,
I would like to inform you of the substandard living conditions at the apartment complex my family and I had the unfortunate experience staying at when we arrived from Texas last monthMy husband, our newborn baby and I drove to Virginia from the Austin area and moved into the Town Square at Mark Center apartments on July 30, After unloading all of our things into the bedroom with den, bath apartment at N Highview Lane, #– my husband immediately noticed the very small toiletsMy husband is not a very big person, weighing about 120lbs and 5’ 8” tall, he had to ask me what was wrong with the bathroom? Unfortunately, he was also having a really bad stomach ache and things were terrible for him using the undersized toiletsWe asked the staff at the leasing office and they were surprised to find out the seat was so smallOne staff member commented that she had never noticed the size of the toilets when giving toursThe next thing we noticed was the floor near the entrance was sagging inIn efforts to fix our living conditions, I looked online at the apartment’s website to see if there were any other floor plans available for immediate move inI hoped that we would be able to easily transfer over to the other space, in hopes that the facilities were better We were able to transfer to a bedroom, bath (S Highview Lane, #204) on Friday, August 5thAnother thing we noticed while we were staying there was the limited number of ADA ramps on the propertyMany of the parking spaces that are designated for vehicles with disability DMV tags, did not have a ramp onto the sidewalkAlso, the shuttle bus to the Metro was not wheelchair assessableWe asked the leasing office numerous times if they could ask the contracted van service to switch vans, so we could use the vehicle with a rampI observed many residents who were elderly and some with canes, having difficulty getting into and out of the shuttle bus with its steep stepsThere is also a resident in a wheelchair that uses the Metro bus to pick him upIf he wanted to use the shuttle, he would be unable to use the shuttle bus that his rent is paying for, because there is no wheelchair accessThere was no place designated for parking a stroller or a wheelchair, once in the busMy husband was forced to sit halfway in the aisle, while holding the baby in her carriage, placed on the seat behind the driverMy husband’s arm is weak and deformedHe struggled to keep the baby safely on the passenger seats, while straddling the aisle in efforts to not fall over, when the bus driver sharply turned cornersWhile waiting for the bus, in an unpaved waiting bus stop, we saw several rats running around the propertyThe garbage bins were overflowing, since the day we arrived and I guessed the unsanitary conditions promoted the infestationOnce we all moved into the second apartment, we experience more troubleNo hot water the evening we moved inMy husband was unable to take a shower after having moved in our belongings that humid and hot dayHe called the service number and hours later, a maintenance person arrived to light the gas pilot light in the water heater around midnightIn the morning, we were getting ready to be on our way to the airport to meet my sister and brother in law, who had flew in from Dallas, TexasUnfortunately, there was no hot water againWe either had to take cold showers or choose not to take a bath at all that morning and leave for the airportHaving no hot water was very concerning for me, due to the fact that I have been using cloth diapers for our baby in order to be mindful of reducing landfill waste and live a more environmentally friendly lifestyleI was unable to wash her things without hot running waterBesides the hot water problem, I had asked the manager at the leasing office to change the washing machine in the second apartment, because I was worried about its conditionThe maintenance person told me before we moved in that all I had to do was ask for a new one and it would be changedHe said, it would only take them about minutes to replace it, once the order from the office was givenWhen I went to the office to ask for a replacement, the management person Sarah, said noNot unless I was able to prove to them that the machine was faulty or brokenThe staff member who let us in, to tour the apartment before we moved our things in, also thought it needed to be changedWe looked at the label inside the front doorIt said the model was from April of The inside was rusted, there was hair and lint clogged inside the unit and it smelled of skunkI couldn’t bring myself to put the baby’s clothes in there, let alone her cloth diapersSo I tested it out on our bright white couch coversThey came out an antique ivory color, stained from the rust and grime inside the washerNot only that but the water heater had never been maintained to let out the build up of mineral deposits, which also contributed to the discolorationNow our expensive couch covers were grossI walked to the leasing office with the baby and placed the stained covers on her stroller and showed them what happenedThe other manager, Alex, listened and said he would order me a new one; it will be installed on WednesdayIn the meantime, they would give me permission to continue using the wash/dryer unit in the previous apartment #until the new one was installedThe next day, after coming home from food shopping, I noticed all of our laundry items: soap, dryer sheets, laundry cart, baby items, bleach and mail thrown into the back of one of the service vehiclesI stopped one of the maintenance crew and asked who’s service cart was this and why are my things dumped in the backHe told me someone had left behind stuff in the apartment (#315) and they were told to get it ready for the new tenants who were moving in the next dayThey were just about to throw everything in the dumpster had I not stopped themI couldn’t believe what I was hearingMore maintenance guys came out and I asked them who removed my laundry from the apartment that we had permission to useThey said no one told them we were still using the place, but to make it ready for the new tenant moving in tomorrowI pushed the baby in her stroller, laundry cart, and all of our laundry items up the hill to the leasing office and asked for the managerI was so upsetWhy did he not communicate to his staff that we were still using the place? When the day before he told me to use it until Wednesday? I asked him, what exactly was going on? Everyday I have to come to the leasing office and find out what is happening in this placeSomething goes wrong everydayHe had no explanation for why the apartment we had just moved out of was already leased out to someone elseHe also had no explanation for why our stuff was nearly thrown outSo now we have a new problem; I cannot wash the baby’s thing for the dayThe keys to the place had been changed; I could no longer enter in to use the machineThe machine in our place was junkSo later that night, they took a wash/dryer unit that was supposed to be installed into another apartment and put it into oursSomeone who had been waiting for their new machine, was now being told they had to wait until WednesdayUnbelievableThe next day when checking the mail at both the #and our new place #204, I noticed the mailbox compartments were not lockedI had expressed concern about the safety of my mail, knowing they were moving someone new into the apartment the next day and I had not had sufficient time to inform the post office to transfer our mailAlso, that the mail being sent to the apartment #was from the countyThey were government related papersFinding the mailbox opened and unsecure, I took several pictures of the opened box and the mail that was ours that had been left on top of a message boardStill to this day, I have not received my mail from #I have gone to the post office numerous times, they said they do not have any mail for me – it all went to the apartment box even though I placed a hold on it on the 13th of AugustI went back to the leasing office and asked them why are they so dysfunctionalEveryday got worseI had enough of that place and asked to be moved knowing they promised us a day money back guarantee or transferThe manager told me they would give us $in moving expenses to help with our moveThe next day I found a better, cleaner, safer place to live with facilities that were in good working condition, had hot running water, size toilets, updated washer and dryer machines, emptied garbage bins, preventative maintenance, new air filters installed in the apartments and extremely nice staff members providing exceptional great customer serviceI couldn’t believe we were only highway exits away from the other complexIt was like going from a junkyard to a palace and only increase our rent by $more a monthWe moved to the apartment were we currently are living the next dayThen, I went back to the manager at Town Square and asked if he received the invoice for the moving company, which came to a total of $He said he was not going to pay for the moving because we didn’t move to an apartment that was owned by their parent company Equity ResidentialHe failed to mention that condition, the last time he promised to help with our moving costsHaving worked for both city and county local government in James City County, VA, Troutdale, OR, and Fairview, OR, and Travis County, TX, I am familiar with complaints from concerned residentsThere is a real problem with the apartments at Town Square at Mark Center located at N Beauregard StAlexandria, VA I would like to file a formal complaint against them and their management companyI believed we found ourselves in very shabby living conditions and some of the issues we encountered could be code violationsI don’t think people should have to live with such despicable management practices and substandard housingIt is not a healthy environment and an especially scary place to raise a newbornI talked to some other residents while I was there and they told me some of their troubles with the place, since they had moved inAnother couple with a young child told me they had the washer/dryer maintained times and wrote letters to the property manager before the company decided to replace their machineAnother lady, who’s husband works for the company, came outside and told me she didn’t have air conditioning during the night, when it was degrees and humidShe also complained about the dryer not workingFortunately, her husband being a maintenance guy was able to work on their air conditioner during the night, to try and restore their apartment to a cool temperature, so his family could sleepI’m not sure how that was resolved, but I understood how the lady felt when she was in front of me, telling me her storyThe Revdex.com needs to make record of the bad management practices, poor upkeep, and unsafe conditions of this placeAlso, I think the city should do an investigation of the place and check for building code violations, health problems, and maintenance problemsI hope the ADA Disability Rights Section will look into lack of ADA ramp problems and have the shuttle bus improved to a wheelchair accessible busAlso, the sidewalks have numerous tripping hazards, having very large cracksThe baby stroller and laundry cart were stuck numerous times as I tried to navigate the complexIt was much easier pushing things in the street than using the sidewalksDuring our time there and even after we vacated that apartment, we received many daily emails about owing them moneyWe paid them over $2,in rent and fees for a place that only costs about $1,a monthThey sent us threatening eviction notices that were signed by people in their leasing office, on the property and then said it wasn’t their fault, but a computer error that it got into the mailTo this day, their company sends us emails about us owning them moneyWe have repeatedly written to the managers and asked them to fix their broken or archaic computer accounting systemOther problems include old air filters, when they said it had been replaced with a new oneNails were sticking out of the planks of wood, on the balconyDog waste scattered throughout the propertySwarms of mosquitosMy hope is that your investigation, will help the current apartment complex residents and future tenants experience a better living environment than what we encountered when we were there only a month ago

We are in receipt of your letter dated July 6, 2015 regarding the above referenced complaint. Upon review of our records, we have no evidence that Mr. [redacted] reported any issues regarding his carpet or the walls upon move-in, as he alleges. Furthermore, we have no record of him requesting to be present...

during the move-out inspection of his apartment.Contrary to what Mr. [redacted] claims, his apartment was left in an extremely dirty condition with damages well beyond normal wear and tear, which is why he was charged for cleaning and painting. Note that we have pictures to evidence the damages as well as invoices to support the actual costs we incurred, and subsequently passed through to Mr. [redacted]. Lastly, the water, sewer and trash charges are valid and are owed.We were within our rights to apply Mr. [redacted]'s security deposit to the damages we incurred.After applying that deposit, Mr. [redacted] still owed the community $63.35. Mr. [redacted] has paid the amount in full. As a result, no further adjustments will be made to the account. Thank you.Sincerely,Alex S[redacted]Community Manager

We are in receipt of your letter dated July 6, 2015 regarding the above referenced complaint. Upon review of our records, we have no evidence that Mr. [redacted] reported any issues regarding his carpet or the walls upon move-in, as he alleges. Furthermore, we have no record of him requesting to be...

present during the move-out inspection of his apartment.Contrary to what Mr. [redacted] claims, his apartment was left in an extremely dirty condition with damages well beyond normal wear and tear, which is why he was charged for cleaning and painting. Note that we have pictures to evidence the damages as well as invoices to support the actual costs we incurred, and subsequently passed through to Mr. [redacted]. Lastly, the water, sewer and trash charges are valid and are owed.
We were within our rights to apply Mr. [redacted]'s security deposit to the damages we incurred.After applying that deposit, Mr. [redacted] still owed the community $63.35. Mr. [redacted] has paid the amount in full. As a result, no further adjustments will be made to the account. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Alex S[redacted]Community Manager