Kensington Preserve

I really wanted Kensington to be a nice living experience. After reading some of the reviews of the complex (because in one of their monthly newsletters they encouraged people to leave positive feedback of the apartment complex on an apartment review website, such as this one), I was nervous as to what my experience would be once we left. We never had any issues during our time there. We paid rent on time, didn’t constantly need them in our apartment for repairs, and were quiet, easy-going tenants. Unfortunately, our experience has ended with a sour note. Pros: - Awesome maintenance guys - Nice appliances - Garages/AC/Laundry Cons: - They don’t mind lying to their tenants. My lease term ended on September 1st. I got no less than 3 phone calls asking me if I could turn in my keys earlier than the 1st. I told them I was doing what I could, but I have a toddler and needed to wait until I had a babysitter available to watch him so I could clean the apartment. I was told by the lady who was working in the office that they would not be in the office on the Friday before Labor Day and I needed to turn in my keys that Thursday, preferably as soon as possible. On the Thursday I went in to turn in my keys, on the door was the Holiday Office Schedule and they definitely had office hours on Friday. - Avoid the office if the owner is there for the day. When my husband and I went in to fill out our intent to vacate, the owner was working in the office. We filled out all the paper work, but on the day we had the U-Haul, we got a note on our door that said “Just a Reminder to come into the office to sign YouR leas Renewal” (no, that’s not a typo, that’s how it was written). This lead me to believe that the office had no idea we were moving, saw that we were moving, and felt the need to leave a message on our door to renew our lease, which we wouldn’t be renewing since we were moving. They didn’t forget to cash the check for rent that I brought in that same day, though! - If you live on the first floor in one of the corner apartments, be ready for water leaks during the summer. I would even suggest getting renters insurance, as it damaged 2 dresses of mine. This happened to us both summers we lived there. I was told, by the owner, that he had problems with the leaking in the first floor corner apartments, and then proceeded to tell me the next day that it happened because I put grease down the drain. So apparently everyone in those apartments puts grease down their drains. Interesting. - No amenities. They do offer a $0 initiation fee coupon for Walker Ice and Fitness, but that offer is available pretty much every other month already through the fitness center. - The owner is not fond of people asking for details upon move out when he claims there is damage and provides no detail. I sent a letter with a picture to the complex stating that I would like a more detailed explanation of the damage and why it was considered “excessive or unusual tear” (terms used in the lease). All it said was “kitchen vinyl damage” and took $100 off my deposit. The vinyl wasn’t brand spanking new when I moved in, and it never dawned on me to list every knick in the vinyl. I figured since it’s the kitchen floor, and it’s vinyl it would be considered “ordinary use and wear” (again, terms used in the lease) since I used the kitchen ordinarily. I guess not. So if you choose to live here, count all the knicks in the vinyl. I would like to know if he even replaced it. I’m thinking not. I suppose I could fight it more, but it gives me too much anxiety to have to deal with the owner anymore. - If you question the damages, the owner will try to tack on more damages that he “slipped up” on adding; even though it’s after the 30 days he has to itemize the damages (which is stated in the lease).