Houston Apartment Ratings
Are Apartment Reviews Helpful? You Should Consider the Source first!
reviews are an interesting strategy. However one must
consider the source of the reviews first! In my opinion, there are basically 3 types of reviewers in the U.S.:
- There are the ones that seem to dominate every review I've ever seen on the apartment internet sites and presumably,
they are current or past apartment tenants themselves. I have what I think is a pretty good explanation why this hasn't
taken off, so to speak, and why they seem to have little promotional punch totally opposite of reviews in say movies.
Movie reviews are going to be subjective to the individual’s opinion as well but at least you get an educated third
party critique that has their integrity to uphold.
Some Houston apartment tenants can be great & some unruly. There are a
couple of types that need to be addressed, (I) is the tenant that
is just plain rowdy, they have parties that cause disturbances, are loud and obnoxious and are only concerned about
themselves. There was a certain age that all of us went through and can relate to. (II) Then there is the
apartment tenant
that is never satisfied. The constant complainer, the tenant that is always calling the office. Both of these can
leave nasty reviews if they don’t get their way and of course if they are reprimanded for their unruly actions.
Unfortunately, on the apartment review sites, there is no real rebuttal system in place like on EBAY, where the
Apartment management can comment on a complaint.
Two of the MOST IMPORTANT things you have to remember that there is always another side to the story and most people
will go out of their way to complain but unfortunately will not go out of their way to praise.
- Another type of reviewer is the media critic, and well, the apartment renting business is just not interesting
enough to get positive media feedback.
- The final and what I believe would be the most accurate source of information would be to talk with friends of who
currently reside or resided at the property in the past.
Ok, so you are back to square one? - You cannot trust tenant reviews, there is no media coverage or third party critics
to speak of, and you have no friends or family members who can give you a heads up.
NOT TO WORRY - There are viable solutions
(I) approximately ten years ago,
Houston apartment management companies had you sign and 6 -12 month lease and you were
locked into a contract. Today, there are still contracts but many
apartment complexes in Houston actually offer a 30 day
satisfaction guarantee. Please note that most of the properties that you find from the Apartment Owners on this site offer
this (peace of mind) benefit.
(II) Sign a short term lease (usually 1-3 months) in order for you to have an earlier exit strategy if it doesn't go quite
as you expected. The only problem with short term leases is that most always charge a premium for shorter terms.
Final Thought
You can read reviews and be misinformed, or get a referral from a friend or relative and/or focus on the
apartment management
companies who offer satisfaction guarantees.
Good Luck!
