Forest Hill Apartments — Attraction in Bloomfield

DO NOT MOVE HERE!

The staff is rude and only cares about taking your money. The renovations you see online are only from apartments that have just had tenants move out; 80% of the units here are old because they refuse to renovate existing apartments. Many ghetto individuals are moving in, and it constantly smells like weed or cigarettes. At one point, I had a neighbor who was caring for an elderly person, and they repeatedly urinated in the hallway. The floors weren't replaced for months until they finally started renovating.

That’s another issue: they renovate the exterior of the property to attract new tenants, but after living here for six years, I can tell you that the only things that actually get renovated are the kitchen cabinets, new appliances (only for new tenants), new flooring, and the bathroom sinks. Basic new light fixtures are installed, but everything else remains old from the previous tenants, including the radiators, which emit SOOT! This soot damages everything—just look at the pictures. I had the health department of Bloomfield come out, and they confirmed it was soot. This building wouldn’t replace my radiators until I threatened them with the city. Even then, they only changed half of them, leaving me with a soot issue that was still present, just less severe. It turns out the radiators weren’t the main issue; the boilers needed to be replaced, but that’s too costly for these cheap owners.

The maintenance team is a joke. They told us they had other problems to address instead of fixing the mold or soot in my apartment, which my newborn was breathing in. I even found them sitting in their cars around the complex, hiding from management! We suffered from mold on the walls in our bathrooms for years due to a lack of ventilation and leaking roofs. My husband, who is a contractor, had to remediate the mold three times without them providing us with paint or supplies. We consistently had to pay out of pocket, with no reimbursement. As for the maintenance team, the only way we received help was by paying them cash on the side, which is ridiculous. To replace a window shade, they would say the management would charge $75 for one shade, but if we gave them a few bucks, they’d get us new ones. We even had to pay for upgraded light fixtures that they were installing in the new apartments. They are nothing but crooks.

To top it all off, we experienced Hurricane Ida, which flooded our garage with five feet of water, destroying our car and all of my baby registry gifts, clothes, diapers, and winter clothing. We were told there was nothing they could do for us. Many residents suffered from that storm, and we couldn’t even get help from FEMA with a nine-month-old baby. The property management simply looked the other way. None of these garages were insured by the tenants because renter’s insurance wasn’t required at the time, but it’s suspicious that the building suddenly had all this money for renovations (new dog park, new kids' park—which isn’t safe and no one uses it, a new BBQ section that is always dirty, new fences, and new appliances. It’s clear they had insurance and likely filed a claim for all the damages that tenants suffered, yet didn’t compensate us even a cent. I’m surprised no one has sued them yet.

We reached our final breaking point when we noticed they were accepting all kinds of undesirable residents, and roaches began to invade, even though I am extremely clean. It turned out there was an infestation, and exterminators were sent to everyone’s apartments.

They also RAISE RENT EVERY YEAR by 3-5% and blame it on Bloomfield Township. They increase the rent without making any upgrades; they just want your money.

Brown water comes out of the faucets every week, which they also blame on Bloomfield doing work underground, but that is complete nonsense. I have friends who live in Bloomfield and have never faced this problem. There were times I had to take my daughter out of the tub immediately because the water would change from clear to dirty brown. STAY AWAY. I have added...

If you’re thinking about moving into Forest Hills Apartments, I strongly encourage you to reconsider. Although I’m not a full-time resident here, I frequently visit to help a family member who lives in the complex—and both of us have had deeply frustrating experiences with the property.

Let’s begin with the parking situation, which is chaotic and poorly managed. Residents are left scrambling daily to find a place to park, causing frustration and sometimes altercation amongst residents. The street itself is wide and underutilized, but no effort has been made to mark parking lines or designate free residential parking. This lack of planning forces people into a no-win scenario: either park illegally or risk damage by squeezing into unsafe spots. What makes matters worse is the police circling the area at nearly the same time every day, ticketing cars in what feels more like an orchestrated revenue trap than a genuine traffic control effort. Simply painting clear spaces or working with the township to establish resident-only street parking would go a long way—but so far, nothing has been done.

When my family member first moved in, there was a cockroach infestation in the unit. While it was finally addressed two weeks later, no one should be expected to start their lease battling pests. The delay itself speaks volumes about responsiveness and quality control.

On top of that, there’s a serious lack of community standards being enforced. Loud music frequently blares at all hours, and I’ve personally observed people engaging in illegal drug use in shared spaces like stairwells and the parking lot. These are not one-off incidents—they’re recurring and deeply disruptive to residents who are just trying to feel safe in their homes. The worst part is that when these issues are reported, there’s either a delayed response or no follow-up at all. For a property that promotes itself as a peaceful residential environment, the lack of urgency around community safety is incredibly disappointing. The overall treatment of residents is another serious issue. In my time here, I’ve heard from numerous renters—not just my family—that the office staff can be incredibly rude and dismissive. Promises made during leasing or repairs often go unfulfilled, and legitimate maintenance requests are met with apathy. The general attitude from management is not one of hospitality or respect, but defensiveness and hostility.

Worse still, there’s an unspoken atmosphere of fear among some residents—especially older individuals or those with language barriers—who worry that speaking out will lead to retaliatory rent increases or other consequences. No one should feel that silence is the only way to maintain stable housing. It’s not just frustrating—it’s dehumanizing.

I’ve worked in multifamily housing before, and while I’m not licensed, I know what good property management looks like. It involves listening, following through, and most of all, creating a community where residents feel safe and respected. Forest Hills has fallen short on every one of those fronts.

In summary, unless you’re okay with daily stress, unreliable service, and a feeling that your presence is barely tolerated—please think twice before making Forest Hills...

I just moved in a few days ago, and from my experience so far I believe a 3.5/5 is accurate is you're critical, and a 4/5 is accurate if you're not so critical.

The positives: Renovated appliances: Despite the apartment buildings being old, it doesn't come off a dingy appearing and is a very comfortable living space. Community: It's a lovely looking neighborhood, quite the change of pace from the rest of Bloomfield which I find very dense and cramped. Great for pet owners. It's also very safe and it's very spread out, which I really appreciate coming from a suburban town. Location: If you use the garden state parkway to get to school/work this is the place for you. It is right next to the parkway. And it's close to many restaurants and stores to the north east. Leasing agents: I've had a good experience with the agents so far. They have been very enthusiastic to answer all of the questions I've had. They are very responsive to phone calls which I really appreciate, not so much to emails so your best bet is to call them to get into contact. And I understand that their days are busy so I appreciate them taking the time to help me troubleshoot.

The negatives: No AC: While the apartments come with central heating via a radiator, they do not come with AC and you'll have to buy a window AC unit yourself (max 8,000 BTUs). Do your do diligence when speaking with the leasing agents to ask as many questions as possible about what utilities you have and don't have because I felt blindsided by this and had to spend $100 on an AC unit and the side panels. Parking: It is HIGHLY encouraged to pay for a parking spot or garage. The first weekend I was there when I didn't have a reserved spot yet I came back late and was really struggling to find parking (I barely found a spot that was a long walk away from my apartment). This can get worse on the days when one side of the road is being cleaned. If you don't have a reserved spot it is unfortunately a dice roll for parking. Side note: Do not get a garage if you drive a big car. Laundry: This isn't too much of a negative since the unit's infrastructure could never support a washer/dryer, but it's a little bit of a hassle to have to leave your place, walk a block or two, and potentially have an open washer/dryer. You also have to pay for it with a reloadable laundry debit card which can add up.

It's easy to focus on the negatives, and since most of the negatives are resolvable it's honestly a pretty good spot and I am happy with my decision. All in all I would recommend it, just be prudent in your question-asking and...