Cary Greens at Preston Apartments — Attraction in Cary

I'll share my experience & feelings, as a 10 year resident of this Cary central, apartment complex. As mentioned, I've outstayed 2 previous property management companies. I also pay rent on 3 garages. I won't list all of my frustrations about the people running Cary Greens but I can't point to anything I could thank them for. So if you want to live somewhere that couldn't care less about your needs or situation and seem more focused on "turning units" than even the most cursory of customer service principals, then you should move here. I pay rent, as I have for 7 years (prior to that, checks were written), on an online portal. Never been late on rent. Never NOT paid. 10 years. I realized on the morning of the March 6th that I was a day late on rent. I had been working long hours and in and out of town and for the first time in 10 years, lost track of the day. Frustrated at myself, I logged into the portal and paid rent, as I normally would. Everything seemed to go fine and I assumed that the fees would be accessed automatically the following month. I saw a confirmation number on my screen and closed my laptop, as I'd done countless times before. Over the next few weeks, I go about business as usual & actually pick packages up from the office multiple times during each week. The packages have to be handed to you by a staff member and were. Not a word anything was amiss. On the 28th of March, I come home to an eviction notice stuck in the door. It's dated for delivery on 3/20 and requires an appearance in court a few days later 4/4, the same day I am scheduled to have spine surgery. Confused and frustrated because I HAD NOT RECEIVED ONE SINGLE PHONE CALL, TEXT MESSAGE OR EMAIL, I went to the office to inquire. If you've ever had a complaint and had it met with complete carelessness, you know what happened next. "Sorry, we put 2 previous notices in your door", turned into "[other office manager] was out last week and she usually handles that". I explained I'd gotten no notice and questioned why I had not been notified that there was an issue during my numerous visits into the office to retain packages. Sorry? What? I asked if notes stuffed in the door (of which I saw none, ever, until eviction) was the standard procedure for this company leading up to eviction. The response was pathetic at best. I politely asked about the associated fees and explained my situation and that I would never just stop paying rent, although I had recently put in notice to vacate (full disclosure). Here's the moral of the story, you can tell when people care and when they don't. When you're doing business and paying others money to the tune of $1400/month, they should at least try. lack luster, would be putting it nicely. As others here have mentioned, if you want to live somewhere that operates as I've mentioned and provides blank stares to resolve issues, move here. I do not say this as a disgruntled former tenant. This complex has been home for 10 years. I used to love it here but when you feel like you're walking on eggshells around an uncommunicative and apparently burned out staff, it makes you miss the old days...when people who cared worked here. I've tried very hard to be a good tenant, respect my neighbors, etc. I own a service business and realize the importance of all those things and more. I gave myself a week to think this through before posting. Ultimately, I post this because in spite of what happened, the response from management was so dull, dismissive and nonchalant, I hate imagining that these are the representatives of the people I pay every month I made a mistake or the resident porthole had a glitch and I didn't double check. I admit all those things. It would be nice to be given the benefit of the doubt from your landlord and not have evection proceedings begun without any prior contact. **side note. There are a couple of members of the grounds crew/maintenance staff that are totally friendly, make conversation and most importantly make you feel comfortable and at home with a smile and "hello" when...

This complex certainly isn't perfect, especially since it went under new management in late April. However, you can't expect miracles overnight; it's a bit tough pick up where the Marquis management left off. It's been a rocky start, but things are starting to fall into place and I think they're heading in the right direction. Just give them a little time to prove themselves. Compared to other complexes at this price range, Cary Greens is well above average.

Pros: Storage, storage, storage. Everywhere. Closets, drawers, outside storage, and garages if you really need them. The kitchen has so many cabinets that I don't even know what to do with them! Also, holy walk-in closets!! HUGE balcony extends from the living room to the bedroom. Floor plans are practical and offer lots of space (even the 1 bedroom/1 bath, which I have). The bathtubs are pretty darn big. At 5'1", I nearly have to climb out of it, but soaking in a bubble bath up to your neck is certainly worth it. Awesome, safe community. Neighbors always smile and wave, and there are so many cute dogs everywhere! Pretty quiet, but if you happen to have a particularly noisy neighbor, I suggest getting some fans to drown them out. Decently-size pool. One side can be used for swimming laps while another is suited for recreational play. Also, lots of grills! Maintenance tends to respond within 1 or 2 days. Staff is nice and always tries to help as best as they can. Within walking distance of Lowes Foods and an AMAZING cafe is across the street.

Cons: Light switches are a little strange. Some switch on electrical sockets (good for lamps), some are reversed (the switch near the dining area turns on the hallway light and vice versa), and one even turns on the dishwasher! Crazy, right? Valet trash is EXPENSIVE. You pay around $35/month for someone to pick up trash at your doorstep Monday - Friday. So definitely make use of it! Apartments are a bit old, so they might not look fantastic and may need occasional maintenance. Management is working to fix them up, though! Maintenance responds quickly, but will show up any time--meaning no appointments. So expect them to come in when no one is home. (But they're pretty cool guys, so I wouldn't worry about it. :) ) Weightlifting and cardio rooms are quite small, so if you're serious about exercise, go to a gym. If you just want a little workout here and there, this should be fine. Still an awkward transition, but it's getting better. The online payment system was a little wonky at first and caused some confusion, but it seems pretty stable now and is great for keeping track of bills. Landscaping has declined a little, but it's picking up again. Things are gradually improving here, so it should be back up and running like when it was the Marquis...

Edit: Left a sizzling negative review yesterday. My main problem, which was having to jump through hoops to pay rent, has been resolved. I left the story intact, but have balanced the review with some positives. I got here in Spring 2022.

The good: The apartment itself is pleasant looking and has nice fixtures. The location is convenient and I like living close to Bond Park. No mold, no bugs. Kudos to maintenance for being friendly, quick, and effective, because I have needed them a dozen times in 7 months (leaks from an unfinished renovation, dryer breaking, dishwasher, fan/lights going out). The office staff is pleasant, which once again, is good, because I have needed to reach out to them more times than should be necessary. Cue the intro for my grievances.

The bad: When it came time to renew my lease, the rates they offered me were sky high. Hundreds of dollars higher than my prior rate. I declined, so they advertised my unit to new tenants on their website with rates much lower than the ones offered to me. Be prepared to pony up after your initial lease ends, because they will raise the price regardless of market conditions. It is part of their policy. This has led to higher resident turnover. Negotiating is a nightmare, where you must ask the powerless office staff to escalate the issue repeatedly until you get a half-response back from some head honcho you never meet.

After days of struggle, I got my renewal down to a price that was barely tolerable rather than fair. Definitely higher than they would be able to get a new tenant for. In exchange, I simply asked if I could get a better fridge (mine is ancient). They agreed to take a look at swapping it out. After I renewed, they suddenly didn't have time.

When I have a problem, a single office visit rarely does the trick. This week the problem was their payment portal. It breaks frequently. As such, I couldn't pay rent on time this month despite trying. Mere hours after the rent became late, I received a blunt email telling me to pay with a cashiers check. I went to the office and explained my situation, but wasn't offered a solution. I then spent 4 hours figuring out how to get a cashiers check for over $1000 when I don't have a local bank. The details of my current situation would make that complicated, so I went back into the office. This time, they helped resolve the issue. I just wish that happened before I went through all...