Estates at Countryside — Attraction in Clearwater

My review is a little mixed, so starting with the good, I’ve lived here for a little over a year and a half, going on two. Maintenance is always prompt and they answer your request within a day or two. Living in a 3 bedroom, I would say the floor plans are fairly large and affordable compared to surrounding apartments in this area. It stays very cool in the apartments and management is easy to get a hold of if you ever need anything. Ana has been very helpful in assisting my early move out process as I’m moving out of state, and the early move out fee is only two months of rent which I would say is lower than other places I’ve lived.

Moving onto the bad, they did raise my rent after my first lease was up, which seemed a little unnecessary, given my rent was already $2,100 and went up to $2,250. There is also questionable fees too, like “common area electric” or “damage waiver program”. You can’t expand on what those are paying for on the app, so after all is said and done, my rent is about $2,420. It sucks we live in a time where that much for rent is even fathomable, but even so, I would expect a lot of improvement from that much of an increase. Some issues would be that the gates have been broken for the majority of my time here, they never have any bags at the pet waste stations, the dog park itself is kind of a joke; it needs to be renovated very badly, trash cans are always over filling and getting trash everywhere, and their number one issue as you can see in many of the reviews: PARKING!

Parking is absolutely horrendous here. You must have a parking pass on your car or you WILL be towed, regardless of if you live here. If you have visitors, good luck ever finding a visitor spot as there’s a total of maybe 12 spots for the entire complex… if your visitors don’t park in those designated spots, they will also be towed! And it’s not cheap either! Retrieving your car is anywhere from $250-$500. You can see that management is very aware of the parking issue as shown in reviews but I don’t think they have any plans on fixing it. There’s an entire section of spots near the first bend of the complex that nobody uses, they could easily paint some more visitor spots. I really feel this would fix a lot, since there’s a lot of residents that use the visitors spots for not only their visitors but also their extra cars, since you are limited to how many parking passes one unit can have.

Another complaint I had is not a review on management or the complex because it’s not the complexes fault, but living on the 3 bedroom side of the complex there are many families with young children, and these children have absolutely no manners. They are always leaving trash everywhere and during the summer months, expect the pool to look like it’s been taken over. Parents actually set up their tents and umbrellas and leave them in the pool area all weekend long as if it’s their own, making it basically unusable or feeling like you’re intruding on a party. I also wouldn’t park your bike anywhere outside on the bike rack because those kids have no regard for personal property. My sister got a new bike for work and COVERED it, then when she came out the next morning the cover was tampered with and her bike had been completely shoved under the rack. Alas these kids are just a poor reflection of their parents. I’ve had too many nasty encounters with parents around here that don’t care about being neighborly or raising their kids properly either… I would say if you care about having a peaceful environment, maybe don’t consider a unit in Building 13 lol. With the second pool being right behind the building and the only parking for that pool in the building’s parking, the traffic of people is much more compared to other spots in the complex.

The moving out process was smooth. No sneaky fees came out of our security deposit, they take your last utility bill out the security deposit and we got the rest back...

THIS IS A VERY HONEST CRITIQUE OF LIFE HERE. READ CAREFULLY, UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE GETTING INTO IF YOU DECIDE TO LIVE IN THIS COMPLEX I originally posted this review Sept '14, but am amending it as I find more egregious issues w/this place. 1 star's too generous. I expect MUCH better for the rent, and I'm typically very easy to please, so that's saying a lot. Moving here is one of the worst decisions ever made. I don't need the persecution of the staff/management that will read this, so no specifics divulged. However, in the short time here, disappointment in staff, apartment & other "amenities" is colossal. Its so bad, we're seriously considering breaking the lease, taking the $ loss, & finding a place worthy of our hard-earned $. Also, the apts were painted over inside & out to fool the naive apt hunter, & the updated appliances in the units are NOT worth the ridiculous rent. Don't let the pretty facade trick you into thinking this place is worthy... It ISN'T. I'll add general issues that are sure to piss you off if you make the mistake of living here: 1- there is some total trailer-trash that has moved in. No respect for grounds or others. Haven't figured out how they can afford to live here, either. 2- the gate is stuck open more often than it works properly. Not worth paying to live in a gated community that Helen Keller could get in & out of in her sleep. 3- the trash compactor breaks down a lot (not just dump-day Thursdays!!!); dozens of garbage bags & LOOSE sht piles up. Horrible scent & embarrassing view of our own personal garbage dump. 4- the a-holes in this complex apparently think driving interstate speeds thru here is ok. 5- the same a-holes use the Entrance as an Exit, and the Exit as an Entrance in spite of the large signs telling you not to do so. Better keep your head on a swivel or you'll end up in a head-on collision at the gate, or your kids killed. 6- The pretentious b-ches in the office don't give a sht about you. MULTIPLE calls were made to the office about very real issues found in the complex, but they make excuses each time (see their reply below!) & wont accept responsibility or offer solutions. Favoritism is a game they love to play too. Extreme unprofessionalism over & over. 7- The dog sht containers overfill DAILY & stay out of bags for days. Just imagine the odor awaiting you when you get home from a long day, dog poo and trash pile. Oh, watch your step, land mines everywhere. 8- Many tenants smoke weed out in the open like it's already legal in FL; the odor lingers every day. If I were 18 again, it wouldn't be an issue. Since I have a family, it's hard to explain the stink to my young one. 9- If you like ants, you'll LOVE with what your apartment comes fully furnished. 10- Don't expect to be able to make a budget based on consistent billing of things like water/sewer. It'll DOUBLE from one month to the next (not an exaggeration) for absolutely no reason, no explanation. 11- Besides the trash living here, the unbelievably atrocious parking is the worst part. For the extorted rent, I EXPECT to to park near my apartment EVERY day. I don't want to wonder when I leave whether I'll find a space when I come home. Imagine lugging a car full of groceries around the complex. I'm tired of listing things.. But there is plenty more, trust me. If considering an apt complex, KEEP LOOKING. YOU DO NOT WANT TO LIVE HERE. Even if you find a place that costs more, it'll be well worth the extra $$ to go there. After we've moved out, I'll itemize more in detail. Until then, take all of these SINGLE-STAR reviews to heart and stay FAR FAR AWAY from Estates at...

Updated post in 2025 We still reside in this community and don't plan on leaving any time soon. I see many posts about roaches however we are on the first floor near the smaller pool and we've never even had ONE roach in our unit. The pool can get noisy during spring and summer breaks but we only notice because we work remotely and it is very tolerable- the few times it HAS gotten out of control the office staff was extremely helpful in sending out communication to the residents as a friendly reminder. The current Property manager Ana is always SO helpful and even when she was assistant manager she was always willing to explain and help guide in the right direction when there are process changes for items like submitting insurance coverage for verification. We have been here for over 4 years and the water billing has gotten a little better but still running about 200 dollars monthly for water and sewage. Maintenance is prompt and keeps you informed on the status of your ticket and are always approachable even in passing. I highly reccomended considering Estates at Countryside for your families!

We have lived at Estates for almost a year and all in all we don’t have many complaints. The trash compactor is always overflowing over the weekend which looks terrible (the residents don’t seem to understand how to push a button despite’s emails and signage at the dumpster) and the gates/pools are closed often for different reasons. Our water billing is TERRIBLE- to the point our water bill exceeds our electric bill every month for two adults an a 9 year old child (between electric and water we average about $400).when we first moved in we weren’t notified that the information in our lease was changing in regards to the billing and we were advised to see a flyer left on the doors in March (we moved in early April so the timing was very close) but the office staff helped us understand the change and even adjusted the billing for an additinal cycle since we didn’t have any notice of the changes outside of the lease agreement. Parking was terrible for a while but seems to be getting better as of late. Our lease is up for renewal and we have heard from several residents that their new rates were 500-1000 dollars more monthly- if so we will not be renewing as NO ONE can afford that. The office staff is always very helpful and have always been polite and the maintenance crew is fast to address any tickets and very personable. Sara has reached out a few times after doing some research for me or if there are any questions that arise and I greatly appreciate her amazing communication

We have had a pleasant experience thus far and have seen positive changes with changes in management companies. I would love to stay here a little while longer with my family and really hope our renewal rate allows...