Madison Park Apartments — Attraction in Columbus

Be informed before renting here or any Preferred Living complex. Firstly, communication is HORRIBLE. Example: we received a letter in our door letting us know we had 2 days to get rid of a grill that we specifically bought because we had a balcony and were told grills were permitted. Apparently, the complex had just discovered that this was actually a fire code violation so they were putting the burden of removing the grill and somehow figuring out how to not make this a total financial loss on us because of their ignorance. They also moved the leasing office off site for about 6 months with little to no warning. You should be very aware of where your unit will actually be located. When we toured we were not told a railroad track ran behind the complex and although we should've paid more attention, it should have been disclosed that our unit directly faced the tracks and would shake about 4 times a night when trains passed. You will also not get your pet deposit fee back at all, it is simply a fee for what is apparently the very exclusive privilege of owning a small pet. And many people won't pick up after these pets; there was feces all over the parking lot and common grassy areas. Management did not seem to think it important to enforce any policy about picking up after your dogs. Upon move out, you will be charged exorbitant fees for what is routine cleaning between tenants. I thoroughly cleaned the unit before move out to the best of my ability without having professional cleaning equipment and was still charged various cleaning fees (including $5 to replace a lightbulb that never worked when we moved in and we didn't even realize was a light). Also, due to a stain about 4 inches wide by 1 inch deep in a corner of the carpet, management felt it necessary to replace the entire carpet of a 2 bedroom apartment and stuck us with the fee. There were various other stains on the carpet that we noted on move in and we were blamed for these as well despite having the documentation that we did not cause them. So do more research than we did and don't get stuck in a lease with these slumlords. It may seem like a decent price for the amount of square footage but you will more than pay for it in fees and utilities. They also raise rent by about $50/month every year so don't plan on staying for long as it will quickly move out of your price range. I have already warned all my friends and family members to avoid Preferred Living at all costs and based on some other reviews of their complexes I have read, this is not an uncommon experience.

Bonus! They use APL as their electric provider not AEP. Be prepared to pay double in utilities what you would expect because APL basically buys the electricity from AEP and charges a "service fee" for providing it. You will also pay for your entire building's electric so even though you kept the heat on 68 degrees all winter, you'll pay $200 a month because someone on the first floor is...

I am leaving this review as a warning to anyone considering renting from Preferred Living.

Their properties — including this one — are built with extremely poor-quality materials. The walls and ceilings do nothing to block out mechanical noise from the roof or hallways, and the equipment they install is loud, outdated, and clearly not designed for livable residential environments.

Since I moved in, I’ve been living with constant mechanical noise 24/7. Even inside my bedroom, I record 70–80 dBA during the day and over 70 dBA at night — using a professional decibel meter I bought specifically because of this problem.

According to Columbus City Code §2329.11, residential noise must stay: • Below 65 dBA during the day (7am–10pm) • Below 60 dBA at night (10pm–7am)

These legal limits are being blatantly violated, and this company doesn’t seem to care.

I spoke directly with their property manager. I explained the issue clearly, quoted the law, and asked for a resolution. Her response?

→ “We’re not breaking the law.”

I told her I may contact the police. She said:

→ “You’re welcome to.”

I asked when the issue would be fixed. She told me:

→ “I don’t know.”

This is the level of “support” Preferred Living provides to their residents. Absolutely no transparency, no accountability, and no solutions — just empty words and dismissive attitudes.

What’s worse is that this noise issue has been ongoing for days, and no one has shut off the machine above my unit, even after I specifically asked them to.

They said maintenance went to the roof to “check” — but no one told me what was found, what caused the noise, or when it will stop. They just keep saying someone looked at it. Meanwhile, I continue to live inside a nonstop 70–80 dBA environment.

Even in the farthest room from the source, hallway noise from their equipment exceeds 65 dBA — again, this is inside my home, not near a freeway.

Based on what I’ve learned, the property management staff at Preferred Living is often rotating or temporary, which probably explains why no one takes long-term responsibility or follows up.

If you value peace, basic livability, or professional management, I strongly urge you to look elsewhere. Preferred Living has shown me that they cut corners on construction, don’t maintain their buildings properly, and show no regard for tenant well-being or legal compliance.

I swear to God — every single word in this review is true.

And I will keep documenting everything until this is resolved.

Preferred Living needs to be held...

I've lived here for more than 2 years. The overall experience is good except for the extremely bad working attitude of a leasing office staff I met recently.

My roommate went out for a trip and he parked his car in the community. The first time they towed his car was because it had a flat tire. They put a tag on the car windows but my roommate wasn't here so we both didn't see that. They said residents were required to have cars registered in their system so they could give us a call and also a verbal warning of the towing. It was fine because we didn't know about the existence of the system and it was 100% our responsibility. After that, we registered his car.

HOWEVER, his car was towed again a couple of days ago because of the same reason (the car's tire somehow flat again). But we didn't received any call and verbal warning of the towing. When I asked the manager of Madison Park why there was no verbal warning, she said SHE DIDN'T USE THE SYSTEM AT ALL.

I was confused and when I tried to show her the email that the staff told me about the registration system and verbal warning. SHE REFUSED TO EVEN TAKE A LOOK AT IT. She said: "Your car is gone, that's it", "I don't care about what the staff told to you, she might not work here anymore". "I don't wanna talk about it".

I felt being offended so I said I wanted to talk to the manager. She said "I am the manager of the Madison Park (and showed a [whatever face])" Then I tried to ask about the Preferred Living complaint hotline. She said she didn't know and asked me to search online myself.

I was SHOCKED because I never thought about a MANAGER would talk to the resident with this bad attitude! In the whole conversion, my voice was soft and never louder to her. I EVEN ASKED HER: "Hey, calm down, why you're so mad? "

I talked to the complaint hotline and came back to the office to ask her name. She said she already send an email to them and she said they were totally aware of this situation. JUST UNBELIEVABLE. Her name is Jessica, FYI.

I want to understand 2 things: 1) Why you said you would give us a verbal warning before you towed the car but you did not? And why the manager said she didn't use the system?  2) How can you use such a person with an extremely bad working attitude as a manager? I feel very...