Laurel — Local services in Austin

Walking into Laurel the first time, I was pretty confused on where the leasing office was but that was a good thing! I was surprised to see that they carry a coffee shop next to the office haha! Jeremy was so amazing and sweet guiding me around the apartment complex and showing me the apartments that I instantly feel in love! The maintenance workers were also throughout our tour and they were kind, Jeremy and the maintenance workers also had a strong bond compared to traditional, transactional past companies I had leased with which shows that they are all one team and willing to help each other.

EDIT PLEASE READ: 2/5 ⭐️ So it’s the time for me to leave the apartments, I worked with Jeremy on the 60 days notice (was a month early on the 60 but it was honored). I had ask what is the move out process and what I should be expecting as a deduction. I had three different answers from the leasing office on how to repair the wall as I had made holes for my decorations and appliances. One told me as long as I patched the wall it was fine, another told me if I had patched and color matched it would be fine, and the last one told me I had to texturized it to be considered repaired. I had ask for the color code for the wall but I was advised that I didn’t need to paint it (from one of the assistants). So I instead took a part of the wall off and got it color coded myself. While I admit, the texturizing was not the best, the hole was patched and painted with the color code. I was still charged for the damages as if it was a blank hole in the wall.

Besides the wall issue, I had spent HOURS cleaning the apartment, swept, mopped, wiped the entire apartment. Wasn’t spotless but you could definitely run a vacuum around for 2 mins and the apartment was considered clean. I got charged for a cleaning fee as well.

I was okay with the first two charges as maybe I didn’t do a good job but once I got the carpet charge, I knew this was disappointing. The carpet in the bedroom is right next to the bathroom, why apartments are set up like this I don’t know. I would shower and walk to my bedroom so occasionally, the carpet between the rooms did get wet time from time. Not extremely wet or damaging to the carpet but just mild shower water from my feet. I was advised in my move out sheet that I was going to be charged a $35 cleaning fee which I was okay with and agreed as a cleaning SHOULD be done for the next tenant. I did not eat, drink, had any other liquids in my bedroom. I was charged $400 for a carpet REPLACEMENT! For one, that’s pretty offensive as if it’s made out that I was gross when I vacuumed and even spot checked before I left. Two, if you’re going to charge your tenants for a replacement carpet, then maybe you shouldn't add carpet to the bedrooms.

I was charged a late fee, which from the last three charges totaling already around $700 already, I don’t know if this is an actual charge or just another bullshit charge.

My last charge was the utilities. To add some context, I had remove all the appliances during the 60 days from the outlets and only used the thermostat at a reasonable temperature for my dog, which was usually around 72. I work overnights so I didn’t use energy between the hours of 6pm to 6am. So I definitely didn’t hit any high peak times. The AC got blown out and I had no AC in the apartment for maybe about a week and some days. So reporting it, everyday their maintenance team would look to see what the problem was but ended up getting a third party to fix it. Side note, maintenance team was quick and responsive, no complaints on that. I was given a small ac unit to stay somewhat cool and while it didn’t work, I made the best of it and showed no anger to the management. I didn’t even ask for a credit or anything. I was charged almost $1000 on utilities that I thought I was paying month to month. Another bullshit charge.

While I can continue on, google limits the amount of characters I can write so be warned before moving into a GREYSTAR complex. They are known for tactics like...

The property is super clean and well maintained. Spencer from the management team is nice and on top of everything. The gym, pool, and other amenities are kept clean and well taken care of. I love that they have a partnership with houndstooth coffee shop. The workspaces in the lobby are lovely. Any maintenance issues get resolved quickly and the maintenance guys are super nice. The trash valet service is awesome. The complex enforcers a strict trash policy to ensure there are no pests. Laurel is overall a great property and I highly recommend!

My only "bad experience" I have had was with Kasey I beeline she works on the management team. The day I was moving in she treated a tenant extremely rude in front of me, and it seemed racially motivated and I was quite distributed by her actions, attitude and behavior towards a tenant. The tenant was a young African American man and he walked into the lobby with his backpack, he was clearly a college student or someone who worked remotely. As soon as he walked in she was starring at him with a distasteful look. As he began to walk through the building she literally SCREAMED at the TOP of her lungs aggressively, "HEY HEY YOU WHAT ARE YOU DOING EXCUSE ME" and myself and my boyfriend and the boy who walked in were all shocked. She was shouting in a nasty ugly tone with an ugly look on her face, "DO YOU EVEN LIVE HERE WHAT ARE YOU DOING". I was so shocked and stunned I was appalled at her reaction. The poor boy said he did live here and showed her his apartment fob, and she got quiet. I gave her the dirtiest look but left shortly after that. This lady needs to be fired she is clearly racist and rude. You can see in all the comments how many tenants have...

Proceed with caution. I applied for an apartment here and was initially told everything was set and ready for move-in. However, I was later informed that their system encountered an error, preventing me from moving in. The agent assured me that all fees associated with the transaction would be refunded due to their system error, but they never followed through. My credit card company had to step in and return the fees. Despite never living in the apartment, I now have a collection on my credit report for move-out fees and have been contacted by collection agencies regarding the issue. This has been a major hassle.

Thank you for your response, but it doesn’t align with the facts. I was explicitly told by your office that there was a system error preventing my move-in, and I even came back in person to see if the issue could be fixed, which it could not. At no point was I offered any alternative or conditional approval for moving in after the error occurred. I have documentation proving that your team acknowledged the error and promised to refund all associated fees. Instead, my credit card company had to resolve the situation, and I am now dealing with collections for fees related to an apartment I never lived in. This has been a frustrating and disappointing experience, and I hope your team will address the situation accurately...