Steele Creek — Local services in Jacksonville

We resided at Steele Creek for 14 months. Initially, it seemed fine, but we soon encountered numerous issues. Dead roaches littered the hallways, massive spiderwebs were present by the doors and inside the building, and the hallways were cleaned inconsistently—about once every three months, if that. We were well aware of this because the same dead roach, coffee stains, and pet waste (urine) remained on the floor day after day as we passed by.  When we submitted maintenance requests, the responses were frustratingly unhelpful. They would come to our unit just to explain what they couldn't address that day or inform us that some items needed to be ordered. It left us questioning the purpose of maintenance altogether. The only maintenance worker we consistently saw in action was the "Groundkeeper," who was dedicated to changing the trash cans for pet waste in the mornings. It’s clear that significant improvements are desperately needed at Steele Creek.

I will attach a few photos at the end of this review, but let me be clear: our final straw was discovering fleas in our apartment unit despite having NO PETS. When we called to request pest control, we were informed that they only address infestations in emergencies. I had to resort to emailing the property manager for quicker assistance, which is unacceptable. We pay for pest control monthly, yet they never spray the hallways or units unless it's specifically requested.  This situation was extremely serious for us; we had never experienced fleas before, and after much back and forth, they sent someone who insisted it wasn’t fleas, even though I was getting bitten non-stop. At one point, I had to pay for a hotel just to escape the situation. Additionally, the apartment suffers from severe ventilation issues, leading to mold. They called stating the carpet needs replacement and showed little to no damage of this carpet however we strongly believe this was due to random FLEAS in our unit. When we first moved in, Roxanna was the property manager, and the place was decent. However, in our 14-month lease, we went through two new property managers, which is a clear sign of mismanagement. The only positive aspect has been Phil, but his assistant, Brandy, confrontational I didn’t even know she was the assistant manager until we were CHARGED $75 For lockout fee although the lockout occurred BEFORE we paid rent we literally waited until the 3rd to see if they added it however they didn’t, But I did receive a email from her stating we have a PAST DUE BALANCE, We personally felt offended considering we always pay ON TIME especially for RENT. This entire experience has been frustrating, and it's imperative that these issues are addressed immediately for future tenants.

I will attach a few photos but truthfully the other negative reviews show ALOT more, when you tour the building just look straight up and you’ll see spiderwebs and dead bugs...

I lived here for almost 4 years.

The good: the maintenance staff was always great! They came in on a timely manner after submitting a service request, were very nice, and helpful. Phil at the office was amazing, 10/10. When we moved in, our apartment was clean and up to date with all appliances.

The bad: When I first moved in, the complex was great. The complex was clean, all the amenities were clean and up to date, and the buildings were nice in the inside and out. Once the new management moved in, everything started to turn bad. The inside of the building constantly smelled like trash and rotten food from people not understanding when they could put their trash out for valet pick up (which is outrageously $$$ and you have to do it), there were markings all along the walls, dirt and splitter materials everywhere. There is dog poop all over the complex from owners not picking it up. The gym always had a broken piece of equipment that took a long time to get fixed, the stair master was broken for over 6 months. The pools is very nice but there was always left over trash everywhere. Packages are lost and have even been stolen from this complex, straight from the luxe lockers.

Then the move out process. I turned in my keys early and I asked them if I needed to pay any other fees after paying my last rent. I was told no. I checked my portal for two weeks after moving out and called asking if I had to pay any other move out fees. I was told no. Fast forward to January 2025 after moving out in September, I notice a large drop in my credit score. I had to run credit reports and found out Steele creek filed a collection against me with a collection agency for $152. I was never called, mailed, or emailed any proof of a payment needed. They made no effort to let me know this charge which I had no problem paying. So now I have to deal with a large drop in my credit score due to them. We always paid our rent and utilities before the payment was due. We were good tenants and left our apartment clean with no problems in the apartment. I was told it was so clean that they didn’t even have to charge us a cleaning fee. I also had “restricted access” to my portal after moving out which showed me no charges and the. I lost access all together after a month. So beware when you move out, check everything before your credit score turns upside down just like mine did all. I wish I could say that I would recommend this place to others to move in to but after what has become of it and the many problem s along the way,...

Update:

The manager reached out to discuss our concerns. Just to clarify, my comments and rating were addressing only the issues with the close out process so my overall experience rating was adjusted accordingly. In the year we lived there, we had no major issues with the apartment complex. Hopefully the information we relayed will assist in preventing similar move out frustrations to others in the future.

Initial comments. Disappointed in how the management company staff handled the routine closing out of or lease. We did an in depth cleaning of the apartment before turning in the keys but were charged a cleaning fee on top of the carpet cleaning fee ( which was anticipated as standard practice for renters with pets). We were told the fee was for items left in the refrigerator (there were no items - additionally all the shelves and glass were fully wiped down and cleaned on both the fridge and freezer sides). Also they cited the charge was for the oven and bathrooms. The oven glass top, as well as the oven, was immaculate. The lady on the phone was rude when we questioned what the charges were for. The bottom line is we spent several days cleaning the entire apartment. If this is just a standard fee that the management company wants to charge then simply be honest and tell renters up front that the cleaning fee is mandatory. Or at the very least be prepared to show proof of the areas which they state required additional cleaning without threatening that providing this information could result in higher additional costs. They lost credibility when they lied about areas we knew were fully clean. If they would have been honest and transparent about the cleaning fees we would have just done a simple wipe down versus a deep cleaning and, at least, they would have earned the unwarranted service fee charged. Hopefully other renters will hear about this unethical practice so they can make an informed decision on how to best approach their...