Curren Terrace Apartment Homes — Local services in Norristown

PROS: Price, in home washer/dryer, close to all the main highways/businesses.

NEGATIVES:

Location: It is not located in the "bad" parts of norristown However, the amount of crime is consistent. There have been at least four reported incidents (links attached)

Shooting 2014 Drugs: 2014 Murder:2010 Armed Robbery: 2015

Gunshots are heard at night. Police are often called. This property has hired security officers however they only monitor(car patrol) the property certain days of the week. Not sure why they can't be there every day?

The Norristown School districts are rated very low. The student to teacher ratio is really high and not all kids get the necessary attention to learn. If you have kids and wish to live here I would recommend a private or charter school.

Community: There are no community planned events. The people that live there mostly keep to themselves and some are pleasant. I wonder how thorough property management screens resdidents. There are some unsavory characters that live in the complex. Kids range in ages of 2-10 however, they are unsupervised. It is not rare to see a small child wandering the complex late at night. Some kids are nice and some are troublemakers. It is true that this a dog/pet friendly location but unfortunately not all neighbors clean up after their dogs.

Apartments: Fairly decent size however not all come with the listed amenities(i.e washer/dryer, microwaves etc.) Be sure that you ask and know what you're getting. I would request newer appliances prior to moving in. If you're living on the ground level you are subject to mold, wet carpets (when it rains and it seems to come in through the foundation) and bugs! Ants are an issue from the start of spring all through summer and late fall. Being on the ground level is no worse than being on the 2nd or 3rd levels (issues with mice). The walls block out most of the noise from your neighbors however in some of the older apartments (especially in the bedrooms) you'll get some unwanted sounds. It is true about the bundle/pro-rate gas,sewer and hot water bill. This means that they do not charge base on your usage but rather on the number of occupants in your residence and your building. Some residents find this unfair.

Office/Maintenance: The rental office can be somewhat attentive/responsive. However, not all are professional when working with residents. The Maintenance crew are available in urgent situations. You should ask what is their definition of urgent is because in most cases what is urgent to you is not to them. During the winter the maintenance team could do a better job of snow removal. In many cases walkways are not cleared or salted. In the parking lots the plows come through but they bury you car in. I would recommend bringing your own shovel and salt.

Overall you get what you pay for. The rent is cheap but it does come with some negatives. I would not recommend this place for those that have families (children). This place would be more for a single person, young couple or retiree that is looking to stay close to all the main routes but also perfer to keep to themselves. The reason I left was due to safety concerns along with issues with how the property was managed. Do your research! When I started looking for a new place I did the tour with the home properties person, came by myself later in the week and visited the property day/evening then late at night to get a feel for the area. I hope this review...

I lived in this apartment complex for 4 years. It has its pros and cons but ultimately the cons were too much for me and two months ago I moved out.

Pros: ~Washer & dryer in every apartment ~Private entrances (no hallways) ~Patio or balcony on every apartment ~Dish washer & microwave in some apartments (Note: they will charge you more for these units) ~Dogs allowed ~They shovel the sidewalks and clear the main driveways (though with heavier snow it sometimes takes several days and you always still have to dig out your own car)

Cons: ~High crime area, you can look up a local crime map & see the crime even within the complex includes: thefts, assaults, armed robbery, vandalism, drug dealing, and more. The surrounding neighborhood is even worse. ~The "gym" they brag about is horrible and you have to PURCHASE a key fob to use it. It only has 2 treadmills, 2 ellipticals, a recumbent bike, and a weight machine. Only 1 treadmill and 1 elliptical actually work moderately well and all the equipment is old and outdated. There are rarely, if ever, paper towels to wipe down the machines so they are never clean. There is one small TV that you cannot hear, even at max volume, over the sound of the treadmill, if someone is running. ~Rent will go up EVERY year. When I first moved in it was only $15-20 per month with each lease renewal. When I decided to leave I was told it was going to go up $40 per month that year & again the following year, simply because they could. There is no consideration for being a quite, respectable tenant who always paid rent on time. ~There is a non-refundable "pet fee" up front as well as a monthly fee per pet as long as you live there. ~The office picks & chooses when to enforce the "rules" in the complex. Some people always have a grill on their patio, let their dogs poop in the complex without cleaning it, let their dogs run around without a leash, or have pets without listing it on their lease. Other people will get warning notices or fines for the same things. As a resident you're told to inform the office if you see these things happening but when you do there is no follow-through to stop the behavior. ~They claim to have thick walls & floors between apartments. You can still hear your neighbors conversations, TV, or music playing. ~People drive through the parking lot at top speed. The management installed "speed bumps" to deter them but they are very small and set in the center of the driveway with plenty of room for people to drive around them without going over them. As a result, people are driving fast and swerving. ~The previous management company planted flowers throughout the complex every year. The new company only plants flowers by the main road and around the leasing office so it looks good when you visit. The rest of the flower beds are empty patches of dirt throughout the complex. ~The "security company" drives through a few times a day but does nothing more. The office will tell you to call security if there's a problem because they don't want any more police reports in the complex but security will openly admit that there is NOTHING they can do if there is an actual problem. They can politely ask people to leave if they don't live there or they can watch people & call the...

First and foremost, the office staff, especially Aliesha is awesome and the entire management team is very friendly and sympathetic if you are having issues. They truly seem to care and even checked in on me when I needed to go to the hospital one day. I don’t know what the reviews complaining about crime are all about. I haven’t witnessed one crime since I moved in and have never felt unsafe here. The pros are that the apartment comes with a washer/dryer and built in microwave. However, the apartment is pretty small. There isn’t even room for a dining room or kitchen table so I’m forced to eat off my coffee table everyday. The kitchen is also insanely small. I live in a two bedroom, one used as an office and their size is acceptable. However, the cost of rent is insane. You can literally get a mortgage for less money. Plus, you are charged for water, sewage, and gas based on the average that all the residents in the complex use. Therefore, you’re basically paying more for people who use more. They have improved and have a pretty nice gym but I really can’t take advantage of it because they charge the equivalent of a gym membership, actually more than some. They really don’t include any amenities. Everything is an extra charge, including trash. So the rent you are told you’ll pay before moving in is really nearly $300 more than what you were told. It’s incredibly difficult to afford, especially if you live on your own. Although parking is not often a major problem, they even charge an additional $35/month if you want a reserved spot, which is something I believe every resident should have one of and be included in the cost of the rent. The grounds are kept nice and Maintenance responds rather quickly. It’s a quiet place to live and most people are friendly. I have to complaints with management because they don’t make the rules, set the rent cost, make the decisions to charge extra for all of the things that should be and are normally included with the price of your rent. However, the price is completely unjustified and I have no doubt if I decide to stay, rent will be increased for absolutely no reason other than the fact that they can while not providing residents with any new amenities or benefits to warrant an increase. It’s not a bad place to live, just overpriced and lacks certain things that should be standard in any apartment. My only other complaint is it is nearly impossible for people or delivery drivers to find your apartment and just as hard trying to explain to them where you are located. Curran Terrace is not a bad place to live but it could be better and definitely should be cheaper and residents shouldn’t be responsible for paying things like water, gas, sewage, and the gym considering the amount of money you pay each month in rent. Hopefully, Morgan Properties starts taking some of things into consideration and makes some changes to keep their residents happy and make their apartments more reasonably affordable. Plus, you should really be told what your total cost will be including the additional expenses on top of the rent. The price you are told you will be expected to pay each month is not accurate to what you’ll actually owe when factoring in the...