Riverwalk Rochester — Local services in Rochester

Update: The Pros are still applicable, but there are a few things that brought this down to a 3 star rating (I'd make it 2.5 if I could).

Every tenant must pay for a professional carpet cleaner (clearly stated you aren't allowed to do it yourself) to clean the carpets AND provide receipt as proof you did it which is not covered by your $300 non-refundable pet fee. On top of this they charge you a $100 fee to move out even though moving out is a given eventually. Kind of outrageous considering how much they charge for rent.

You have to pay for an $80 monthly activity fee that is non-negotiable that includes internet (that is very consistently down or weak). Events that have food don't cater to people who have food allergies or restrictions. You're forced to pay for it, but you can't actually benefit so you're really just paying for other people's enjoyment. That's $960 a year - an expensive subscription that you're forced into.

Be aware that parking is $150 for gas cars and $200 for EV parking

We've lived here for two years now and they increased rent the first year by 7% and when looking to stay another year they wanted to increase it by another 7% - more than the standard 3%-5% - which resulted in us looking elsewhere for rent as it's unaffordable/unsustainable to continue adding $1,200 in rent every year. We're quiet, clean, and considerate tenants who you'd think are the type of tenants apartment buildings would want to stay.

They've had to close the pool twice this year alone for people trashing the outdoor space and finding broken glass.

They have no cameras in the garage and multiple tenants have had bikes and other things stolen.

When you are moving out there will be many showings at inconvenient times throughout the day while you are still living there.

Something important to note: I think the onsite property managers in the office are lovely people and just doing their jobs. Overhead management and owners, who decide these ridiculous costs and fees don't care about any of their tenants or the fact that this is your actual home. They are taking advantage of the fact that there is a housing shortage in Rochester and so they take no short cuts to squeeze as much money out of you as possible.

While looking for other housing, there are plenty of options where we can actually have a lot more space than what we have now while either paying the same or less instead of increasing in price without all the ridiculous fees. I suggest you look elsewhere as well, or at least consider the above before moving here. I've lived here for about 2 months now, and am happy to call the Riverwalk home. Pros: -Amazing property manager. Frankie is one of the most responsive, friendly, and helpful property managers I've had the pleasure of knowing. -Very thick insulated walls. I do not hear anything from my neighbors, except on occasion, very quietly, the cute dog above me. I have seriously not needed to turn on the heat yet, and it has gotten to below freezing temperatures. Amenities are great. The gym is clean and has what looks like brand new equipment. The pool is heated, the firepit, yard games, and two community rooms make it very easy to entertain friends and family. On-site maintenance worker. Every time we've had a minor issue or anything we have had a very quick response time in fixes. The hallways smell like vanilla - what more can I say?

Cons: The windows are pretty thick so I don't hear it so much, but we face the road and can hear cars sometimes since it is a busy road, but it really isn't a big deal. Not as strict COVID safety regulations - There are some safety regulations in place, but I've seen around 10 people in the hot tub at once and multiple people in the gym not wearing masks. I think it would be nice if we could have sanitizing stations in the common rooms so that people could sanitize the surfaces they used after leaving, or...

Here is my updated version since they deleted my previous review because it seems they did not like it. try deleting or hiding this version now riverwalk (this review complies with google "requirements".

I waited until the end of my lease (expiring July) to share this experience so it could reflect the full duration of my time living at River Walk Apartments. I want to offer an honest, detailed, and objective account of what new or prospective tenants might expect. While the property encourages new tenants to leave positive reviews in exchange for small incentives (like gift cards), I HIGLY recommend waiting before doing so. Early impressions can be misleading, and it's only after several months that the full experience with property management becomes clear. One of the most important takeaways I can share is: read your lease carefully and thoroughly. There are numerous fees and penalties that are not made entirely clear during move-in. another issue lies with inconsistency and unfair lease changes when convienient to management for example: they continued to charge me for pet and parking services long after I no longer used them or had pets — simply because I had opted in at the beginning this is aroun $250-300 extra i had to pay. These charges could not be removed, even though the circumstances changed. When I challenged a $400+ penalty, management altered the lease language afterward, claiming it was to “avoid future confusion.” This raised concerns about inconsistent enforcement and transparency. Another serious issue occurred when I reported a water leak. I initially reported it in person, not realizing that — according to the lease — verbal conversations do not count and they tried to shift blame on me for "not reporting it soon" (email sent by the SAME person i spoke to directly, yes you natalie). There is very little responsiveness via email, so weeks passed before action was taken. By the time repairs began, half of my apartment was unusable. A wall was torn open, industrial fans ran constantly, and a hose drained into a trash can in my living room — making the space noisy, humid, and unhealthy. Despite multiple contacts and health concerns, management insisted conditions were “acceptable.” Throughout this experience, I noted a recurring lack of clear communication, delayed or no response to maintenance issues, and inconsistent application of rules and fees. Past reviews on sites like Apartments.com and Yelp seem to show similar patterns — and it’s worth reading those platforms in addition to Google for a more complete picture. I’ve thoroughly documented my experience, including email correspondence, maintenance delays, and images and videos of the leak and resulting damage — all with timestamps. if you would like to make judgment on your own dont hesistate to reach out and I will provide everything! There was also a plethora of issues that I cannot divulge here as it is againt google guidelines and will provide riverwalk grounds to hide this post yet again. as it seems they have a pattern of shifting blame to tenants even when they have supporting documents. I strongly recommend new tenants take photos, keep all communication in writing, and monitor their...

I lived at Riverwalk for nearly 2 years. There are some positive things about Riverwalk, mostly the proximity to Mayo Clinic and it is an easy place to meet people. However there are some drawbacks that I wish I knew about before I moved in and definitely when I was renewing my lease for the second year.

The assistant managers are relatively helpful; however, there have been approximately 5-6 in my two years. The manager is very polite. However, the fees, deposit, lease break, and fines are somewhat crazy.

Things I would want to know before I move in.

Deposit: $500 plus any pet fees. Pet fees are non-refundable. There is an automatic $50 move in and move out fee. There is a $100 carpet cleaning fee unless you get the carpets professionally cleaned (the manager admitted that for “1BR apartments” that it would be difficult to find it cheaper). If you move out early for any reason, even if someone takes over the lease and you don’t terminate officially, the deposit is not returned. So if you leave it pristine, it’s still not a full deposit unless you get it professionally carpet cleaned.

Lease break: Approximately two months rent plus 3 full months notice. Also no breaking leases in months where the lease would end in November through February. I kept my lease and made it available to show when I bought a house, which is great that the management is at least willing to do this. But again the deposit is not returned. I was trying to look for a house or new apartment in early 2020 but with the 3 months notice being enforced despite the pandemic and apartment buildings not doing tours. I then tried to buy a house but would have hit the July time frame before I could make certain I had somewhere to live when my lease would have ended in the November blackout period. Management did say that they could maybe potentially work something out if they ran out of apartments to rent.

Fines: went from $30-50 to $500 this year if dog poo is not cleaned up or you are in shared spaces after 10pm. There are cameras and people will take pictures of you to send to the office. I was never fined but the frequent emails are explicit.

Also parking, internet, gym, animals, etc are all fee based. Pretty standard.

The apartment interiors are all relatively nice but feel like “surface level” luxury. The paint will mark if you brush too hard against it.

Also based on other resident accounts, the management will negotiate price if you have a competing apartment that is cheaper. Can’t say that with 100% accuracy but it’s what I have been told by residents.

Yearly the management will offer residents small coffee gift cards for reviews. This happened very shortly after opening the apartment building and at least once since. Multiple reviews were written in this time frame, something for new potential residents to be aware of. I didn’t feel like this was a very fair tactic and why I am writing my review after I have moved out.

This is an ok apartment complex. It is close to Mayo Clinic and downtown and if you just live there and do your thing, it’s fine. They want your money and that’s what they do for business. Rent will go up. Fees will go up. Deposits will be taken. But that’s...