Tenant Reviews for 833 W. BUENA AVE.

For the cost of my apartment, the quality was not worth it, I joined during a leasing special, but once the year was up the rent went up $300 per month. To me, they're saying they don't want us there anymore since the apartment itself is very out of date and the quality isn't really on par. I moved a block north of there and pay $200 less for all new appliances, central air, granite countertops, and full amenities. It was not move-in ready when I got there, we had to have an appliance installed as it was just missing, they did take care of that the next day, so I'll give them that. Generally, all maintenance was handled pretty quickly. A couple of weeks into settling in, we found cockroaches, where we had to have a weekly inspection for about two months, eventually, it was taken care of but the headache of dealing with it was not fun. We did find they came back a few months later and had to go through the process all over. On multiple occasions the washers and dryers stopped working, trying to accommodate the entire building with about 10 washers/dryers was probably too much so I'd constantly have to go to the leasing office to get credited for the cost of the laundry, luckily they're on-site! The Elevators went down pretty often, so waiting for one elevator in this building was like riding the Redline at 8 AM, sometimes it would show up, but when it did it was jam-packed and you'd have to wait about 5 minutes for the next one. The ACs in the apartment are in the window, and they're old, they run like an old muscle car, so forget about watching any movie while they're turned on. The front door security is amazing, he's super friendly and helpful! We've chatted with Irving on multiple occasions, he'd even call me after I moved out to let me know if a package arrived at that building. With the door security, however, which is no fault to him if he's on lunch or whatever, I was disturbed to find a solicitor on the 17th floor selling a product, luckily it was just a solicitor, but what if it were more of a security threat? My last and final issue there, which is admittedly partially my fault, if your ledger is past due on utilities, they will not tell you. They will inform you upon moveout about it so instead of paying it monthly, they'll smack you in the face on the lease end date.

I have only lived here a short time, but I regret moving here. Believe all the bad reviews and more. For a company that demands a lot during the application process, they give you nothing in return. If you do move here, be sure to note all issues with your apartment when moving in, I sent the management photos of issues and was told if I had not reported them, I would have been charged when moving out. When a work order is filled out, repairs are checked off as being done, but only completed 50% of the time. Apartment's heat cannot be regulated, I've had all my windows open when it's 5 degrees outside. Snow and ice are not removed promptly. Washers and dryers are usually full or inoperable. They are working on the outside of the building, and grinding can be heard throughout the day. If you quiet because you work nights or need to study during the day, you're out of luck. I was not told this when I looked at the apartment on the weekend. The only favorable things are the doormen are nice, and the neighborhood is good.

Maintenance - elevators constantly Brooke and always sounded like they were falling apart. Good luck find a washer or dryer that works, or available at that. Safety - someone broke the front door twice I believe during my stay. Staff - door men are exceptionally friendly and nice. As for management that was poor. I'm pretty sure I received 5 emails concerning different property managers throughout one year.

Lower floors have crippling hot water issues which cannot be rectified despite repeated visits by the plumbers. If your neighbors open a tap, you get dripping force which is a big problem at peak hours. Unfortunately, this issue cannot be verified when you are checking the apartment before move-in since you normally visit these apartments during the daytime when every neighbor is at work and the landlords don't tell you about the water issues. Hence, this PSA post. By the way, the gym is not maintained at all. Weights go missing and not replaced.

I completely agree with the post below. Hot water is a constant issue here. I've placed multiple requests to fix the hot water but it's always ignored. The hot water pressure, at best, is low and often times it comes out a barely a trickle and I have to wait 20 minutes for it to come back. The cold water, though, comes out like a rocket. The building is heated through radiant heating, via hot water pipes in the floor. Somehow the hot water here is more than enough and it took the building two years to make it NOT 80 degrees in my apartment during the winter. You have absolutely no thermostat control, which is to say it's always too hot in the winter. Additionally, they run the heat Sept 1 to May so it's complete overkill. I've also had issues with roaches and it took them three sprayings to fix.

I moved in to Buena Shores in August 2015. My roommate and I got a decent deal on a 2 br 1 ba unit at $1315/month. I don't hate it, but it isn't great. For one, the building has roaches. We have been catching them in the kitchen for months now, even though they've sprayed for roaches twice since we've lived here. I found their entry point behind the refrigerator, where the wall meets the floor. The wall is essentially destroyed and the roaches come in and out at their leisure. I put in a work order and they just sealed the crack with some caulk foam. They didn't do a very good job because roaches still find their way in. We currently have sticky traps on our kitchen counter that are full of dead roaches, which is pretty gross, but its better than them crawling all over the kitchen. 2.) The lack of hot water pressure. The hot water is very inconsistent. Sometimes its warm, it rarely qualifies as hot. And then the pressure, it can be decent, but sometimes I'll be showering and the water slows to a drip. Cold water pressure, on the other hand, is too strong. Many of my unsuspecting visitors have gone to the kitchen sink and turned on the cold water only to be greeted by a pressure washer. 3.) The heat. It's radiant, They pump steam or hot water through pipes in the floor. Its ok when its on, but residents have no control over it. I think it only turns on when it's below 40 outside. I bought a space heater to stay warm when the heat wasn't on. 4.) The kitchen. Small and cramped, but a lot of cabinet space. 5.) The bathroom. Small and cramped, The toilet is tankless, it's like a public bathroom toilet with a lever handle. The shower is ok. The shelving built into the walls is warped and cracked. 6.) There have been at least 4 shootings within a 3 block radius since I've lived here. One actually happened here, when an alleged gang member was visiting and some rival gang members came and shot him right in front of the front door. The glass to the door and vestibule was shot out. It happened about 20 minutes before I would have been walking out to leave for work. And the management never explicitly told the residents what happened, they just sent an email saying that "you may have noticed some damage to the front door, there was an incident...." To their credit, they rebuilt the parking structure (which was a terrible nuisance when 8 jackhammers fired up every morning at 8 am), and they're currently replacing all of the windows in the building. There is laundry on site and a 24 hr gym (some of the cardio equipment is broken) There is a locked bike room, plenty of parking, and a patio outside with some gas grills, tables, and chairs for resident use. Noise: Our neighbors are pretty quiet. We can hear them through vents in the bathroom and kitchen though Grounds: Not much to comment on. 95% of the grounds is a parking lot, Then there's a patio and a little bit of landscaping around the front door Safety: There's only one way in and two ways out. The front door requires a key and there's a side door that is exit only. Parking lot is well lit at night. There is a "lobby attendant" from 3-11pm every day, management stresses that they're not security. All they really do is let residents in the package room to get their boxes Neighborhood: There's not much here. There is a Jewel-Osco, coffee shop, dry cleaner, pizza spot, thai spot, 7-Eleven, all within walking distance. There's an Aldi and a Target a little bit further up the street (10 min walk) Plenty of bus stops nearby and the Sheridan Red Line station is a 10-15 min walk. Montrose Beach is pretty close. There's access to the lakefront trail right on the end of Buena Ave. Maintenance: Work orders are submitted online, The few that I've put in were dealt with promptly, usually on the next business day, but some of the work has been half-assed. Staff: The property manager is ok. Be aware that there isn't a freight elevator. When we moved in, we arrived to see 6 more uhaul trucks, and the news that only one of the two passenger elevators was working. We moved most of our stuff in through the stairwells, which wasn't fun at all. Our apartment also was not ready. We got our keys and went up to find the previous tenants had basically abandoned the apartment and left pictures on, and food in the fridge, the floors were dirty and it needed to be painted. But it was move in ready within two hours. We won't be renewing our lease because our rent was raised $170 and we're not very happy with the building

The worse place ever. The building is in a nice area and have parking that's all. However the parking is not cleaning in winter time, they don't remove neither salt the driveway. The building is dirty and smell trash in the corridor. I have complaining many times and the only answer I got is they couldn't find any bad smell. Unfortunately my apartment is near to the trash tube and all the trash fumes get into the apartment, I had to have the windows open and the fun running, otherwise is impossible to breath in the living room. Also be careful with the billing as they use to bill charges that aren't on the contract. Really thin walls, so you can hear your neighbors.

For several years I've been a loyal customer to Group Fox and have enjoyed their managements style until my rent for a two bedroom high rise was raised beyond the deserving price margin. Their apartments are no where near luxurious but they certainly use to be perfect for a part-time employee looking for a decent place to live. With that in mind, the apartments are exactly the same shoddy, cheaply constructed apartments but now it feels like they're trying to appeal to the higher class that I can't imagine would ever want to touch a building that has on-site laundry you pay about $20 for two loads just to make sure everything is properly washed and dried or for a work out room that contains equipment being held together by nothing but a prayer and sweat. Each year my rent has been raised $100 with poor excuses or no excuse at all as to why and what the company has done to improve their abilities in order to justify raising rent so high. Many of the years I've been with the company they however use to be understanding of my part-time situation and we'd negotiate a contract that works for myself and them. Now, it's been raised more than the asking price on the website (about $300 more than I currently pay), negotiations are not an option, and the apartment and building itself is at a worst state than when I moved in. I give maintenance many codos though. The on-site guy is quick to respond but he's only able to do so much. Once a unit is occupied nothing is ever updated or replaced even at request. Being on the 20th floor its excruciatingly hot on a regular bases which I understood but the air conditioners are outdated and unable to do their jobs properly. I no longer turn them on since the filters haven't been changed since before I moved in. The closets roll open by using wheels and a cheap bent track creating several angering minutes of trying to simply open the closet without the door falling off. The water pressure is absolutely wonderful here but I guess it's wonderful in the apartment above me as well because it looks like some black mold is starting to grow. Unfortunately the company has not stopped in to take a look yet so I'm momentarily unable to identify the substance. I'm sure it'll be cleaned up by the next customer comes in though. They are decent at sprucing up a unit for the next person. I never had a problem with neighbors until this year. I don't have a problem with noise; you get the occasional child running up and down the hallways for about twenty minutes screaming at the top of their lungs, or in my particular apartment the bedroom is next to my neighbors living room so I go to bed listing to them watching an action film and wake up to the tenants yelling at each other while they get ready to the beat of their music. The problem I have been having lately though is the obnoxious group of tenants in general. The exercise equipment is constantly being abused or in terrible shape without repair, most of the time there's only one working elevator and even when that's working someone has thrown up in it, the patio grills are kept in poor condition, and people are always smoking in the stairways which is unfortunate that the smell creeps into my apartment hallway being next to the entrance to the stairs. I don't endorse this location and I'm unsure if I'm able to even endorse Group Fox anymore either. I hope you find what you're looking for though.

A long term (22 years) tenant is finally had enough. They have consistently tried to raise the rent 100.00 each year and have done absolutely NOTHING to deserve it. The only thing we will miss is the Maintenance guy who is great and the management is even treating him poorly. They are renting to multiple students to each apartment. The building is nothing now but a giant dormitory with few adults who appreciate taking care of things. Elevators that consistently break down. Driers that take 3 cycles at 1.50 to dry a small load. People defacing the building and vomiting all over and partying between floors. There has been multiple big leaks of water between walls from upper floors and the build refuses to check for mold. The air returns for the building have never been cleaned. I paid for apartment upgrades and they still want to raise rent. It is only about money and they don't care how much they cheaply repair the torn up apartments each time these kids leave when school is up. The bricks in the entry to the building are all loose and someone will get hurt. The patio grills are old and disgusting.

As everyone else has said, the staff here is terrible. My bathtub was clogged for two months and even though I complained LITERALLY everyday, they didn't do a single thing. But they were immediately at my door to charge me a $50 late fee when I accidentally shorted them $0.33 from my rent!! This would be a wonderful apartment if it was maybe half the price.