All 25 tenant reviews.

“Why won't habitat company appoint a good, professional and humble staff. Rent in this building is enormous then why can't they invest in hiring good employees. Security, mail room staff, management office is filled with rude and terrible employees. In fact engineers and cleaning staff are very humble and friendly.”

“I want to commend 2 wonderful ladies at the Columbus Drive Apartments, 233 E Wacker drive, for providing excellent support to my sister during the rioting, lockdowns, and roadblocks in downtown Chicago this past weekend. My sister, is elderly and lives on the southside, she got caught up in the rioting, protesting and road blocks taking place last weekend, becoming confused and needing help she wandered into Columbus Drive apartments at 233 E. Wacker Drive where Veronica Deltoro and Mary Jackson assisted and comforted her till we were able to get my sister transportation back to her south side home. I truly commend Veronica and Mary for their great customer service and going out of their way to help a elderly and confused person; and see to it that my sister was safe while we tried to get her back home safely. With the roadblocks, traffic could not get into the downtown areas. Fortunally we eventually got her a Uber car which drove her home safely. Had it not been for Veronica and Mary's help, my sister could have been caught up in the rioting, and who knows what would have happen! So Mary and Veronica thank you for your kindness and excellent consideration for others, being there and providing the assitance you did. I commend you both as you were my sisters Guardian Angels. Thanks to Columbus Drive Apartments for having such wonderful and thoughtful people on your staff. Cassie Lewis”

“The pictures I have included should speak for itself. The owners have been lucky because tenants usually move after 1 year of renting. These visuals show a snapshot of the conditions we have been forced to live for over 5 years now. We have no rent discount or break, it actually increases every year with being told the construction mess will be completed by June. This IS NOT TRUE. It has not been true for 5 years now.”

“This place has very good location, excellent maintenance crew, and very poor management. They lure you in with teaser rents and then at first renewal your rent jumps by double digits (percentage wise). This means new residents can get an apartment identical to yours for hundreds of dollars less. Even when you go to the management and ask for those rates they do not care as they are used to very high turn over rates. The building has very limited amenities (4 computers in their internet room for over 500 apartments). If you use the common areas more than occasionally, management tells you to stop and if, like me, you ignore their warning they refuse to renew your lease. If you are sensitive to noise, you may as well forget about this place as a very busy fire station in across the street. I have often had to close the windows during good weather to carry on a phone conversation. The building is quite old and has drafty windows. Be prepared for high utility bills.”

“I can easily say this is the worst place I have ever lived. You can easily get a cheaper place with amenities and central air. However, cockroaches are included in the rent. Also, maintenance will enter your apartment on multiple occasions without prior authorization. Which can be very annoying. I suggest looking across the street if you like the area.”

“Columbus Plaza is an old, dingy building with very expensive apartments and no utility is included in the rent. There is no pool or spa and just a tiny gym. There is a fire department right next to the building and IT IS LOUD!!! They have a package delivery room that will send your package back if you don't pick it within a few days. So you pay for return shipping and also for getting it shipped back. You can find a better apartment for the same price at the Marquee, 73 E lake, Shoreham, Aqua etc with better amenities and move-in deals. The day I moved into the building their elevator crashed with a free fall from the floor 48 - floor 16. Scared the hell out of me but the leasing office said they have the best elevators. You will run into people in the elevator who have clearly smoked weed because they are smelling of it and talking to you for no reason. Hallways and apartments will smell of cigarettes or weed and the management will do nothing about it. They will raise your rent by almost 20% every year. Once you are in the lease they will stop helping you with any requests. I moved out after a few months because even after multiple requests they failed to act on any requests. They charge you two months of rent if you want to move out. I had the worst experience with these people in all of Chicago. Please read all the low rated reviews before you make a decision to move here because they all bring up real issues with this building and its management.”

“The location and room sizes are the only positive of this apartment. The more frustrating parts are the management (especially the Maintenance Manager, who is particularly rude and inhospitable) and the parking garage. Their maintenance crew will enter your apartment without permission, there will be loud repairs for hours in neighboring apartments without prior notice given and when you try to speak with the managers they will make you feel like you have committed a crime. The garage is operated by Hyatt which means you need to call them when you need them to get your car, with a 15-20 minute lead time. However, there are many occasions when they will not get your car based on a call and you have to personally go to the pick up location and wait 20 minutes before they will get your car.”

“My partner and I have leased from Habitat company for 10 years. We've lived at Columbus Plaza for 6 years. Our new lease was just presented to us to find that the market price on all of their 2 bedroom apartments had decreased and were being offered to new residents for $500.00 a month less than what we were expected to pay. This was not a "special". The management, however, denied our very reasonable and justified request to renew our lease at the new, lower market price. We've been left feeling extremely unwelcome. The property manager is pious and elusive and won't take phone calls. The management office is staffed by aloof, unfriendly, uninterested, apathetic condescending people that look at you like your an alien when you walk in. Never a "hi, how are you today", just a blank stare that says "what do you want". They are equally as unfriendly when you call. The maintenance staff, on the other hand, are exceptional, professional and very friendly. Maintenance issues are handled immediately and resolved. The door and security staff are also very friendly and helpful.The water in the building is constantly being shut off every other week. When they turn it back on the pressure is low which requires the weekly maintenance call. The hot water always runs a brown color in all sinks and tubs.”

“Staff was not helpful and friendly during the move in process. Staff had a very by-the-book mentality, did not care about renter's needs, did not think a step further to help renters solve problems, was not friendly, did not follow up after the transaction was done. For a luxury condo building, this level of service is a huge disappointment.”

“Good location; convenient Pedway link to Metra station - great thing in the winter; Nice view of the river; close to Millennium Park; good community of Chicago Booth MBA students; Easy to walk to River North for food options; Close to Mariano's and Whole Foods”

“Columbus Plaza is a great apartment to stay at. I stayed at Manilow Suites and then decided to move in full time. One of the safest, most hygienic and best-maintained apartments in the Loop, with great community Management, I highly recommend CP! Access to Pedway is a huge advantage, particularly during the rains and winter months.”

“I have been living at Columbus Plaza for a little less than a year. My experience here has been great. Pros: Great location - Very safe and convenient to everything. Walking distance to Michigan ave, Millennium Park, Lake shore, etc. Extremely helpful staff - All I needed to do if I have anything to fix in my room is to make a call or request a maintenance online. In 1 or 2 days the job would be done perfectly when I came back from work. Nice property manager - I enjoyed dealing with the property manager in this building. Being very considerate, they are able to respond my requests promptly, and prorate my lease for a couple of days after the original date in my contract. The convertible unit I rent is priced similarly to the studio units in the market, but is much more spacious as far as I'm concerned. The 48th floor is lovely. Gym, sun room, and you can always use the printer and coffee machine for free in the computer room. Cons: Occasionally I could hear the sound from the fire station across the street at night, but I didn't find that too big of a problem. If I weren't have to relocate due to job change, I would certainly continue my rent at Columbus Plaza. I would recommend it to anyone who's looking for an apartment in downtown Chicago area.”

“My wife and I moved out of Columbus Plaza last week, and we miss it already. The features that attracted us to the building initially were its central location, (including Pedway access), modern facilities (gym, sun room, laundry) and generous square footage. Upon moving into the building, we found that the friendly staff and thoughtful neighbors made Columbus Plaza an even more pleasant home than we expected. I strongly recommend that anyone seeking a luxury high-rise apartment in the Loop take a close look at Columbus Plaza.”

“If you want your rent to increase by 12% every year, this is the place for you. If you want the management to start charging for the new fees almost every year - bike storage, lock out fees, increase laundry fees - this is the place for you. If you want monopolized Cable/Internet Service - this is the place for you. If you want valet parking with the busiest hotel in the town - this is the place for you. If you want to experience very unprofessional Property Manager - this is the place for you. Try expressing your concerns for the policy and rent changes - Good Luck. Never....Never... What do they offer in Amenities? - Small Gym, decent size Sun Room, Small Business Center... What they don't offer - Pool, Party Room, Laundry in the unit, Efficient Elevator System Stop promoting this place as Luxury Apartments - Fact is - These are not.....”

“The noisiest neighborhood I've ever lived in. Which came first--the apartment building or the big fire station across the street? No matter which way you'll face, you'll hear three to four fire engines every 20 minutes at night with sirens blaring. It's annoying and frustrating. WHY is this station so darn active and noisy??? The apartments themselves are barely modern. I think the building was built in 1970. Old chip wood kitchen cabinets and 40 year-old Formica counter tops in the "non-renovated" units. Half of the building is a dormitory. No water sprinklers in case there's a fire. You pay to play here--few real amenities. The "gym" on the top floor is always busy during peak times, and they don't really keep up the machines except to clean them once every few days. Electric range oven, AC & heat. 1-bedroom=$175/month extra for electric if you use your heaters & AC all the time. It works out to be about $4 to 6/day for electric. Parking is $300/month through the Hyatt's valet service.”

“I have never written a apartment review before but this place is that good... I have been working the past few summers with my company in different cities around the USA. In Boston, NYC, DC, San Francisco and now Chicago, they always find a upscale downtown high-rise for me. This is one of the best! Location, Location, Location! just off Michigan av. on the river (don't need a car). Great views of the city, especially at night. Solid walls, you don't hear your neighbors. Friendly and helpful staff, from the doormen to the manager. Two great grocery stores within 3 blocks, not to mention all the top restaurants and bars nearby. Yes there is better, but at twice the price.”

“Generally, my experience here was fine. If I weren't moving for other reasons, I'd probably stay. Pros: 1. Moving in was super easy. They let you reserve the loading dock and an elevator, so you can just pull up the moving van to their dock and go. 2. Rent seems reasonable to me. (I moved from NYC, so that might not be saying much.) 3. The view is pretty nice. I have a Northwest view, which overlooks the river and the roof of the Hyatt. 4. The air conditioning and heat work well, although they're very loud. 5. The laundry room and exercise room are never too busy to use. Cons: 1. Some of the apartments were recently renovated (mine wasn't one). The older-style apartments have pretty old appliances and badly-designed kitchens (there is exactly one drawer, which is not big enough to fit a utensils tray; the kitchen door hits the fridge door; there is no vent over the oven, etc. 2. The management is a little flaky. When I was first talking with them about my lease, we agreed on a start date and a price, but another agent called me back the next day saying that I'd have to move in a month earlier. I ended up taking it, because I'd already gone through the trouble of applying and had stopped looking elsewhere, but that's an additional $1400 over what I'd actually agreed to. The door-people don't actually help you with the door, but they're very nice. Went in another time to reserve the visitors' apt in the building, and confirmed my reservation with one of the agents, who later realized she'd been looking at the wrong month and the apt wasn't available. Besides not being the best at calendar reading, they also forgot to mention that a women on our floor had died in her apartment and gone for a while without being noticed. They just taped up her door with painters' tape. People on the floor put towels at their front door to keep out the smell. But they've still never actually told any of us what's going on. It's been weeks, and the painters' tape is still there, as well as the towels. Seems like a rather odd thing to do. 3. I get woken up every day by the jackhammering outside. I live on the 15th floor, and it's still really loud. Sounds like there's been construction in/around the building for a while now, and although I'm sure it will look nice, but it's not my favorite way to wake up. 4. The is NO parking, except some very expensive garages. There's no lot owned by the building, and the lot next door is $54/day. So when you move it, it's easy for the two hours you're at the dock, but there's no where to park the truck if you can't immediately return it. Also, if you own a car, I don't think there'd be anywhere to put it that's mildly convenient. 5. Pretty sure that management wrote several of these reviews. They seem to respond very quickly to any mediocre review with a glowing one. Hint: if they give parking 3 stars, they don't live here!”

“I'm what people around this place call an, "Old Timer." I've lived here since 1998 and have a spacious one-bedroom The past few years have been sorta topsy turvy, building-wise. Around 2003, they seemed to change their marketing toward becoming an auxiliary dorm for International college students (that means SE Asian) attending downtown campuses. So those kids jacked up rental costs by about 15-25%, because...well, because corporate management can. Then over the past 5-7 years, they started making patchy renovations here and there. First, the lobby. That was an ugly nightmare that lasted 2 long years. Then the elevators. Even worse--elevator wait times went from 2-5 minutes way up to 4-7 minutes. Not bad, but if you need to get anywhere FAST, forget it. So now we're back down to 2-5 minutes. Longer if someone's moving in or out which seems to be every few days. 3 years ago, they started making "keeping up with the Jones's" style renovations to match features found in other newer buildings. Expanded exercise room, put in a cheesy computer area (for the 1 person in the building who doesn't have their own wireless). A couple years ago, the manager who had been here since forever quit (or got forced out? She wasn't all that pleasant the few times I had to chat with her), and the new lady seems hands-off. Maintenance is good, and the guys they have seem to have been here for decades. During the 2008-2010 recession, rent increases calmed down. But now...look out. 10%-15% increases have started showing up again, and Columbus Plaza seems to think they're now able to draw as much rent as the new(er) buildings in the neighborhood. Well, that'd be fine if the apartments looked like those places. Other reviews are spot-on about the condition of apartments. Old cabinets, no-feature appliances, seemingly low ceilings. But the biggest shock was my electric bill. Everything here is electric, and electric rates have gone up over the years. My monthly bills used to average around $100 in the winter. Now they're around $125-$175, depending on how cold it is. Summer, my bills used to be around $75-$100. Now they're around $100-$150. And there's no getting around it. I face north, and during the winter months, those freezing winds howl against my side of the building. I have to run my heaters continuously or the apartment feels drafty. While the apartments are nothing special, the building construction in really good. I rarely hear my neighbors, and there's only been one or two times I've had to call the office to complain, and the problem went away. I wanted to install a ceiling fan and was told that I couldn't because it might create a humming sound to the person above since the floors are concrete. Fair 'nuff. All the apartments have wall-to-wall carpet which is nice, except they use a low grade of carpet. When I first moved in, they told me I'd get new carpet every 2 years. Not any more. They only put in new carpet for new tenants or every 4 years. All in all, not a bad place. The fire station a block away is noisy at all hours. other than that...ok.”

“Location is good...well that's about it. You will think rent is OK for this kind of location, well let me tell you its a trap. Notice, that all the people saying "YES" for columbus plaza are only in residents who moved in within an year or so. And they don't know it yet whats coming for them next year. In the first year, to attract the new tenants they will give you market comparable rates even though apartments are nothing as compared to other buildings in area. But after first year or so you realize what you got yourself into, they will increase your rent by 20 to 30% each year, and since they understand you liked the location (not the apartment itself) and you just moved last year you wont like to go through the hassle of changing apartments every year. They will give you all kinds of crap regarding how the market went up, how the area has rent rising. So even though you will choose this building with no pool, no tennis court, non furnished apartment, small gym because of its location..either be prepared to pay good chunk from next year or look for much better options in same vicinity.”

“I lived there about a year ago and the very first day I moved, already problems.as soon we started moving in our things the office called me and said they need to speak to me,because they needed more paper work.I would think before they give you the lease and have your stuff being moved by movers the last thing you need to do is worry about paper work they forgot to mention to you,and ever since for a month there, management kept asking for other things more paper work they forgot ,more paper work,more rules to fallow,and some mornings before I leave to go to work,the door person say to me,oh by the way the maneger needs to see you,is this columbus plaza or is it a prison...management is so fake to your face,you can feel her bad energy oveytime you see her.Its crazy how they know each step you make it feels like they watch you on the cameras on each action you make,and on top of all that you are paying rent.THE HABITAT COMPANY Needs to take action on this people,and every tenant i spoke to they hate it there and cant wait for there lease to end,no wonder why you see so many people come and go,and the building smells like CURRY!!!!!!the hallways smells like an INDEAN RESTAURANT. ALL THIS REVIEWS ARE FOR SURE WRITTEN BY COLUMBUS PLAZA STAFF!!!!!!!!!!!ALL FAKE REVIEWS........”

“i have to say that most people rent here because of the wonderful staff! i've rented in many other properties downtown before, but columbus plaza has one of the friendliest staff in any building i've ever rented or toured before. since the new manager, i have also noticed a big improvement on resident events. i feel very appreciated here and maintenance issues are dealt with in minutes. if you do not believe me, just come and visit. i do have to say that parking can be an issue because it is valet only through the hyatt. however, the price for parking here is not that bad compared to all the others. that is probably the only negative comment i have.”

“I LOVE Columbus Plaza! I live here for 6 months now, but I new the condo before because a friend used to live here. You cannot find more spacious apartments. People from the administration are great and very helpful. I have a walk-in closet for me and my husband has one for him - how amazing is this? Besides, we have 2 extra closets. We have a great view of the river! I have nothing to complain...”