South Pointe

It's tough to say because everyone had completely different opinions about each complex. I can tell you to definitely NOT live on the 1st floor anywhere. It seems those are more prone to bugs and spiders. I lived in VG of Southgate West for a couple of weeks on the 1st floor and was bit by bugs all over my body...tried to get out of the lease and it turned into a mess...fumigated the place...moved back in and was bit by a wolf spider on my leg...bad. (Somehow others Love that complex) I moved into Southpointe Place on the 2nd floor. They are very clean and my utilities are very low. (Others here seem to have high utility bills, but I do not.) It is up to you, but my advise is to look at the cleanliness of the apartment before you move in. Don't just look at the layout - look at the heat ducts & the carpeting, window sills, etc. I am VERY happy at Southpointe Place. The biggest complaint is the thin walls where you can hear the people in the surrounding apartments. The other resdidents who I run into seem to be friendly here. It's your preference though. I hope this helped! :)

Whatever you do, do not move into Carlyle Tower Apartments in Southfield, MI. The current management and owners do not have good ethics in my opinion. The following was my experience:

I was approved for an apartment at Carlyle Tower Apartments in Southfield Michigan, 3 months ago. Move-in date of 6/30/08. At that time I was told my total move-in cost would be $1306 minus the $100 deposit I provided, leaving a balance of $1206. This was confirmed my Anita and Michelle. When I went back, (5/30/08) to see the unit I would be moving in, I was asked when I would be paying my deposit of $1206.

I was very shocked and stated I was told that amount included my security deposit and first months rent ($825). I was then told, no that s only your security deposit and you would need an additional $825 for your first months rent. I informed them I had never had to pay that much for a security deposit and there was no way I would be moving there if I had to pay that much for a security deposit. I further informed them, where I currently live I pay $925 a month and only had to pay a $400 deposit. I've always been in good standings when it comes to renting apartments, and always approved for the lowest security deposit available.

I could not understand why I had to pay Carlyle Tower Apartments $1306 for a security deposit. Lori then went to the back office to discuss the matter with Anita. Anita never came up to the front to discuss the matter with me, nor explain why there had been a change. After 15-20 minutes of haggling and negotiating with Anita, Lori came back to the front and stated Anita agreed to let me pay a security deposit of $1137.50 and took off $700 for the first months rent. Which meant I would pay $125, for a total move-in cost of $1262.50, oh and my deposit of $100 so a total of $1362.50.

And to make it really seem like she was giving me a good deal, Lori stated you know they actually wanted you to pay a total of two months rent ( $1650) for your security deposit. But by Michigan law we can only charge you a month and a half. I just could not understand that, and there was no way I would do that. I felt like I was being taken by a car salesman. I had no idea apartment managers had the ability to go back and forth like that on the price. I'm not sure what went wrong, but I do know that situation made me feel totally uncomfortable with moving there. I no longer had trust in management. I decided to go to Towers of Southfield and was approved the same day for a $500 security deposit.

That evening I called Carlyle Tower back to inform them I would not be moving and asked to get my $100 security deposit back. I was informed, because I changed my mind I would not be getting my deposit back. I called back and asked for the number to the management company and they would not provide it to me. It took me 3 days to find out for myself. I further explained the only reason I changed my mind is because I didn't trust management.