West Winds

Current Resident 275089

Verified Resident • 2015 - 2016

Very dissatisfied with the lack of professionalism and communication between management and tennants. Maintenance request take unacceptably long periods of time to be fulfilled, and at times these requests are not answered at all. These apartments are old and as such require constant maintenance. I am very dissatisfied with my experience as a tennant at West Winds.

Current Resident 264083

Verified Resident • 2011 - 2017

Great space, quiet community but I don't care for the the system (formula) of taking care of water bill. Never enough parking, maintenance is sometimes slow at taking care of problems. There has been a rent increase the past 3 years with no real explanation why.

Current Resident 259982

Verified Resident • 2014 - 2016

Conditions are adequate only for the cheap pricing. Management are very nice people but their response to issues is mostly inadequate. Management is constantly changing policies. Management refuses to address other residents breaking rules (not picking up after pets, parking illegally in handicapped spaces, etc.).

Current Resident 259543

Verified Resident • 2016 - 2017

My experience with WestWinds has been pleasant. The community, its proximity to amenities, and the quality of my home are all exceptional. I would definitely recommend this community to friends and family in search of new housing opportunities.

Current Resident 251147

Verified Resident • 2016

Great community, close to my job! Would recommend these Townhomes to someone! The staff is friendly, the maintenance responds rapidly to a problem. I love the fact that there is a washer and dryer in our townhome. Master bedroom is very spacious!

MartinLind

Resident • 2014 - 2015

I stayed at West Winds for roughly a year while being a postdoc at USC, and I enjoyed it tremendously. The property manager Candy is awesome and made me feel at home immediately. The caretaker Corey is also great, extremely helpful. My one-bedroom apartment was spacious and in fine condition. The rent is very reasonable and includes parking and access to next door Harbison Rec. Center (cardio and weight gyms, pool, etc).West Winds is located in a quiet and beautiful area which is at the same time conveniently close to downtown Columbia, some 15 minutes via I-26. I loved living at West Winds Apartments and will surely miss the place. Highly recommended!

KSC7

Resident • 2014 - 2015

I had the pleasure of living at West Winds for almost one year. My apartment was the one bedroom town home. The apartment was spacious, with an abundance of closet/storage space. All of my appliances were modern and energy efficient. Of all of the apartments I have lived in, in the Columbia area, the electricity bill was significantly lower at West Winds. For the money, I feel like the apartment was a good deal for me, compared to other properties I looked at/lived at in the Columbia area. The apartment community felt very safe. All of my neighbors were friendly, the grounds were well kept, and sufficiently lighted. Harbison Road and the Columbiana Center are literally five minutes away, so the property is convenient to everything. Access to the Harbison Recreation Center and its walking trails is a definite plus. Cindy, the manager, was extremely helpful and always a pleasure to see when picking up packages from the office. Corey, the maintenance/repair specialist, was always professional and timely in dealing with any maintenance requests. Overall, I really enjoyed my time at West Winds. I would recommend West Winds to anyone looking for an apartment in the Columbia area.

Current Resident 33142

Resident • 2013 - 2014

I'll be honest, since there are not many other *new reviews to go on about West Winds, I felt like I should share my experience. I love love love my neighbors. We got super lucky in making such good friendships at this complex. For the most part, the complex is fairly quite, clean, and overall nice. With that being said, we moved in May 2013, we loved it, loved everything. Sure there where a few problems but it was our first home, so we over looked them. As time went on, things started getting worse, Our ceiling is leaking and has been for the whole year we have lived here. After they came and *repaired it (which ended up with a broken door that was never fixed either) it still continues to leak. We decided that we loved our neighbors so much that we would move to a three bedroom. Our lease was up in Feb 2014 so we got a quoted price for the 3 bedroom. It took them THREE months to get the apartment done (actually I don't even think it's done as I'm writing this). Since they didn't get it done in time, they are now telling us we have to pay 200$ more in rent since its now June. Moral of the story, this place is old, our electric is about 200$ on good months, water is a scam, as its always 70$. Don't fall for the pretty looks, this place is money hungry and will suck you dry.

Current Resident 552069

Resident • 2008 - 2012

I lived here from June 2008 to June 2012. I absolutely loved living here and the best apartments I have ever lived in. Its a great location between the mall and Harbison area and the Harbison State Forest. It has great duck ponds and walking trails and the recreation center is right across the street. I felt at home and a great commmunity. I loved my apartment with the front porch where I sat and read or talked on my phone. I loved the renovations they did with the brand new appliances (i.e. stoves, dishwashers, and refridgerators), and flooring and lots of space. I had the washer and dryer in my apartment. I really liked the staff and never had any problems.

shirley_unitm2

Resident • 2011 - 2012

I've lived at West Winds from Nov. 2011-2012. I was actually in Trinidad working when I secured my townhome at West Winds based on the word of Susan and I can honestly say I was thrilled and pleased when I arrived to collect my keys to move in. The townhome was perfect. The new property Manager Melanie Duncan has been the best. With my crazy work hours, I could call her any time I expect a package for her to leave it in my unit and know it will be there before she leaves for the day. Melanie's attitude makes you feel that you can call her anytime and not feel like you are being a pain. She has just been so friendly and wonderful. Corey the maintenance man is the best I have ever dealth with. His friendly disposition, professionalism and willingness to help above and beyond his duties must be commended. I really am going to miss living at West Winds and interacting with the staff.

MissAlaBaby

Resident • 2011 - 2012

Update.

I have read through all of the reviews, and the most recent one is from a couple of years ago, so I'm going to write a more updated one. I'm not sure what the issue was when the previous reviews were written, but do have to say that things have changed drastically since I moved in four months ago. Honestly, things are pretty great around here now. The office manager is a gal named Susan who seems to have her thumb on everything, so to speak. Anything that you need done, just swing by the office or drop a note in the box and it's done within 24 hours. The maintenance man is extremely nice and always says hi when I see him out and about. We had a few things that needed to be fixed in our apartment when we first moved in, and maintenance came the same day that we turned in our damages sheet. The bottom coil went out in our oven, and that was fixed the same day as I told the office. We did have an issue with no water for about five hours, but that had nothing to do with management. AT&T came out to work on the phone lines and hit a water line, then tried to leave the grounds without telling the staff what had happened. As soon as something was said to the office about the water being off, they called an ER plumber and got it taken care of. All of the appliances are updated and there was fresh paint / flooring / carpet when we moved in. Our apartment is a two bedroom and is pretty decent sized. It's a townhouse style [upstairs / downstairs] with the bedrooms on the second floor, which we really like. I moved from an apartment in Jacksonville, FL and it was a horrible experience...this place is a complete turnaround from what my previous rental was. I believe the management may be with a different company now, contributing to my experience. If you had any doubts before, I would definitely give this place a second look now.

Current Resident 817182

Resident • 2010

Disappointed

We are 21 years old with a 2 year old. This was our first place and we were so excited. When we got there the manager showed us the modle home. It was beautiful. We were very impressed. The weekend that we moved in, we found out that our apartment looked nothing like the modle home! Stains all over the wall, sink didnt even work, Toilet seat stained, didnt even sand the door from before painting it back. Lets just say we were pissed, but we sucked it up and lived with it. As the year went on we got to know the residents around us. Love them! Then we had some kids playing in front of our area and i guess they threw a rock or somthing idk but our window broke. It took the manager 2 months to get it fixed!! We kept asking her and she said im running behind sorry, so we gave her a chance ( the first month) then the second month we went up there and she said " i heard that yall broke the window" Oh I fliped! They were trying to get out of paying it! Then our water heater broke on a firday. She told us she would get that fixed on monday! LIKE REALLY!!! After putting her in her place we got it fixed that day! Lets just say every time somthing goes wrong we have to fight with the manager about getting it fixed. So now our lease is coming to an end THANK GOD!! We got a letter 11/17 asking did we wont to renew, we said no. Got another letter 11/18 saying because we didnt give them a 60 days notice before our lease ending date we now have to pay a full months rent! Bahahahaha. They didnt give us the letter till the 17th. 60 days would have been on the 8th. So i went up there again. All she could do was get smart with me. Oh, I put the date on the later 11/18 and she said " oh its not the 18th its the 19th. Bahahahahaha so im suppost to listen to a women when she doesnt even know the date!!! Bhahahahaha.. Need less to say. I called my lawer and there going to handle it for me because im just not dealing with this any more. Our first time in an apartment and it was not worth it.

Current Resident 661471

Resident • 2010

Terrible apartments and Dishonest management

We needed to rent an apartment in Columbia but we were living out of state, so we could not walk though a model apartment. However, we called several times inquiring about different things about the apartment and used only the couple of pictures on the website for a guide, and never expected what a horrible experience we would have upon arriving here. We knew we would have to deal with normal apartment issues and problems, but not to this bad extent. When we arrived there were so many issues, that I couldn't believe that the people living there before us never had them fixed, let alone the apartment management. -When we were calling about the apartments before, the management said that "When they go to update an apartment, if they see that the appliances were the original ones when they were first built, then they will replace them." The appliances were not replaced. We took the model number off of the stove and looked it up, and it could have been made in April 1981. We told this to the management and their only response was "We were just told from up above (meaning higher management) that if we can, just repair." How ironic we were told one thing, and within a month it changed... -AC Problems: First unit was only a half ton unit needed for a 1 bedroom apt, while we had a 3 bedroom one, so it was on constantly trying to cool things down but never got below 77, even at night. So after a couple of weeks management finally replaced with a 2 ton unit which was the correct size, and that broke down the next day, and after a few attempts to fix it, it was replaced with another one of a smaller size, which broke down again but they have not replaced it yet, and just keep fixing it. -It smells of smoke, and after several complaints to management where they said they would get a painter to come out and do some kind of vapor treatment, it has been 2 months and still they have not come. I keep checking in with management to have it done, but all she says is that she calls the painter and he has not gotten back with her, or that she has forgotten again. -Only 3 out of the 6 doors in the apartment actually closed. They would not fit in the doorways. -Supposedly they had some company come in and clean, but they did not do a very good job. For example, there were smashed bugs on the sides of cupboards and drawers, and dirty grime under the bathroom sink cupboards. -Every step in the upstairs and stairs creeks very horribly. -We were told that a bug/termite guy came in and just put in bait around in the cupboards, and to be careful of the brown globs of bait. A week after moving in we found small termite bugs. Management had someone from Terminex come out and look at the apartment, and they said that they have not been to the apartment for several months and months. He put new bait in and explained that the lighter the color of brown bait, the newer it was. What was already in the cupboards was hard and black/brown. -There is no weather stripping on the front door. It looks like someone put duck tape around the door years ago to fix it. You can still see to the outside from the bottom side and the top of the door. -The oven door does not close, and the rubber gasket seal around the oven door is corroded. This was supposed to be fixed a long time ago, but to this day I do not have a usable oven. -Paint drippings are everywhere, and even though the cleaning company "cleaned" I was able to scrub some of the paint off of the bathroom showers with a little elbow grease. -The top cupboards do not fit anything taller than a large drinking glass. It does not fit things like cooking oils, larger bowls, cooking spray, etc. We have had to purchase metal shelving units just to place our cooking items, pantry food, and pots and pans. So the kitchen storage space is poorly designed. -When we moved in there were no shelves in the pantry. After a month of living here, we finally got three shelves put in, even though there is room for 4 or 5. The management s idea of fixing something is just to get done with an issue, not even to do it right. -When we brought in a new fridge we purchased, the one that was in the apartment that they took out leaked freon all the way out the door. -The dishwasher does not clean the dishes (I would expect this from a 29 year old machine) -When we arrived all of the bathroom and sink faucets leaked expect for the kitchen sink's. The bathroom faucets are corroding and the tops pop off. The maintenance man's solution to fixing the leaks is to turn the handles as super hard as you can, and hope you can do that every time you use it. -Toilet seats are nice looking but where they attach to the toilet base they are broken and move from side to side. -When we called about the apartments the management said that the counter tops would be new, as well as the floors. They said there would be new laminate wood flooring downstairs, and this is not what we got. It is a fake wood looking linoleum that only han concrete underneath. We have a young baby and this has already caused problems. The counter tops are not new looking, and the carpet was supposed to be all new upstairs. I would bet a thousand dollars that the carpet is not new, but as management has lied about other things, I am sure they would not tell us if it was actually new or not... -The $40 rental price for the apartment washer and dryer is a rip off. It is much cheaper to do laundry at a coin laundry mat. We were told that the apartment had washer and dryer hook ups, so if we had our own stack-able ones we could use them. After arriving here, we found out that the outlets in the washer/dryer space are only the normal ones you find anywhere else, like for your lamps. That means that a washer would be fine there, but not a dryer. Unless you had your own actual apartment sized permanently stack-able washer/dryer, then it wouldn't work. -There are no ceiling fans. These are just some of the issues. I would have to say that the size of the rooms and the overall square footage of the apartment is great, and there is a lot of room in the dining and living area. The location is great and close to so many things. The management and maintenance people are very nice, but hardly anything gets done, and we have been lied to on several issues. I would never rent from this apartment and its management company if I could help it. We moved here because of what they had told us was in the apartment when we called several times, from what the pictures looked like, and what was on the website. Please do not make this mistake that we did, unless you are willing to live with apartment problems that will never get fixed, being lied to by your apartment management, and having a low apartment living quality.

Current Resident 622388

Resident • 2009 - 2010

Yes they look so great on the outside.... but the inside have touch up paint the so called hard wood floors were really stickers.The floors started lifting after a few months.The heating does not work down stairs during the winter months... after calling management several times...she suggested that I close the vents upstairs.The second bedroom was extremely small. There is no cabinet space in the kitchen. The ac units leaked so bad in the ceiling that it caved in twice once in my kids room then in the hallway, not to mention it took two months for them to repair it me and my kids had to pile up in my bed.Management is rude and patronizing. It is quiet but who cares when you can see the sky and you do not have a sky light. Not to mention maintenance stole a gps system out of my neighbors house and he was the sheriff while he was asleep.they do not enforced the pick up after your pet and the neighbors were letting their dogs use the restroom by the playground and the grills so who would want their kids to play out there or cook your food.The they were charging some a washer dryer fee and not some others. Overall be afraid be very afraid. The management was very unprofessional she was discussing some issue that she had with other tenants to prospective renters.

Current Resident 680804

Resident • 2009

Disappointed!!!!

This place looks nice from the outside and the model they show you is beautiful but in actuality this is a real dump. I moved in and it did not meet my expectations. They did a sloppy paint job-paint dripping on the baseboards. The ceiling had a bunch of water stains. The kitchen cabinets were not like those in the model unit. They were old and wilted and they just painted them white and put nickel hardware on them to dress them up. I must say their way of handling repairs suck. I moved in and realized the shower knobs were not turning. I turned in a complaint and it took them 11 days to address it. I had to call twice and ultimately come in to check on the delay. Secondly, there was a leak coming from the roof-minor. The next morning I went in and let them know about it. I was told it was the condensation from the air conditioner. Repairman came in to look at it said same. The next day it got worse-called the emergency maintenance number as a piece of the ceiling to the second bedroom came down. They came and put a bucket to collect the water. It rained again that evening the damage spread throughout the entire ceiling. They could have put a tarp on the roof to mitigate damages. The leak was so bad it saturated the carpet and it went thru the floor causing water spots to the downstairs living area. I called management again to let them know. Roofers came out and supposedly fixed the problem. Asked when the ceiling will be repaired they told me it would take a few days that they had to let the area dry. They are so cheap -they could have called in a water damage repair company to come in with industrial fans to hurry the process. They procrastinated on lifting the carpet to air it out. These are things that need to be done in order to avoid mold. It does not take much to create a mold problem especially with the age of these units. I am just so disappointed I chose to live here. Don't make the same mistake.

exhausted-renter

Resident • 2008

Don't live here

I have never had such a bad apartment living experience as I have had here. It recently took over a week and near flooding to have my garbage disposal fixed, we were down to washing dishes in the tub before repairs were made. I also work nights and am woken up almost daily by hammering and sawing or whatever other repairs are being made on these old buildings. I tried to talk to management about all the noise. Her answer was basically to expect more of it! These apartments are very dated and need a lot of work. The kitchen doesn't even have a drawer big enough for a silver wear tray, and only half the drawers open anyway. There are a lot of minor repairs needed in our unit such as light switches, but we'd be better off waiting for Christmas in this place. I do not recommend living here to say the least!

Current Resident 889576

Resident • 2008

Horrible!!

This apartment has been the worst experience imaginable! I never want to live in an apartment again because of this place. I could make a list a mile long of all the horrible things that they do here. Management is a joke! We signed a lease that included a military clause and now that we have orders to move out of state they are claiming that they don't need to honor that clause. The are demanding $2,200 to terminate the lease. A nice thank you to the people that protect their freedom huh? I have hated every moment of living here and this tops it off. Stay away from this place!!!! As if they hadn't given us enough of a headache about moving, once we did relocate they kept most of our deposit with no explanation!!

Current Resident 731941

Resident • 2008

6 months

I have lived in west winds since 2/22/08 and there was an office manager Tessa that was really great she was very tentive to our needs. Now, the new office manager Stephaine is really great too. They are making changes out there like every month. The look is coming along. I can say I am confortable with my surrounding. Oh also there are police officers that live there as well.

Current Resident 209481

Resident • 2005 - 2006

FOR THE HARSH COMMENTS BELOW!

Yes, we are 23 Years old and all of our ammenties are not as new as a 5 Year property, but we DO LOVE OUR RESIDENTS! I have been here for 9 months and know every residents name, their family and even their pets. 80% of my residents I consider Family, and It hurts that the people that got the bad end of the stick have to go and put HARSH and UNTRUE statements about us on here. If we were so bad then honestly tell me why we have been 100% occupied for over a year. Obviously these statements are not true. We forgive the people who wrote this, and I hope any new prospects will consider, the mad people are the ones who talk. I pour my life into this community and always get love in return. I hope you will make West Winds YOUR home, because you are always welcome into mine!

Current Resident 161090

Resident • 2006

DO NOT EVEN CONSIDER THIS PLACE!

I'll start first with the office staff whom, might I say, is a joke! They do not care about their residents what so ever and their professionalism is non-existant. Maintenance is worse. Shouldn't this guy be trained in properly fixing things? I was surprised he didn't bust out some duct tape, which probably would have worked better. There is several layers of paint over the cabinets which looks ridiculous, the grounds are terrible, some of the residents are scary. I think they will allow anyone who might produce rent to live here. I do not feel safe here what so ever and don't even try to break a lease here for they will try to stick it to you big time! I have not one nice thing to say about this dump. Do not waste your money here for there are other beautiful, professional apartment communities in the area!!! Stay away!!!

dddddddddd89

Resident • 2005 - 2006

Worst managment ever seen

<br>Not recommended<br>Probably Shea whrote this positive revue below

Current Resident 924471

Resident • 2003 - 2006

WONDERFUL!!

I have lived at this community for 3 years. At the begining it was rough, but the manager Shea is wonderful, she has made so many changes. The service team is great. Their is a new guy in the office and he allways has a smile on his face and shows so much respect to the residents. I just love it now. I will renew for a long time to come.

Current Resident 114974

Resident • 2003 - 2004

Horrible

I lived in this community for a year and regret every minute! They are the nastiest place I ever lived. Maintenance STINKS and we went through so many managers I can't even remember their names. I did NOT feel safe and HATED it here. Such a shame because the area is wonderful...DO NOT LIVE HERE!!!

Current Resident 346066

Resident • 2001 - 2002

Beautiful area, poorly managed.

West Winds is in one of the prettiest areas of the Harbison neighborhood, unfortunately it is continually dirty and broken-down looking. The new manager appears to be taking control of these issues, but much more needs to be done to make West Winds a place where I would renew my lease.