Avoid - save yourself the frustration:
AVOID - resident of 3 years
I wish I could give a better review, since I had the questionable judgement to live their twice. On the plus side, Sutton Place has a great location that makes it super easy to get to work when you work downtown and you want easy access to bars and fun times. They also have some pretty killer views when you live on the higher floors. The sunsets from the building are ridiculous. Another perk were all the amenities (except they made sure to charge you for each one minus laundry).
I have never been so frustrated by a small group of people. The staff at Sutton Place just seems to lack any respect for the people that live in the building, and for former tenants. I lived there for a combined 3 years, in three different apartments.
Upon moving in to my latest apartment, we had to have the wood floors replaced almost immediately because they were poorly installed. The air conditioner leaked under them and the entire apartment reeked of mold. It was raining the day they wanted to install, but instead of rescheduling they cut the wood inside ( and in my apartment, not in a work space). The workers left EVERYTHING covered in wood shavings. The outlets in the kitchen were "fixed", but they just unplugged them so only one was really of use.
The office will tell you the are is safe, but it is smack in the middle of the MICA bubble. (which is completely surrounded by distressed neighborhoods). There is a gang of pre-teens who ride around on bikes and harass the local students and Sutton Place residents. I have had my car broken into twice, my tires slashed, and been chased down the road while being stoned (not high, but having rocks thrown at you).
The front desk and administration is beyond incompetent. Ruth has been handling money there for years, and I have no idea how she still has her job ( or why she is necessary since everything is done by "corporate" - more on that later).
The complex is decorated nicely, which probably accounts for the over 30% increase in rents since 2008 with no added amenities ( they in fact charge extra for most of them). Unfortunately, they spend more money of their decorations than pest control. I consistently battled little roaches, and mice. They crew actually would install those sticky mice pads and not tell you. You would only notice when you smelled the rotting corpse of a mouse, which you then have to hunt for.
Upon moving out, the inspection went well and my roommate received their security deposit back within a week or so. We had informed them of our new address and my mother co-signed. They had multiple addresses that would have worked but they mailed it to a former address that I specifically mentioned not to send it to. That was months ago. I have reached out to them on multiple occasions and they always respond with some excuse that they don't handle the security deposits, their corporate office does. I got spo fed up I had my mother call. Upon calling and asking to speak with Michael, the property manager, Ruth said it was not possible. Ruth said that corporate handled it, but refuses to give contact information for the corporate office, or to Michael's Supervisor. Michael then emails me with another excuse, and another way he will solve it.
To take it to another level, they disabled my access to resident portal. This would be minor but they only have the lease and other documents as electronic files. They are posted online, and that is how you sign them. I have no access to my lease and other important documents. I contacted Michael, and he could only send me my move out charges, not the lease I asked for.
Long story short, I would avoid living at Sutton Place just to save yourself the frustration. I moved out 6/12 and it is now 9/6 and I have yet to receive my deposit. I have collected all of our email conversations, all of the documents I do have, and will be filing a complaint with the Maryland Attorney General to seek advice on if I should take this claim to small claims court.
+ on another note, I accidentally had a package delivered there this weekend and they refused to let my friend (who still lives in the building) to pick up the package for me since I am no longer a resident. In an instance where they could have showed understanding, and human decency, they instead chose to make things more difficult. While, yes it was my accident shipping it there, they could have been more understanding and less black and white about their policies. They could have saved me some trouble, given they owe me... literally.
+ check this out: it pretty much sums everything up: suttonplacesucks.weebly.…
you can get crime stats, their harmful policies, the works.
by Danny Knox on September 06, 2014