Woodchase Apartments

Expect washers and dryers to be routinely out of service. There are at least a couple hundred people living in this apartment complex (if not more), and currently, washers are running at 67% (only 4 out of 6 are functional).

I’ve been here for 8 months, and out of the prior 4 shit-​hole north Austin complexes I’ve resided in, this place is comparatively amazing. Maintenance is super fast, and nice; he even asked if I needed anything else fixed when he came in to fix my garbage disposal. The breezeway lamps outside each door frequently burn out in my unit hallway, and each time I put in a request to replace them they are fixed usually within the same day.
Paying rent online is also a huge bonus.
Only downsides are:
1. My unit is located across from Slickwillies, and for the first few weeks they’d have their trash picked up at 4am. The sound of the beer bottle waterfall was deafening, and terrifying to wake up to. Had it persisted I would have had to submit a noise complaint to the city because it was insanely ridiculous. They still come by every now and then (maybe once a week, now, instead of almost every morning), but it’s usually right around 6am.
2. The speed bumps are plentiful, and vertical as shit.
3. It’s a gated community, which as we all know by now is only there to jack up the rent, and make it harder for you to get in/​out, while still the same amount of ease for potential crimes…
Price-​wise — unfortunately this is definitely one of the cheaper complexes is north Austin, as far as single units go. Still not within my budget, though :/​Fuck Austin, seriously. Time to move. I’ve lived here my whole life, and I have no idea who can afford living here now (the Californian invasion, that’s who).
As far as the rest of it goes, I’ve never had a bug problem (save for flies and ants this past week due to the summer heat, but I took care of it), and the interior of my place is totally fine.
They also don’t charge a monthly bullshit pet fee per month, so that’s nice. My cat lost her job so she cant afford to pay me monthly rent. I really appreciate not having the extra charge tacked on.
But I’ve been happy here, and I could see myself staying for a long time if I could afford it after the next rent bump :/

Wonderful service from Jamie and Dora at Woodchase! They really go the extra mile and as an apartment locator, it is hard to find such great on site help! Thanks for everything ladies! Highly recommend this apartment home to anyone looking for a great location, nice apartments and great on site staff

If I could, they’d get no star… worst place ever!!! They have the trash come at 3am and being the worst apartment/​management they also schedule landscaping on holidays at 8:00 because that’s everyone wants to wake to on a holiday

Linda F.‘s review sort of says it all where the neighborhood, amenities, and other conveniences (i.e. proximity to Interstates and bus lines) are concerned. An update might include the recently added #803 Express bus which also now runs along Burnet Rd. and makes travel to The Domain or Westgate Mall on either end of the line even faster.
But the reason I am writing this review is to comment on the staff of the complex.
As a «traveler,» I have lived in many states and have probably had over 30 «homes» before moving here almost 4 years ago… most of these being apartment complexes not unlike Woodchase, The difference here is clearly the staff. Maintenance provided for within the unit is impeccable. When I’ve had rather serious issues with my HVAC unit or plumbing, these were attended to almost immediately. And the grounds are extremely well maintained, no mean feat considering some of the trash I’ve seen residents leave in the pool area, which is adjacent to my unit. The laundry rooms have recently been updated with all new washers and dryers, as well as constant improvements to the property since my move-​in (security gates, a new perimeter fence, and a dog park to name a few).
And the in-​office management has been nothing but cooperative and helpful, and whereas I have read some less-​than-​favorable reviews, I am left to wonder as to what exactly might have caused any unfavorable interaction with either Dora or Jamie. I’ve met some of my neighbors and there seem to be a number of so-​called adults living on the property who are still basically being supported by their parents or trust-​funds or whatever, and these aren’t exactly people I would put much trust in. So keeping in mind that you pretty much get back whatever you give in this world, I’d question the trustworthiness of the people writing those negative reviews before questioning the integrity of 2 very professional and competent adults who manage this complex as well as any I’ve ever encountered.
I can’t recommend this complex enough, but seriously… only if you are all «grown-​up» and can get along with your neighbors and the superlative staff.

I lived at Woodchase for several years and recommend it.
Woodchase is in a quiet north-​central neighborhood near the intersection of 183 and Mopac. It’s a quick drive to 360, 35, downtown and The Arboretum.
The adjacent neighborhood, North Shoal Creek, is middle class and very safe. It is a nice neighborhood in which to walk and there is a playground with a track at the elementary school. When the neighborhood was established in the 60’s, it was probably a suburban neighborhood on the edge of town. Therefore, there aren’t any businesses in the neighborhood, only surrounding it. But, the commercial area around the neighborhood has many amenities. West Anderson, around the corner, is full of great restaurants and shops like Hopdoddy, Hanabi, Terra Toys, Fresh Plus, Dos Batos, Cover 3, Sunrise Minimart, and the Alamo Drafthouse Village. Slightly farther south you’ll find highly rated businesses on Burnet Road. One awesome thing located right in the neighborhood is North Village Branch of the public library — it’s a quick walk from the apartments.
The complex is located on the 3 bus line, whose route includes The Arboretum/​Great Hills area, Pickle Research Campus, all of Burnet south of 183, Medical Parkway (doctors! The Draughthouse!), The University of Texas main campus, Downtown, and South Lamar. The bus arrives about every half hour and is pretty slow. It’s possible to live here and rely on public transportation, but it’s inconvenient and you’ll probably be run over attempting to jaywalk (crosswalks are far between on busy Burnet Road). The Rapid Bus 803 route is coming, so that should be an improvement.
Our apartment interior seemed shoddy and slapped together — lopsided light switch covers, uneven floors, and sloppy paint jobs. There’s nothing trendy or interesting about beige walls and carpet. The high ceiling in the living room was a nice touch. Some units have fireplaces and washer/​dryer hook-​ups, which I’m sure was great for those residents.
I lived in two units here — a small one and a large one. The first had a very horrible roach problem when I moved in. It took awhile, but the problem was eradicated with regular visits by the exterminator.
The grounds are well maintained, though spotty with dog poop. The pool is okay — not disgusting but usually in need of a cleaning. The parking lot has plenty of spaces. The biggest con about the physical complex was the «emergency» pipe work that occasionally kept the water off all day. Usually, they would send out a notice the day before and only keep the water off from 8am to 5pm. However, a couple of times the water didn’t come back on until 9 or 11pm. That was so frustrating.
I rarely had complaints about loud neighbors. Even if someone was having a party or yelling in the breezeway, you couldn’t hear them from the bedroom (which is the most important thing). Typically, everyone was polite and kept to themselves. The residents are a mix of older students, young families, singles, young couples, and the elderly. I noticed rowdy people rarely lasted more than a couple months, while most people seemed to live there for years.
The staff are pretty good. Jamie in the office is professional and helpful. I rarely dealt with the manager, Dora. The maintenance guy (I feel guilty for not remembering his name) is wonderful. It seems he has to do most stuff by himself, but he gets everything done in a timely matter and is a super friendly, upbeat guy. I don’t recommend leaving a work order with the after-​hours answering service, unless it’s an emergency (like your fridge stops running or your toilet is overflowing) since they seem bad at relaying non-​urgent messages to the office.
Moving out was painless. We got a large chunk of our security deposit back, which I didn’t expect. Seems the rent has gone up a few hundred dollars since I moved out in early 2014.
I would recommend Woodchase for most people looking for an affordable, safe, modest place to live in almost-​central Austin.

We moved from here in May but only because we need a 3 bedroom and to be farther South. These apartments are great for the price. There is ample parking, maintenance is friendly and prompt. We definitely had to call maintenance for some electrical issues but they were always prompt with answering our call. They are definitely older but worth the money I think. We’ve never had issues with bugs. The apartments are pretty secluded — people don’t even realize they exist. Depending on what building you are in you could here the businesses in the plaza next door. There’s a pool hall and you can hear them taking out the 2am trash but really it didn’t bother us even being right next to the plaza. It’s not really a kid friendly apartment as it has no playground equipment — we took the apartment sight unseen when we moved from upstate NY and we very happy with it. One thing that irritated me the most was the failure of tenants to pick up their dogs crap even with apartment provided doggie waste bags and receptacles. We had a washer and dryer so weren’t able to rate the laundry room. When we were asked to renew our lease they indicated that you could get upgraded appliances if you desired so they are doing updates as the units empty out.

I have to admit, I am an apartment locator, and I know allot of properties around the Austin area. Dora and Jamie, the management team, are very professional, friendly, and diligent with «taking care of business». The grounds always look amazing and I have never shown an empty unit that doesn’t look move in ready. I have yet to see a unit with bad carpet, which believe you me, I have seen some places that the make ready is basically how someone left it.
Woodchase has allot of long term residents and is a very tranquil place, located on major buslines and central to almost everything. Love this place! and I would live here if I didn’t own a home in Round Rock ;-)

I agree with LetyG. Apartmentratings has since removed the names of Dora and Jamie but I’m not sure if AR did it or Dora and Jamie themselves. They are certainly the type of sneaky people that would do that.

Three years ago this place was nice but very modest. You can hear though the walls due to them being old appliances. They are not energy efficient cold in winter, hot in summer. They recently started to increase the rent and not by the usual $ 10 or $ 20 but by $ 150 for two bedrooms and $ 100 for one bedrooms. Whenever you request service it gets lost in the girls draw for a week until you call back for service. Cars are getting broken into and what are they stealing? Gas. So get a locking gas cap. The manager has a very crappy attitude like she is doing you a favor letting you live there. As soon as my lease is up I’m out… They do seem to have a high turnover rate for residence. I wish the management would be changed, that would be the best improvement.

I’d echo the other reviews on here– friendly management (which seems to be rare here in Austin), terrible laundry facilities and a committed (if overworked) maintenance staff. In fact, the maintenance boss once called me from his home when I left a simple toilet-​related request with the after-​hours answering service.
There’s a level of balance here. Are they great apartments? No. They were poorly put together using cheap materials twenty or thirty years ago. Cabinets will be poorly assembled, the linoleum could be uneven, and your cable or phone lines might need to be redropped. But, shit, for the most part that’s fine. The rent is pretty fantastic for the area and the apartments are clean (no issues with bugs that I’m aware of).
Also, they do flexible term leases and insane move-​in specials. The first month free? $ 100 deposit? Crazy good deal. I moved in originally to a one bedroom unit, then after my seven month lease ended I went to a two bedroom unit. They were able to give me that deal again, meaning that in less than a year’s time I had two free months of rent.

I’ve lived there for over 6 years, so that should say something. What it mostly says is «I don’t like to move if I don’t have to».
As James pointed out, the office staff are friendly. They always try to help me out with whatever problem may arise. I go by the office for fresh-​baked Otis Spunkmeyer cookies whenever I need a midday dessert.
Relatively quiet complex in a great location. Lots of my neighbors have also lived there for over 5 years, so they show proper respect.
Downside: the pool is lame. It’s small and shallow. And some people think their noisy kids are compatible with my relaxation time. But it is well landscaped at least, which makes a nice shortcut to the mailbox.
Oh yeah, the laundry facilities suck too. Not enough machines and no A/​C! WTF? It gets hot n sweaty in there.
I’ve had my rent raised twice, but I guess that’s Austin. The leasing agents do their best market research to keep the prices competitive for the area.
They aren’t brand new, (built in the late 80’s) and they aren’t perfect, but I call it home.

I currently live here and I have been very happy with this place.
The management rocks. Devon and this one lady (forgot her name… sorry!) are just awesome. Super nice people and they make you want to sign for two leases. j/​k, cuz then you’re stupid.
The office always has some type of treat: cookies, cake, etc.
Maintenance seems pretty prompt, but I haven’t really had to call anyone into do any work.
They pay for gas and trash. Prices aren’t bad. Nice people. Number 3 bus. You also get a lot of nice cool places around here such as Tien Hong, or all the places on Anderson Lane.
sign it!
DO IT