Elle At The Medical Center

It’s sad because this apartment has so much potential, but really it is awful. The apartments themselves are spacious and nice, with attached garages and nice appliances. The problem is the community. As a young woman I felt extremely uncomfortable walking around the gated community alone. The community is 99% Muslim, and the Muslim men are extremely rude and harassing to white women. I was chased, and followed to my apartment on more than one occasion for absolutely no reason. I couldn’t wait to get out of there, but the management tried to screw us over when we wanted to leave.

In depth review, from an average white guy.
Overall social atmosphere: completely muslim community, if you arent muslim, dont expect eye contact from anyone.
Staff: pleasant
Pool: main pool is decent, hot tub is disgusting.
Gym: 75% of the equipment has been stolen or is broken. 2 treadmills, never more than 1 works at a time, sometimes neither work. No soap dispensers or paper towels in the gym bathroom. Common scene is a lady in a burka walking at 1.5 mph on the treadmill (the only one) for 30 – 60 minutes while letting her kids run wild in the room while you try to work out.
Actual apartment: Overall, id say decent-​good. The rooms look nice and are pretty spacious. 2 tubs in our apartment were clogged with hair when we first moved in, some roaches in the kitchen if you flip the lights on in the middle of the night. Internet speeds are a problem here as well, never higher than 8mbps download speed, no matter what plan you have. LIGHTS AT NIGHT. Not sure if this is true with all the apartments, but I HAD TO DEAL WITH LIGHTS SHINING DIRECTLY IN THE BEDROOM FOR A YEAR!!!
Overall. Unless you’re muslim, this isnt the place for you probably. There has to be better apartment complexes in this area for the same price that are better maintained and atleast maybe only 50% muslim vs. 99.5%.

My husband and I lived at San Marin in a 1-​bedroom (+study) for 4 years, from fall of ’09 through fall of ’13. Overall, I was very satisifed with my experience.
Pros:
(1) Great location. Inside the loop; easy access to 288 and 610; close to the Med Center, Galleria Area, Midtown, and Downtown. When I didn’t have time to drive to Rice, I often went running up and down Almeda while training for marathons — no safety issues.
(2) Reasonable rent fees — my first year there, I was paying $ 1060 for a 1000 sq ft apartment! By the time I left, I was paying $ 1180.
(3) Friendly-​enough admin staff (high turn over, it seems, but they’ve had the same manager now for a few years and she is nice).
(4) Spacious, townhome style apartments with a private garage (!!) and, if you’re lucky, a large study/​den. Nice layout and finishes.
(5) Gated complex with a security guard to monitor visitors. I felt comfortable walking around the complex.
(6) Quiet, friendly neighbors. Mostly med students, med center employees, or wealthy foreigners receiving medical treatment nearby.
Cons:
(1) Whenever I submitted the occasional non-​emergency work order, I often had to call the office at least once or twice to follow up. They always seemed to be short-​staffed on maintenance.
(2) The gym and pool could have used a little more upkeep. They are functional, but modest at best. I preferred to pay for a club membership elsewhere and only relied on the gym at San Marin if I was pressed for time.
(3) The water bill is INSANE. The last 2 – 3 years I lived there, a company called Water Watch took over, and my monthly water bill was anywhere from $ 40-​$ 70! I tried to challenge these astronomical costs. Tt was just my husband and me – no kids, no pets. No luck. They divvy up average water use per unit, or so I was told. That still seemed excessive to me.
(4) Parking can be an issue. Within the past few years, the Middle Eastern population at San Marin has grown substantially. Many of them occupy their private garages for reacreational purposes (despite the admin staff advising against this). This means lots of cars are vying for limited curb-​side parking inside the complex. My husband’s vehicle was towed once, even though he was parked right behind our private garage. Needless to say, we were not happy about that.
(5) This is not necessarily San Marin’s fault, but noteworthy nonetheless: cell phone reception is terrible during Texans’ home games and the Rodeo. The apartment complex is located literally a mile from Reliant, so I suspect the circuits get jammed during major events. That was annoying.
The only reason we left San Marin was because we bought a house. Even with their flaws, I would highly recommend San Marin to anyone looking to rent in a central area.