Thoughts about Windsor Court Apts. (Knoxville, Central: section 8, apartments, for rent)

[jerrywex]

I am moving to Knoxville from Ohio and need feedback on Windsor Court Apts. and the surrounding area.Thanks.

[hiknapster]

This is my neighborhood. Knoxgarden use to live there, and I think she liked it until they went low-income and bad tenants moved in. I own a home in this area. We've been here a year and the tenants look great. My take is they must have improved things. A LOT.

In fact, we just drove by today and I commented to my husband that the landscaping looks neat and tidy. My daughter has a classmate that lives in these apartments. They are not rich by any means but they are extremely nice, church-going folks that really walk the walk.

After knowing all this I would not hesitate to send someone to these apartments. They are old and not fancy but they seem to be strict with their tenants so that there is not any trouble. People look like they go to work everyday.

The neighborhood is very decent. I live across the street in a nice, quiet suburban neighborhood next to an excellent elementary school. This area is also extremely close to grocery shopping and about five minutes from the highway.

[knoxgarden]

Windsor Court Apartments are awful. Do not move there. I lived there for several years. At first they were fine, but then they got approved for Section 8 (Welfare) and things got bad, fast. I was afraid to leave my apartment, cops were always there, cars broken into, drug sales, etc.
Maintenance is horrible. The buildings are literally falling apart. The gap between the ceiling and wall in my unit go so bad that my apartment was flooded with cigarette smoke from the people next door. Large chunks of cement fell off the stairs from the third floor and dented the hood of my car.
I'm not the only one that feels that way.
Windsor Court Apartment Ratings, Reviews, Map, Rents, and other Knoxville apartments for rent from ApartmentRatings.com
That area itself isn't that bad. There are nice apartments across the street from there and several other good complexes in the neighborhood. Just check the ratings and avoid Windsor Court.
Better choices in the same area would be Knox Landing, Canyon, Williamsburg. There's also this really, really nice complex off of Dutch Valley Road. I wanted to move there but they didn't have any openings. I can't remember the name so I'll give you some rather odd directions.
1. Take I-275 to Merchants Drive. Turn right (east).
2. Turn right on Central (first light)
3. Follow Central until it becomes Dutch Valley. Keep going until it passes Bruhin road. (There are some new apartments there. Those aren't the ones I mean)
4. You'll see Lauvan Road on the right. Don't turn.
5. You'll see an unmarked road on the left with a sign for the apartments. Turn left there.
Lovely complex, cheap, allow pets. Not a lot of amenties but next door to the Inskip Pool and park complex.

[BST]

Originally Posted by knoxgarden

Windsor Court Apartments are awful. Do not move there. I lived there for several years. At first they were fine, but then they got approved for Section 8 (Welfare) and things got bad, fast. I was afraid to leave my apartment, cops were always there, cars broken into, drug sales, etc.
Maintenance is horrible. The buildings are literally falling apart. The gap between the ceiling and wall in my unit go so bad that my apartment was flooded with cigarette smoke from the people next door. Large chunks of cement fell off the stairs from the third floor and dented the hood of my car.
I'm not the only one that feels that way.
Windsor Court Apartment Ratings, Reviews, Map, Rents, and other Knoxville apartments for rent from ApartmentRatings.com
That area itself isn't that bad. There are nice apartments across the street from there and several other good complexes in the neighborhood. Just check the ratings and avoid Windsor Court.
Better choices in the same area would be Knox Landing, Canyon, Williamsburg. There's also this really, really nice complex off of Dutch Valley Road. I wanted to move there but they didn't have any openings. I can't remember the name so I'll give you some rather odd directions.
1. Take I-275 to Merchants Drive. Turn right (east).
2. Turn right on Central (first light)
3. Follow Central until it becomes Dutch Valley. Keep going until it passes Bruhin road. (There are some new apartments there. Those aren't the ones I mean)
4. You'll see Lauvan Road on the right. Don't turn.
5. You'll see an unmarked road on the left with a sign for the apartments. Turn left there.
Lovely complex, cheap, allow pets. Not a lot of amenties but next door to the Inskip Pool and park complex.

I believe that's Castle Terrace Apartments you're describing. I lived there 20+ years ago. They were OK. A little short on storage space is my only negative comment.

[hiknapster]

I don't want to tell someone to move to a place and for it to not be good or even terrible. I am pretty neurotic and would not want to live in a bad area. I just got done looking at a condo for another forum member and felt that it would be a bad choice, so I really do care.

Anyway, my neighborhood is a kind of a "Leave it to Beaver" area. It's across the street from the apartments but up a bit. I think knoxgarden is saying that the area is good, but not that complex. It is old but it looks well groomed. it sure is dirt cheap. I guess you get what you pay for.

I have never seen any police in the complex and I have driven by thousands of times and at very odd hours, like on Sundays at 5 a.m. It still could just be dumb luck.

I wonder if it really has changed since you moved, knoxgarden. Wasn't that a while a go that you lived there?

But please know that I would never knowingly steer someone to a bad place to live. I would feel terrible about that.

[knoxgarden]

Windsor Court looks nice. They do a good job of keeping up the landscaping. But that's all they do. You've got to get off the street and back into the complex to see the problems at night. You can only see about 5% of it from Cedar Lane.
All the appliances and hvac are horribly old. My electric bill for a 700 sq. ft. apt. averaged $300 a month. Screens were taken off my windows all the time by people trying to break in.
The area around there can be very nice. I love Griffin's Gate condos and wish I could afford to buy there. The apartments across the street from Windsor Court are nice. There are some really lovely duplexes on Watercress Drive between Minglewood and Inskip.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by knoxgarden

Windsor Court looks nice. They do a good job of keeping up the landscaping. But that's all they do. You've got to get off the street and back into the complex to see the problems at night. You can only see about 5% of it from Cedar Lane.
All the appliances and hvac are horribly old. My electric bill for a 700 sq. ft. apt. averaged $300 a month. Screens were taken off my windows all the time by people trying to break in.
The area around there can be very nice. I love Griffin's Gate condos and wish I could afford to buy there. The apartments across the street from Windsor Court are nice. There are some really lovely duplexes on Watercress Drive between Minglewood and Inskip.

Aha! I totally understand and that is truly awful. I have been in scary situations like this and it is horrible. Yikes on that electric bill, too. The place is definitely not a bargain, what with all the problems, safety and utilities. I suspect that our acquaintance just doesn't want to mention these things. They are such a lovely family, too. That mother would do anything for those children and Lauren's classmate is a doll. Terrible.

I'm pretty sure that the complex across the street is called Woodgate. We have good friends that use to manage it and they are very professional and kind. In fact, the young lady at the animal shelter that facilitated Harvey's adoption said that she grew up there and loved it. I wonder about their rates.

[creeksitter]

Hik, do you have the opportunity to ask the girl's mom what she thinks of the complex. It is possible it is under new management. That can make a huge difference.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by creeksitter

Hik, do you have the opportunity to ask the girl's mom what she thinks of the complex. It is possible it is under new management. That can make a huge difference.

Actually, I just might see her tomorrow because it is field day. I'll ask, but I want to be careful how I phrase it.

[piggy123]

Windsor Court has been under new management now since January 2009 and things are alot better! The whole staff has completely been changed. They have resident activities that the whole family can enjoy. You really need to check out the community since the changes.