Stella at The Medical Center Review

I highly do not recommend signing a lease here. I signed a 13-month lease for a 2 bed-2 bath in August of 2022. The problems I've experienced can be broken up into a couple categories. The apartment was not move in ready, the maintenance is bad, there are a LOT of roaches, constant construction, and good luck ever changing anything about these problems because the staff will absolutely make it more work than its worth.

First, the apartment was not move-in ready. There were a ton of things wrong with the apartment before we even moved in. This includes:
- The toilet being broken and constantly flushing water for hours (water we had to pay for in our utilities bill)
- The shower leaked and still, to this day, does drip constantly. (also water that we had to pay for)
- There was paint all over the outskirts of every room in the apartment
- The doors would not adequately close. Room doors would get wedged in the frame making them impossible to shut properly. The front door wouldn't latch so the only way to keep it shut was to lock it. The patio door would also get wedged and therefore couldn't be locked at all and had holes in the frame which let out air conditioning and let in insects.
- The apartment was very much not clean. There were dead bugs all over the floor of every room and the living room smelled really strongly of cat poop and we had to wipe down every surface to get the smell to dissipate.
- The dishwasher was clogged and the first time we tried to use it, it filled with sewage water that made the entire apartment smell

Second, maintenance is pretty bad. We had to request that all the maintenance issues above be fixed multiple times because we would put in the request, get a notification saying it'd been completed while we were out, and come back to find that nothing had changed. On one notable occasion, we even came back to find that the maintenance worker that fixed our dishwasher had, in the process, broken a cabinet door. Completely tore it off its hinges, wood shavings everywhere, and just left it lying against the wall. No explanation was given, we just had to put in yet another maintenance request to get it fixed. The aforementioned gaps in the patio door frame were actually never fixed.

Third, the pests. Specifically, the cockroaches that infest the entire building our apartment was in. We got pest control to come by 3 separate times, and each time only saw a small reduction in roaches that lasted maybe a week before they were back in full force. During the winter, you can sometimes see 20+ roaches clustered around the stairwell lights huddling for warmth.

Fourth, the apartment complex itself is not great. This includes:
- Inconsistent water shut offs. Your water will be shut off at least once a month with a couple hours to a day's notice.
- One of the gates to the complex will also be broken every other month.
- Constant construction. You will actually see some other (i suspect paid for) reviews that mention the complex's "constant improvements". That means construction. All the time. Early in our lease some street construction blocked off the garbage truck's access to some of the garbage cans. So they just overflowed with garbage that got to rot in the Houston sun for two weeks. That also meant we had to walk any heavy garbage bags a much farther distance to reach garbage cans that had actually been emptied.
There was also construction on the foundation of our building. That meant, 7 am wakeups every day and very large cracks shooting through all of our walls and raining plaster down in all our rooms. When are these cracks being fixed, not for at least another 6 months apparently.

To top it all off, good luck getting a hold of the manager. I personally tried multiple times to discuss earlier promised water bill reductions that never came through and potentially ending our lease early. The manager's name is Wendy and she was consistently "on a call" and "will call you back later

convenient location. it has its problems, it’s an older property, but management is usually quick about addressing problems

Maintenance responds quickly. Poor air circulation inside the apartment though. Gets very hot during the day.

I have really enjoyed living at this apartment complex. There have been very few issues which have all been addressed within hours. I have never seen a better maintenance team. The location is ideal for my school, and I feel safe living here.

Enjoyed the experience. No elevators and parking could be annoying at times, especially for guest parking, but sometimes even for residents. Amenities and management were very nice. They even have some great dog areas if that's something you need. Pretty close to UHCO, but not the best spot as far as entertainment in Houston goes.

Buildings are a little older and it’s not the most glamorous spot, but it’s a good deal especially since it’s so close to campus and other fun stuff (Rice village, Montrose/Midtown, etc)

The location here is great! Only about 15 minutes to UH by car, with great access to the metro as well. While there aren't tons of restaurants within walking distance, it is very close to Rice Village, where there are tons of shops and other fun things to do. It is also very close to Hermann Park, which is great for getting out for a walk or going to the zoo (free with student ID). Overall, the property is very quiet and well kept. Great swimming pool and typical apartment gym. Maintenance is very quick, and they have occasional community activities. This complex is also gated, so I feel very secure.

Stella is a good place to live. I have never felt unsafe, and the apartments are reasonably nice. They are expensive, but affordable compared to other comparable apartments in the area. They are pet friendly but it will definitely cost you. Can’t find much better anywhere else, though. No carpet is a nice touch, but these floors scratch so easily. Maintenance is quick and very efficient. Also very friendly. Can’t really complain. A lot of families live here, and also a good amount of students from what I can tell. If you’re looking for somewhere that is safe (reasonably) and not obscenely overpriced, Stella is for you.

For the price I've been pretty happy with the experience! The buildings are a little older, but the location is nice and central and the area feels safe.