Copeley Hill Apartments

It's nothing fancy, but Copeley Hills is a great place if you are trying to save on cash. You get all your utilities included and you can use the UVA WiFi (eduroam) in your apartment. It is a tad small, but I personally don't mind because I am gone most of the day. Perhaps best of all, the UVA housing management will come fix anything very quickly if you submit a ticked at it is free, so you never have to worry about paying for extra maintenance. I chose to use a pre-furnished apartment, which was nice because I won't be taking any of this with me once I graduate.

It is also very quiet here. Plus, it is right in North Grounds (i.e., very close to Darden and the Law School) with bus stops to main grounds within 2 minute walks.

Would recommend to any trying to save some money.

Copeley is a great complex for the price. The appliances are older, but I have found maintenance to be really responsive. You just simply can't beat the price and location.

I live in Graduate Student Housing provided by UVA. My first two years of law school, I lived with a roommate and then moved to a one bedroom when my roommate graduated. I truly love living in grad housing: all utilities are provided (including a monthly stipend for laundry!); it is a close walk to school and it is a big space; maintenance / facilities are a quick call or work order away; parking is cheap (the only thing not included); and it is fully furnished.

It's a great and very affordable option that the university offers. You will likely be waitlisted at first when looking for housing, but it's likely you will be offered housing if you apply when the application opens.

Great, no frills apartment.

The apartment is a great value. If you're at the law school, the school and North Grounds gym are just a short walk away. For the price, you won't find much better for the price. I know I go into detail on the downsides but I would live here again. It truly is a great option for those on a budget.

As for the downsides, my particular apartment has a lot of bugs and I never see UVA staff spraying bug killer. But I guess that it comes with the territory of being near the forest and having an outdoor apartment. That said, they could probably at the very least spray the doorways. I frequently have bugs.

As for air flow, there is only one AC unit and it is in the living room. This means I keep my bedroom door open most fall/spring nights to allow for the colder air to circulate. I keep my window open (even though I'm sure at least some bugs get through the screen) as I find the air gets too warm and stuffy at night. I also use fans and air purifiers to help circulate fresh air. With those mitigations, I've gotten it to a fairly comfortable temperature. I just wish there were vents in this old apartment to distribute air evenly throughout the apartment and not just in the living room.

I have been living in Copeley as a graduate student for 4 months now. My house is not renovated.From the moment I stepped in the house it had cockroaches. I asked them several times to take care of it but all they do is set some useless traps in the house that do nothing. I almost kill at least one bug everyday and don’t have any peace in my own house. Be aware of these issues and visit the house before signing the lease if it is possible.

My experience at Copeley has been and still is nothing less than amazing. I cannkt complain about anything as everything is good until now!

Copeley is quiet, and university-owned, so paying rent is easy. Additionally, it is much more affordable than other properties in the area. It is furnished, which is really convenient. Maintenance is quick because it is university property, so they have to keep things up to code. It is a 5 minute walk to the law school. Truly a great place to live. Only thing is there is no central AC, just a wall unit in the living room, and the heaters are controlled at the university level, so you can't turn them on or off.

Constant onslaught of bugs. Cockroaches, millipedes, gnats, beetles. I have never lived in a place that can be so clean yet so exhausting with having to keep out pests. This is exacerbated by the lack of a garbage disposal, which causes food scraps to ferment in the sink and create food for bugs attracted to water.
Further, the apartment is very poorly ventilated. A/C is manually controlled, but is only put out by one console in the living room. The bathroom vent is so weak it is basically useless, encouraging the growth of mold.

Honestly, hard to beat. Copeley seems to be the lowest rent in town for a 1 bed/1 bath (with utilities included). Parking is about $100/year, which is a great deal, and most of the buildings are between a 5 and 10 minute walk to the law school. Not the most well-lit, but definitely feels safe to walk back and forth at night. Units can seem pretty dated compared to the granite/glass/stainless steel apartment buildings you see around, but facilities staff are quick to fix anything that breaks and it does the job. Some units are renovated (fake wood flooring, new cabinets) and some are not (laminate tile flooring-- like your college dorm, old white painted cabinets). They won't tell you which ones are and are not, and it seems like it's kind of random-- that is, not all units in a building are renovated/not (in mine, it's probably 3/8, from what I can tell). I lived in an unrenovated unit my first year, and found it looked a little too much like a college dorm for my liking. But currently in a renovated unit and it's perfect-- a little dated, a little quirky, but totally makes up for it with huge windows, amazing location, and great rent.

Otherwise, not much to say. Seems like a handful of law students, but lots of med/other grad schools. Walls can seem a little thin, but air conditioning unit is crazy loud, so not that bad. Some of the 2-bed units have families with kids, which I could imagine gets a little louder to live near, but hard to guess whether that's going to affect you or not. Some units can be kind of dim, depending on how you're angled to catch the sun. Only real complaint is that the units can get really hot in the winter-- once the temp drops to a certain degree, all the heaters kick on automatically, and they don't really have any way to adjust them (no thermostat-- the most you can do is try to open/close the vents a little). Units end up being pretty overheated, so most people I know who live here have to crack windows/turn on the AC in the winter to combat it. That pretty easily does the job, but good to know in advance.

Again, can't beat the price and location!