Byron Thurman

What is OUR part in the BP Oilspill?

Byron Thurman — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 20:53:24 +0000

Not the most on topic post, but with all the hooplah that has been going on recently I haven’t had time to make a good quality post of lately and since the oil flow was stopped very recently it seemed appropriate to assess the damage that was caused and what it would take for our nation to cleanup the oil spill in the gulf. What I found is a bit shocking. Although this is of course only a theoretical number and does not take into many factors such as age, location, etc. It is only a small amount of oil that each of us would have to clean up in order to do our part in the gulf.

Somewhere between 94 million and 184 million gallons have spilled into the Gulf, according to government estimates. The population of the United States was 307,006,550. If you do the math, if we each gathered up 0.6 gallons of crude oil from the gulf. We would as a country effectively clean up the entire oil spill. This is of course only a theoretical number, but food for thought.

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Shell Cheatsheat

Byron Thurman — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 01:50:25 +0000

File Commands
ls – directory listing
ls -al – formatted listing with hidden files
cd dir – change directory to dir
cd – change to home
pwd – show current directory
mkdir dir – create a directory dir
rm file – delete file
rm -r dir – delete directory dir
rm -f file – force remove file
rm -rf dir – force remove directory dir *
cp file1 file2 – copy file1 to file2
cp -r dir1 dir2 – copy dir1 to dir2; create dir2 if it
doesn’t exist
mv file1 file2 – rename or move file1 to file2
if file2 is an existing directory, moves file1 into
directory file2
ln -s file link – create symbolic link link to file
touch file – create or update file
cat > file – places standard input into file
more file – output the contents of file
head file – output the first 10 lines of file
tail file – output the last 10 lines of file
tail -f file – output the contents of file as it
grows, starting with the last 10 lines
Process Management
ps – display your currently active processes
top – display all running processes
kill pid – kill process id pid
killall proc – kill all processes named proc *
bg – lists stopped or background jobs; resume a
stopped job in the background
fg – brings the most recent job to foreground
fg n – brings job n to the foreground
File Permissions
chmod octal file – change the permissions of file
to octal, which can be found separately for user,
group, and world by adding:
? 4 – read (r)
? 2 – write (w)
? 1 – execute (x)
Examples:
chmod 777 – read, write, execute for all
chmod 755 – rwx for owner, rx for group and world
For more options, see man chmod.
SSH
ssh user@host – connect to host as user
ssh -p port user@host – connect to host on port
port as user
ssh-copy-id user@host – add your key to host for
user to enable a keyed or passwordless login
Searching
grep pattern files – search for pattern in files
grep -r pattern dir – search recursively for
pattern in dir
command | grep pattern – search for pattern in the
output of command
locate file – find all instances of file
System Info
date – show the current date and time
cal – show this month’s calendar
uptime – show current uptime
w – display who is online
whoami – who you are logged in as
finger user – display information about user
uname -a – show kernel information
cat /proc/cpuinfo – cpu information
cat /proc/meminfo – memory information
man command – show the manual for command
df – show disk usage
du – show directory space usage
free – show memory and swap usage
whereis app – show possible locations of app
which app – show which app will be run by default
Compression
tar cf file.tar files – create a tar named
file.tar containing files
tar xf file.tar – extract the files from file.tar
tar czf file.tar.gz files – create a tar with
Gzip compression
tar xzf file.tar.gz – extract a tar using Gzip
tar cjf file.tar.bz2 – create a tar with Bzip2
compression
tar xjf file.tar.bz2 – extract a tar using Bzip2
gzip file – compresses file and renames it to
file.gz
gzip -d file.gz – decompresses file.gz back to
file
Network
ping host – ping host and output results
whois domain – get whois information for domain
dig domain – get DNS information for domain
dig -x host – reverse lookup host
wget file – download file
wget -c file – continue a stopped download
Installation
Install from source:
./configure
make
make install
dpkg -i pkg.deb – install a package (Debian)
rpm -Uvh pkg.rpm – install a package (RPM)
Shortcuts
Ctrl+C – halts the current command
Ctrl+Z – stops the current command, resume with
fg in the foreground or bg in the background
Ctrl+D – log out of current session, similar to exit
Ctrl+W – erases one word in the current line
Ctrl+U – erases the whole line
Ctrl+R – type to bring up a recent command
!! – repeats the last command
exit – log out of current session
* use with extreme caution.

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The Tyler Effect

Byron Thurman — Fri, 07 May 2010 07:55:30 +0000

I recently had the honor of being featured on Tyler Cruz’s blog after a recent encounter we had while I was at work. If you read my blog regularly, then you may have seen the post explaining my data loss from a mishap at the datacenter that caused me to lose a lot of my recent work. This included most of the new content that I had applied as well.

I have been a regular reader of Tyler’s for about 4 years now. His blog is one of the few blogs that I actually read. I don’t like to read the typical large pro-blogger blogs. They were just a bit beyond the scope of what I was trying to do at the time.

I had made a few jokes over the last 9 months working at Hostgator that I was going to see Tyler come into chat one day. But I didn’t really imagine it would happen, although Tyler is a Hostgator client, Hostgator serves well over 2.5 million domains. That’s an amazing figure to me. We have several hundred employees that work in the Houston Hostgator office. And for me to actually have gotten him in chat seems like such a small chance. But to make it even more ironic, and Tyler actually has no clue about this unless he ends up reading this; that it was actually my birthday!

I have a tendency to forget my birthday and dismiss it as just another day. I do what I do at Hostgator because I love it. So it doesn’t seem unusual to me to work on my birthday, but people seem to find it strange. I find it unusual that he did happen to show up on my birthday of all days however.

I won’t bother going into all of the details of the post since Tyler has already covered most of the details in It’s a Small World After All… Especially Online if you would care to read the chat he even included that as well!

During our conversation I had mentioned that I was his friend and follower which since we had never spoken and I mainly lurked on his blog the last 4 years he had absolutely no idea who I was. I spend way too much time on social networks applications and really didn’t think about how that sounded. I was thinking Viddler and Twitter. I don’t even know if I have him on Twitter. But I receive an email every time he uploads a video to Viddler.

This post was a blessing to say the least. If we crunch some numbers I had lost a total of 2/3′s of my traffic due to this issue. I’m still recovering and setting up everything so I have been pretty hard to get ahold of due to having to rebuild most of my network.

The Tyler Effect

This boost of traffic came just in time and was the single greatest producing linkback on any of the sites in RocketScience Network.

Not only has this helped me recover quite a bit on my statistics. It has seemingly brought a surge of traffic to my blog. The unfortunate part about it was, since I had recently restored from a backup and was making changes, some old posts from when I was learning to auto-blog were reposted by mistake. So all of the most valuable content was not available on the front page. But such is life and it did ensure that I was going to fix the issues with the blog quickly.

If you would like to experience the Tyler Effect for yourself you can get a paid review from him for $250. You can select a review or a paid plug for the same price and see for yourself. I would encourage you to read over his specifications and read over his blog.

I have also recently been featured by Sarah Terry on E-how.com for one of my (ironically) popular posts on cricket farming. Which has been bringing in a trickle of visitors that is also improving my currently deflated stats. I was afraid to look at them after I lost my data. I just sat down and worked until I was able to get the network back at a working level.

Although the data loss has lost many hours of my work, it has actually forced me to take things to the next level. Things are very well organized and documented so that I can set goals and exceed them. I have found that more than ever, organization is the key to accomplishing many things in a small amount of time. I really believe that without the current system that I have developed due to this outage I would have needed at least 5 more of me to do this in the same amount of time. It’s amazing how productive you can be when you can focus on your goals.

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Write Down Your Goals

Byron Thurman — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 10:31:43 +0000

“Many people fail in life, not for lack of ability or brains or even courage but simply because they have never organized their energies around a goal.”-Elbert Hubbard (writer and artist)

Sometimes as a business owner, you become so overwhelmed, the only thing you can do is take it one step at a time. And, although this may get you through the week, it’s not going to help grow your business. Real growth comes from writing out the goals you plan to achieve–and then putting those goals into action.

Here are some “rules” to follow when creating metrics and other goals:

Specific- Know exactly what your goal is.
Measurable- Know whether you achieved the goal.
Achievable- Speaks for itself.
Relevant- Relates to the big picture.
Time Bound- When will you reach the goal?

Did you know…only 3% of the population has written goals? And, they earn ten times more than the rest.

If you truly want to see improvement and growth in your company, take the time to create SMART goals. Then, be sure to make yourself and your employees accountable for those goals. Otherwise, you will always be taking it a day at a time.

Sincerely,

Clate Mask
CEO, Infusionsoft

I have been stressing to many of my associates that you should write down your goals. I thought this would make an excellent reference, from the eyes others that have found how effective the process really is.

I have very scattered thinking patters, my mind tends to wander. I tend to open a new window to work on something and then forget about it halfway through to work on what I was working on previously. At any given time I am generally working on about 3-5 specific issues.

I have alleviated the worst parts of my habit by keeping a series of notebooks sorted by topic at my desk. Then if I have an idea that pertains to the section of my life I write it down. This enables me to remain focused even when being bombarded by new ideas.

This creates a sort of simple ticket system that allows me to verify the work I have completed. Each page that is completed means I’m a page closer to being where I want to be.

Currently I am setting a milestones page for RocketScience Network that will outline the goals of each site and the versions of the course of it’s evolution. This will enable others to get more involved with the day to day operations of the network. That way I can focus my activities on more difficult operations of the business.

I have Google Docs spreadsheets as well that I have the ability to share with my associates that outline many of the steps that I use to get a specific site up and running. There are no explanations to the steps currently but eventually it will be formulated into a complete process that can be replicated by others.

Organization is the key to being effective. Organized thought patterns will have a strategic advantage over those that are using less organized thought processes. If what Clate says is true, then simply by writing down your goals you are already categorizing yourself in the top 3%.

I tell my associates you should always strive to be in the top 10%. So it seems logical to me that writing down your goals is a necessary step to take to meet that goal. Ideas are not what brings success, action brings success. The more you can do to create productive action, the more success you will bring into your life.

I have been stressing to my associates that they should write down there goals. I have found that although my thinking is very scattered, so is everyone elses. I have personally overcome this obstacle by writing down every idea that comes to my brain when I’m working.

I have set aside a notebook of

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95 percent of people are sheep!

Byron Thurman — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 07:29:11 +0000

Have you ever arrived somewhere and wondered how you got there? Scientists at the University of Leeds believe they may have found the answer, with research that shows that humans flock like sheep and birds, subconsciously following a minority of individuals.

Results from a study at the University of Leeds show that it takes a minority of just five percent to influence a crowd’s direction – and that the other 95 per cent follow without realising it.

The findings could have major implications for directing the flow of large crowds, in particular in disaster scenarios, where verbal communication may be difficult.

“There are many situations where this information could be used to good effect,” says Professor Jens Krause of the University’s Faculty of Biological Sciences. “At one extreme, it could be used to inform emergency planning strategies and at the other, it could be useful in organising pedestrian flow in busy areas.”

Professor Krause, with PhD student John Dyer, conducted a series of experiments where groups of people were asked to walk randomly around a large hall. Within the group, a select few received more detailed information about where to walk. Participants were not allowed to communicate with one another but had to stay within arms length of another person.

The findings show that in all cases, the ‘informed individuals’ were followed by others in the crowd, forming a self-organising, snake-like structure.

“We’ve all been in situations where we get swept along by the crowd,” says Professor Krause. “But what’s interesting about this research is that our participants ended up making a consensus decision despite the fact that they weren’t allowed to talk or gesture to one another. In most cases the participants didn’t realise they were being led by others.”

Other experiments in the study used groups of different sizes, with different ratios of ‘informed individuals’. The research findings show that as the number of people in a crowd increases, the number of informed individuals decreases. In large crowds of 200 or more, five percent of the group is enough to influence the direction in which it travels. The research also looked at different scenarios for the location of the ‘informed individuals’ to determine whether where they were located had a bearing on the time it took for the crowd to follow.

“We initially started looking at consensus decision making in humans because we were interested in animal migration, particularly birds, where it can be difficult to identify the leaders of a flock,” says Professor Krause. “But it just goes to show that there are strong parallels between animal grouping behaviour and human crowds.”

This research was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and was a collaborative study involving the Universities of Oxford and Wales Bangor. The paper relating to this research, entitled Consensus decision making in human crowds is published in the current issue of Animal Behaviour Journal.

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I Pose the Question: What would you do if you lost all of your data?

Byron Thurman — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 08:26:36 +0000

This is something that we as internet marketers and entreprenuers sometimes don’t think about. The ones that have been burned are looking at their scars right now wondering how anyone could be so foolish but the reality is most of us don’t want to have to think about actually backing up our data. So we find ways to automate it or for some of us our insurance plan is crossing our fingers.

Although I’m not much on procrastination, I too am guilty of putting things off. In this case due to other business obligations. The web has not been filled with my recent experiences and the ones that were documented are now lost due to a very unfortunate issue with my datacenter. I’m not going to point the finger at cologuys.com *cough* but it seems that an unfortunate error with the datacenter not only knocked our server out of commission for a short period but did irrecoverable damage. They reclaimed our server.

So Why Didn’t You Pay the Bill?

This is typically the first thing that is assumed, well you didn’t pay your bill so it was reclaimed. But I happen to work in the hosting industry so I’m well accustomed to paying my monthly bill, it comes before eating when it comes down to the two for me, I’ll find a dollar to get some Ramen or a few bucks for rice and figure it out. The important thing to me is that my business is still online.

The bill was paid on time for close to 6 months before a mishap that occured when our server was issued came to frutation. It seems that one of the datacenter employees forgot to mark our server as deployed. They quite literally took down our live server, formatted our drives, and gave it to another client. The took down every person on our server, all of my sites included. This was why my site was down for so long. I was so busy restoring RocketScience Network to half mast everyone thought I had sudden problems with them. No guys sorry, not me, just busy as always. Busy in a whole new sense of the word.

Similar Troubles for Others

Interestingly enough shortly after a recent chat with Tyler Cruz, he had similar issues with all of his sites on his server and had his network go down as well he has written a post regarding this experience which rather than a datacenter issue (Tylerhosts with Hostgator someones head would roll for what happened to me but unfortunately I was not one with the Gator) he had a viral issue knock out his network. I have been pretty fortunate and have not been hacked nor have I received a virus to my knowledge on any of my sites which after working in the hosting industry I feel I am quite lucky in that respect. But it appears that he may have gotten a nasty bug that I was seeing pretty widespread for about a week on webservers where the index.php would display an error on line one. I actually received about 5 of these in one day before the exact cause of the issue was uncovered, so Tyler was not alone on this one.

Where does this leave me?

Well pretty close to where the title would let on. Fortunately I had some backups for about half of my sites. What is horrible is I had spent the last 6 months making them better so they are back to my original crappy autoblogs that I first learned with when I had so many domains and no content for them. So I didn’t have to start from scratch, the thought really makes me want to throw up I’ve worked very hard for the last 3 years to build this from the ground up. The last 6 months being some of the most productive in terms of getting things consistent between all of my sites. I currently run somewhere around 50 websites pretty much by myself so this has really put the future into perspective for me.

What does the future hold?

You will definitely notice the changes being re-implemented to the sites. This is a pretty involved manual process of restoring the site structures I had developed, some of the post content, and all of the processes and automations that make the network run. It’s really not an easy task to run 50 websites and work a full time job at Hostgator.

You will see more publication of what I’m doing online. It’s gotten quickly to the point that I really can’t keep up with everyone that wants to stay in contact with me so I’m just writing to everyone who’s listening. You will see my business and personal endevours mixed on this site.

You will find more content that is written for humans, not search engines. Yes, search engines are great but blogs aren’t for search engines, they are for people and sometimes it’s easy to overlook that when we are contantly looking at numbers. Each person is an individual that should be treated as so, and engaged in the content, not just hoping to land the next few hits and hope someone clicks your adsense link. There is much more to the process than that.

You will see more regularly updated content and larger posts for this site. Not all have the same focus but you will continue to see the improvements I outlined in my long lost posts from the last 6 months but the changes probably won’t be as subtle as they were whe I was learning and changing my ideals which is of course a neverending process but the last 6 months were some of the most notable in regards to overall understanding of how to effectively engage the concepts that I had been learning and apply them to my network.

The designs were lost as well so I’m at a scramble trying to make my sites look good again or at least tolerable. You don’t realize how much you do in half a year until it’s gone. For those of you that have never lost your data, take my advice and back it up.

For those of you that haven’t been knocked out by a virus, take Tyler’s advice.

For those of you that feel this isn’t really important, learn the hard way like us. It builds character.

And drink milk. Because it builds strong bones and don’t forget to switch to Geico while you’re at it. It could save you 15% or more on car insurance.

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Amputee Sky Diving

Byron Thurman — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 17:55:22 +0000

With our recent Host Gator outing to skydive one of my concerns is whether I would be able to bring my girlfriend who is missing about half of her right leg due to cancer when she was still a child. A friend of mine sent me this link to confirm that she was indeed able to skydive and the guy literally looked so happy I had to post this up.

Josh Wells Skydiving Tandem

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The History of Byron Thurman (The Name)

Byron Thurman — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 08:04:37 +0000

So far I have found 7 people in the world with my name, Byron Thurman. It is indeed an uncommon name. I have spent some time tracking down some of my fellow Byron Thurman’s.

Byron Thurman – ?- Obituary from February 1, 1937 – Byron Thurman, World War veteran, died Saturday at the Veteran’s hospital at Bay Pines. The body will be taken to Chatanooga, Tenn., for funeral services and burial. Arrangements are in charge of the Wilhelm Funeral home.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=950&dat=19370201&id=Bs0LAAAAIBAJ&sjid=N1UDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2755,4187748

Looking for any information on Byron Barker Thurman who died on July 21, 1946 in Evansville, Indiana. Born in Petersburg, Indiana about 1894. Mother’s name may be Laura. Had a brother who lived in Indianapolis in the 1940′s. Fathers name possibly William.

http://boards.ancestry.co.uk/surnames.thurman/351/mb.ashx?pnt=1

Thurman, Barbara Ann 64, of El Paso died Tuesday (Sept. 12, 2000).
Memorial service will be at 10 a.m. Saturday in Hillcrest Funeral
Home-Carolina. Survivors include her son, Byron Thurman; her
daughters, Leona Burleson and Priscilla Lechuga; her mother; Florance
Sullivan; one brother; one sister; and six grandchildren. She was
preceded in death by her husband, Everett Thurman. She was a retired
bookkeeper for Terk Distributing and was a lifelong resident of El
Paso.

http://files.usgwarchives.net/tx/elpaso/obits/2000/090900.txt

There is also another Byron Thurman from Houston as well as my father Byron Thurman Sr. who last I heard resided in Rusk, Texas. The funny part is after tracing down some rental histories I found that my father and I lived withing 15 minutes of each other and didn’t even know it. Small world.

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Villagio Apartments, Houston

Byron Thurman — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 01:34:30 +0000

http://villagioapts.net/main/

I really hate it when a mis-communication changes my entire opinion about a business and up until now I have been very satisfied with the service that I have received at the Vilagio Apartments. However this morning I was shocked when before I was able to take my dog in for his pet interview I was approached by one of the ladies from the office regarding me not having paid the pet deposit and having a breed that wasn’t allowed and that one of the other ladies is considering charging me a $100 fine for each of the dogs. I informed them that we were taking them out for a bathroom break and the pet interview we had discussed was next on my to-do list for the day, and that I only had not brought them in because yesterday was Sunday and I would be there momentarily.

Judging by the tone I opted that it would be a better idea not to bring the dog the first time, and to see what could have possibly occured to instigate this issue. When I arrived at the office I went to each of the ladies accordingly until I was directed to the one I was supposed to be talking to. (I’m not releasing names out of the kindness of my heart because trust me right now I want to.) And I was quite rudely informed that I had violated my lease agreement by bringing this dog to my apartment before I paid the deposit or had the pet interview. I informed them that I live 6 hours away and had to bring the dog in order to show him to them.

I was then told that I didn’t tell them I had any dogs, which without sugarcoating the issue at all is a direct lie. I may not have told her specifically but I honestly wasn’t aware I needed to tell the left hand as well as the right. She then asked me who I had spoken to about the pets and the interview and I let them know that it was my previous roomate in the complex that had discussed the interview and I was told I could bring them in however I had discussed the dogs prior to this with the leasing agents and she bluntly demanded for me to tell her who I discussed this with.

I was also told that my dogs stink and would tear up the apartment and that it had new carpet and “I don’t even want to think about that, do you understand?” It was not in the agreement that I couldn’t have pets due to new carpet. And my dog is a show dog from a champion line to tell me that my dogs that I take the utmost care of stinks before you ever actually even so much as see them is a bit excessive. This could have gone, “I would assume that your dogs my smell bad”. Not “dogs smell bad and will stink up the apartment”. Correction, currently my dogs smell like vanilla. If that stinks I apologize please give me a list of acceptable smells so that I may comply to your requests.

We are clean people, and I train my dogs well, especially in a close environment such as an apartment. If they have accidents, we clean it up, and use the steam cleaner on the carpet within minutes. To assume that we are filthy people that don’t take care of our dogs, and to tell me verbatim that my dogs will bring fleas into the apartment and assume I do not clean up after them when they do mess up is completely incorrect and presumptively false.

I’m not one to skirt around issues, and frankly I hate being called a liar. That means whether it comes from your mouth or your body language. I can relate to and understand both and break it down for you the exact movements you are giving me with your body language, and I was being told I was lying. Not Happy at all with the way this was handled. I especially don’t like being talked down to. And when you conversation begins with “I’m only going to tell this to you one time” I would say that is definitely being talked down to, which in my opinion is both disrespectful, and unprofessional. I work in customer service at a call center for one of the top webhosting companies in the world, and if I was to tell one of our customers something like that I would certainly be reprimanded, probably written up, and potentially fired.

If I was a difficult person, or rude, I would understand however I make it a point to treat others how I would like to be treated, which I would never want to be treated in this manner whether they lease me an apartment or not. Leasing me my dwelling is not justification for unnecessary rudeness or down talk. If I can do it at my job explaining technical details to completely untechnical people I believe it is fair to assume that this particular individual could maintain a professional composure.

The other 2 leasing agents were as kind and helpful as they always are however I was flat out disgusted by the other individuals unnecessarily rude demeanor and am now looking to buy a house.

Turns out that the only reason this happened is because apparently when my girlfriend told me that she thought the maintenance men were talking in Spanish about her she was correct. Of course I took that as meaning that they were talking dirty about her in Spanish since that has been my experience in such matters up until this time. However that proved not to be the case. At least they had some sort of tact. So essentially we were told on for something by maintenance for something that was already agreed upon and we were going to be bringing the pet deposits in that day for the interview.

Currently as it stands, I wonder if they will let me keep all of the pet roaches that are accumulating in my apartment or if that will be a lease violation as well because I didn’t pay a pet deposit.

And now for a consumer opinion moment from other residents. The following opinions do not necessarily reflect my own.

New Management
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 3/26/2008
Years at this apartment: 2000 – 2008
User Response is available. 1 response
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This is the FIRST time since the change in management companies that we have received any kind of notice about what is going on (re: hot water/gas leak). I am impressed with whoever is running the office now (we never know that either since two of the managers are no longer with the company and notices are never sent about the names of the office employees).

Earlier this year, all of the complex was painted, yet no notice was given regarding what day our building would be painted. As a result, I was not given fair warning to put my dogs out of the “yard” and into the apartment. I spoke with many people who said they never received the alleged notice. I argued with the manager about it and she continued to state she did send a notice. I’ve lived in the Villagio a very long time and plan to get out as soon as my lease is up. It was pretty good and it is very conveniently located, but I should not have to fight battles to get things repaired. I have given up on some of my requests. Despite faxes, emails, and calling, some things are not done.

Finally, weeds are passing as “landscaping” and have for quite a long time in my building. Plants were placed in the middle of the weeds. It is so ugly. Yet, the front is immaculately landscaped. I pay rent and would like very much to look at something attractive.

I sincerely hope that the new manager will get things done and get them done correctly.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-749416.html#ixzz0RnH2Pk2p

*******************************************************

Pretty good for the price
From: MollieBeth
Date posted: 3/26/2008
Years at this apartment: 2007 – 2008
User Response is available. 6 responses
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www. highpointcommons. com

I live in one of the small one bed one bath apartments. Our hot water has been out for the past few days, it’s true. However, I have lived in other complexes where similar things have happened and this is the first complex I have lived in where the management does it’s best to keep the tenants informed about the situation. In fact, I have been told we will be receiving a prorated rent check back for the days we have been without hot water. Talk about service! Now, things haven’t always been peachy. There have been times when I have requested work to be done and it has taken maintenance several days to get to the problem. However, with the size of the complex and the fact that management had just changed hands when I put in the requests, I can understand a few kinks in the system. Overall, my experience with the office workers has been a good one. They’re very kind and they do their best to understand where you are coming from. This is also the quietest complex I have lived in. And since I’m in college and I work, that has been a blessing. The pet deposits are fair, I think, and they have been very understanding when it comes to my animals. (I own one cat and one dog) A pretty good place to live all around.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-749359.html#ixzz0RnHIB99X

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BIG FRUSTRATION. DO NOT RENT HERE.
From: scoobyescobar@hotmail.com
Date posted: 3/25/2008
Years at this apartment: 2007 – 2008
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We want to express our frustration & disappointment with this apartment complex. It is the 3rd Day that we dont have hot water and our heater is not working.

We have a newborn baby and the last 3 days Houston night weather has been cold. Also it is very inconvinient and dangerous for us that everytime we have to go work or take our kids to school we need to boil water.

I hope Villagio can fix all this problems asap. We cannot live this way here.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-748958.html#ixzz0RnHOmq2I

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Do not even think about moving here
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 3/11/2008
Years at this apartment: 2008 – 2008
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the worst customer service I’ve ever seen.
People at the leasing office is not efficient

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-743812.html#ixzz0RnHXcADz

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safety’
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 1/8/2008
Years at this apartment: 2008 – 2008
User Response is available. 4 responses
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I wish I would have found this site sooner….but is it just me or did anyone hear gun shots around 1am’ I’m kind of scared now.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-715883.html#ixzz0RnHndh42

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Good Luck Getting Your Apartment Needs Maintained In Good Time
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 1/4/2008
Years at this apartment: 2008 – 2008
User Response is available. 4 responses
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I have been waiting 3 days now for someone to come out to deal with two things.
The toliet keeps backing up, and we have plunged it plenty of times. I think it has something to do with piping.
Also, these geniuses have the furnace on the outside of the apartment in the back of the apartment, it is in an enclosed in a small closet type space, and the real hoot is the door to this small closet has a vented door on it. On the inside of the apartment ( same wall as this little closet with the furnace) there is a large vent on the wall so we have a huge breeze of cold air coming in from the outside now.

we have complained about this in the past and they had someone come out but they didn’t do anything about it.
Now I am complaining again, and like I said have been waiting 3 days for someone to come down and fix these problems.
I called the office today and spoke with Carla and she said she will TRY to get someone down here today. Funny that is what I heard 3 days ago.

Apparently when they say TRY it means don’t hold your breath!

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-679469.html#ixzz0RnHu9vGw

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Raw Sewage
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 12/31/2007
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2007
User Response is available. 5 responses
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Yeah I am stuck living here because I do not want to break my lease and I usually do not say much on here but a problem that these buildings are having is getting worse. RAW SEWAGE is flowing behind the 7992 building and in the drive behind the building. It is a nice day outside and now when I walk out and see SHI* when my friends from out of town are visiting its just embarrasing.. lets not mention the smell of the place. Just like the other reviews steer clear there is a very very nice apartment complex next door lol..

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-666111.html#ixzz0RnI9rV0Y

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My two cents
From: poopee22
Date posted: 12/27/2007
Years at this apartment: 2007 – 2007
User Response is available. 1 response
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I moved out of the Villagio 3 months ago and I thought I was through with this place. I called them a month after I moved out because I hadn’t received my deposit. When I called I was told that I had a balance for an unpaid water bill, late fee, and some other misc. things that I hadn’t heard of. Pilar, the apt. manager knew that I was going to stay 4 days past my lease ending and told me how much I owed them, I paid it and thought I was through with them, I also left a forwarding address for them Now they are claiming that my I owe them money for an extra two days that began prior to my lease ending and that they have no forwarding address. These people are bunch of immoral thieves, and it would be in anyone best interest not to even consider moving into this complex. To this day I have not received anything.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-654036.html#ixzz0RnIOzn0j

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Do NOT move here!
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 12/26/2007
Years at this apartment: 2007 – 2007
User Response is available. 1 response
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I lived in this apartment complex for 4 years and watched it go from a nice, safe place to live to an unsafe, poorly managed property. Not only do cars get broken into on a regular basis, but the management is really horrible. I moved out over two months ago because I didn’t feel safe living there anymore, and I still haven’t recieved my deposit check back. Every time I call and try to talk to the manager the staff pretends like she isn’t there and she never returns the messages I leave. Also, she refuses to give me the full deposit promised by a member of her staff. Their customer service skills are horrible. It was bad enough living there and now they owe me hundreds of dollars that they keep trying to not repay me. Do NOT move there. I could tell lots of other bad stories about this place, like the heath department shutting down their pools, or none of the heaters in the complex working when it’s 40 degrees outside, but just take my word for it…find somewhere else to live! x-2PE3sjUIIeetAHoKOk

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-711264.html#ixzz0RnIVPfya

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Be Warned!
From: thedallasite
Date posted: 9/28/2007
Years at this apartment: 2007 – 2007
User Response is available. 5 responses
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I live in the largest unit in the complex, a 3 bedroom 3 bath. I like the apartment itself but the management and elements around me are horrible. When we first moved in there where alot of good people in the complex but over the last year the new management has let down thier guard and let just anyone rent there. Now at night there are sede thugs walking around the place. Things being stolen from everywhere and discurtious residents who own pets and let thier dogs deficate on your door step. The doogie fecal problem is such a huge problem here, I am thingking about reporting it to the city but not sure what they can do really!! The new management does not speak English very well, infact a week after they moved in they put “Se Renta” signs all over the front grounds and changed everything into Spanish. Don’t bother calling, you will need a translator to talk to them on the phone. These people go through temps like toilet paper, no one is ever the same there.

I have had to do most repair jobs all my self. I had to replace my outside porch fixture and, buy mercury bulbs for my carport space, re-glue the carpet to the steps on the stairs, i had to fix the locks on my sliding glass doors and fix the lock on my gate. Also I had to trim the landscaping around my back patio, since it was over grown, and harvesting mosqitoes. The only thing I can give them credit on is my A/C went out and they came to fix it after i went up there on a rampage for the 3rd time.

The street out front was a mess, 1/2 foot pot holes and such, I know that is an city issue but the management never contacted public works about it and finally after I saw a vehicle loose a tire infront of me from falling in the hole by the gate, I called Public Works and we had a brand new street with in a few weeks. See how easy that was’ What are these people at the leasing office being paid for’ Everytime I go up there its like they are alway eating and gosiping in Spanish. They think I cant understand them, but I speak fluent Spanish and hear what they are saying, but i digress!

Basicly be weary of moving in here, it looks all cute and everything on the outside, but there is alot to deal with when moving here.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-679998.html#ixzz0RnIb9X1r

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Eh….
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 8/27/2007
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2007
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This place was absolutely awful when I first moved in last November… ants poured out of my bathtub faucets, I have water leaks, my air conditioning broke a few weeks ago (August in Houston!!) and it took 3 days to get fixed, there are noisy pipes, noisy neighbors, my kitchen sink filled with swamp water and it took 3 (very smelly) days for it to be fixed. The laundry room RIGHT NEXT to my apartment was burglarized at 5 am, and a car hit the dumpster directly behind my apartment (if it had turned the other way, it would have been in my bedroom). Also, My friend that lives a few apartments down had her car broken into.
I feel really bad for the new management coming in to this place and having to try to fix everything that the old management didn’t give a sh** about… there were pot holes and the grounds weren’t cared for at all. The old management was so awful, they looked at you like you were going in the office just to annoy them if you had something wrong to report. Things are physically looking better over here but I just can’t recommend it after everything I went through. Maybe things will get better, but I am getting out as soon as my lease is up.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-667458.html#ixzz0RnIho2wZ

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DO NOT MOVE HERE
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 8/24/2007
Years at this apartment: 2003 – 2004
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Lived here for only one year. Covered parking could not accomodate my truck ( IN HOUSTON, TEXAS) so I parked in front and had two tires stolen. Apartment was burglurized, and upstairs neighbor was always noisy (staff didn’t care). Move on and don’t bother.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-666330.html#ixzz0RnIptstm

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New Management Worse than Old
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 7/28/2007
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2007
User Response is available. 2 responses
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Well this is my second year and second apartment on the property. I can honestly say that the management is beyond horrible and the complex while it always had its share of problems is very rapidly declining (probably the new management). The only redeeming quality about this property has always been its residents. When I first moved in the residents were just amazing. My neighbors watched out for me and were really good people. Recently more and more of the good people are leaving and a lower class group is moving in.

Just to review, 2 months ago a new management company bought the property and fired the entire office staff and the only hard working person on property the head maintenance guy. I just renewed my lease before the takeover because I love my neighbors. I also was able to transfer to a new apartment, receive discounts and such. I had serious problems with the old management including bats, rats, and illegal activity by the manager and assistant manager, but they made peace with me and I was looking forward to this new apartment and new lease but in comes the new management.

The new management took over and waited 2 weeks before they made any attempt to tell the tenants that there was new management and all new staff. When they finally announced their presence they promised great things like new paint, new roofs, new ac units, repairs, etc so far nothing has been done. When asked about the rats, bats, animal waste, and basic maintenance they have no answers or even worse refuse to speak with you. The new manager, Pilar Liz Coyle, is the fastest talker of them all she acts so sympathetic and promises great things but you wait and you wait and you wait some more and then you call her and she refuses to answer your calls and she is always out on property when you call. Now I am begin to wonder does Pilar still work there’ She is never in the office and never returns phone calls.

Recently I have been very upset due to a long existing problem, the animal waste found on every inch of grass on property. Almost everyone on property owns at least one pet, but very few pet owners are responsible and actually put the pet on a leash and clean up its waste. This problem is aggravated by the fact that the property management refuses to clean up the piling waste and does nothing to ensure that residents are cleaning up after their pets. While this waste problem has always been horrible (stench of dog —- on those hot summer days, always watching where you step, etc.), it is now causing pets to become ill. My 2 dogs became ill with a parasite they picked-up on property. This parasite is spread through the animal waste. When I brought this to management s attention, again I was dismissed and ignored by the MIA Pilar.

Finally my SCAREST concern the employees/management are either ignorant or thieves. I received a phone call today from a girl named Melissa calling on behalf of the Villagio regarding an outstanding balance. Not only do I not owe them money but the amount they want is not even my rent amount! I pointed those concerns out to her and told her who I gave the payment to. She must struggle with the English language, as I am confident a few members of that office share her struggle, because when I told her who I paid the rent to, she transferred the call to that person. After I was transferred back to Melissa, she proved to be incompetent and seriously lacking customer service skills. She demanded I come into the office that very moment and was irritated when I explained that I was working and would not be home until around 9pm. I did offer to meet her then but apparently that would not work for her. She kept repeating herself and was blaming the old management for poor records. Every time I attempted to speak she cut me off and then for some reason she proceeded to tell me about another resident and his financial situation and debt to the Villagio. Finally I had enough, cut her off and told her she was done speaking. I explained my rent was paid, that she was incorrect about my rent amount, and that it has been two months since the old management left, it is time to accept responsibility for the situation and stop pointing the finger to the past. By now she should be able to look at my lease agreement and know my actual rent amount. As for the missing payment, all I can say is at least the old management s staff were not thieves. There was no resolution to her problem and I told Melissa that I would no longer speak with her and to have Pilar call me. I brought my phone to all my meetings today waiting for Pilar guess what’ You guessed it! She did not return my call.

To sum it all up Bats, Rats, Animal Waste and Thieves! RUN AWAY FROM THE VILLAGIO AS FAST AS YOU CAN!

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-653844.html#ixzz0RnIySPBv

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management office writing good reviews
From: T1MOTHY
Date posted: 7/26/2007
Years at this apartment: 2007 – 2007
User Response is available. 2 responses
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has anyone noticed that all the GOOD reviews for this place seem like they’re coming from the same person’ they all involve the tenants taking more responsibility, keeping your own space clean and being respectful to the staff and MAYBE they will show you respect in return. sorry, but that’s just NOT how it should work. people are paying a large sum of money for a place to live, and the staff gets paid to do their job. and their job is CUSTOMER SERVICE first and foremost! saying that you wouldn’t have roaches if you kept your apartment clean is just asinine. being that apartment buildings are comprised of many units in one structure, once the roaches and rats are attracted to apartment #1 they will move on to #2, #3, etc, hunting for more food. but i guess it is the tenant’s fault for not getting the community to take responsibility for their disgusting lifestyles. (sarcasm implied)

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-653316.html#ixzz0RnJ9eBEy

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Worst place I ever lived!
From: sadiefoxylady
Date posted: 7/7/2007
Years at this apartment: 2002 – 2003
User Response is available. 2 responses
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They were redoing our roof when I lived there, For 6 MONTHS! they cut my a/c on 3 occasions while up there with out notification, I came home to it over 100 degrees inside and everyone was gone, they refused to hook it back up that day. They cut my cable just as often that stopped when the cable company started fining them. I had a sky light in my bathroom that constantly leaked, and during the roofing process I had to tack a towel over it b/c the workers were always up there trying to peep at me in the bathroom. Then they took the vent cover off and my skylight out and left it for a weekend and it rained for 2 days and flooded my only bathroom. They refused to come out and fix it all weekend, I had to pee with an umbrella! The roof leaked everywhere. It ruined everything in my bathroom. On the subject of my bathroom, they had done such a bad job resurfacing my tub that it peeled up after 6 months and they had to do it again, they ruined everything again b/c they couldn’t be bothered to move things. And after all that, they only resurfaced the tiles, not the peeling tub. Rats ate all the wiring out of one of my neighbors cars. My other neighbor and also staff there had her boyfriend get mad and shoot out her car windows which was parked next to my car and left a bullet ding on my door, to which they denied all responsibility for. The gates never worked and everyone had the codes.I finally said forget it and moved. That place was in very poor shape and not fit for people to live.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-644425.html#ixzz0RnJMFDC0

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Do Not Live Here.
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 6/22/2007
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2007
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The pictures on the internet are missleading, a bait and hook. I sat outside one day and was looking at the facades of all the apartment buildings, and began noticing all the details. The edging is rotting. Paint is peeling. Landscape is bare. Dog crap everywhere! The front gate works only M-T and on the weekend is a swinging door to anybody and everybody.

I should’ve known, when my wife and I signed on they let us go see our apartment. We were first taken back by the awful mildew smell. Needless to say it got worse from there. The unit they showed as their “model”, I guess…had nice trim and moulding, clean carpet and bathrooms. “Ours” wasn’t that way at all. We complained to the staff. One girl there was an idiot. “I don’t smell anything. I don’t see anything wrong.” So we went back another day before moving in to speak with someone else. You could see the embarrassment on her face.

Loud music from multiple tenants all hours of the night. Noisy…cars, sirens, music, HPD helicopter unit fly overs, etc. My wheels were stolen off of my car, nobody cared. That was with the gates closed all night, and my car was parked in the back, which is leading me to believe that it’s someone here that stole them.

In the back door there is a huge crack between the bottom seal. You could literally feel a draft, cold or hot. I had to shove an old sheet there to keep the elements out.

The toilet broke and was leaking water all in the bathroom floor. Called for maintenance. Hours later they finally showed. Kitchen sink clogged on numerous occasions. They told us it wasn’t an emergency. (Meanwhile we couldn’t was dishes or run the dishwasher.)

Pests and rodents haven’t been that bad. We have seen bats.

All in all, for the money….go somewhere else.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-637490.html#ixzz0RnJU1Fy2

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Good location, friendly staff and lower rent!
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 5/17/2007
Years at this apartment: 2005 – 2007
User Response is available. 2 responses
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I have read a few of the bad reviews and am confused. Is the staff suppose to babysit tenants or manage the property’ From my experience the staff has always been more than cooperative and tried to respond quickly to any problem I have had. If you give respect, you get respect. If you give attitude, guess what, that’s what you get in return. As far as complaining about the tree roaches, I don’t know how long you’ve been here but, people we are in Texas. Never once have I seen a rat or bat. I think someone needs do do some serious spring cleaning, if they are having rat problems. The dog crap is annoying. But the staff aren’t walking their dogs and leaving the mess there. People have to be responsible for their own pets crap! Crime is everywhere. Personally, I haven’t had any problems with crime. But, if people would step up and get involved, crime would not be an issue anywhere. If you see someone that doesn’t belong here, or someone committing a crime CALL 911!!! Or contact security! Beleive me this apartment complex is Awesome compared to what’s out there. Now there are a few things I think could be improved. Nowhere is perfect. But overall,with the location, the price and staff, I am happy with this complex.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-623507.html#ixzz0RnJfCmCl

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WOW!
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 5/15/2007
Years at this apartment: 2005 – 2007
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I have read all of these previous comments and I am blown away at the small fact that the only reason this apartment complex even has rats, roaches (which are tree roaches, NOT the nasty kind), etc is because of the tenants NOT keeping up with their apartments and choosing to live in dirty apartments, therefore inviting these pests in!! Being in the pest control business, I know first hand that once this situation has reached out of control, it is extremely hard to maintain!! It is not managments/maintenance fault at all, and I have noticed that they are doing what they can to control this issue! Word to the wise, KEEP YOUR APARTMENT CLEAN and you won’t have that problem! I live here and have for a while, and I don’t have a problem with the pests!

The security issue, with the muggings, the break ins, the “security is scared to go to the back of the apartment”, that has to also fall back on the tenants and looking out for YOUR community as well! Security can only do so much and be in so many places at one time. Take it upon yourselves to report “mischievious activity” to the local authorities if you are having a problem with it! If it makes you uncomfortable, call the police and the “bad seeds” around here will get the hint and leave or at least take their B.S. elsewhere. Who cares if the police have to come to the aparments everyday! As much as it is managements responsibility to take care of the entire property, it is ours as tenants to help keep up a safe and secure community!

As far as the negative comments about managment and staff in the office, I have NEVER had an issue with anyone that has worked there or currently works there. I have reported several issues to them (being mischievious activity and maintenance)and have only ever gotten complete respect and timely responses to my concerns. It sounds to me like a lot of these complaints are caused by simple lack of respect to them! You get what you give and if you are a complete idiot and act a fool with them, what and how do you expect them to act with you’ Have some patience people! They are working as hard as they can to accomodate all of us and every one of our concerns!

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-622386.html#ixzz0RnJqqhyg

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Nice property, great price and good staff
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 5/15/2007
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2007
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Convenient location, apartments are value priced, staff is friendly and accommodating. I believe the bad reviews on this site are from the bitter residents which the property is working to get rid of…the ones that don t pay their rent on-time, are trouble makers, don t take care of their apartment or the property. The office staff is working to turn around the property, this means taking a hard stance to get rid of the low-life!

First let me say you get what you pay for. I know that when selecting a value priced property some things are to be expected….there is a reason why you aren t paying over $1 a sq ft. The property staff is working to cleanup the property, and a lot of it has to do with the tenants. If you are a good tenant and pay your rent on-time, take care of your apartment and report problems promptly, and treat the staff with respect you are treated great and any issues are responded to quickly.

Like any other property the parking could be better, some of the tenants are too loud, too many tenants don t clean up after their dog and battling leaks and mold in Houston is a constant battle. Anyone notice that most of the bad reviews were left from people who lived in the property for YEARS. If it is as bad as they say why did they hang around that long’

Crime is an issue and the office is doing their best to protect their residents. With rent soo cheap what kinda security do you think they can afford’ Look at the location and rent, again you get what you pay for, if you what to live in Fort Knox be prepared to shell out the big bucks!

I am happy with my decision to live at Villagio and have no regrets.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-622361.html#ixzz0RnJx3CCY

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Nicest ever
From: blonde_2879
Date posted: 4/25/2007
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2007
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I have lived in 8 apartments over the past 10 years and this is the best. The office staff is so nice to me and if they cannot get to something that same day they let me know. I love my apartment, I have a real pretty bay window that looks out into the courtyard. I love it around November when the trees are falling adn there is leaves everywhere. Last year I saw kid making leave piles adn jumping into them. It’s great and there is so much privacy. I see the courtesy guard so much we are on a first name basis now and he watche sme when I come home late at night so I feel more secure. I really loved it when management realized my building had a trash problem and sent notices out to everyone.

If you want a great place to live this is it. Cheap, quite for the most part, right on the bus line and so convienent to all shopping the area. Before I moved here I had gone to the galleria one time but now I go every weekend just to people watch. Jump on the bus and it takes you right there you do not even have to worry about parking your car.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-614083.html#ixzz0RnK8wj0K

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Take my word for it… you don’t want to come here!!!
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 4/14/2007
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2007
User Response is available. 8 responses
Photos are available. 1 photo
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It didn’t take long until I began to see the Villagio for what it truly is. When I first found the Villagio online, I fell in love with the yellow exterior of the apartments and the neatly groomed plants.

Sadly, I’ve lived here for 1 year and my lease isn’t up for another 3 months. It was around my third month at the Villagio that I finally realized what I got myself stuck into.

I’ll begin with the “neat plants” since this is just the beginning. The pretty groomed plants that you may see in the photos online, are nothing more than the shrubbery that surrounds the ‘courtyard’ right behind the office. As far as the rest of the property, there are huge bald spots in many areas, other areas are overrun by some sort of invading vine, and other areas still are nothing more than a collection of weeds. The Villagio invests no money to update the plants, or the rest of the property.

The pretty yellow exterior is nothing more than the bait for the fishing hook. It’s meant to lure you into the trap. I cannot count on two hands the number of units that are covered with black mold. Decorative shutters are either broken or missing, exterior paint is thick from years of paint-over jobs and large spots are chipping away.

I have wittnessed vast hoards of hugh roaches spill out of the man hole covers in the street and head in every direction, through the grass and into the exterior cracks of peoples apartments. I have witnessed numerous rats running across rooftops and into the gutters.

I personally don’t have a problem with bats… but they’re here. I here them outside my bedroom window on a nightly basis, and they swoop at me and my dog when we’re walking before bed.

I think only 1% of the tenants with dogs actually cleans up their pets’ solid waste. There is ALWAYS solid waste littering the ground, and management does nothing to make sure that it’s taken care of – one way or another. I for one make sure that I always have a supply of bags from grocery shopping, because you never know when the pet utility stations are going to be out of supplies for 1 day or 2 months. In the warm summer months, that lovely aroma of baking dog poo wafts up to your front door, and you can’t step outside without taking a big sniff.

This place is falling apart, and has for years. There are wooden fence posts along the backside of the building that have been broken for a very long time. One of the downstairs neighbors had her apartment flooded 5 times in 3 months (no exaggeration). The only thing they did was cover the side of the apartment with hideous black plastic that remained for months. Pretty soon, I started seeing hugh water spots along my ceiling. You can see creases in the ceiling and along the top of the wall where the drywall is beginning to buckle. I don’t think this place has had any inspections in – well, ever.

I have more material. If you’re weren’t convinced that the Villagio isn’t for you – from the rats, and the poo smell, and the flooding… then please read on.

Last June, some little birdy lost its poor life. Unfortunately, it died right in front of several of our front doors. I called the office 5 times in 3 weeks regarding the decaying corpse. My neightbors all called several times each about the decaying corpse. And the bird stayed there until it was nothing more than a skeleton. I have dated pictures and a full time line regarding this incident. The birds’ corpse was not removed until I saw maintenance men filling in gravel around some dumb shrub and I said something to them. This was 4 months after my neighbors and I first called the office.

In addition, they seem to paint their bath tubs. In my first week here, as I was cleaning my tub, something that seems like paint, began chipping away in my bath tub. The entire bath tub has now been stripped bare, except for the sides of it. The windows rattle in bad, windy storms, because they are no longer insulated. There is a HUGH gap at the top of the front door where it doesn’t line up in the frame. It gets sweltering in the summer, and freezing in the winter – even with the air conditioning/heater running full-time. The rent here might be cheap for the Galleria area, but you’ll make up for it in electricity costs in the summer.

I apologize to those of you who have read all of this and now find there’s more. I just remembered that I didn’t even mention security.

As far as security goes: The walk up gates are NEVER locked, and the drive up gates only work properly about half of the time. We’ve had break-ins and a peeping-tom that just jumped the fence of the neighboring complex and was never caught. About 2 Friday’s ago, I heard what sounded like a mob beating someone up outside of my bedroom window. This was in the middle of the night, and it woke me up suddenly. It sounded like at least 7 men, all cursing and screaming, kicking and punching on someone. With all of the problems we’ve been having, management hired a security guard, but he’s only on duty from Thursday to Sunday, and he never patrols. He always stays at the front of the complex. In fact, I haven’t seen him at all for the last couple of weeks.

The juvenile deliquents run around in the middle of the night, ringing people’s doorbells. I wittnessed the children of one of the live-in cops throw a rock at someones front door. And, neighbors who are loud throughout the night are never dealt with.

If you’re looking for a nice apartment, with good up keep, in a nice quite neighborhood, with good security… this isn’t the place. This place is scum, but if you come to look at it anyway, make sure you look for all of the small details… these show how much attention management gives toward maintaining the property and security.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-605435.html#ixzz0RnKJKc5l

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BAD NEWS, CRIME-DRUGS-GROUNDS ARE NOT KEPT UP
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 4/12/2007
Years at this apartment: 2005 – 2007
User Response is available. 2 responses
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I HAVE READ ALMOST EVERY RATING FOR THIS COMPLEX AND IM HERE TO TELL U I HAVE BEEN LIVING HERE 2.5 YEARS , AND EVERYTHING BAD THEY HAVE SAID IS TRUE. CRIME, BAD SECURITY, GROUNDS ARE NOT KEPT UP, BAD LIGHTING I HAVE EVEN CHANGED OUT SOME BULBS MYSELF, CAR BREAK-INS, I’M AFRAID TO EVEN BE OUTSIDE BY MYSELF EVEN AT DAYLIGHT PEOPLE BEING HELD UP AT GUNPOINT, NEIGHBORS THAT LIVE BEHIND THE COMPLEX CALL OUR COMPLEX THE GUETTO SIDE, IF YOU LOOK AROUND U WILL SEE THE MOLD, PROBLEMS AT THE VERY BACK OF COMPLEX, SECURITY IS EVEN AFRIAD TO GO BACK OF COMPLEX. DRUGS AT ALMOST EVER CORNER OF THE COMPLEX, I DONT BELIEVE THEY CHECK OUT PEOPLE LIKE THEY USED TO, I HAVE A DOG AND AFTER DARK WE DO NOT WALK OUT, I REALLY DONT CARE IF HE HAS ACCIDENT IN APT.(WHICH HE HASN’T)I WILL SAY I HAVE VERY GOOD NEIGHBORS AND LOW RENT , BUT EVEN THE LOW RENT CANNOT KEEP ME HERE ANY LONGER, I WILL MISS THE FRIENDS I HAVE MET HERE IF IT WASNT FOR ALL OF US NEIGHBORS LOOKING OUT FOR EACH OTHER I DONT KNOW WHAT WE WOULD HAVE DONE, EVERYONE HAS DECIDED CHEEP RENT IS NO LONGER AN OPTION, OUR LIVES ARE WORTH MORE THEN THAT, OH I FORGOT ABOUT THE RATS AND BATS, RIGHT NOW AT THIS TIME I HAVE NO RATS BUT WE DO HAVE BATS AROUND OUR COMPLEX, AND BAD LITTLE PUNKS THAT GO AROUND MOVING OUTSIDE FURNITURE, PLANTS, RINGING DOOR BELLS, AND PEOPLE DRIVING AROUND COMPLEX CHECKING IT OUT, LIVING AT SAME AREA FOR 2.5 YRS I KNOW WHO BELONGS, OVERALL THE ONLY GOOD THING I HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THIS COMPLEX IS MY NEIGHBORS, OH AND ON ONE OF THE REVIEWS SOMEONE MENTIONED BLACK PLASTIC ON THEIR WINDOW I’M HERE TO TELL YOU THAT WAS TRUE AND HER BOTTOM APT FLOODING, TRUE,TRUE,TRUE THAT. MAYBE THEY WILL CLEAN UP THIER ACT AND MAKE THIS COMPLEX WHAT IT SHOULD BE (HOME) NOT PRISON. OH YOU NEXT DOOR NEIGHBOR EITHER PAYS LOWER OR HIGHER FOR SAME APT.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-609189.html#ixzz0RnKS1otJ

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Your Crazy if you don’t live here
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 4/9/2007
Years at this apartment: 2005 – 2007
User Response is available. 1 response
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Do not listen to all the bad comments. Even owning a house you run into these issues only you have to pay for them. I have been here for a little over a year and every issue I have had they have taken care of immediately. Managment is great and maybe you should remember that they are human too and things happen. If you make the decision not to live here just because of 4 or 5 negative comments, then you are forgetting about the other 300 something tenants that are not commenting because they are happy. People only want to comment when things are wrong.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-607807.html#ixzz0RnKbrtEI

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bad bad bad bad don’t rent here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 4/8/2007
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2007
User Response is available. 4 responses
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just keep looking. this place is very bad. bats, roaches that are HUGE(size of a bic lighter!!), poor building quility, mold, potholes, leaks that never get fixed, poor management, raw sewage leaks regularly(try walking thru human waste to get to your car), this place is a joke. i’d move out but all apartments in this price range are bad. finding a decent apartment around here is a joke. there all bad like this. save your money and buy a house. apartment renters have no help in matters like these.

the only help you have is your lease. read it carefully!!! the apartment can default on the lease like you can. by not keeping the property up and not fixing re-occuring maintaince issues, you can get out of your lease.

READ YOUR LEASE!!! FIND THE PART ON HOW THEY CAN DEFUALT AND EXPLOIT IT!!! Sad thing is, like i said before, all these apartments around here are very bad. BUY A HOUSE!

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-607502.html#ixzz0RnKiGUs2

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Do yourself a favor and don’t move in!
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 3/27/2007
Years at this apartment: 2007 – 2007
User Response is available. 2 responses
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Not only is there mold on the walls, but there are rats, and roaches so big you could put a little leash on them and walk them like dogs. The management is horrible (especially Crystal!!!) and they don’t promptly respond to issues regarding unwanted pests or mold.
The management is ridiculous because they will tell you one thing and then Crystal will tell you another because she THINKS shes in charge. I’ve had enough of this horrible horrible experience.
PS LOTS OF CRIME!!! and WEIRDOS!!!

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-602801.html#ixzz0RnKof9AK

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WARNING DO NOT LIVE HERE!!! RATS, CRIME, SHADY MANAGEMENT!
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 1/16/2007
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2007
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A few years back I was a leasing agent for a great community that uses the TAA lease. As a former leasing agent I have a good understanding of the TAA lease, tenant rights, and the challenges property management may face. Living here has opened my eyes to new levels of bad! I have lived here for 6 months and been through too much.

To start on a positive note I will say that for the most part the residents are great! It is a very pet friendly community and being a dog owner I have had the opportunity to get to know many people all over the property. Walking the dog several times a day has also allowed me to be very in tune with the property. The maintenance men are great, very friendly and take the time to say hi.

When I first moved in I could walk my dog any hour of the day or night and felt comfortable because I would see other dog walkers. Now people are scared I can go out during normal daylight hours and it is a ghost town. I have been witness to peeping toms, trespassers, and other illegal scary activities. It seems the police are called at least once every weekend. Regularly the outside evening lights are burnt out and not replaced promptly. The pet waste stations are not regularly maintained, often the trash is over flowing and there are no waste bags available. You cannot walk in the grass because there is dog waste everywhere. I clean up after my animal s waste but most residents do not and the property management does nothing to clean it up either. Once a week the lawn crews just mow through it. This disgusting approach to the problem creates the lovely aroma of animal waste during those hot summer days.

If the threat of danger when walking the dog was not bad enough, I worry that I will come home again to illegally being locked out of my apartment. I was locked out of my apartment due to an immature stunt pulled by the former assistant manager who surprise, surprise is no longer working here. FYI even if they had grounds to lock me out of my apartment, which they did not, the law requires a 3 day advance notice of lock out. They skipped that step. Police were called and 3 hours later I was able to get into my apartment and walk the poor dog that had at that point had been locked in the apartment for 11 hours. Then I approached the property manager, Carrie, regarding her lack of just cause to lock me out and her failure to provide me with the 3 day lock out notice. She and the former assist manager proceeded to falsify TAA documents and the leasing agent on duty at the time confirmed their illegal actions.

I learned that you should NEVER use the drop box when paying rent early because they just leave it unattended for days!

My latest problem is I have an unwanted house guest. Oh yes a RAT has moved in. I am terrified! The rat moved in to eat my dog s food. When I complained about the rat I was told on a Friday that I have to wait until Wednesday before they would do anything. I told them that was unreasonable. To get me out of the office they took my number and still have not called! I fear coming out of my bedroom now because the bedroom is off the kitchen where I saw the nasty rat. I also fear for the safety of my Chihuahua because she is not much bigger than the rat.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-573214.html#ixzz0RnKxV6os

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DON’T DO IT!!!
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 12/13/2006
Years at this apartment: 2005 – 2006
User Response is available. 1 response
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We have been here nearly one year and one half and it has been a total nightmare. Management SUCKS!!The entire office staff has changed at least three times in the time we’ve been here and they are RUDE. Our apartment was robbed last year, many cars have been broken into and or vandelized. Not to mention two cars were left on (4)blocks in front on a policeman’s apartment and in front of the leasing office earlier this year because the tires were stolen off of the vehicles!!! when tenants attempted to put up postings notifying the community after the office team ignored the problems, management has removed the posting each and everytime. Also, there’s (BLACK) mold and mildew in the apartments, bad plumbing, old AC motors that run up your electric bill and let’s not forget our friendly courtesy BATS that welcome you home at night in the summer and spring time!!! This is only the beginning of your problems if you move here!!!

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-561844.html#ixzz0RnLC9DsH

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Rats, vandals and mold – oh, my!
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 12/9/2006
Years at this apartment: 1999 – 2005
User Response is available. 2 responses
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I was a resident at the Villagio for almost six miserable years. I can verify the rat stories. The complex is infested. One evening, I spotted no less than 5 rats on my back 1st floor patio. After putting out sticky traps, I caught six of them in a matter of hours. Sadly, it took maintenance two days to come and get rid of the traps. The management is rude and unprofessional. The property is deteriorating – mold is visible everywhere. My car was keyed not one, but three times. The “security” gates were regularly broken. Lights would routinely be out throughout the complex and would stay out for months. Homeless people would enter the property to take their bath in the swimming pool. It took management months to evict a resident that was threatening and disruptive to neighbors from her apartment. Several of the courtyards flood anytime that it rains because they don’t keep the drains cleared…and water does come into the apartments. We would stack telephone books outside of our doors to try to keep out the water. It was a ridiculous living situation – unsanitary and unsafe. I’ve never been happier to move in my life.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-560547.html#ixzz0RnLGwE9d

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Thanks everyone
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 12/9/2006
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2006
User Response is available. 1 response
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I’m glad that I have read all of the reviews.I’m currently looking to move into this area and this is one of the properties I was considering.That won’t be happening anymore I don’t think that I could deal.So thanks everyone.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-560403.html#ixzz0RnLSjL44

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Don’t even think of moving in.
From: -Anonymous-
Date posted: 12/2/2006
Years at this apartment: 2006 – 2006
User Response is available. 2 responses
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My car was broken into in the back parking lot.
This place has rats and roaches.
There are two people assigned to my parking space.
There are no other parking spaces.
The gate is constantly broken.
The tennants are dirty and do not pick up after themselves or their pets.
My air conditioning unit is too small to cool the apartment.
The vents smell of stale cigarettes.
The manager is rude.
Garbage from previous tennants was pushed out from under the stove by the rats (which are massive).
The water is shut off periodicly without warning.
The tennants are scary, and between the rats, the gate, and the break in, I feel unsafe.

Read more: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/TX-Houston-Villagio-557682.html#ixzz0RnLckVBB

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Looks like the general concensus is don’t move into the Villagio apartments. I guess I should have reviewed my decision first as I usually do and I wouldn’t be in this mess.

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Yup, Obama is right. About time someone with authority said it. Kanye West IS a Jacka$$ and has proved it time and time again. No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin. No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.