M Street Apartments in Midtown/Downtown Atlanta -- feedback? (Marietta: section 8, rental)

[hazfora]

I'm looking to rent in the downtown/midtown area and like the M Street Apartments at 950 Marietta St. NW, Atlanta, GA 30318. Can anybody tell me what it's like to live there? Just your general or individual opinion. I would much appreciate hearing from someone who actually lives there or knows the place through a friend who lives there. So far, cyberspace tells me they have great amenities and great location. But what about those things that are not advertised -- safety, neighborhood environment, state of building maintenance, quality of residents, staff attitudes, rental price increases, parking problems(?).

[PeteyNice]

I can't speak to the building specifically but I work in that neighborhood and can speak to the area. It's not the best and its not the worst. There are homeless in the area (at least once a month one tries to get into our secure building and people routinely have things stolen from their cars if they are not careful.

They had been doing a lot of construction in that area but I think the recession has put a stop to much of it.

I wouldn't go walking around at 3AM but then again there really isn't much to walk to at that hour unless you want to hit that strip club.

I don't know what your budget is like or where you work but I wouldn't want to live there.

I live in town and would never want to live in the suburbs but I wouldn't want to live there either.

[Nonpareil]

I used to live there in one of loft townhome units back in 2005 before all the neighborhood development. I loved my unit, but I hated having a front door to the main street. The neighborhood was deserted and scary. I often had homeless people sitting/sleeping on my front steps (there is a shelter down the street). I rarely saw police. I once saw some graffiti artists (the people who kept drawing ghosts everywhere) deface the property across the street. Someone must have called 911, but they sent the fire department after them LOL. None of the commercial property had been leased at the time. Inside the complex I felt pretty safe. People were friendly and spoke. There is a train switching yard behind the complex that may be noisy for those in the buildings in the back.

I was in building 4000, the last one completed. When I moved in, there were vacancies, and when I moved out, so did everyone else and most of that building became vacant again.... It was kind of the scariest and most isolated building (but now it may be the nicest because it's next to all the new development). A neighbor of mine was broken into and they took everything, which was the final straw. I suspect an inside job on that one though. The end unit next to me was being rented for business purposes, and I heard their burglar alarm go off on more than one occasion. For the most part, it was quiet... only had an occasional music-thumper in the apt. over my loft.

The complex is mixed housing, with market rate, affordable housing, and some section 8 in the units. And of course there are a large number of GT students there also. I was very annoyed with the short-notice housing inspections, esp. when I was not in a "program" and paying the market rate. As far as crime, there were a few break-ins, homeless people camping out at the gate...An occasional open and broken gate, and someone stole all the TVs from the exercise room.

Also keep in mind the proximity to Bankhead Hwy (Donald Lee Hollowell Pkwy) and the fact that you can see the jail off in the distance....

Fast forward to now: There are brand new apts across the street (unfortunately they block what used to be nice skyline view), with some units that rent for $2000. There are restaurants and shopping next door, and all the commercial units are leased. Would I move there now? Probably, but it would depend on how many "program" tenants were occupying the units. If it's mostly affordable and Section 8, then NO.