Review for Las Ventanas Apartments

I lived here for a year while at Ft. Bliss, and for the most part, these apartments were good. Safe, well-lit, good location, and the office staff was very nice. It was far enough away from base that I felt like I was actually 'leaving' work at night, but close to everything I needed. The apartments were a nice size, and a decent value for the price paid.

However, when it rained, I got a HUGE leak in my living room ceiling directly over my new white couch. Thank goodness I had purchased the stain warranty from the furniture store, and thank goodness the leak didn't get my LCD TV. Maintenance came to fix the leak, but it still "rained" inside my apartment from time to time. That was nothing compared to the water that came in under my front door, though. On several occasions, I had standing water in my downstairs coat closet and in the tile entryway at the foot of my stairs. I tried 'sandbagging' the door with towels whenever it rained, but I soon realized that the water was coming in through the actual foundation, and under the wall inside the closet as well.

From that point on, the mold situation in the downstairs coat closet was a nightmare. My whole apartment kept a sour smell, and maintenance would only clean the carpet and bring a fan to dry it. Mold came back almost immediately each time. The soggy carpet was never replaced inside the closet. Eventually I tore it out myself, but mold kept growing up the walls of the closet. I threw away an entire box of items I had stored in the closet, I had to replace a pair of boots and two pairs of shoes, and the military had to re-issue (at MY expense) some clothing and gear to me that was ruined by the mold.

My advice? Rent here, but don't get a first floor apartment, and don't store anything downstairs if you have a second story 1BR.