BlockONE, ames-ia

I lived at Blockone for two school years. The first school year was okay. The biggest complaint the first year was that maintenance did a shabby job of fixing things in our apartment, leading to them having to come back on multiple occasions. The real problem began when Blockone advertises to renew your lease and “save your space”. My roommates and I chose to do that going into our senior year. They tell their tenants specific instructions for those leaving in the summer, which we followed exactly. When my roommate returned 10 days before our senior year, she walked in to an apartment filled with black mold in the kitchen and my bedroom, resulting from a water leak in the unit above. Come to find out, Blockone was aware of the leak above our unit and they did not check to make sure our unit was okay, leading to all the damage. During this whole process, we had to drop all of our weekend plans, come to Iowa, and move me out of a moldy apartment and into a different unit (after many hours of being left in the dark with no solid plans or answers). Blockone told us no to paying for a hotel, despite living 5 hours away from Ames. All year long, I was stuck in an apartment that was significantly smaller than the old unit, but still paying for the old one as well. I paid an additional $90 per month because Blockone did not change our rent as it was a “temporary living situation” (spoiler alert: I stayed in that apartment all year long). We paid $900 extra in rent my senior year because they did not change our rent or lease. Blockone then communicated with only 1/3 roommates instead of talking to each tenant and their families individually, which then lead to me being in the dark the entirety of my senior year, despite trying to ask questions politely. On top of that, Blockone had the front doors of The Edge unlocked my entire senior year, allowing anyone to walk into the building. Their security was mediocre and so was their maintenance. The only positive part of Blockone is that the units are furnished, close to campus, and close to the bars. Edited for BlockOne’s response: If management would like to claim “accuracy”, it should clarified that yes, the replacement unit was larger than the moldy apartment. However, let it be known that they moved us to a 4x4 XL, which was $699/mo. Originally I lived in a 3x3, being $789/mo. The replacement unit had my bedroom being half the size and a closet 1/4th of the size of my original 3x3 apartment. BlockOne still owes us $900 in overpaid rent, yet we’ll never see that refund. My bedroom in the new apartment did not even come close to the same size. Pictures for reference.

As the parent of a student who lived at The Edge for two years, I can say the property’s greatest advantage is its convenient location within walking distance of campus. During my daughter’s junior year, her experience was generally positive. The apartment itself was adequate; however, maintenance requests were often slow to be addressed, and the quality of repairs frequently fell short of expectations. Our primary concern during that year was building security. Several exterior entrance doors, as well as the overhead parking garage door, were broken for extended periods, allowing unrestricted access to the building. These issues raised significant concerns about resident safety. Unfortunately, my daughter’s senior year was far more challenging. Just ten days before move-in, and shortly before the start of classes, one of her roommates informed us that their apartment had sustained significant water damage and had developed black mold throughout the kitchen, living room, and my daughter’s bedroom. After spending several hours attempting to reach someone for guidance, we ultimately made an emergency five-hour trip to Ames to remove all of her belongings from the apartment. While BlockONE did provide the residents with a temporary apartment, we were initially told the displacement would last only six to eight weeks. That timeline proved to be inaccurate. The residents were never able to return to their original apartment and remained in the temporary unit for the duration of their lease. Despite this permanent relocation, the lease was never updated to reflect the change in accommodations. As a result, we continued paying approximately $90 more per month than the replacement unit warranted, totaling an overpayment of roughly $900 over the course of the lease. Communication throughout this process was consistently disappointing. When my daughter sought answers from the leasing office, she frequently received incorrect or conflicting information from one staff member. Another staff member was often unavailable, dismissive of her questions, or stated that he was communicating only with one roommate’s parent while assuming that individual was representing all three families. This assumption led to additional confusion and misinformation. When I eventually spoke with senior management, I was left with the impression that they were largely unaware of the extent of the issues or how they had been handled. Unfortunately, I did not find management to be proactive or particularly helpful in resolving our concerns. Building security also remained an ongoing issue throughout her senior year. The overhead garage door was not repaired until late in the academic year, and the front entrance doors to the building remained broken for nearly the entire year, leaving residents without the level of security they should reasonably expect. While The Edge offers an excellent location near campus, our experience was overshadowed by poor communication, inadequate maintenance, and unresolved security concerns. Based on our experience, I cannot recommend this property to families who prioritize responsive management, resident safety, and effective communication.

University Towers is one of the worst places I’ve ever lived in. The building is old, lacks a lot of basic things, and the price is ridiculously high for what you actually get When I moved in, there were issues left over from the previous tenant cracks in the walls and closet, a broken TV, and terrible lighting. the internet. This was by far the worst part. There’s no Ethernet cable access at all in some rooms the Wi-Fi is completely unstable. Even when it works, the speed is only 50mbps. And don’t forget the elevator. For months, everyone in the building had to rely on a single elevator because the other one was constantly broken. Also You’re close to the university, so expect parties every Friday night that go until 2am. Good luck sleeping. Just to be clear, I’m talking specifically about University Towers. Other units in BlockONE probably are way better

Don't believe the BlockOne website when the say "you can pick your roommate". Unless you sign up on the same day, they might tell you that you have the privilege of living with strangers instead of the people you would had chosen. Then you have to pay $827.95 to BlockOne for subletting to someone else (who you had to pay 4 months rent, because no-one wanted to sublet for less of a buyout...my daughter tried for months) If I could give zero stars I would. Their staff rudely told me "my 18 year old daughter needed to take responsibility" when I tried to help her....despite the fact that they never would have leased to her without my guarantee of payment. Their website and their representatives say one thing: "you can select your roommate" and their fine print says the opposite. If you trust their spoken words, you are out of luck. I asked why they didn't let us know that she would not live with her chosen roommates and were told, "We don't have time for that." Have a lawyer review the contract, don't trust what they tell you. $4000 later I am free from BlockOne and their predatory behavior. My daughter is living with people she knows and we are both relieved.

Literally the worst place I have ever lived. University towers specifically is terrible. Do NOT live here. It is disgusting and the management is terrible. The one and only good thing about this place is the location and even then it’s not worth it. Go anywhere but here.