FerndaleHaus Lofts

I've lived in 8 apt properties. FerndaleHaus is my second favorite.

The Good:
- The staff is truly the best - from the front desk, to the manager, to the maintenance, to the cleaners, to the staff in the coffee shop downstairs (who aren't employed by FerndaleHaus, but still. It's important). They care and that's more than 6 of the apartments I've lived in.
- Location. You can't beat this side of Woodward and this close to downtown with this fresh of a building.
- Dog Yard: Truly great. They… listened to us and hired a company to remove invasive plants and landscaping from a prior life. The plants were harmful if dogs ate them, so it was great to see it happen.
- EV Options - Originally, with one EV charger, they just installed multiple chargers in the lot. They're not running yet, but they were literally being installed last week.
- Gated parking. Keycode access doors that auto-lock after hours.
- Bike racks. Everywhere. Two outside, two inside. All covered.
- Next to a small city park, which gives the illusion of a 'side yard,' and it is endearing!
- Rooftop. Furniture. Connect 4.
- Common Areas - the gym. the office conference room. the upstairs work area with couches, desks, tables, electric fireplace. Cozy. Fun.
My favorite: COMMUNITY EVENTS. Yoga. Easter Egg Hunt. Floral bouquet party. etc.

Okay, but not everything is amazing. It would be a huge red flag if it were!

The Bad (or not so good):
- Floor Plans: the original floor plan designer must have been... not an architect. There are very questionable decisions about the design of some of the units, up to and including the layouts and placement of rooms, windows, elevators, etc. Very curious, but still functional!
- Noise: The walls are thinner than those I've lived in. Not as bad as hearing someone's nightly sitcoms, but more overhead noise than I've had in previous places. For a place that allows pets, this can be problematic with barking dogs. (Good news is that most residents are very reasonable and understanding.)
- Parking is limited, for a fee. This makes sense, though, because Ferndale. There are options to park in the city for less, and some do. If you're not a daily commuter, have a dog, or don't like walking across the street to your car, be prepared to pay for a parking spot.

But due to the staff, the timeliness of maintenance, the thoroughness, and the explanations for things beyond their control, I give FerndaleHaus a solid 4.6 stars, rounding up to 5. Read More