This review is long overdue due to health issues, but I can no longer stay silent about the ordeal I faced while dealing with the leasing team at Meridian. I ultimately made the difficult decision to leave not because of the property itself, but solely because of the complete incompetence, negligence, and lack of professionalism from the leasing office, particularly Melissa and Ben.
1.Move-In Disaster:moved to Meridian in early 2025 with a 14‑month lease. Leading up to my move‑in, I contacted the leasing team every single day to confirm that everything was complete. Each time, I was reassured: "Everything looks good, you're all set. Yet, when the move‑in day arrived, I was shocked to be suddenly told that I had 20 pages of paperwork left to sign. As a result, I was forced to wait outside with all my belongings until nearly 6 PM before I was given access to my apartment. This was a blatant failure in communication and a complete breach of basic professionalism. I have proof of my prior conversations showing I was misled over and over.
2. I left an honest review about my experience, only to have Brendon (the only competent and respectful person I interacted with) call my husband asking to remove the review. While I appreciate Brendon's attempts to help, he is not the one running the office.
3. Things only got worse from there. Staff members like Ben were openly rude and hostile (he literally raised his voice at me on the phone, review the call on June 9th), and Melissa who claims to be the manager showed zero knowledge of the most basic leasing processes. Every single person gave me a different answer to the same question, forcing me to come in person constantly just to get minimal updates. Total chaos, total incompetence. When I tried to sublease ( unfortunately I had to take this decision deu to person reason), Melissa told my husband to post an ad, then turned around and said my add was reported? While I did not post any building address/details just apartment photos. Later she flat‑out rejected a legitimate application with nothing but "it's at the company's discretion." No explanation, no accountability, just gaslighting. To make it worse, they would include my husband in every conversation when signing my lease, but suddenly refused to speak to him later because "he's not on the lease. And when I thought it couldn't get worse UDR slammed me with an extra month's rent plus over $600 for so‑called damages/cleaning. I specifically asked for proof of damages and got nothing. Under Florida law, landlords/company cannot charge residents for normal wear and tear, it is simply illegal.So is this incompetence, or a scam you're running, UDR?
This whole ordeal left me mentally exhausted. I was dealing with health issues at the same time, and it was so stressful that my husband had to fly in to Tampa just to help me cope with this nightmare.
-The leasing team operates in chaos.Every person gives a different answer.When I asked for HR contact information, Ben claimed there was no HR. Seriously? I later found UDR corporate contacts myself and escalated.They act like they're "too busy" with 100 applications or self-guided tours, but what that means for residents is endless delays, misinformation, no follow-up, no accountability.
-Meridian and UDR are disorganized, unprofessional, disrespectful, and possibly dishonest in the way they handle charges.try googling it and you will find all the cases. If you value your sanity, your money, or just basic decency do not lease here. Save yourself the stress, frustration, and emotional toll.
-Mia, who acknowledges all the reviews I hope you take some serious action against this and if you need any proof from my end let me know. read more