I lived in 1000 Oakcrest for more than 4 years. It is a great place to live. It is worth every dollar you pay, with features that you won't find in other rentals in Iowa City. Location: very convenient, walking distance to uiowa (which saves a lot on parking ;) , many grocery stores around, Walmart,Fareway. Inside: it is a luxury apartment. granite on kitchen and baths, vinyl flooring, top notch appliances. it has a balcony that we loved, especially our cats! Parking: this is one of the best features. Interior covered Parking, so your car is always protected from heat, cold and rust. Maintenance: the staff of Houser Enterprises is very professional. Any problem we had, they always helped very quick. They have a nice website where you can request maintenance services. Neighbors: the neighborhood is very nice. And the building was always quiet and clean. read more

We've rented from Houser for 9 years now, and have no complaints. They keep the property clean and well-maintained, and maintnence needs are met promptly, efficiently and cordially. read more

I rented an apartment from River Ridge apartments. The leasing office is just the worst! When i spoke to them on the phone and via email they told me the pet rent was $25 but changed it to $75 later and refused to refund me the amount for their mistake! In addition, they did not follow proper protocol for my security deposit! They did not email me any of the receipts attached to the "security deposit deductions." As another person as mentioned. DO NOT WAIT TO CONTACT THEM RE YOUR SECURITY DEPOSIT!! Legally they are required to follow the Landlord tenant Laws and Houser is not doing this!! I WOULD NOT RENT FROM THEM! https://www.landlordology.com/iowa-landlord-tenant-laws/ https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/iowa-security-deposits-36209.html http://www.iowalegalaid.org/resource/summary-of-iowa-landlord-and-tenant-law?ref=7Sijk read more

By far the WORST service I have had in my entire life. Every person I spoke to on the phone told me something different about pricing, and I couldn't even move in to my condo even though I had already paid my deposit, rent, and utilities. Terrible organization and communication. read more

I'll try to categorize the pros and cons of renting from this agency and at River Ridge, specifically. Pros -Pretty decent website End of list. Cons General: -Parking (at River Ridge) is unassigned, outdoors, and potentially awkwardly far from your apartment. There are a number of spaces when I lived there that were inexplicably blocked by cinder blocks and shipping pallets. If you find yourself on a brief outing on the weekend especially, you may find yourself coming home to a full parking lot. When I pointed this out, they curtly replied there was plenty of parking...then later sent an email to all tenants that they noticed an awful lot of unregistered vehicles. There were several spots blocked by cinder blocks for "maintenance" right next to my front door that were never used for anything. During the winter, the clearing of the lots and sidewalks of snow and ice would be laughable if it weren't dangerous. -Location (River Ridge) is bad. The stupidity of 1st Avenue isn't Houser's fault, but it is a reality. During most of the day and the entirety of morning and afternoon rush hour, you cannot turn left onto 1st Avenue. You have to drive through the hotel or burger king and gas station parking lots down to 5th Street to get a light. There is also a train track backed up to the smallest units. And across the street is a motel that for whatever reason is visited by emergency services twice a week. -The Address itself is problematic. There are a couple half building numbers like 203.5. It was a constant headache trying to order deliveries or register my address in some way. Many websites will not allow a decimal or fraction in an address at all. The post office itself even returned several letters to the senders that were addressed exactly correctly. -Maintenance. They will charge you for maintenance to the maximum extent they can get away with. They charged me $200 to fix a microwave handle. I've heard similar outrages from friends and coworkers. My favorite was when some sort of summer beetle infestation attacked the entire south face of my building and even got into my apartment. When I told them about it they said it was normal and I could vacuum them up. Several days later they came to treat the building. Specific to 400 sq ft 1 bedroom at River Ridge: -Heating/AC is a wall unit that doesn't work. The door to the bedroom has slats in an attempt to help air flow but to no avail. I kept the door completely open literally always and literally measured with a thermometer a temperature difference of between 5 and 8 degrees between the living room and bedroom. This means in the summer you need your living room frigid to not sweat all night and in the winter you need it blistering to not shiver. Plan on a space heater or trusty fan? I did too. With nothing else on in the room the space heater regularly flipped the breaker. -Speaking of shoddy electrical work, the dishwashing machine also would go on the fritz for no reason and I would have to reset the breaker to reboot it or whatever. Minor-but for the price of this tiny place, your things should work. -If you cook at all, the kitchen is too small. I realize thats just a fact of the space but I thought I could manage it and it is really draining to work in that environment even if you cook for mere sustenance and not enjoyment. ****************** The "security deposit" or more accurately the "because we can fee": I hope you take the time to read all the reviews here, on Google, and wherever else and notice the pattern on security deposit returns. Then, consider how many people haven't posted about their experience either because they've surrendered to the slumlord culture of the Iowa City area rental market, are too worn out or afraid of retaliation in the middle of disputing a deposit return, or may even have been muzzled by nondisclosure agreement in a lawsuit. We really only have a taste. But the consensus is clear: your deposit is theirs to keep. I waited more than a month after my own paltry deposit return to post my lengthy review so I had a chance to talk to as many friends, coworkers, and acquaintances as I could about their experience with this dreadful agency. I've looked for help and tried to assist others in getting help from the City of Coralville but have received none. They know this. You can see them replying to complaints with, in paraphrase, "we're within the law." And I guess this speaks to the bigger issue. "The scandal is what's legal." Or in The Dude's parlance "You're not wrong, Walter, you're just an a**hole." read more

They are The Best agent in town. I'v been renting with them for a year and I think they did a great job! They are working very efficiently. They walked me through every single step when I rent with them. Every time I send emails to them, they always be the one who write me back very fast. Besides, they make you feel warm and welcomed. They send different tips sometimes in order to remind you to be safe over the winter, which makes me feel so great. They are the agent who really solve problems for you and help you with your renting read more

I would not recommend renting with Houser Enterprises. I rented from them for a year at River Ridge Apartments. Shortly after moving in I had a mold problem in my apartment: My wooden bed, dresser and the cabinet doors would get mold growth, and they would grow back shortly after cleaning them. They inspected the apartment, and since it did not have a visible water leak, advised me that I would need to purchase a humidifier with my own funds. This cost about $230, and solved the problem, however, I had to empty the water tank about every two days. The soap dispenser pump broke, and I was charged $70 for a new one. Therefore, if you rent from here, I suggest to not use their soap dispensers. I was only given back approximately 10% of my $700+ deposit, half from cleaning (which I understand), and the other half from painting (which I do not). :( read more

I've been a tenant for two years at their Woodridge complex in Coralville. It's well-maintained and well-staffed. The ownership group recently totally overhauled the fitness center, essentially bringing it to the level of an Anytime Fitness, etc. The appliances are up-to-date, the grounds are well-maintained, security measures are good, and the neighborhood is totally quiet and safe. There's an online portal for maintenance requests, which are always answered, in my experience, within hours. Snow and ice get removed immediately, even overnight. I'm not sure what more you could ask for in a landlord - nice, responsive, trustworthy, etc. I'm totally satisfied with my experience, and would recommend them without hesitation. read more

They were always great with my family. They were quick with maintence requests and were always friendly. With the deposits, you will get most of it back if you clean the house or apartment as best as you can and don't break anything. But, there's always more to clean. Why would anyone want to move into a dirty unit? The only thing that I could complain about it how high the pet deposit is. But, even with that they helped us. Overall, a great company and easy to work with. read more

By far the worst management company I have dealt with. Sure, maintenance is good and the place is clean but it is very over priced. It was $780 for the original deposit in addition to a $780 pet deposit for a small dog I only had for three weeks before moving out and $780 subleasing fee. Would not recommend this company to anyone. They are not willing to work with tenants needs. Do yourself a favor and find another management company. read more

I currently live at River Ridge apartments and have not had a problem renting with Houser Enterprises yet! I had a problem with my washer and they fixed it right away. Since it was a wiring problem with the actual machine, it wasn't charged to my account. Maintenance was quick to respond and the pool is a plus. I have just renewed my lease for another year! read more

I lived at River Ridge in Coralville. Fantastic updates that are not installed properly - couldn't put anything wet on the counter tops because it would leave marks, dishwasher stuck out, couldn't close the broiler under the oven, etc. If you call and submit a work order, don't bother expecting someone to come fix what's wrong. It took numerous phone calls and emails until someone would come out. I had a bug problem in my apartment (wolf spiders, beetles, gross) and their solution to the problem was for me to spray it by myself (I tried multiple products) and to consistently have the heat/air on. It takes days for them to clean up after a snow storm, to the point where the parking lot would ice over before they had a chance to clean it up. They are thorough to a fault during move-out, I would recommend taking your own pictures at move-in and move-out because I corrected them on a few things and was able to get some money back from them. The leasing agent told me they went over budget while renovating these apartments and it's made apparent at move-out time where they charge you for everything, after you already spend an unreasonable amount on rent. Just another Iowa City landlord trying to make as much money as possible off their tenants. read more

I had a very positive experience renting a Houser condo for two years. Even though Houser rents multiple properties to many tenants in our area, I always felt an individual and personal level of customer service throughout my time there. Whenever I had maintenance needs they helped me right away, including a house call on Christmas Eve during a blizzard. Once I lost my keys over a weekend and the office and maintenance staff helped ensure I could get back into my apartment and new keys made as soon as possible. The units and shared areas are always clean, snow cleared, and Houser goes above and beyond to help tenants when packages went missing. I also appreciated that they sent all tenants seasonal tips, beyond care of the unit. (Health and well being tips, etc.) the online portal makes everything incredibly streamlined and easy too. I give Houser my highest recommendation and would live in one of their properties again! read more

I wouldn't say I had a bad experience with Houser while I lived at River Ridge-the staff is helpful with questions aside from the fact they don't have enough employees to answer phones (looks like they're actively trying to fix this though), the apartments are nice and well-kept, there's a pool, plenty of parking, etc. They even allow pets, but I wouldn't recommend living here if you have one. The down deposit for an animal is an extra months worth of rent ($840+ if you're at River Ridge) plus an increase in monthly rent. I got approximately zero dollars back from that deposit. I know it's common practice to have a down deposit for a pet, but those are usually around $200 anywhere else in the city in my experience (cats at least). So, if you're willing to take the gamble, go for it I guess. Maybe I just had bad luck. Clean up really, really well after you move out too because you're gonna be charged heftily for it. I'm talking a full-blown sterilization, don't leave a mite of dust and don't even think about fingerprints on door handles. Lick the toilet rim clean if you have to. I thought my apartment was in good condition when I left but I was still charged over $250 to have a professional brought in. This is probably honestly the last time I'll rent somewhere that's this newly renovated, mostly because it's very easy for landlords to charge a high rent and then to turn around at the end of your lease and charge you for any kind of imperfection.I felt like I was careful when I lived there but every nick in the wall and splatter on the vinyl window coverings was noticeable, and trust me they noticed it and documented it thoroughly (350 hi-def pictures of strands of cat hair and dust). Credit to them for doing their job and keeping the places nice, but it'll probably end up hurting your wallet in the end. TLDR: Nice but pretty expensive, don't bring anything with fur. read more

I had very few positive experiences with this company while I lived in one of their units for ten months. Everyone there that we spoke with was always friendly, but it is the most unorganized rental company I have ever used. The very first day we moved in, we were told we could get our keys at 11 am and start moving our stuff in then. When we showed up, the cleaners had just started cleaning our unit. They told us we could move stuff into the middle of the living room and bedrooms since the carpets were the only things cleaned. When they were finally done cleaning, around 6pm, the maintenance man was there fixing our dishwasher. While he was still there I pulled a drawer out in the kitchen and it completely fell apart in my hands. The maintenance man took the drawer with him to fix. The entire ten months we were there we never saw that drawer again. Also, to get any work done took contacting multiple people multiple times. It was like no one in this office communicated with anyone else because whenever you would talk to a new person about getting something fixed they would know nothing about it. We went for a couple of months before they finally got us a new dishwasher because ours was broken when we moved in. I don't think it had anything to do with the maintenance man, because he always did a good job, but it's hard when no one is telling him about these things. I can put up with missing a drawer or not having a dishwasher for awhile, but what I can't put up with was the multiple times they showed up at our place completely unannounced. No 24 hour notice. The first time was with the city inspectors. Apparently, they didn't fix anything that needed fixing after the first inspection and when they came back through they didn't tell us at all they were coming. We were eating dinner one night and they showed up with the inspector. Another time I was sleeping, because I work nights, and they unlocked the door and walked right in to show the place. I had no prior notification that they were showing it that day. Their excuse was that the potential renter they showed the place to had some last minute emergency and needed to see it sooner. According to our lease, and I'm pretty sure state law, they are required to give you 24 hours notice before entering your unit. When we moved out in May they found someone to take over our lease starting June 1, which was very helpful, but we didn't receive our deposit back until the very end of August. Since our original lease ended in July, they said we weren't able to get our deposit back until after that. I understand that's probably their policy, but it's hard for me to believe they didn't know what they were going to take out well before then. Another thing to once again show us their complete lack of communication was the number of times we had to give them our forwarding address. I know we sent it to them at least 3 times. We finally received our deposit back and they took over $300 out for repainting. In my experience, most places repaint whenever someone new is moving in so I don't think it should be paid for by the previous tenants. I also don't know what type of paint they are using that it would cost that much to paint a small two bedroom apartment. At this point, I was so frustrated working with them that it wasn't even worth fighting to get more money back. I would not recommend ever renting from them. Some of our friends have used them too and dealt with many similar problems. read more

I rented an apartment through Houser for 4 years. I rarely ran into any maintenance issues, but when I did, repairs were quick. Communication was prompt with staff members. They were willing to keep an eye on my place when I was out of town for extended lengths of time. My unit was beautiful, and it really became my home for the pst 4 years. I'm going to miss it! Would highly recommend River Ridge Apartments to anyone. read more

I can NEVER reach them at this number (319) 887-6419. We wanted to rent from them but I can't get through....I've been trying for two weeks now. It currently says that the mailbox is full...not happy at all with this.. What would happen if I'm a tenant and I have an emergency with one of my appliances for example?? Not sure if I want to rent anymore. What a shame bc I've heard the apartments are nice. read more

I am looking out for you all. DO NOT rent from these owners. They take your Security Deposit when you move out and you do not get your money back $750 or more whatever they are charging now. They have outrageous rules. If you are about to move out they show your apartment while you are living there which is disrespectful. They owners need to be reported BBB or I recommend if you have issues with the owners take them to court. read more

I just got home from a three week vacation to less than 1/4 of my security deposit check back!!!! I'm in such disbelief!! And now its too late to do anything about it because I had to write a hand written letter within 15 days to Houser if I felt this was wrong. They charged me $400 for cleaning which is outrageous because I didn't even have carpet, I swept and mopped the floors, wiped down all the surfaces, scrubbed the sinks and shower, and the only thing I forgot to clean was the top of the ONE fan that was in the living room. They also charged me $300 because they needed to repaint which makes NO sense WHATSOEVER. I only hung up two pictures on the walls after speaking to Houser and asking them if I was allowed to do so when I first moved in and they told me as long as it didn't damage the wall it was okay so I hung up both pictures which were both very light so I only needed to hang them up using ONE thumbtack each. There was absolutely NO damage to the walls. I couldn't believe how badly this company scammed me. No other company I ever rented from in Iowa City/Coralville area has ever been this heinous. I am absolutely disgusted. I'm a full time college student and I work full time, I worked five 8-hour overnight shifts a week just to be able to afford $955 for rent every month to live in this "nice" apartment but for Houser to be so relentless and overcharge me for unnecessary services is beyond me. I will never again rent with this company. I have a cousin and a sibling who will be moving to Coralville next year and were in love with my apartment at River Ridge but there's no way I'm going to let them sign with this company after my experience. I do not recommend renting with this company to anyone. This is absolutely horrible... After reading previous reviews I can't help but think that they just like cheating people out of money. Like I said, no other company I've leased from in the past has ever given me back anything LESS than 3/4 of my security deposit. This company is a scam. I should've read their reviews long before signing with them. read more

I have rented from Houser at their Redtail Drive property for 5 years. The building and landscaping were well maintained and the staff was easy to reach and responsive. The maintenance was beyond excellent! Would recommend to anyone. The underground garage that never got below 40 degrees in winter was great! read more

DO NOT RENT FROM HOUSER, or if you do, be ready to have half of your deposit taken and take them to court. We rented a house from Houser for about a year and a half. Houser initially seemed very professional and responsive when they showed us the house. As soon as we moved in, the problems began: pieces of the garage fell off, the water heater broke, the refrigerator broke, the laminate on the floor buckled, random men would show up and do yard work in the morning with absolutely no warning, and worst of all, the septic tank ruptured causing raw sewage to stand in the yard for months. When we reported these problems to Houser, their responses were slow and we were nickled and dimed for every problem. In the case of the sewage in the yard, we were told that standing sewage was normal. When it came time to move out, we paid to have the carpets thoroughly cleaned and left the house spotless. Despite this, Houser kept over $2000 of our deposit. We promptly took them to small claims court and were successful in recovering 3/4 of this amount. DO NOT RENT FROM HOUSER. read more