I encountered Suher Properties when searching for an apartment earlier this summer. I found a…read morebeautiful place right in the heart of downtown Northampton, worked with the very friendly previous tenant, and got the chance to apply for it. First off, as far as I can tell, there isn't actually an office in Northampton -- I had to drive to this sketchy-looking building down in Holyoke to drop off the application (although, to be fair, there aren't that many buildings in Holyoke that exceed this qualification). I was sure my GPS, which never leads me astray, had somehow done me wrong, since for a company as big as Suher Properties I would have expected some sort of sign or indication that I was in the right place. I took a deep breath, walked up the steps and met the receptionist, who informed me that I had indeed found the correct office, took my application and my check and said that I would be contacted in the next three business days.
Those three days came and went, and when I hadn't heard a word, I called the office to ask about the status of my application. After being left on hold for way longer than should be acceptable, I was finally connected to Jocelyn, who informed me that she turned down my application as soon as it was put on her desk (which was the day I turned it in, I might add) because I didn't meet their income requirements and asked me where she could send back my check. After wondering to myself why she didn't bother contacting me to tell me that my application was denied in the first place, I reminded her of the application I turned in which informed her that I was a full-time student with two co-signing parents who absolutely do meet their income requirements. She flat out told me she didn't care that I had co-signers and clearly did not want to deal with me. Only after my mother decided to get involved in the conversation was there some vague mention of Massachusetts housing law, but Jocelyn failed to cite anything specific or show us the source of this information, and in all honesty it sounded more dismissive than truthful. Even the previous tenant, who only spoke to me twice, was willing to put in a good word -- no dice.
I am no expert in the apartment-hunting game -- far from it -- but every single other apartment I found and took interest in had no problem accepting my co-signers or the fact that I take classes full-time. So I don't know what the deal with this vague housing law is (if someone knows and would like to tell me the specifics, I'd appreciate it!), but with the number of students in this area, a lot of us would be homeless and a lot of property owners and real estate agents would be out of a job if they followed this law and treated all students the way Suher treated me. Only one student I know successfully got an apartment through Suher, and the only reason she got it, as far as I can tell, is she is endowed with a trust fund and I merely have the love and financial support of my parents.
What an awful experience I had dealing with these people. They are rude, unhelpful and too far on their high horse to be of any use to anyone. Added unnecessary stress to my first apartment-hunting adventure. Students, don't touch this company with a thirty-nine-and-a-half-foot pole. Sure, they're very nice units, but the beauty and the convenient location isn't worth the price tag, or the stress you'll have to endure only to be turned down.
