Pros-Building staff are lovely and try to fix any issues you may have with apt right away, well made building, well soundproofed, great BBQ space and other amenities. Cons-Fee's galore ($60 for a new key and fob (cost $12 for exact same key and fob in my last building)), common room fee $200 if you want to have more thn 6 people over for a get together, pool is freezing and always empty, no night concierge at 303 after 11pm, some hall rugs are a bit ratty. I'm actually happy here but honestly, the fees make you feel a bit like they are nickel and diming you. The building staff are great. It just doesn't seem like the corporation (Equity Residential) that owns the building really cares about keeping a tenants long term. read more

The apartment is actually of decent condition and the concierge staff are really sweet. I would almost give it a two stars but the moving out experience is so overwhelmingly bad that I resist the temptation. Near the end of your lease, they will first quote with a unreasonably high renewal price (for me, a more than 10% raise for an already over-priced place). Then the agent will assure you if you move to a different property managed by the same company, you can do so early without paying double rent. All looks good until after several weeks you move to their new property, you will receive a huge bill claiming the whole month rent you owe for Third Square, and various groundless "damages". Kindly dropping in and asking for explanation will not be of any help. Only after making some legal consultation and presenting them with solid evidence (all the email correspondence with the agent), they will admit "this mistake was our fault and you were given the incorrect information, you will not be charged that", and they are not even sorry! And only after you request to see all the invoice of the damages they claim, they will admit that "our vendor made a mistake in the billing and credited us back the amount. Therefore, we did not incur any cost on this." Read this again: they are trying to charge you cost that did not incur to them!! During the whole disputing process, the company will threat to damage your social security score by sending the "debt" to a collection, even though they are well aware that an active disputing is ongoing. They will not back a bit unless you show them solid evidence or request receipt they do not have. In general, I could not think of another reason to explain the above things other than the unprofessionalism, incompetence and dishonest of the property leasing/managing team, and I strongly recommend against this place! read more

The interiors are very nice -- nice cabinets and floors and bathroom fixtures. Super overpriced though. Though there's technically a 24-hour concierge, they're often away from the desk (they have a sign up that says something like "we are occasionally called away" but occasionally is a bit of an understatement). The location is a thankfully a lot busier and alive than I had expected. read more

Only stayed here for a week, while my child had surgery in Boston. The location is convenient since the Red Line is 5 minutes away. The apartments were nice and the concierge (when at the desk) were helpful. The walls are thin and you can hear people from their apartments in the hallway. Solid place and I would definitely stay here again if I was ever in Boston again! read more

Lived here for two years. Pros: concierge staff - helpful, friendly and understanding. Cons: overpriced, administration, carpets and walls, renewal conditions, pests in the apartments Let me explain: 3rd square is a high rent building as compared to the area. It becomes even more so when you are up for renewal, when they will hike you price by 20%+. My apartment has cockroaches, and management was insensitive about it. No change, no compensation, no nothing for several months. Walls are paper thin and carpets dirty; smell from the trash room permeates all the hallways. Definitely avoid this property. Looks great when you are looking for a place, but you will regret it read more

I work here 10 hours a day as a nanny and absolutely love going to work every day and getting to see the amazing staff that work here!

There are pros and cons living in this apartment. I guess it depends on what you value the most. Also, there are other things that you really need to consider before you move! Pros: Walking distance to the Kendall T, MIT campus, MGH, and Cambridgeside Galleria. Friendly concierge Nice amenities but you have to pay if you want to use it exclusively. Renting the amenities is between $200-400/room depending on the room that you will rent. There are some restaurants around the area. But no convenience store or grocery that is walking distance. They have social activities from time to time but most of these activities are marketing events for companies to showcase their products/services. Maintenance responds to your requests in a timely manner. Free use of the grill during summer. Cons: The building (285) is not well maintained compared to the other new buildings around the city. You can sometimes smell the trash when you exit the courtyard. You can also see stains on the carpet along the hallway. Trash room is always dirty and you can see the stains and spills on the floor. You can also smell the odor. Rent increases substantially after your lease. There are other newer and nicer apartments where you can get for less like Avalon at Assembly Row ($2,500/month vs. $3,200/month) or Avalon North Point or Loft. They might have rented some of the units to low-income families (to get tax break). That is fine but it would have been better if they have disclosed this info to tenants since we all use common areas (such as swimming pool, etc). Two times we noticed that the maintenance used our toilet to pee. We were all female in the apartment and after the maintenance fixed our shower, we noticed that he used the toilet because the toilet seat was up. Something to think about: Water is not included in your rent. Although its not that expensive but still.. No option for cable -- you are going to be stuck with Comcast. They say that you can move easily to another equity community but they will still charge you a penalty of one month's rent if the rent that you are going to pay is lower than your existing one. There is really no flexibility unlike what they advertise on their website. If you got locked out, you pay $35 for each time that the concierge opens the door for you. They say on the website that they are pet friendly but they only allow pets on the 303 building. This is misleading as well. They should put a caveat on the website. read more

Save your money and go elsewhere! We have lived at Third Square quite some time and unfortunately the place is only getting worse. They are literally gouging residents on the most trivial of items. For example, if you want to use a conference room (which has a couple of chairs and internet) you need to pay $20 for three hours. This used to be free of charge. Its like being charged to use your own study. Watermark across the street provides computers and an study type area for free. All you have to do is request it. The TV room for private use is $100 for five hours. So, if you are watching TV and you haven't paid $100 then anyone can walk in and you can find yourself in a remote control war. Lovely! There is also a charge upon intial lease sign-up for basic use of the facilities. The heated pool is freezing most mornings.Then to top it off, rent is astronomically high. A 700 sq. foot apartment for almost $3K. The same apartment used to $1900 two years ago. Are you out of your mind?!!? In addition, the building has rented out first floor areas to a coffee shop, restaurant, store, and physical therapy place. So, why not pass along the additional revenue to residents that have to cope with these businesses? The management is unresponsive at best. The community has the potential to be a great place to live for a long time if they would forgo frivilous use fees and bring down rent to a more reasonable figure. Honestly, if you are paying $3K a month, don't you think you should be able to use community areas by advance request, without paying additional fees? Ridiculous! Also, avoid living on the first floor unless of course you like the smell of trash. Often the odor from the trash room spills into the first floor area and the main entrance too. read more

Lived here for 4 months and regret it. At first all the amenities and luxury appearance may be appealing but they have an ephemeral effect. The staff was great and very friendly, but the location was terrible. No pharmacy or grocery store in the area. Really nothing in the area. The apartments were very gray and dismal feeling with paper thin walls. Be prepared to hear a lot of little kids too. Not a great place for young professionals. Too many families with young children running and screaming up and down the hallways at odd hours of the monring and evening. Honestly for the amount you pay, you could get something much better in a much more useful locaiton. read more

Third Square is ill managed, unethical, and unfair in its treatment of people moving out. I informed their staff within lease guidelines of moving out and received confirmation. They do not communicate internally as a management team, make use of inexperienced interns and have a churn in the onsite representatives, all resulting in one of the worst experiences I have ever had as a renter. Net-net, they ripped me off for $800, put my name in collections, and were rude and inconsiderate. I had personally referred over 20 people to this place. Never again. Do not trust the office people, what they say, or any timeline commitments they agree to. If you do not submit to their Kafka-esque submittal of official "forms," they use it as a tool to rip you off. At Equity Residential/Third Square, get it in writing. So much for trust and customer service. read more

I lived here for 2 years and moved out due to relocation (but would have left regardless). Pros: Casimir at the front desk is wonderful! The maintenance staff members are hardworking but seem not to get the resources they need to do a good job. The location is convenient and vibrant. Cons: Most of the other employees at the front desk are awful. They do nothing to keep the noise, smoke, and filth at bay. Also they frequently are not at the front desk. Over 5 times I waited to pick up a package for over 30 minutes. The building itself is dirty and poorly constructed. The hallways are filthy (filthy when I moved in and worse when I moved out, despite promises to replace disgusting carpeting), the pool is filthy, there are rats in the courtyard, the exercise equipment, including TV and sound system, is routinely broken and overall junky, the trash rooms are smelly and filthy, the apartment carpeting is disgusting, the walls are thin, and the garage has paint/rust dripping from the ceiling that semi-permanently stains cars (which the management office knew about before my complaint and never notified the tenants). Additionally, the MANAGEMENT OFFICE IS CONDESCENDING and does nothing to address common concerns. For example, smoking in violation of building rules goes unattended by the management office, they do nothing to address tenants who violate rules (e.g., using the courtyard as a place to party, smoke, and yelling until 430am), and management actually makes decisions that worsen the noise and chance for individuals to use the courtyard as a party place (e.g., putting permanent couches under windows that face the courtyard, despite complaints of noise). When I discovered my car was stained the management office cared more about getting me to sign a form waiving my right to sue than fixing the problem. Lastly, the renewal fees are exorbitant. This place is truly awful. read more

I agree with all the others who say the concierge staff is lovely, but aside from that and the great location (close proximity to Boston and great restaurants nearby), that's where the benefits of this building complex end. The security is so-so, as delivery people are always allowed up into the building, and random physical trainers are always in the workout rooms with non-residents. (Meaning, these trainers have keys!) And speaking of the workout rooms--they are small and miserably no-frills. For what we're paying in rent, they should be much nicer. AND, speaking of rent, it is not unheard of to get slapped with a $500/month increase after a year. No questions asked, no compromising, no negotiating. Management is detached to the point of being rude. I guess that's what you can expect now in this quickly up-and-coming area. read more

Third Square apartments in Kendall has everything you need or want ! Convenience to Red Line, beautiful apartments some with balconies , great courtyard with gas grills and play area for children, in unit washer-dryers, cheerful exercise facilities with floor to ceiling windows , attentive and cheerful concierge staff , special activities for residents e.g. Paint night, grab and go St Patrick's day coffee and breakfast , expert maintenance staff , storage cages for luggage , indoor parking and Zip cars in the garage ! First rate building . We have been here 7 years and never want to leave ! read more

You know something is wrong when you see plenty of negative reviews. I couldn't agree more with those bad reviews. Do NOT rent here unless you want to be treated like a free ATM machine that just keep on dispensing cash. The friendly and nice attitute you see from leasing office ends once you signed your name on the lease. Sure, you can have a discussion with them, nothing will come out of it anyway, they pretty much just tell you "NO" nicely. As for rent increase, that is also true. They will try to hike up the rent till you can't take it anymore. That is why I see more people moving out than moving in. The manager that responded to these reviews said its by "market price", I think they are the one who make up those "market price" to begin with. As for security issues, there is a sign in sheet. It would work if those people behind the desk even bother to lift their heads to see who walks in the door. Most people just open the door and walk right pass them. How secure is that ? Staffs varies also in their friendlyness. Now, the actually living condition. Air circulation sucks. You can smell your neighbor's stinking fish cooking. You can smell other people smoke in their apartments. You can smell trash coming from trash room. The noise level is high, my unit is facing Binney street and I can hear everything even with window closed. Especially the public work station next to the build. During winter, you can be sure you know they are getting ready to plow snows. The train goes by that make sure you know its coming, the horn sound goes right into your room. Your neighbor comes home in the night, you can hear all the conversation they have in the hall way. Neighbors like music ? you better enjoy their taste because you are surely to share it. Neighbor owns a dog, you know you will be graced with non-stopping barking all day long. Not to mention those people those put their kids into hall way when they cry. Yup, as a community, they LOVE to share the toddlers screaming/crying sound with you. You can complain about it but they will not do anything to help. All they will say is "its a community living, it comes with it." That----- is what you get for paying luxury apartment pricing. I moved out of the place once my lease is up. There is no way I was willing to pay the super rent hike for a sub-luxury unit. Bottom line : Stay clear from this place and don't fall into their lies of sales. They lie and lie to get you to move in then treat you like trash. read more

My wife and I were in town from LA for a few days to find an apartment in Cambridge. As you know, the apartment rental market in Boston is hectic, especially trying to find an apartment during the summer months. Our experience at Third Square was top notch! We first got in contact with Brittany, who is so kind and knowledgable! I scheduled an appointment and was excited to meet her. My wife and I ended up in the area the day before our appointment and stopped by the leasing office looking for Brittany. The concierge was helpful and friendly, letting us know she did not work the day we were there (bummer!) He contacted the leasing office and said a consultant could see us in 30 minutes (yay!) He told us where a nice coffee shop was, and we enjoyed the clear Cambridge skies. Upon returning, David was there to help. He greeted us by our first names, showed us pet-friendly apartments in our budget, and was so nice!! All-around, our experience here was A+! Thank you, Third Square! read more

I've lived here for almost two years and it's been great. I worked with Mike from the leasing office initially, he was incredibly helpful in finding the right apt. Two gyms, both of which have always had available equipment, super nice concierge staff, and superb maintenance. The location is ideal, and you even get emails about free weekend activities around Boston. I'm moving into a taller building only for a better view of the city. And again, Mike was super helpful and found someone right away to take over my lease early. I shall miss Third Square! read more

I am a current resident and I recommend that you look elsewhere. The consierge staff is great but that is about it. The building is not well maintained. The loading dock is always dirty and smells of garbage. Also, expect your rent to go up if you renew your lease. Mine is increased 22% so I am looking elsewhere. Just moving across the street to Archstone Apartments saves me $400-600 a month. They don't have a pool but who cares if you don't use the small one at Third Square. read more

We went through airbnb to rent a furnished apartment for a couple of days I end up very disappointed. First of all nothing of the pictures was real some pictures where similar to our apartment so don't be fool by pictures, the check in was supposed to be at 3 pm they sent an email and saying it is at 4 pm and that some details may be inaccurate. At the description we were supposed to have a court yard view we end up with a parking view, The apartment is at the end of the building, our neighbors were the trash room and the electrical room besides it is at least 100 yard away from the elevator. This building is not good if you have a double stroller or a wheel chair, you can't go easy through the doors. Some stuff in the apartment should be at the trash if they want to call it a luxury place. During our stay we had interior and exterior building work ( holes in the wall then painting) with two toddlers is not easy to controll them not to touch besides the smell of paint is toxic for kids. I have been to many luxury places but this apartment at least should not be called luxury, it is not supposed to cost $259 per night. Finally, I have to say the concierge staff were kind. read more

I've got to say that I'm confused with the two other reviews I just read. I have lived at 3rd Square for almost a year now and couldn't be more satisfied. The building is a unique building fitting in with the new styles of the Kendall Square area and my wife and I love it here. We are quite sensitive to noise (particularly at night) and have had no problems what so ever. We seem to be located in a high traffic area of the building as well with no issues. We love the concierge staff and office staff. They are responsive and always there to address our questions. If you are going to live in Cambridge I suggest 3rd Square. read more

The price for one bedroom was $X on their website, I went to visit that suit, so I made an appointment with them. I showed up on time but the manager made me wait for 20 min because she was busy with someone else. The funny part was that she wasn't ashamed of her rude action. Anyways, I visited the suit and decided to sign the contract, when I logged in online to sign the contract I saw the price went up by $100+ (so X+$100) !!! I checked the price on their webpage to ensure I didn't make a mistake and interestingly the price listed for that suit was $100 less than what I saw (i.e. X-$100) !!! I refused to sign the contract and found another place. After talking to some friends about my experience, I realized I made the right choice to not moving into this building. read more

I lived at this place for two years. Positives, as has been said, the concierge staff. Very helpful and friendly. Negatives, everything else. Management is terrible and rude. The rent hikes are real, they will hike it up 20-30% upon renewal, and wont negotiate or consider your history or else. Paper thin walls and hidden fees and charges for any amenity you can think of, even after you paid an amenities fee up front. My best experience with them. When I moved in I found a pest problem in the apartment, cockroaches. I later found out that the buildings management already knew about it from the previous tenant, and they did nothing about it, and rented out the unit without telling us about the problem. Of course there was no compensation or even an apology from management. They took 6 months to deal with it, and I understand my neighbors still had the problem after I moved out. Conclusion: stay away. There are several options at better prices nearby (watermark, archstone, central), that actually care for their tenants and treat them well. read more

Overall a nice place to live. Concierge team is great, especially the new guy Stephen. Casimir and Kyle are also some of my favorites. The leasing consultant Brittany, on the other hand, always scowls at me for some reason... it doesn't exactly make me feel welcome at my home. read more