Cottage Grove at Gainesville

I have been living here since last August to start my doctoral program at UF. I have loved living at cottage grove as it is quiet neighborhood and offers such a cute and homey vibe. I love our cottage and enjoy the large space the apartments offer. My roommates and I enjoy using the gym and the bus to get to classes! Overall great experience with staff and they are always very attentive to any issues that come up or if I just want to talk about what’s going on in my life they’re always there😊

Have lived here for the last 3 years, if it weren’t for job relocation I would have renewed again. I was never able to get his name but the maintenance guy is the real MVP, don’t remember having any service tickets that weren’t fixed within 48 hours. The front office always got back to me the same day, and 9/10 times they were able to accommodate anything I had asked of them. While I didn’t go to many, they hosted multiple events a month and it seemed like a great way to get to know your neighbors and the staff. As far as bugs, I saw 2 roaches in my house in the last three years, never was a problem at least for my house. I see a lot of reviews talking about the move out fees. I documented everything the first week I moved in as far as damage to the room, and will have it professional cleaned before move out. The room itself will be left in better shape than when I moved in, so once I see what move out fees I am hit with I will update this review to see if that is still an issue or not. Until then I absolutely recommend this place to anyone looking for a home away from home.

I've really enjoyed living at Cottage Grove! The community is very quiet and has a bus stop close by. The leasing office and maintenance are quick to respond. It’s a calm area that is located near the school and everything else in Gainesville. I would live here again :)

Safe environment, accessible amenities, and friendly staff! I love the layout of our house and the flexibility of moving our furniture around. Cottage Grove is the definition of a homey place away from home.

I am going on my second year living at Cottage Grove and it is truly the best place to live; it feels like my home away from home. The management team, including Jonathan Spence and Thandie Brown, is incredibly attentive and helpful. Maintenance is quick and efficient, always ready to address any issues and order replacement parts when needed. The community is beautiful and the cottages include great appliances (microwave, stove, built in water purifier, in-unit washer/dryer). For dog owners, there’s a dog park within walking distance, as well as a fun little trail. The location experiences barely any traffic, contributing to a quiet neighborhood that is well-lit at night. Accessible parking is also a plus—I always find a spot right in front of my house. Overall, Cottage Grove is an amazing place to live!

I lived at this wonderful community for four years, and overall, it was a very pleasant experience. The previous manager, Joe, was fantastic, and the new manager, Jonathan, has proven to be equally compassionate and dedicated. The "cottages" here are essentially individual houses, each with its own address, which is vastly superior to traditional apartment housing. The living spaces are generously sized, and the screened back porch is a fantastic feature. There's even a convenient spigot for washing your vehicle. The maintenance team is both friendly and efficient, always ensuring that any issues are promptly resolved. While the gym could use some improvement and the key fob system is somewhat redundant since the doors remain unlocked, these are minor concerns. Parking is fair, with no pass required for guests, which is very convenient. For dog owners, there's a shortcut trail leading directly to Squirrel Ridge Dog Park, which is a fantastic amenity. The location is just far enough from the main city to avoid much traffic, providing a peaceful living environment. The community also offers recycling services, which is a nice bonus. During my time here, I only experienced one instance of noisy frat neighbors, but it was quickly resolved thanks to their effective disturbance policies. The staff is always friendly and courteous, and Jonathan, the manager, consistently went above and beyond to help with any issues, whether with roommates or otherwise. Despite all these great features, the cost of living here is surprisingly reasonable compared to other options in the area. Plus, the free and fast internet is a huge perk. Overall, this is an incredible place to live, and I highly recommend it!

Cottage Grove is amazing! The office is so friendly and always take care of you. I love my cottage so much!! When I moved in, it was clean and welcoming. Plus, maintenance is great because they stay on top of any issues that arise. The neighborhood is pretty, safe, and fun. Cottage Grove feels like home :) 10/10 living experience

My daughter and her roommates lived there for 2 years. During there time, maintenance came out when need but just did quick fixes (not repaired or replaced) so they had to call back several times for the same issues. When moving out, these girls were given a list of required items to clean, repair etc. all the parents came to assist with cleaning baseboards, handrails, blinds, ceiling fans, wipe walls down, patched hole (from pictures hung), had paint matched at Lowes and touched up paint, wiped down all kitchen cabinets, vacuumed inside cabinet and draws, clean oven, microwave, and refrigerator. As well as wiping done their front door which was so dirty from after the maintenance people pressure washed the sidewalk. With all this said, it was cleaner when they left compared to when they moved in. Each of these girls were charged $218 to repaint bedrooms, living room and this included $25 dollars each for cleaning fee of the common area. Nobody should have been charged a cleaning fee and if you were going to charge to repaint no matter what-why ask us to patch and touch up. We spent money on paint, supplies, cleaners and many hours of cleaning. It was clean. So be warned you may not get your deposit back and/or be charged more.

This location is run-down and ghetto. I had a noisy roommate from who attempted to attack me and Stole my Amazon deliveries from the front porch (I had several packages stolen) The recent management has transformed this place into a complete disaster. I decided to leave and tidy up, but they unfairly overcharged me for various expenses. As a result, I am pursuing legal action against them. The location of this place is adjacent to a drug rehabilitation center, which means that every time I would take a one-mile walk to the store, I would frequently encounter harassment from drug addicts. Additionally, there is a notorious motel known for its association with crack addiction located directly across the street. At night, they go through our trash and one of them requested a lift from me. I was scared and ran away. I strongly advise against staying at this place.

Cottage grove charges insane move out fees for "damages" they find in your room. My room was spotless and cleaned it myself and yet they charged me for cleaning of the room and for holes in the wall even though I covered them up myself and in the lease it doesn't mention anything about holes having to be covered up in general. And then they charged me for carpet even though it was in terrible condition when I moved in as well as paint when they hadn't even painted my room before I moved in and the drywall was ripped in a section. I noticed the charges on my account and I stopped by the office to talk to the manager about it and they weren't around and I couldn't even speak to the assistant manager about anything and they seemed clueless anyways. They gave me Jonathan's email (the manager) and I emailed him, I received a response right away which was nice but he said that he will go through my disputes in the next couple of days due to him being busy with turnarounds of the units for newcomers. I completely understand that, however it's been 2 weeks since that email and he hasn't reached back out. I decided to email him again and give him the benefit of the doubt and still haven't heard back. If they want my money then they're going to have to come to me. I received a bill in the mail at my new place but if the manager can't sit down for 5 minutes and answer my email then I'm not going to keep emailing him. I liked that the units were houses instead of a huge building but the management really sucks upon move out and they will charge you insane prices. I supposedly owe $375 in damages after $100 of my security deposit was applied. Better start saving up now to cover for your "damages" in your unit! UPDATE: I moved out 7/31 and it's currently 9/15 and I haven't heard from the manager since 8/24 and I've sent multiple follow up emails and no response still. And when he did finally respond to my email, it was 2 sentences that didn't address most of my concerns I mentioned in my original email. One of my roommates still has yet to get in contact with him in general, she's emailed and called multiple times for him but he just ghosts. So she's also having the same issues.

Joe is absolutely amazing!! I've lived in 6 different Gainesville apartments and this one is by far the best. Joe always has your back and is very very very good at his job!

I lived there for 3 years the entire operation is run by students and one adult, it's very expensive, the overages are insane, they lose your mail constantly, they leave advertisements and surveys on your door weekly, they are completely incompetent, staff are constantly entering your home for inspections and other tedious nuances, they tamper and ruin your internet connection, they will leave random maintenance equipment and projects in your entrance way for months on end. Maybe the Gainesville renting atmosphere is just so bad that this is considered upper end, who knows. So happy I moved.

I live here for a year and was extremely happy to move out. Overages are ridiculous, get ready to pay $20 to $50 extra a month while keeping your house on 78 degrees. The staff is pretty useless and the property manager is rude. On top of that I moved into an apartment that had fleas and it took weeks to get rid of. Don't be scammed by the exterior, I wouldn't recommend living here to anyone. I wish i would have listened to all the other reviews when I signed here.

I have lived here for approximately a year now and I absolutely despise this place. The rent is insanely expensive and the overages are even WORST. Each month's overages are at least $40 even with all our electricity & water used at a minimum. I have no idea where all this overages is coming from?! And we always keep our AC unit on 79 degree which is pretty freaking hot already. They always leave us notices at our door with random charges and have no idea where they get that number from. The previous reviewer was correct, the management here is ridiculous, it is run by a group of sorority girls and one adult. When my roommates and I first signed our contract, they told us that the last date to turn in rent was the 5th of every month, but they midway through the year they changed the date on us and failed to inform us about the changes. Yes, this place is a nice neighborhood to live in, but not without taking a hunk of your money with it every month. I would not recommend this place to live in to spare the headache & expenses. I cannot wait for my lease to end so I move out of here!!

I have lived here for six months now and learned the hard way this is a horrible place to live. The electric overages are horrific. $300 in one month horrific..how does that even happen? We keep the place at 80 degrees which is super hot the ac isn't on all that much. They couldn't tell me why. I still don't know. The staff is inattentive and rude, including the guy that takes care of the pool and grounds. Way to go Cottage Grove. The grounds are nice enough, nothing too special though. Pool is ok, have been to way better ones at other area complexes. Pass this one up, there are waaay better places in Gainesville than this one.

On first glance Cottage Grove is a great place to stay--I have friends tell me all the time how cute my townhouse is. The four bedroom four bathroom home I subleased for a semester was very nice, spacious and felt like an actual home. However, the service and the way the place is run is ridiculous. If you live here, expect to pay HIGH overages, EVERY month. I lived in Canopy Apartments last year and not once did I pay overages, and we weren't exactly conservative with our electricity. Here, we don't even run the dishwasher (handwash EVERYTHING) and keep the AC off in order to save electricity and STILL wind up with about $25 (on average, has even got to $45) overages per month. The problem is that the cap for this spacious two story townhouse (that has 2 AC units) is the same as the cap for any other regular sized apartment. This is RIDICULOUS---how can they expect the same cap for a home almost double the size??? Upon moving out, I was asked to move out a full week before my lease was up in order to accommodate the next group of girls moving in--I still had finals and had no where else to stay, so that was impossible. However, I found it very rude and unprofessional that they would even bother asking a paying tenant this. When I spoke to the owner of the complex, Jaime, about my move out date, I got a text message the day before saying that the new tenant was arriving that day and needed the room for that night. Again, VERY unprofessional--my mom was coming up that night to move my stuff back home and we had no place to stay. I had had enough of the poor professionalism and service and stood my ground and was able to stay my final night. Finally, if you move in, expect to either move into the room cleaned by the previous tenant (which may or may not be up to par) or have to pay a $200 cleaning fee to have it cleaned specifically for you. The fact that it's not automatically cleaned for the new tenant by the complex is ridiculous. The bottom line is simple: the townhouse is a lovely, spacious home for any student living in Gainesville. However, the poor professionalism and the ridiculous charges they add to your already $590 (if a 12 month lease) rent far outweighs anything "nice" about Cottage Grove. There are far better options in Gainesville.

This place is ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, it looks really nice, but the prices were ridiculous. The overages are outrageous and when I lived there, I got a notice that they were increasing prices. Don't let them tell you that "you pay one price and it covers everything." What they fail to tell you is the only way to not get overages is to keep the air conditioner off.. at all time, or really high so it never cuts on. There was always upcharges, no matter what you did. The only things I liked were the 24/7 security and the looks of the home. Another issue I had was, when I went to sign to move in, I told them I would only need the place for six months. They told me I have to sign a one year lease but when I was ready to move out, they would find someone to rent it for me. So, with that being said I decided to sign. Well, the six months went by and I was planning my move. When I went to the office the let them know, they told me they would put my name on the list of "subleases available". I said thanks and moved out. Well, two months went by and I never heard anything. So, I had my cousin call and ask if they had any two bedroom places available and they said no... I then became livid because I realized they had been lying. I called them and asked for the manager, her reply was "we can't recommend your room unless they specifically say they are looking for a sublease." ARE YOU KIDDING!? So, guess who had to pay for a place for six months that she didn't even live in, me. I'm glad I'm not there anymore.