Meridia Main Station

The Good 1. Nice space and distribution of unit 2. Open kitchen/Good size bathroom 3. Package room - small but secure. I never lost a package in 2 years 4. Hallways and common areas are clean and kept in a good state of repair 5. Maintenance -work orders are handled promptly 6. Site managercourteous and almost always expedient 7. Close to Bound Brook train station but see below. This is both a blessing and a curse!     The Bad 1. Rent hike – 19% from 2022-2023 to align with other new buildings in the area. There are no added benefits to tenants other than new furniture at lobby. They refused to re-negotiate. 2. Railroad tracks and grade crossing - Meridia is a couple of feet away from rail tracks: * NJT passenger train: First train: 4:42AM; and last train 2:11AM - you’ll hear them! * Freight trains -24H!!!! The worst days seem to be Mondays and Tuesdays from 3-5am. * Grade Crossing  – both passenger and freight trains are required to blow horn at any time, and they do at the interception of the rail tracks and Main St - Queens Bridge where the Meridia sits.   Bound Brook is not a designated quiet zone    3. Thin walls and ceilings: constant thump of upstairs neighbors 4. W/D - most units do not have in unit W/D, and W/D in common laundry often breakdown or they are busy. 5. Parking –there is a separate parking fee. Indoor parking spots are more expensive ($90) than outdoor parking. Indoor spots are not enough for tenants. There is a waiting list. Outdoor spots are not respected and there are constant reminders that unauthorized vehicles are parked and will be tolled. I was lucky to have one indoor spot. It was tight. 6. Amenities: Gym – OK but very small and I don’t think it can accommodate more than 5-8 people at a time. 7. Fees: administrative fee on lease signage (non refundable), late fee, lock out fee, amenity fee, parking fee, pet rent/fee, pet waste fee, smoking fee, month to month fee (>$300/month), change of unit fee, and attorney fee in lease contract. 8. Marihuana: frequent smell of weed even though it is not a smoking bldg. I recognize this speaks more of residents but enforcement should be on management. 9. Flooding – indoor parking may just flood with intense rain as it did in 2021. We also lost power. We all have to evacuate the Meridia for a couple of days!

Management is horrible. We pay a lot for what we get. The laundry room charges $2.50 a load and the washers and dryers are old and gross. There has been a handful of times where the dryer didn't dry since there was zero heat. One washer has been out of order for months with mold inside the machine. The carpet in the hallways are disgusting and need a deep clean. Cabinets are falling apart due to poor building, our water heater closet smells HORRIBLE to the point where we try not to open the closet, our heater/air conditioner has broken numerous times WITH MOLD INSIDE. We can hear our neighbors upstairs as if we are in the apartment with them. They charge us $90 to park our car in the garage which is insane. If you want to park in the free lot, you have to walk. (Not safe at night). They say they're strict about random people parking in the free lot but we always see random cars that take up room which makes us have to walk even further to the apartment. I can't even count the amount of times the elevators have been broken and when they get fixed, they bounce when the door opens and makes so much noise. I'm convinced I'm going to get stuck in it one day. They also charge $50 extra for having a pet. And being a dog owner, I have no idea where my money is going. They have two poop bag stands in the opposite side of the building. How is that pet friendly? It doesn't take everyone's $50 to pay for the bags. Unbelievable! I would stay clear from this place. My boyfriend and I can't WAIT to get out!

Clear bait and switch tactics here. Complex advertised apartment as available on there website with an “apply now” button. Applied, paid $95 per applicant and received a text messaged that we were approved. After that we got a phone call saying that apartment was actually not available and refused to give us our money back for applying to an apartment that was never an option.

While I love my apartment itself, there is a lot of difficulties if you are not lucky enough to have an indoor parking garage spot. I have an outdoor parking spot that I may $70 for monthly, and every other week my spot is taken by random vehicles who I am to assume are guests of other tenants. I have to leave my car on streets, at the local park, or in the free guest lot when I am paying for someone else to use my spot. When I request the car to be towed, it never is. Sometimes the car has been left there for days. This happens “after hours” so Meridia does not care. There is no monitoring of the paid outdoor lot, so the people that pay for spots are constantly screwed over with parking. Towing never tows, and the bound brook police department is not allowed to even be involved or help. I shouldn’t be getting home in the late evening with no place for my car and have nobody to be able to contact to resolve this issue. It actually shouldn’t even be an issue. Maybe be writing this will actually impact something after the bi weekly or monthly emails I send.

For background: There are three parking lots - I'll refer to each as follows: the free lot, the garage, and "across the street parking". Both the across the street, and garage parking require a monthly fee - the garage costs alot more. My reason for posting: I use the free lot, and so I feel the need to warn potential residents - the free lot is dangerous. It's in a very large area formerly known as Queens Bridge parking. I have had multiple cops come up to me on separate occasions asking me if I had a seen a suspect they were chasing. Each time, they've told me they escaped into the parking lot. Unfortunately I can see WHY peeps would escape into the free lot - there is alot of hiding spots ranging from the storage units that Meridia has been promising to demolish, as well as a building where they've promised the same. Repairs to the free lot has been promised for February first, but here we are approaching April. In addition to concerns for safety, we have a number of LARGE potholes in the free lot. When it water collects in it and freezes overnight, it becomes a giant ice rink. None of the staff even bothers to put salt down, they're willing to let you slip and hurt yourself. I've explained the situation to multiple people in the main office, but I keep getting the same response, "we're working on it. The maintenance will happen soon" Empty promises. Please, beware.

The building was about 2 years old by the time I moved in. It started off great - many promises made and many promises unfulfilled. I'm a low maintenance guy so a lot of what bothered the other tenants did not bother me. However, no guest parking (existed for a few months while the other half of the building was under construction but disappeared after that due to need), elevator constantly breaks (a tenant actually got stuck inside), cars really do get broken into, management is horrible when it comes to maintenance, list can go on. But if none of this bothers you - there is something to be said about a building that has turned over their management team 3 times in less than 12 months.

Do not stay here unless you want to hear trains 24/7. The building shakes from multiple trains passing through. Payment accounts are never up to date. The key fob is a little annoying, especially if you get locked out or the battery dies, you will wait at least 2 hours on the onsite super. This place looks great, but over priced for all the hassle.

Like many of the other reviews this property has not been the best experience. After living her for a year I can say overall it is not a horrible place to be but there are a lot of issues as a result of the management. For the price you will pay I can say it is not worth it. The building is new and close to 287 and the train station. Other than that I cannot say there is much that you benefit from living here. Indoor parking is expensive and you often come home to people parking in your assigned spot which gets frustrating because then you have to either park in someone else's spot or find parking outside he garage which is very limited. Next, the washers and dryers are often out of order. Not to mention the fact that it costs $4 per load. There is a storage room for packages but have come home to find that my package is no lot in the storage room even though I was guarantee delivery by the carrier. Maintenance is not a priority and I literally had to visit the housing office daily to get my requests taken care of. There is

9/11/2016 Update. It has currently been raining in my apartment for over 24 hours. Management has not returned communication, despite several emails, phone calls, and attempts to visit the office. This is the new management company, Gray Star. Seriously, do not live here. Management will sell you a song and dance that is not real. 6/1/2016: The apartment that I moved into reeked of curry. My air conditioner broke and they took over 4 weeks to fix it. The output line on my water heater broke, causing flooding. The emergency phone number said the soonest they could get someone out there is the next afternoon. I was expected to clean up the water in my apartment. The company that owns this building does not care. The only luxury part of this building is the price.

Stay away from this place. Although it is almost brand new, the construction is TERRIBLE. You can hear everything your neighbors are saying. There is no insulation between the floors and anytime someone walks around upstairs (even lightly) you hear stomping and your apartment shakes. You are over charged for parking in an indoor garage where people are constantly parking illegally and management does nothing about it. There is NO guest parking. The mail/package room is not secure at all and packages are almost always stolen. When you bring this up to management they claim that "it is not their responsibility and that getting a package delivered is at your own risk", even though there is a clause in the lease which states that they WILL receive packages for you. The hallway lighting is attached to your electric bill and there is no way to turn the light off. There is no central air, just a window unit (like in a hotel) that does a terrible job. Also, there are NO screens on the windows, even though it is something that is required by NJ code. When you ask management about the screens, they tell you that they are being custom ordered and will be there soon. My best suggestion is to run far away. Do not rent here. There are MUCH better options in the Bound Brook/ Middlesex area. Do not be fooled by the new management, they are just as incompetent and uncaring as ever.

I attended a showing with them a few weeks ago but was very disappointed. They advertise a 2 BD when in reality they have a small 1BD with a den/storage room. What they call a 2nd BD is too small to fit a queen and does not have a window, closet or heating/cooling, just a small opening for air to pass through from the main living space. I pointed out to the sales person that the space is not a legal bedroom according to NJ housing laws. The reply I received was "take it up with the super." Additionally, they have limited and expensive parking for tenants (max 1 car per unit) and no parking for guests. I saw a new resident get towed while signing his lease. I also spoke with tenants while waiting and was told that getting towed as a resident was common and almost guaranteed for guests. I was also told by residents that cars are broken into constantly and management isn't doing anything to address it. I say renter beware.

The managment here has no idea what they are doing. Rent is to high and there is nothing luxury about it. Elevators break, no guest parking, building is left unsecure half the time, trash everywhere, you are charged for indoor and outdoor parking.. yes thats right if your rent and fees aren't enough you have to pay to park. It's not worth the time or money to move here. Before you make the decision or sogn the lease check out the reviews on their other properties. They all have the same complaints and same issues. Don't be fooled by the leasing agents and what you see at first glance, ask tenants as you pass them what they think, read otger reviews and mlst importantly run! This place is a nightmare and so are the people who "manage" it.

Do your research before renting here! Come talk to some resident, or victims. Management is incompetent and can't solve simple resident issues. Quality of living is NOT the "luxury" that they claim. They can paint a pretty picture when you walk through for a showing however the units come already scratched and banged up from the poor craftsmanship of the people who built this place. They will claim "growing pains" when they can't solve something. However, this isn't their first building and it's been open for almost a year and a half now. Can't wait to get out!!!

Cars broken into every night. No parking inside. The only experienced staff leave. Can't solve residents problems. Nightmare.

NEW APARTMENTS BEAUTIFUL WOOD FLOORS, OPEN CONCEPT, GRANITE COUNTER TOPS LARGE BATHROOMS. PET FRIENDLY ! LEASING AGENTS VERY FRIENDLY AND HELPFUL !