Helix Apartments

"Really liked the place when we first moved in however now it reeks of weed in our hallway to the point where we smell it in our own living room wall. We are holding our breath in the hallway when we leave for work and take out trash. I was also scammed into signing a 15 month lease because that was the “only way to get the half month off deal”. I referred someone that signed a 12 month lease and they still got the deal too around the same time I moved in so the marketing was incredibly deceiving will definitely not sign another year."

"My fiancé and I lived here for a few years, and we stayed primarily for the location, and the maintenance team; they were responsive and helpful. The management office was a different story. They ignored emails about constant weed smells in the hallway, extremely loud neighbors, as well as missing packages from the "secure" package room. The biggest issue is that I witnessed police on site numerous different times (due to multiple residents' cars that were broken into), and the office chose not to send emails informing the residents. My car was also broken into, in the parking garage that I paid for. My car was locked but they smashed my window. There are no security cameras so nothing they could do. With all the theft/security issues you'd think they'd install some cameras, but that sadly didn't happen. As for the apartment itself, it was described as "newly renovated", however the heating and A/C units are so old and loud, it sounds like you're next to a jet engine. Both the washer & dryer are very old as well. Paint would spontaneously chip off, near the floor, and we’d have to vacuum it up constantly. Cabinet door handles and hinges would fall off often, and we’d keep fixing it ourselves. If you're looking in the SLP area I'd advise against living at Helix. New apartments have popped up nearby and I'm sure any of those are better options."

"Let's start with a positive and end with one… Great location, right next to a bunch of stores and restaurants in Saint Louis Park, also close to a park! Now management takes advantage of the great location by putting in very little effort to make the apartment nice for the people living there. FYI most 5 star reviews are either from people who were at a pool party once, gave 5 stars for the maintenance staff, or during old management (Shout out to the old managers who were there when I moved in 3 years ago, they were kind and would try to help you out). Current management issues -They do not take pride in keeping up the apartment complex. Many times I have seen food on the floor, broken doors, TVs never worked at the gym, one of the treadmills are always broke. -We had a neighbor who smoked weed and blasted music during the day and night. We told the apartment about it, they did nothing even though weed is not allowed to be smoked in the apartment. I don't mind it, just when you can smell it fresh in your living room with the door closed, that is an issue. Also tried to talk with the neighbors myself, they would never answer the door. -We paid more for an updated unit, everything that was "updated" was cheaply done. Doors would break, paint would chip, shelves would bend, drawers would break. Also the heater sounded like a plane taking off while it was running and it was hard to hear yourself think. It also took us close to three years for them to replace our AC unit, which was super loud and over 20 years old. -They do not enforce dogs on leashes. So if you like random dogs jumping on you, this is your place to be. A lot of new renters who are not very considerate of other or care that their actions effect others. -Packages get stolen all the time, I personally had a handful stolen. -No security in the under ground garage you pay extra for. Many break ins, no cameras, and they do not always inform you when this happens or when cops stops by because of a crime. My girlfriend's car windows were smashed and nothing was done by management. End on a positive. The maintenance staff tries really hard to help you and seem like they care, however there are only two of them, so it is hard for them to handle everything at an apartment complex that large. I feel bad that they work for a company so cheap and that clearly only cares about collecting money. So maybe it's not management, but the owner group Cushman and Wakefield. If the apartment was not so expensive for the area, it wouldn't be as bad, but every year there are pretty big jumps in prices, we were paying close to 2K for a one bedroom, in SLP, not near West End or Down Town. Find another place to live and spend your money. Hate being a Karen, but there should be consequences or call outs for crappy business practices."

"I originally "completed" this review in January 2023, but that is only because they linked their maintenance feedback with Google reviews. That is also why I'm keeping them at 2 stars rather than dropping them down to 1, because the maintenance staff always did a nice job of tending to requests for service in a timely manner. Beyond that, this was not an ideal living situation. As many other reviews have noted the price charged for the quality of the apartments is not in line, given all of the new apartments that are going up all around the area. Also, several of the reviews mentioned Kaylah, who was great to interact with as a tenant -- for the six months she was there. The entire office staff turned over 1.5 times during our one year lease. Overall, I would say the major issues reside in the fact that this building is "proudly" managed by Cushman-Wakefield, a large corporation whose only concern is making money. I doubt they care about the tenants, and would also guess they do not treat the employees at the building level well, although I have no evidence of the latter. We moved from out of state in August 2022 because I got a new job. We ultimately decided on Helix because it was close to my new office and the unit was large enough to fit our dining room table. I would say that the size of the apartments is another plus. But that is about where the positives end. The communication from the office staff would typically be a building-wide email that would go out well after the issue had occurred, telling us they would follow up when it was fixed, then never receiving a follow up. For example, one time during a storm the building was struck by lightning, which knocked out the key-fob entrances to our particular building and resulted in them having to prop the garage door open over the weekend due to a part not being available until Monday. (Again, I am skeptical of this and would instead guess that Cushman-Wakefield just chose to not pay the cost of an emergency fix at the cost of the garage not being secure for a weekend.) When we first moved in there were shopping carts available in the garage so residents could use them to bring groceries, etc. from their car up to their apartments without having to make multiple trips. However, after several requests to return the carts to their proper resting place were ignored Helix simply removed the carts. I personally never used them, but it seems that if you're going to remove an amenity a decrease in rent, even a small one, would be owed to the tenants. However, they were not entirely at fault. Many of the tenants in the building appeared to be younger, first time renters. This resulted in many emails requesting that renters follow rules outlined in the lease (e.g. making sure your dog was leashed when not in the building, not propping doors open, returning amenities to their proper place, etc.). As a rule follower it was very frustrating to often take my small dog outside, and quickly have to scoop her up because someone with a larger dog chose to let their dog run free outside of the building. Another issue with other tenants is the smoking of marijuana. Despite Helix being a smoke free building, many tenants ignore that and Helix's only recourse, when finally pinpointing the unit where the smoking was happening, is to begin the eviction process. This was happening with the apartment directly across the hall, and they must have been in the final month of their lease and knew the eviction would not occur before they had to move out anyway. Thus we would always come home to a hallway that reeked of weed and hear their two very loud dogs barking. Then, when we did finally move out, we spent three hours cleaning our empty unit and left it in better shape than we received it. ...We only received $200 of our deposit back with no letter or any other indicator about what we were charged. By that point we were just happy to be out of the building so did not try to fight them on it,. FYI, as of today there are currently two brand new buildings opening up within 1.5 miles of Helix."

"Just meeting with Kayla to learn about the apartment, I immediately felt interested in the apartment and excited to apply! She answered all my questions, she plans events for her residents and makes you feel welcome from the get go. I can't wait to call Helix home!"