Keystone Apartments

"Overall, my experience at Keystone has been good. The building is clean, the maintenance staff members are extremely friendly and helpful, and my neighbors are nice. I have a few minor complaints, but they are nothing I would consider moving over. I hope to continue living here until I am done with my professional program at the UW, and I would not hesitate to recommend living here to my friends and family."

"Lived at Brownlofts during the 2017-18 school year as it was closer to the medical school. The property manager, Kylee, was always quick to respond and address issues. The apartments themselves are very nice with stainless steel appliances and with plenty of space in the 1 bedroom apartments, which is to be expected considering the price. However, there are a number of issues I experienced that warrants a two star review. First, if renting from here, it is likely you won't receive your entire security deposit back. Before I moved out, my boyfriend and I spent a number of hours cleaning the place. Prior to receiving my security deposit back I felt that it was possible they would take some money out for a silver dollar sized paint chip due to the inadequate removal of a command strip. To my surprise, I had 90 dollars taken out for two hours worth of cleaning. They noted the normal wear and tear that one would expect from living in an apartment for a year and stated the balcony was dirty, which is to be expected considering it is outside in the elements. Another tenant stated she had a similar experience and was charged 55 dollars despite thoroughly cleaning before she moved out. It also surprised me considering that the carpet had not even been vacuumed when I moved in. Additionally, when considering the cost of rent and comparing it to nearby apartments, Brownlofts doesn't quite stack up. You can find an apartment with a similar price and significantly more amenities, such as in-unit laundry, exercise facilities, free morning coffee, etc. just down the street in a better location. At Brownlofts, there are five washers and five dryers shared among all the people in the building, so it was often difficult to find times when they weren't being used. Also, they had a tendency to malfunction on a regular basis making it even more difficult to do laundry. Although the building is relatively quiet during the day, Brownlofts is a somewhat popular place for undergrads which meant noise during the weekends and finding messes were a regular occurrence. There was an instance where someone vomited right in front of the elevator entrance on the first floor, and it had remained there long enough to develop a significant odor in the lobby. Finally, I questioned the quality with regards to maintenance. As the weather turned warmer, I began to experience issues with the air conditioning. Sometimes despite having the air set to low 70's, the thermostat would read into the mid 80's and even be warmer inside my apartment than it was outside. Of course, I put in a maintenance request to have the issue addressed. However, instead of looking into the issue, the maintenance person left a note saying the thermostat matched the set temperature and nothing was wrong. It was an intermittent problem that I did not have control over when it would happen. Seeing as the problem wasn't going to be addressed unless the maintenance person happened to stop by when the air conditioning wasn't working, I decided to let it go and deal with the heat. About a month or so later, maintenance went through all the apartments prior to move out to ensure everything was ready for the people moving in. Only then was the problem addressed and fixed. This didn't really bother me until I received the electric bill. Normally, my bill was close 30 dollars a month, but during the month that the air conditioning was broken my bill rose to over 150 dollars. Brownlofts is definitely livable, but if you don't want unexpected costs I would recommend renting from elsewhere."

"My partner and I have been living in Madison for 3 and 4 years respectively, and I can say already after just starting with Steve Brown and Keystone at the beginning of this month, that this is absolutely a renters dream come true. Compared to our past experiences, the management is extremely competent and kind, always happy to help, and quick to respond to any possible inquiries or issues. The location is great with the bus stop right outside, and the facilities are beautiful. Even though we're new to the lease, I'm not worried at all about future issues that may come up, as I am confident that the Steve Brown Apartments staff will be quick to assist like they've proven already. We will be staying with Keystone and with SBA as long as we're able."

"I lived in Steve Brown properties for four out of the five years I lived in Madison and I would recommend no other management company in the city. I've lived at both Lucky and Brownlofts and I absolutely loved both. They're not cheap, but it's worth it to have the quality appliances, thick walls and extremely prompt maintenance staff at your disposal. I also really appreciated the personal touches and professionalism of the management teams for both buildings. You as a resident are their priority at Steve Brown, beyond profits. This is what makes this particular management company so much better than others in the city. The poor reviews are usually from students who didn't want to hold up their end of the bargain (e.g. Following up on maintenance, actually reading their leases to know what was expected, leaving their apartment in good shape to get security deposits back, etc.) and I know this because I was in no way the cleanest tenant, but I still got the vast majority of my security deposit back every single time. They are fair in this regard, and if you feel you were treated unfairly talk to the management, they'll work with you. All in all I recommend this company and their properties to anyone moving to Madison, and if I ever move back I'll stick with Steve Brown too."

"This apartment complex is very high quality and beautiful. It is home to a wide range of residents including college students, families, and professionals young and old. Jean oversees the property and provides the most top notch service I have ever received in my renting experience. She is very quick to respond, very understanding, and just a pleasure to interact with. The maintenance turnaround is also very quick and most of the it takes less than 24 hours to resolve an issue. I highly recommend this location to any interested renters."