Senate Plaza

Lived here for about 8+ years now, Place is pretty decent. Everything is included, which is nice, and the negotiating power of a group this large makes it somewhat less expensive. Most reviews talk about the AC, but it's centralized, cold, or hot water runs through pipes and each unit has the ability to turn on / off a fan that blows throw a radiator for each room. If you are going to live here, just invest in a little portable AC unit. It's just a cost of living here. You really only need it for at most a month a year. If you are choosing to buy, be careful, while homeowners do vote for HOA initiatives, I think a significant number of units are owned by only a handful of owners, and lately, it does seem like there's a bit more corruption on the board. A lot of unnecessary work is being done on the building, so I assume someone making decisions has ties to a landscaping company.

Great place to come home to in the evenings. It's nice and quiet with a whole lot benefits for little money.

Really dissatisfied with this place. Partially due to management and the building/unit itself and partially due to loud neighbors. First, let's start with the construction- loud, made it unable to open windows in a scalding hot unit (more on that later!), and took forever to finish. It's loud enough in this area already with the trains, sirens, and traffic. Sometimes I felt like I was living in New York City with all the noise that seeped in. Management can be unpleasant and unfriendly, and in my case, turned out to be very tricky adding fees. The building looks fancy and elegant but the unit itself did not match. It was dilapidated and filthy upon move-in. Even after numerous cleans, the place never truly looked or felt clean. It was gross. There were also occasional cockroaches, which I would honestly expect for this area. Here's the issue: the roaches in hallways, stairways, the basement (you get the picture) stayed there. Speaking of the basement, it's really gross and many of the laundry machines do not work properly. Units do not have control of heat vs AC. Management decides when which goes on. It sucks. It was always hot, and I couldn't open a window due to the construction. Not that a window would do much in Columbia heat. There is no reason why the AC should not be on, let alone the heat being on (!!!), in Columbia at the times that this happened. Looking at this website, I wasn't the only one to complain. Neighbors in my case tended to be extremely loud and some were rude. Living next to a college campus, this happens. Although some of the middle-aged or recently-out-of-college folks were the worst. Don't get me wrong- some were great! But others yelled, partied, slammed doors, and made unpleasant smelling food at all hours. Sometimes felt like I was living in a dorm but without the friendliness. Location was good but there are other places within walking distance of this area without the noise, filth, and general unpleasantness.

Being a veteran of the building for the last decade, I can say that I've seen A LOT of positive changes over the last few months with new management at the helm. The cosmetic brick work has gone according to plan on the east side of the building and is now complete with the focus on the west side for the next few months. Improvements to the common areas and general upkeep are certainly a positive once again. I've noticed a few new courtesy officers who make me feel even safer than before as well. The location, essentially being on campus across from the new USC Law Center, makes it easy for me to get where I need to go, oftentimes without needing a car. To address concerns some reviewers have noted about climate control: My apartment has three climate control units, one in the large living room and one in each of the two bedrooms. I have never had an issue with any of them or their thermostats. They are independently controlled (each room can be set at a different temperature), which is actually really convenient. I haven't seen this feature in other apartments around campus. As for the twice a year switch over from heat-to-AC and vice versa, my unit has three-speed ceiling fans and the new commercial style windows as most other units do. I've never had a problem remaining comfortable nor have any of my roommates in the past. I use the ceiling fans as needed or slightly crack one of the energy efficient windows, and within minutes I'm comfortable. Overall, for the location, amenities, and size of the units I'm really happy with Senate Plaza and can't imagine where I could get the same value elsewhere on campus!

This old building is not worth your time, money, or patience. Not only is this not a non-smoking building (hallways and stairwells reek of smoke, and it often seeps under the doors of neighboring units), the building completely controls when the units have air conditioning or heat. Today is April 3, 2018, and the building still refuses to turn on the air conditioning. It has been off since the first week of November. This place is truly uninhabitable. This is South Carolina, where we have had dozens of 80+ degree days since January, yet management sits in their air conditioned lobby without a care in the world for the residents and homeowners. Inhumane living conditions. You will be told to "open a window"--well when its 100% humidity, 75 degrees outside, and pouring rain, the window isn't going to do much. And when its not raining, prepare for your entire unit to be coated in a nice thick layer of pollen, all because you wanted some air circulation in your apartment--it's still hot. I cannot discourage your interest in this place enough. Seek alternative housing options. I could go on about other issues, but I've go to go sit in my car to get some A/C before I go to sleep.

Visit a unit the other day, it was very hot. Impossible to stay in. I couldn't believe people can live in a place so hot. AC was on high at all times.