Houston Apartments

Hi Philip Silberman,

I’ve been in contact with one of your employees – Matt Berry, and would like to take a quick moment to recognize him for outstanding customer service!

My mother and I have been successfully identified as kidney transplant patients (I’m the donor) and is seeking somewhere comfortable she could reside for three months while she’s recovering from surgery (I’m staying only two weeks).  Since my search started, Matt was swift to email me back requesting details of what we’d require in an apartment.  He offered suggestions and gave us time to decide.  When he didn’t hear back, he was efficient enough to follow-up with us to see if we’d located an apartment and continued to help us search for one that would suit our needs, wants and budget.

Matt always displays a pleasant and courteous attitude and is most patient.  He delivers a genuine concern with his assistance in helping us and must be commended for such a memorable experience.

Please encourage him to continue his good works as me, my family and those who are fortunate enough to be in contact with him – greatly appreciate it.

Sincerely,

Abbey G.

On Saturday March 7, 2009 the Krewe of Cajuns and Cowboys held its fourth annual Crawfish Boil at the Armadillo Palace. The event, sponsored by ApartmentWIZ, raised more than $10,000 to benefit the Texas Children’s Hospital.

The annual spring Crawfish Boil has become a much talked-about event in Houston. This year’s event drew more than 1,100 people to the iconic Armadillo Palace on Kirby and Barlett. The attendees feasted on crawfish, jambalaya, and Coors beer while enjoying the melodic sounds of Bourbon Street Band. Event tickets and t-shirt sales drew a combined total of over $13,000. These proceeds will be donated to the Texas Children’s Hospital.

The Krewe of Cajuns and Cowboys was originally formed to aid in the re-building of New Orleans. The non-profit group is based out of Houston, TX and includes alumni of Texas and Louisiana universities. The Krewe’s mission is to assist the Houston community by holding social events benefiting local charities. These premier events attract young professionals from all over the city.

ApartmentWIZ president and Krewe member Philip Silberman, who helped organize and sponsor the event, said, “We are amazed and excited about this year’s event turnout and the highest proceeds to date. ApartmentWIZ is proud to sponsor the Crawfish Boil and give something back to the community.”

With the continued success of the event and increasing number of guests and charity donations, the Krewe of Cajuns and Cowboys Crawfish boil is sure to become a popular event for Houstonians to help local charities for a long time to come.

Re: Rebate Check for $100

Dear Philip Silberman,

Just a note to tell you how happy I am in my new apartment and how much I appreciated the service that I got from your office.  You can be sure that I will tell all my friends about your company and especially the apartment community that you sent me to.  Having been an apartment manager and supervisor for about 25 years (not in this business now), I know how important locators are to the industry.  I always appreciated the honest ones, which you are.

Thanks again for the quik return of my check.  I know that it all depends on when you get paid from the complex, and I was hoping that they were taking care of the Locators, they were!!!

If I can be of any help to you in the future, please do not hesitate to call me.

Sincerely,

S. White

ApartmentWIZ strives not only to have the website that people turn to when they are looking for an apartment, but to also deliver the best in customer service. Below is a recent letter from one of our many satisfied clients:

Dear Philip Silberman,

I wanted to thank you and everyone involved for the $100 check. I’m using it towards next months rent. It’s reassuring that in a world of rebate promises, ApartmentWIZ followed through as promised. I look forward to future business and I’m confident to send referrals to your organization. Thanks again!

Sincerely,

A Happy Customer

By Cynthia Bowen, Marketing Director

ApartmentWIZ and Cox Radio have begun an affiliate advertising partnership online. Cox Radio has four radio stations in the Houston market, 1069 the Point, 107-5 K-Hits, New 93Q and Country Legends 97.1. These sites now present advertising information on ApartmentWIZ.com to a large Houston-based target market.

ApartmentWIZ, one of the largest apartment locating companies in Texas, and Cox Radio, which reaches almost half of the adult population in Houston, are a natural advertising pairing. Cox Radio is one of the largest radio broadcasters in the nation and operates predominately in the Sunbelt region. ApartmentWIZ is actively seeking advertising partners with a hyper local presence and broad reach, and Cox Radio meets that criteria.

Cox Radio owns four radio stations that air in the Houston metropolitan area. 1069 The Point plays 80’s hits. 107-5 K-Hits airs music from the 60s and 70s. The New 93Q broadcasts the latest in country hits and Country Legends 97.1 plays some of the best country songs from the 60s, 70s and 80s.

Now, when radio listeners view the website for one of their favorite radio stations, they will be greeted with an advertisement for ApartmentWIZ.com. Site visitors to ApartmentWIZ can search for apartment deals and then request free personalized assistance from a licensed real estate agent.

“ApartmentWIZ is very excited to work with Cox Radio in this new advertising partnership. With the combined reach, Houston will have something good to listen to on the radio, and a great apartment in which to live.­” –Mark Berry, VP of Business Development

On Saturday November 11, 2008, several of us from ApartmentWIZ went to Lulu M. Stevens Elementary and participated in the Beautification Project. We worked alongside teachers, staff, and parents to plant new shrubs, paint on the exterior, and clean up the school campus. We had a lot of fun helping make an immediate and noticeable change in the school’s appearance. We will join the school again in the spring to beautify the school further.

ApartmentWIZ employees participate in a Partnership program to mentor students at the elementary school near our office. We meet with those students every week for an hour or two. We help them with school work, play games, and try to provide a positive influence on their lives. It has proven an enriching experience for both ApartmentWIZ and the students.

Crime at Houston area apartments is a problem for tenants, apartment locators, and management companies alike.  There is really no apartment complex in The Greater Houston area that is completely crime free.  In an effort to promote safety at apartment complexes, ApartmentWIZ is sponsoring the Houston Police Patrolmen’s Union to help fight crime at area complexes and naming the month of November apartment crime awareness month. To kick off crime awareness month, ApartmentWIZ and the Houston Patrolmen’s Union is offering these top ten tips for choosing a safe apartment: and staying safe at your current apartment:

1) Check out the local crime statisitcs in your apartment’s area.  If you live in Houston, you can get crime stats at Houston Police Department Crime Stats.

2) Use a good apartment locator. Apartment locators are free and can offer wonderful insights on apartments that have low crime rates and good tenant feedback.

3) Choose a gated community with a fate that actually works. Gates at big apartment compexes are notorious for breaking. Ask your prospective apartment complex who maintains there gate. Then call the gate company and ask for an outage or service report.

4) Choose an apartment that is wired for alarm monitoring, and pay to have your apartment monitored by a security company.This is especially important if you live on the first floor.

5) Don’t live on the first floor. 90% of all apartment break ins occur on first floor units.

6) Visit a prospective apartment complex at night to ensure the property is lighted and secure.  Visiting an apartment property at night can show the complexes true colors.

7) Don’t leave any valuables in your car. This one may seem obvious, but you would be surprised how many people forget to take their valabules with them.

8) Look for an apartment with a 24 hour security gaurd.  Many apartments will advertise that they provide security when actually all they provide is a courteous officer.  Be sure your complex has a bonded, full time, security gaurd.

9) Talk to current tenants and ask them about their experiences at the property.  You would be surprised what you can learn from people by asking.

10) Stay away from apartment ratings sites! These sites are often full of bogus complaints by people who are just upset. Competing management companies have also been know to post false ratings.

The new Tanglewood at Voss apartments in the Houston Galleria area is a great new luxury property to check out.  People who chose to rent here will be wowed by all of the great amenities, including a full concierge service, an internet lounge with WiFi, and a 24 hour fitness studio.  These apartments are in the center of the Galleria area, surrounded by fine dining and shopping and close to Memorial Park and Town and Country Village.  Inside there is plank flooring, granite countertops and kitchen islands to mark these apartments as a luxurious place to live.  Come check out this new place and be one of the first Houstonians to call Tanglewood at Voss home.

The Millennium Greenway is a trendy new apartment community recently built in the Greenway Plaza area of Houston, TX.  These apartments have an edgey design concept with both loft and penthouse style floor plans available to renters.  It will be hard to beat the location of these apartments right off of 59 and just minutes from downtown Houston.  In the middle of Greenway Plaza residents will be in the center of great entertainment and employment districts.  Some of the many features here include a gourmet kitchen with cooking demonstrations, an orange grove and apartments with 8′ and 13′ ceilings with stained concrete flooring.  Check out the brand-new Millennium Greenway apartments leasing today and tell them ApartmentWIZ sent you.

Here is a list of the top 3 lofts in Houston, Texas on my experiences while showing each of the properties:

1)  Hogg Palace Lofts

Hogg Palace makes the number one spot for my favorite loft in Houston because it has the best location in the theatre district and it has the very cool rooftop terrace.  It’s also located in a very attractive, all brick, historic building.  These are hard lofts, so be prepared for rough concrete pillars and exposed brick.

2)  Alta Lofts

The Alta Lofts at Hermann Park are the best lofts in Houston because they are the only property that offers residents both soft and hard lofts.  If you are looking for the tradtional rough concrete, exposed brick and ducts, then Alta Lofts can offer you a unit in their tower.  If you want the finished sheet rock, polished concrete, hardwood floors then the mid rise is for you.  One caution about the property though: it’s rumored that the tower was a former insane assylum before being renovated.

3)  Yale Street Lofts

The third best loft in Houston, TX is located in the Heights and offers residents small community living as there are only 20 lofts on the property.  This property is also one of the few lofts in Houston where you can still pay close to one dollar per square foot.  In fact, all units are around 1,000 square feet, so residents have plenty of living space.Š