Ponderosa Village Apartments

Pros: In-unit laundry, a separate lease & bedroom and bathroom from my roommate so I have some space of my own and don't have to worry about finding a new roommate if one moves out, gated courtyard & strong, heavy doors provide security, fairly big windows with lots of light, some apartments have nice views of the sunrise, right next to a campus shuttle stop.

Cons: Parking is a separate (expensive) charge, there is always trash everywhere, no paved walkway from the main parking lot to the apartments - which is fine, except when it's muddy, icy, etc., The shared kitchen - including fridge, cupboards, etc. is tiny and there is virtually NO closet or storage space., unkind & unresponsive management, no amenities, clearly cheap & bad quality appliances, carpets, etc., thin walls, very expensive and constantly rising prices for what you get given the wages in the area and the fact that this is supposed to be housing for notoriously underpaid grad students, right next to football & practice fields, so it's loud a lot.

Ponderosa Village is a solid housing option for grad students and faculty. The location is on campus, which makes walking to any class or office easy. There aren't really any amenities, but since it is on campus you can walk to any of the campus gyms, pools, and restaurants easily.

It's really the best price around here--especially for something on campus in addition to only having to share with 1 roommate and having a private bathroom (if youre in a 2 bedroom). There is literally no effort put into matching roommates or anything like that if you are renting a private room and don't already have someone you're planning to share with. Also, good luck with actually getting a room with someone if you're both moving in at the same time. Most people move in/out of shared spaces one at a time, so even if you sign up with a roommate, you'll probably get paired with a random person because there's no full 2 private rooms open for the year. Accommodations themselves are nice enough for the price and location. Also accessibility doesn't exist here so if you're on anything above first floor there's no elevators so make sure you prepare for that. The people and the community of folks living there themselves, though, are nice and pretty quiet. Only sound issues I've had are when there's sports games, but that comes with living right next to the stadium, I suppose.

Excellent, except for two issues:

1) The University allows one person to rent a 2-bed 2-bath, but the individual under lease can then have 3 other adults, with NO affiliation with the University, to live there. This leads to 3 adults behaving in a manner that is inappropriate for university housing.

2) This is the first time I've experienced University housing where families do not have their separate housing facility. Thankfully, I do not have children living very near me while I am trying to sleep and study.

The staff is helpful, the location is great, but the rent kept increasing, and after paying the electricity bills, your monthly rent will be 800 dollars per month if you live in a beta shared which means you have a roommate. Don't lock your bike out on the property, it can be easily stolen even though this is a gated community. Keep your bike in your apartment. Wifi is unstable, so be prepared to have a long ethernet cable. Rooms are unfurnished, so you need to get some basic furniture. If you come in July when a lot of people have just moved out, you may be able to find some very nice free furniture lying next to the dumpster. You can also contact GSA for some donated furniture for free. Blind is useless, you may want a dark black cloth on top of the blind. Washer and drying and dishwasher are included in every unit, which is nice. They don't offer tours so you can only look at the floor plans on their website. No pets are allowed on the property either. Parking is not included so you have to contact the parking service to get parking separately. The football stadium and the railroad are very close by so it will be a nightmare whenever there are football games at night if you are trying to sleep before 11pm.

There is a lack of grounds maintenance. Garbage in the courtyard is often overflowing. We do not have enough recycling bins for the tenants, and this leads to overflow. Staff does not clean up overflow. Instead choosing to send threatening emails to tenants saying they will fine is if they find our recycling in the lot. Which is both an unreliable method of determining how the waste came to be in the lot, and we weaponizing their own poor management against tenants. Landlords in Nevada are responsible and required to provide a clean waste receptacle area that does not attract pests and wildlife. This is not the case here, and when tenants complain, they take no responsibility.

My own unit was not prepared for me upon move in. Filthy carpets, nails still in walls and drains clogged. Very disappointing.

There is no storage either. No pantry, no linen closets, no coat closets- nothing a typical apartment should include. Given the rent we pay and the fact that we also are required to pay for parking it is also disappointing.

Tenants should not have to pay to park at there residence. Also there is no safe pathway from the upper orange lot to the complex. Myself and my child have fallen multiple times. The cost of the yellow lot is so high that it is not an option.

Although rent has been raised there have been zero improvements here. Where is this money going?

Doesn't communicate effectively with residents; staff are rude and uninformed; dog poop and pigeon poop everywhere despite them saying it would be cleaned (waited almost 2 months for them to show up). Mail packages from USPS cannot be delivered and are only available for pickup from a USPS location about 4 miles north of campus - too far to walk and not every resident owns a car.

The perk is you can walk to class or work as a graduate student. Great for those without cars! But I’d you do have a car you still need to buy a UNR parking pass and since the complex is right next to the sports fields every day and night you hear loud sports practices occurring. The large football and baseball games interrupt quiet studying. The walls here are also very thin so be prepared to hear your neighbors.

it is safe for student housing and close to campus.

Very expensive and rent is being increased despite no stipend increase for students

For the most part, Ponderosa Village is a great place for graduate students and faculty to live when attending UNR. The rent is the most affordable I was able to find for a one bedroom apartment, the floor plan has plenty of space, and since it's on campus and you can walk most places, you can save money on gas and car insurance. The downsides include the kitchen is quite small, maintenance may be needed pretty often depending on your luck (I haven't had to call maintenance but my neighbors have several times), and there is a trash problem. The trash problem isn't due to the management mind you, they're trying there best to handle the situation, it just comes down to residents being negligent and leaving their garbage next to the dumpster without putting it inside. Overall, I'm very happy at Ponderosa Village. There are a few things that need improving, namely the trash problem and volume of maintenance requests for some residents, but it's an excellent place for graduate students and faculty.