2543 Kendall Rd

This apartment has been a great place to spend the last 4 years. We have a 100-lb. yellow lab and he has tons of space inside the house, and a small backyard that he can run around (with supervision, as it's not 100% fenced in, but I think it wouldn't be hard to fill in the gaps in the fence). We use the extra bedroom as an office/guest room.

The location is fabulous. We live walking distance from Lower Shaker Lake and the Shaker Lakes Nature Center, and a 10-minute walk from Shaker Square where there are cute coffee shops and restaurants, a grocery store, a CVS, and an RTA stop. There is a bike path near our house that takes you almost all the way to the med school. Finally, the 48A bus stops nearby, allowing you to take the bus to Case if you don't want to pay for parking. Lots of med students and residents live nearby, but there are also lots of families and older people in the neighborhood, so you definitely feel like you're outside the med school bubble.

As far as amenities, there is a washer and dryer in the basement just for our use (separate washer and dryer for the upstairs neighbors), which is great. There's a beautiful front porch where you can eat dinner on nice nights in the summer. There is a dishwasher.

Landlords Karin and Michael have been great so far (they recently bought the house from our old landlord). Very responsive. Our only complaint is that it's an older house, so there are a fewer minor things that could be improved upon. For example, some of the paint is chipping in the bathroom, and some of the tiles are cracked in the kitchen. It also has an old clawfoot bathtub where one of the clawfeet has come detached --probably an easy fix. It is also not super well-insulated so some rooms get a little drafty in the winter. It has been worth it for the great location, especially the proximity to campus and nature, and the affordable rent.

Love the Shaker Square area- lots of restaurants, farmers market, yoga studio, walking distance to grocery store. Old house means poor insulation, freezing in the winter, plumbing issues, and ceiling plaster that has started to fall on us. But still very good value as we have a responsive landlord and cheap rent, and lovely neighbors.