r/tuscaloosa • u/Remote-Palpitation98 • 3d ago
Apartments
Hello,
Moving to Tuscaloosa for a job with UA, and will be there for the next 3-4 years. During my search I have come across a lot of apartments, the most common of which have been Rivermont, Northbrook, High River, The Reserve, and Beacon Place. I am leaning towards Northbrook due to the fact I can get a 2 bedroom for a reasonable price with mostly noncarpeted flooring, but I wanted to hear if anyone had any other places to recommend or opinions to give on these complexes. I prioritize having at least a moderate amount of vinyl/hardwood due to my cat as well as a reasonable cost, and to preferably be in Northport or any other safe parts of town. Would love to hear about y'alls experiences!
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u/Adri_Wan_Kenobi 3d ago
I've got a 2-bed at Rivermont (managed by Sealy who also manage Northbrook) and I think it's great. I've never had a problem with management. They're really responsive and generally run things well, although sometimes it helps to send a request for little things like clearing gutters or a/c maintenance.
A lot of UA grad students and employees live there, both faculty and staff. It's close to downtown and campus while being north of the river, which a lot of people see as a plus. My place has hardwood floors throughout and is around the same price as the 2-bed at Northbrook. Not all the apartments have hardwood, but I get the impression that management is updating apartments when unrenewed leases are up.
It's also worth mentioning thayltI've got a buddy who lives at High River and isn't pleased with it.
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u/Remote-Palpitation98 2d ago edited 2d ago
Yeah they were my first choice but it seems like they don’t have any openings until August, which would be pretty late for me. I also was under the impression that it was mostly carpeted units from the management team so that’s good to know!
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u/Adri_Wan_Kenobi 2d ago
If you decide to go with them, just check on the carpet situation. I was under the same impression that they were mostly carpeted, and was pleasantly surprised when I moved in. Thr location is so good, and as mentioned above the river walk is great, especially if you carry on through the suburb just east.
I'll also recommend Hillside Commons, where I stayed for my first 3 years at UA. It's mostly undergrads living there, but it didn't feel like it. It's furnished, management was great, upkeep and maintenance were better than Rivermont imo, and it's in a quiet part of east Tuscaloosa, and really close to campus. It was also reasonably priced and everything but the bedrooms were uncarpeted. Had an upstairs apartment with the balcony facing east and it was awesome.
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u/idratherbeinalaska 2d ago
I lived at Rivermont for 5 yrs through covid. It’s a great place with good management. Reasonably priced and I loved the walking trail by the river.
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u/bluubrrry 2d ago
Also moved to Tuscaloosa to work at UA (last summer) and came to Reddit to research apartment recs. Would caution against Northbrook. I saw a lot of positives on Reddit, but 10 months in and I’ve already moved. Maintenance can be slow to respond, but what’s worse is that the buildings are older and unpredictable. My AC unit has had two clogs in the line (after the first clog, maintenance said that this happens all the time because Northbrook will run AC units as long as they can without replacing them) and one of these resulted in near-flooding, soaked-through carpet throughout my guest room, mold, and a ruined record collection. There’s also an ant problem if you live on the first floor—and they bite! Never saw ants in my kitchen, where you might at least expect them, but coming in through the window in the main bedroom. Sadly, I don’t have any alternative recs, but knew you’d be seeing a lot of Northbrook recs here.
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u/Electrical_Panda9132 2d ago
I liked living at Northbrook!
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u/Remote-Palpitation98 2d ago
Great to hear! I just saw a few not so stellar reviews about maintenance, pest control, and things like that so I wanted to see if those were really problems
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u/Electrical_Panda9132 2d ago
Maintenance always responded quickly for me. I will say that I saw a couple of roaches in my time there
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u/soupysoupsoups 2d ago
Try capstone quarter condominiums. most of the units are private landlords and it is right next to campus with a mostly older, grad student or non student population. we had a great experience living there. it is safe, quiet, and is off of helen keller, but doesn’t feel as chaotic as most close to campus complexes. we paid 1400 for a two bedroom and water/sewer/trash was included.
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u/TTownClutch 7h ago
I’ve done work at all of the complexes listed and many deliveries. Based on your job with ua many professionals stay at high river and the reserve for the quieter environment. One quick logistics heads-up for when you finalize your pick: a few of those complexes have narrow, tight stairwell clearances and multi-level buildings.
If you're renting a large moving truck or bringing heavy, solid furniture, maneuvering those staircases solo can be a nightmare depending on which floor your unit is on.
I run Clutch Deliveries here in town—we handle premium, same-day move in help labor-only unloads and appliance extractions with a high-roof Sprinter van setup.
If you want to check out my independent services and what local clients say about working with us, you can view our website and customer reviews right here: clutchdeliveries.com
I also put together a short introduction video on our site
https://clutchdeliveries.com/blogs/news/moving-labor-help-tuscaloosa-northport
where I break down exactly how we handle smaller, high-friction moves—like muscling a heavy two-piece sofa up a steep incline from a rental truck safely.
Welcome to town! If you end up needing an extra set of professional hands or specialized gear to get your heavy items up the stairs safely on move-in day, just shoot me a text with photos of your loaded truck at (205) 561-9290 and I'll give you a flat project rate. If not, hope the move goes smoothly!
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u/Lolgabs 3d ago
So it's none of the things you asked for other than reasonable priced, but Yorktown Commons is genuinely fantastic. The property manager is anal about keeping everything perfect and they have the opposite problem of basically every other apartment I've ever been in. Genuinely one of the best living experiences I've ever had in Tuscaloosa and they all but evicted me asking me to leave because I was so obnoxious. I have zero hard feelings towards them and they are great. I lived there from 2014 to 2019 and my rent for a 3 bed 2 bath was only 1065/month. Looks like they've gone up a bit. I wouldn't consider them luxury despite what the website here says, but they are genuinely the best managed property I've ever lived at in 16 years of renting.
https://www.apartments.com/yorktown-commons-luxury-apartments-tuscaloosa-al/fxcny7v/