The Retreat is overall poorly run and not well kept. The management has changed several times since I moved in and it is difficult to get someone to return a phone call or handle a maintenance request. The buildings themselves are not well kept and the gates are usually broken and left open, so we had several break ins.

You can find a cheaper place, the area is terrible, the “gates” are almost never actually closed, there has been six trafficking, shootings, and break ins, my roommate had chairs stolen off the porch. And the worst of all is the management, they barely respond to you, steal your money and then try to get you back next year. Parents, who find your kids a safer place to live.

In the first 10 days. 20 cars have been broken into. The security gates are never closed, and a house was broken into last night. They kicked down the doors while the people were at home. Roaches everywhere. Would not recommend this place. Not sure how it gets a 5 star rating would give it a negative if I could.

Save your time and pick literally any other place to live while you are at USC. They advertise a gated community but the gates have not worked in 2 years. None of the gym equipment works and the pools are constantly green and full of beer.

Upon move in, the students were expected to reside in a cottage infested with roaches and containing roach bait in dresser drawers and on walls. No alternate housing was provided as this unit was inhabitable at time of move in. After many calls to property, finally was able to speak with manager, who informed me that the pest control was being taken over by her fiance's company. Asked for a schedule of pest control visits as well as tentative move in date. Neither were given. After 3 weeks,... unit is still not able to be lived in, forcing some students to seek housing elsewhere.
The management team and CEO at corporate office are just as unprofessional. Refusing to take calls and ignoring the severity of the issue. There are other cleaner and more professionally managed properties in Columbia for student housing: don't make the mistake of choosing this one. Read More