Housing HELP!!

[PrincessJen8]

So, I'm doing some research and trying to decide where I might want to live when I get to WDW but I am having a hard time finding much information at all. I am 21 but I want to live in wellness housing so I don't have to deal with any parties but besides that I'm at a total loss. I know the basics (ei Vista Way is the oldest, Patterson is most expensive) but I want to know.

What are you insights? What are the facts about each complex that maybe Disney doesn't post on their websites. I just want to know what I'm getting myself into and make the right choice.

 

[dairylives]

I'm not a huge partier and i lived in Vista. I know it gets a bad rap, but there was some really nice plusses about living there.

1. dedicated bus stop (Patterson and Chatham share a bus stop, and the walk is a bit longer for a lot of the apartment structures)

2. Location. Vista is located right off the main road. I lived in the far back and it only took 2 minutes to walk to Walgreens, Applebees,Wendy's, Chik Fil A, and the Gas Station. A lot of my other CP friends from the other complexes often complained about the several blocks needed to walk to any sort of restaurant or store.

3. compact layout/design. A lot of people will tell you this, but Vista's layout is very condusive to foot traffic, and its very easy to get from place to place. The number one complaint from CPs in other complexes is that there is never anyone hanging around or walking around ("it feels dead around Patterson"). Vista is set up with a lot of common areas in strategic places, making it pretty common to see people hanging out and walking around outside, even if it's walking from place to place. In the end i heard a lot of people saying Vista has "personality" and Patterson (moreso than Chatham) has a "sterile" or "empty" feel to it.

Granted, I have only lived in Vista, but i appreciated the extra couple bucks i was saving on housing, and really enjoyed the complex in general. Hope that helps!

 

[Hollsey]

I'm not a huge partier and i lived in Vista. I know it gets a bad rap, but there was some really nice plusses about living there.

1. dedicated bus stop (Patterson and Chatham share a bus stop, and the walk is a bit longer for a lot of the apartment structures)

2. Location. Vista is located right off the main road. I lived in the far back and it only took 2 minutes to walk to Walgreens, Applebees,Wendy's, Chik Fil A, and the Gas Station. A lot of my other CP friends from the other complexes often complained about the several blocks needed to walk to any sort of restaurant or store.

3. compact layout/design. A lot of people will tell you this, but Vista's layout is very condusive to foot traffic, and its very easy to get from place to place. The number one complaint from CPs in other complexes is that there is never anyone hanging around or walking around ("it feels dead around Patterson"). Vista is set up with a lot of common areas in strategic places, making it pretty common to see people hanging out and walking around outside, even if it's walking from place to place. In the end i heard a lot of people saying Vista has "personality" and Patterson (moreso than Chatham) has a "sterile" or "empty" feel to it.

Granted, I have only lived in Vista, but i appreciated the extra couple bucks i was saving on housing, and really enjoyed the complex in general. Hope that helps!

I definitely agree with every single thing you said! I too wasn't a partier and lived at Vista (and in the back, too! Building 24!). I actually really liked it and would be happy to live there again.

Patterson, when I visited, was really spread out and super quiet. My friends that lived there loved how quiet it was, and you could definitely tell it was newer! But the walk to the bus stop can take a while, so that's something to consider.

Chatham is really nice with the layout. I only visited two apartments there (a one bedroom and a two bedroom) but I really, really liked it! It was a good combination of Patterson and Vista. I can't speak about the noise level because I was only there during the day. The bus stop is directly outside the complex.

But what Chatham and Patterson also have over Vista is their proximity to Publix, The Commons, and the outlets. All are within walking distance (Publix is a bit further, but I did it twice and know someone with a car who did it frequently, and it's really not that bad) and that can be a bonus. Next to Publix is a Walgreens, and one of my friends went to that one instead of the one by Vista.

Hopefully that helps some! But someone who lived at Chatham or Patterson will probably be more help

 

[Berlioz70]

I am 21 but I want to live in wellness housing so I don't have to deal with any parties but besides that I'm at a total loss.

I would advise against a wellness - you are essentially going to end up with roommates who are younger than you and are often on their own for the first time. During my program it was the non-wellness apartments that tended to throw more parties, because once your 21 drinking loses it's "cool" factor. If you end up with an underage roommate that brings alcohol into your apartment, you become liable for it by association.

If you don't have a car - I recommend Vista. Soley based on location, location location. You're within walking distance of wallgreens, wendy's, chik-fil-a, and applebees.

If you have a car - I recommend Chatham. It's a good middle ground between all of the apartments.

I lived in Patterson, it was fine, but if I did the program again Chatham would be my first choice.

 

[Wishes Count]

First. Are you sure you want to live in wellness if you are over 21? You could be placed with people who are only 18 and freshmen in college. Believe it or not those 2-3 years really make a difference maturity wise. I was 20 and had a hard time because my 18 year old roommates were so immature and had never lived away from home before let alone know how to act like an adult and deal with roommates. I would try to find roommates ahead of time that are your age on facebook who aren't really into the whole party scene and go that route instead.


Second I lived at Chatham on my first program and Vista on my Second. I didn't really see any difference, I didn't find Vista to be more run down or too loud. It really depends on the people who are around you though. I liked Chatham because we had a linen closet in our bedroom, and a pantry in the kitchen. (we had neither at Vista). But I liked Vista because there were laundry facilities on the first floor of each building, while at Chatham you had to walk to one of the laundry rooms.

If you have a car, the traffic outside of Chatham and Patterson is terrible because of the outlet mall and a huge church that lets out at certain times of day. There is a back exit but its not that convenient depending on where you are trying to go.

Vista has a sort of "library" were you can check out books and DVDs, anyone in the CP can check out items, but I never made the trek over there when I lived at Chatham.

Vista has two pools and a hot tub. I don't think the other complexes have this. There are usually a fair amount of people at the pools at either complex. All complexes have a small gym, with a few cardio machines and free weights, I've heard Patterson is the nicest gym.

 

[PrincessJen8]

I would advise against a wellness - you are essentially going to end up with roommates who are younger than you and are often on their own for the first time. During my program it was the non-wellness apartments that tended to throw more parties, because once your 21 drinking loses it's "cool" factor. If you end up with an underage roommate that brings alcohol into your apartment, you become liable for it by association.

I didn't think about that! Thank you so much for mentioning it. I definitely don't want to get in trouble over something stupid like that. That totally makes me rethink that idea. I just really don't want to be around parties. I deal with that enough at college, and I don't want to deal with it when I want to catch up on sleep so I can work or go to the parks!

 

[Wishes Count]

I didn't think about that! Thank you so much for mentioning it. I definitely don't want to get in trouble over something stupid like that. That totally makes me rethink that idea. I just really don't want to be around parties. I deal with that enough at college, and I don't want to deal with it when I want to catch up on sleep so I can work or go to the parks!

To be honest, a lot of the partying goes on outside the complex at bars or nightclubs. There are companies who run charter buses to different clubs everynight. At most you would need to deal with roommates who went out and came back drunk. There aren't a lot of people that throw parties where there are more than 10 people. Like I said before, try to find people who have similar party habits as you. Whether that be never or once a week or only once in a while. Most CPs will work until very late at night, thus eliminating partying/going out to only on days off.

 

[Velvetring]

During both of my stays I ended up visiting several locations, and deciding on Chatham and Patterson the next time - the parking was complicated at times, but not horrible. There are some loud nights of course, but nothing out of the ordinary I'd say, so these remain my two top recommendations.

 

[lilmissdisney216]

I stayed at both Chatham and Patterson during my CP (I moved midway through). My apartment in Chatham I was in a non wellness apartment as I was 22 at the time of my program. When I moved to Patterson, I was in a wellness apartment.

Chatham I liked because there was a bus stop right outside my complex so if I decided I didn't want to drive [I brought my own car] then I could always hop on the bus to a park or to work. I liked that the Publix wasn't far from my complex and I preferred shopping here over the WalMart (was less conjested). I liked the large apartments too and how much newer and nicer they were. Plus, the pools were amazing too!

At Patterson, I was at the back of the complex so I had to walk to the front of the complex and to the bus stop to get to work so I would have to get up a little earlier and walk a little farther in the mornings but it honestly wasn't that bad. For driving purposes, I liked that I was closer to the back roads for getting to work when the main roads were far too conjested. That was a big deal breaker for me when choosing complexes is I couldn't stand how conjested the roads were on the main ways. Plus, I had the outlet mall right there! Patterson apartments were so nice! I loved them! Plus, they were pretty quiet too.

When you enter into a wellness apartment, you sign a paper basically saying that you understand that you are the age of 21 but because you are in a wellness apartment with those who are not of the same age as yourself, you cannot consume or bring in any sort of alcoholic beverages. With that being said, be very careful and really think about that before you make a final decision. I've known a few co workers on my CP that were in wellness housing and their roommates bought alcohol and stored it in the apartment and as a result got caught during inspection or because of a noise violation and they were guilty by association. Unfortunately they were terminated from the program :-(

Not to scare ya, just letting you know what all goes into being in a wellness apartment. I didn't have a problem when I was at Patterson.

 

[jordanri]

if you are over 21 i recommend you DO NOT opt for wellness. you can end up with 18 year olds who have no choice, decide to drink and it falls back on you legally because you're 21. if you don't party just ask your roommates to respect that and try to keep it to a minimum.

patterson, in my opinion, is the best. i liked chatham but i also go to bed early as i oftened had 8am shifts and people would rage until 1am. in patterson, i never had that problem

 

[Musings]

if you are over 21 i recommend you DO NOT opt for wellness. you can end up with 18 year olds who have no choice, decide to drink and it falls back on you legally because you're 21. if you don't party just ask your roommates to respect that and try to keep it to a minimum.

patterson, in my opinion, is the best. i liked chatham but i also go to bed early as i oftened had 8am shifts and people would rage until 1am. in patterson, i never had that problem

People say this but be careful. I've heard of people who wanted Patterson badly but then didn't like walking to Chatham all the time. Be aware if you choose to stay at Patterson you are making the choice to walk to the Chatham bus stop if you rely on the busses. While it isn't too bad of a walk, it is adding 5 minutes to commute time.

If you are more of a social person, Patterson can be quiet, too quiet for some people. Chatham is fairly quiet too and tends to host most of the social events. You never see anyone usually in Chatham because of how the design is built. Some people love Vista because it is well conducive to foot traffic. Just be aware of what you want. Different complexes are better for different personalities.

 

[dairylives]

People say this but be careful. I've heard of people who wanted Patterson badly but then didn't like walking to Chatham all the time. Be aware if you choose to stay at Patterson you are making the choice to walk to the Chatham bus stop if you rely on the busses. While it isn't too bad of a walk, it is adding 5 minutes to commute time.

If you are more of a social person, Patterson can be quiet, too quiet for some people. Chatham is fairly quiet too and tends to host most of the social events. You never see anyone usually in Chatham because of how the design is built. Some people love Vista because it is well conducive to foot traffic. Just be aware of what you want. Different complexes are better for different personalities.

Well said. I can't imagine how different my CP would have been if i didn't have the community feel of Vista and instead chose one of the other "empty" locations.

 

[dairylives]

People say this but be careful. I've heard of people who wanted Patterson badly but then didn't like walking to Chatham all the time. Be aware if you choose to stay at Patterson you are making the choice to walk to the Chatham bus stop if you rely on the busses. While it isn't too bad of a walk, it is adding 5 minutes to commute time.

If you are more of a social person, Patterson can be quiet, too quiet for some people. Chatham is fairly quiet too and tends to host most of the social events. You never see anyone usually in Chatham because of how the design is built. Some people love Vista because it is well conducive to foot traffic. Just be aware of what you want. Different complexes are better for different personalities.

edIt: double post

 

[BadDad]

I have to second all the comments on nonwellness being a better choice over wellness. Auto-termination of all residents due to alcohol possession in a public area being #1. Plus 18 year olds expect mama to clean-up. (he turned 21 two months into the program) his wellness apt had bug issues due to the uncleaniness. he plans to return next spring (along with his baby sister - now a college freshman)

My S was in VW and Chatham, like Chatham better. Vista Way is older and more rundown in his opinion. He said Patterson is too far away especially if you forget something.