Atmark Cambridge

Unfortunately, my experience at Atmark was not one of luxury living and comfort. I will say that we made great friends with some of the neighbors; we were lucky enough to speak with other individuals who experienced disappointment in our living situation (later finding out we had a great deal in common. Woo-​hoo!)
The noise level left much to be desired. Our neighbors next to us used to speak loudly, which reverberated through to our walls where our couch was sitting. (Neighbors should be allowed to speak loudly without completely disrupting others, right?) Upstairs, they were loud, consistently woke us up during the night, and although they were notified of said complaints, nothing changed. It got to a point where they banged around so much that our lights would shake and legitimately flicker. I have iPhone videos of all the noises they made; I’m happy to share them. I get migraines and the noises made continually made me sick. There were many sleepless nights which turned into difficult days at work. (I mean, I’ve lived in Allston with NO noise complaints! C’mon now.)
The prices are outrages for what you ultimately receive. The pool is very small, so if a family of four is swimming, you might as well wait your turn. The game room is pretty cool but we were asked to stop playing at 9:30pm (on a Saturday) because the noises of the balls echoed through the halls. Shouldn’t the room have better construction if it’s going to have noisy games? Also, it is expensive to reserve one of the amenities and they took down the online booking, so hopefully you have time and approx. $ 300 (for the Sky Lounge specifically) if you want to have a gathering. I had one gathering in the game room and people were allowed to come in/​out and actually tried to take champagne/​alcohol that a friend brought for my husband and I.
Really? That’s NOT okay!
As you can tell from the pictures, common areas are not treated respectfully and the construction is of poor quality. It’s cheap; it was clearly a rush job. Pieces of the ceiling would become wet from the overarching pipes and, whilst sopping wet, would fall onto the floor and cars in the parking garage (picture). Super gross.
Windows were often smashed (picture — it stayed this way for 4.5 months of our lease!) and pieces of the building would, literally, be in pieces. Additionally, tenants allowed their pets to poop in the parking garage and did not clean up after them (picture). I’ve stepped in said poop multiple times… supremely frustrating.
The gym was rarely cleaned (picture) and people actually stole weights and other valuable gym materials. I would go to the gym and there were investigations as people were stealing kettlebells and the 15lb free weights. It was annoying as I was trying to work out for my wedding and a personal trainer would come… and suddenly there weren’t adequate weights for our workout. The machines sometimes broke as well, but I’ll assume it was just coincidence (or my bad luck.)
As stated in a previous post, our bathroom tiles were uneven and the toilet made awkward noises when flushed. (We were notified that this was ‘normal’, later to find it was anything but.) We had to replace our fridge, washer/​dryer, and we often did not have heat or A/​C because our system kept blocking up. The list goes on… it would make sense that a brand-​new apartment has flaws, but I’ve never seen a living space that was always so broken-​down.
We were so disappointed because this was going to be our first home together after my husband moved here from Chicago. Needless to say, Boston wasn’t impressing him much with these issues. Thankfully, we have moved to a new apartment that is well-​constructed and provides excellent quality of life.

I understand people have different experiences at this apartment and I wont say that my entire 13 months there was awful. We met a lot of awesome people there between the staff and tenants and had a lot of fun socializing with them and using the amenities. But for me and my wife, the Cons outweighed the few Pros.
Noise: We could hear our neighbors on all sides ESPECIALLY our upstairs neighbors. The banging was so loud that the drywall would crack and our light fixtures would rattle. We complained at least a dozen times and were offered no solution other than «we sent them an email». Late night parties and noise in the courtyard after «quiet time» were not too much of a problem although we found ourselves calling down to the front desk to complain about once or twice a month. (That is if someone was at the desk to answer, half the time nobody was there)
Poor construction in my opinion, no insulation between floors and walls, attributing to the noise problem) Windows that couldn’t close or lock, cabinets that were so far misaligned that they would overlap by an INCH when trying to close. Someone installed these cabinets and said, «Eh… Good enough» Tile in the bathroom was uneven and poorly installed. We ran into someone who we found out worked on the buildings construction and from his own mouth admitted it was rushed and made of cheap materials. We had to replace our fridge after the first week and our washer dryer broke after a couple months. Our HVAC system constantly needed to have water flushed out of the lines, leaving us with no heat or A/​C until maintenance could fix it. Garage door would break weekly. The doors leading from the garage into the apartment would break and sound alarms all the time. The list goes on.
Like I said, we met a LOT of awesome people living there but there were also some not so awesome people. Garbage chute rooms had trash bags and boxes thrown all over the place. They had to hire a night shift garbage man just to deal with this mess! Dog feces in the garage and all over the grounds. Game room and sky lounge left a mess and broken. The nice chocolates and saturday pastries were canceled because too many people were hoarding all the food for themselves. People taking up 2 spots in the garage for no reason. Weights were stolen from the gym. The common area grills were filthy and never cleaned.
And there really wasn’t a lot going on in the area either. Aside from Alewife being «walking» distance there’s nothing there that warrants such a stupid amount of rent. If you do have a car and need to depart Atmark anytime during rushour (s) it will take you 30+ minutes to get from the garage to route 2. Its a mile away… I live in Burlington now and can drive to Alewife in the amount of time it takes to walk from Atmark. But if you like Trader Joes and Whole Foods being across the street I guess its worth it?
I really was excited to move in to the Atmark. It did not take long to disappoint me, though. On top of all that having to write a $ 3000 check every month for our 800 sqft 1 bedroom and parking. It was painful.

I have lived at Atmark since September 2014.
Pros: comfortable apartments; clean, well-​kept communal space; friendly staff; amenities; low utility costs; pet friendly; close to grocery, drugstore; restaurants; bus stop. Very close to Fresh Pond Park.
Cons: expensive (but where in Cambridge isn’t); limited parking (but where in Boston isn’t); unfair Unilocal reviews by other tenants or even non residents who have a bone to pick with Cambridge zoning but have no useful comments on the apartments themselves.
This area was recently mainly light industry and storage. In the past few years it has become more residential with other apartments, condos, and consumer stores being built. Atmark is part of this trend.
Within walking distance are Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods, a drugstore, several restaurants, a bank, a health clinic and more. Alewife T stop is about a 15-​min walk away. There is a shuttle bus to and from the T stop.
Building amenities include a pool (not for swimming laps), a very clean and modern gym, a concierge, and game room.
Repairs and maintenance can be scheduled online and are performed very quickly. Winter of 2014 – 2015 was record-​settingly terrible in Boston, but Atmark kept sidewalks and driveways remarkably clear of snow.
My average cost of utilities for a studio: water+sewage+gas (heat)+electricity (A/​C, stove) = $ 130 per month.
The apartments are QUIETER than any of the other 5 apartments I have lived in in New England.

I have had only good experiences with other tenants. Most of my experience with management has been very good; they did make a few billing mistakes but corrected these without fuss. Pool area is good for relaxing, cooling off, or sunbathing. It is not big enough for exercise. Pets are allowed, meaning there is occasional barking. Some pet owners do not always clean up after their dogs.
Note to other reviewers: children play in the pool. Splashing is possible. There are other sunbathing spaces in the courtyards if you prefer an even quieter area.
Note to other reviewers: I don’t know the financial details of the other tenants. I don’t know how you could, either. I am offended that there are comments blaming «section 8ers» for all sorts of problems. How would you even know? My experience has been with residents young and old; with and without children, and from different countries. I have not had conflict with any of my neighbors.

Been living there about two months now, and I absolutely love it so far. I was worried due to some bad reviews written here, but I haven’t seen any of these in real life. I can’t hear a peep from any of my neighbors, so the insulation seems pretty darn good to me. And everyone I’ve met has been absolutely wonderful, including the «Section-​8» folk people keeping rambling on about here. Come on, do you realize how you sound? This place is great, don’t listen to the haters.

After switching to new management, I have decided to take away one of the stars it as given. When first moving into this apartment, we were given a lot of perks (which makes up for its high rent in a not so great area). We had Iggy’s Brunch every Saturday, Lindt Chocolate Bar, Apples/​Oranges/​Banana Bar, and Granola Bars for your taking.
However, you can read a lot of comments about «Section 8ers,» and to be honest, most of them are great, there were a couple bad apples. Some of them showed up to Iggy’s Brunch with a plastic bag, dumping everything they could grab into a bag. Some would take a plastic bag to the Lindt Chocolates and dump it all in. A certain problem lady even had the nerve to berate another girl for taking an extra bagel for her husband while the lady herself was holding a ziplock bag full of pastries. If you’re a resident at Atmark, I can guarantee you, you know who I’m talking about.
Apparently the staff could not handle these people, and instead of trying to figure out a solution, they decided to take it ALL away. And when I say ALL away, I mean, EVERYTHING is gone. Are you even allowed to do that? Attract residents to live here with these perks, and then take it away? If you couldn’t handle these people taking load of pastries, then regulate it. Taking things away is the lazy solution. 100% of the residents I speak to (the PTs, the Doctors, the Teachers), are unhappy with how management has handled this situation — yet rent is the same, mind you.
They say they’re going to adjust taking these things away with bigger and grander events, and I wanted to give them a chance. However, they have failed at all the events so far. Instead of weekly brunches, we were given one Breakfast bar last week that was basically dried out old bagels from Starbucks (packaged May 12^th for an event that was on May 29^th). They were so bad, not even the moochers took advantage of it. That was my last event, and I am happy to have moved out.
I was sad to move and leave friends, but as I sat there on May 30^th, I was reminded that the walls were still thin, I could still hear my neighbors talking, and the neighbor upstairs walked so loudly the ceilings vibrated. I don’t blame either side though, because the place is so poorly built. I’ve seen the people in the apartment above me, and they’re not fat, so I can’t stop them from living and walking around their own space. They don’t mean it. I have had solutions of taking a broom and hitting the ceiling though, to remind them that there is someone under them, and stomping around at 2am and waking me up is not appropriate, and please tread lightly (broom was only a solution after complaining about 5 times to management already). So whoever moved into my place, I hope you are reading this. Management reminders won’t help. But a broom will. Hope you are a deep sleeper.
Either way, if you’re looking into Atmark, I’d live somewhere else. I definitely am happy I moved out. Found a place down the street with great ceiling insulation and great wall to wall insulation. Same price, larger amount of space, and management that knows how to handle section 8ers without punishing the rest of us.
Every new apartment complex will boast the same amenities, so don’t go for just that. Take in consideration living conditions, management, and the community. Atmark fails at 2 of those.
PS: To the reviewer under me — «Chelsey» — who gave Atmark 5 stars. That’s either staff, or someone employed at Atmark — as they have just 2 reviews, Atmark, and the Eliot’s Dog house, which comes to Atmark once a month for events. And if you are from Eliot’s Dog House, please don’t review. You don’t live there so don’t trick others into living somewhere, Unilocal is for reviewers to give honest opinions from real life experiences.

The Atmark is a wonderful building with extraordinary staff. The amenities are gorgeous and never over-​crowded. The management team is extremely receptive to all resident concerns and suggestions and the maintenance team is top of the line!

Atmark is a self-​described «luxury apartment» complex with an outdoor swimming pool and wine bar that is currently accepting public housing assistance recipients who live there practically for free, courtesy of the taxpayers — at least until they become gainfully employed and their incomes rise. That’s when the pool parties and wine tastings will end and they’ll have to downgrade to a more middle-​class abode.
At Atmark, holders of the federal vouchers (formerly known as Section 8) can live, taking advantage of the building’s upscale indoor sky lounge with two-​way fireplace and regulation-​size bocce court. Also included, are a first-​class 24-​hour private yoga studio and fitness center, outdoor lounge with fire pit, and cinema-​style HD theater with stadium seating.
I’m bringing this information to your attention because it appears as though every time someone else has tried to do so in prior reviews, they have just been ‘flagged’ by management and categorized in the «not recommended reviews» section of the Unilocal page so potential tenants can’t see it.
However, unlike the other writers, I didn’t create a fake account nor use a fake name before posting, so it is much more difficult for management to flag this post.
Be sure to upvote this review as useful so others can be warned.

I’ve been living at Atmark for about 13 months now. I debated on whether or not I wanted to stay. Like many places, this place has it’s pros and cons.
Pros:
1. Nice gym, amenities are nice, and you can reserve them. (During your tour they will say that it will cost $ to reserve it, but heads up, they forget to mention that it’s per hour).
2. Great community. There are some weirdos, but in general, the community here is great. A lot of working professionals who like winding down with a little wine.
3. Short walk to Trader Joes and Fresh Pond. Great place to jog around.
Cons:
1. There is no padding between the ceilings, so you will get bothered by footsteps above if you don’t live on the 5^th floor (so try to live on top!)
2. There is no insulation between walls, so you can hear your neighbors all the time. We’ve put away our speakers, and never watch TV, so I think we’re good neighbors. However, when napping on the couch, you can get woken up by your neighbors chatting. I’ve never lived in place that was this poorly insulated. (I have heard if you have a dog it’s even worse, as one barks, the other will bark as well). We have also been scolded for laughing too loudly when we had friends over. So beware when you have guests over.
3. Pricey (if it was better insulated then it might be worth it).
4. Traffic during rush hour is crazy
Sadly the Pros were not enough for us to overlook the Cons (though community ALMOST kept us there!), so we are not staying at the apartment. If you have earplugs and noisy walls/​ceilings don’t bother you, then you’ll be fine!
I’ve also noticed that all the «1 starred» reviews got flagged, but I think it’s because people made fake accounts. Makes sense, as your review will be seen by the front desk, and it will be awkward to write a bad review, but still be stuck in your lease and have to see them everyday. But this is my honest assessment. It’s not a bad place, but for $ 2500-​$ 3000, you better do your research and weigh the pros and cons well.

I feel like there needs to be some sort of public service announcement, as I know many many residents are unhappy here, but you don’t really find out why until you move in. We have heard that the developers have skimped on a lot of the «luxury» requirements to make it worth the rent here. Very little insulation between apartments (so don’t bother hosting friends late at night in your own home). Also, there is absolutely no padding between the ceilings. I have also heard it is because they did not do what most apartments do (which is pad the floor between ceiling and floor), because they were skimping. It’s really quite unpleasant.
There are ups and downs, the gym is nice, and it’s nice that it’s next to the pond. However, it is hard to live in the apartments. There are better apartments around, and really, there are very little to no people renewing their leases.

I’ve been living at Atmark for a few months now. A bit on the pricier side, but overall a wonderful place to live for the following reasons:
1. Beautiful building. Clean and brand new, tastefully and simplistically designed and decorated.
2. Access to the red line. Commute to the Alewife station is terribly easy, whether walking or taking the shuttle, which has a lovely person as driver and is totally frequent/​fast enough.
3. Amenities. gym, pool, courtyards, barbecue, movie theater, sky lounge, you name it.
4. Fresh pond. You can take a 10 min stroll and feel like you’re in the outdoors in the middle of Cambridge, amazing.
5. Shopping. 10 min walk to both Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods (as well as liquor stores). There’s even a PetSmart!
6. People. Wonderfully helpful and friendly staff and their organized community events such as wine nights, sports gatherings, weekend parties. Quiet and respectful neighbors of an interestingly varied demographic.
I have decided that I don’t need all the room in the large 1-​bedroom that I originally rented and the staff has been really nice & helpful in helping me switch to a smaller 1-​bedroom on the same floor (easy move) which also happens to be more affordable.

I’ve really enjoyed living at Atmark thus far. I find the location terrific (I was looking for an urban locale), including convenient shopping for 90% of the things I ever need, plus quick access to Fresh Pond, Red Line and convenient bus access, and fairly convenient road access to just about anywhere in the greater Boston area.
The amenities are also a big highlight for me — in particular I love the courtyard grills/​eating areas, as well as the sky lounge. At times I wish there were a few more grills to go around, but it generally hasn’t been a problem.
A couple small things that have been less than ideal: first, some elements of the building construction have come off as less than luxury quality (occasional odd light fixture behavior, cheap/​hard to use window locks/​shade hardware, things like that); and second, the sense of community among residents isn’t strong (at least so far, but who knows, maybe that’s me!). In the grand scheme of things, these are minor, and the Atmark maintenance staff have been quick to tend to things we’ve reported for repair.
While there’s a bit of room for improvement, all-​in-​all i’d recommend Atmark in a heartbeat. The staff really help seal that deal; they’ve been nothing but wonderful since moving in!

I toured this property yesterday and decided to move in. Yes, it’s in an industrial area but the location is still prime. The property itself is top notch and the staff seemed very pleasant and not «salesy» or pushy. The gym is awesome and faces the main pool/​courtyard area. The movie theater and game area very classy. The units are really nice and most of them have balconies. One my favorite areas of the property is the Sky Bar. A 1 bedroom is $ 2400 per month. Everything is included for the price including amenities and a pet. Parking is additional. I am looking forward to calling this place home, especially after a hard days work. Definite worth getting a tour.

We are moving into the Atmark very soon and couldn’t be more excited. We know the manager from living at another Bozzuto property and she is incredibly professional and competent. This is a beautiful well-​built property and it is a wonderful addition to Cambridge. It is a very walkable area and close to all forms of transportation. The Atmark staff have been just great as they strive to make our new home comfortable and inviting.

$ 2,100 600ft studios in a fairly boring/​dumpy office park area that, let’s face it, is an area that is designed for cars and not pedestrians. And on top of that, Fresh Pond is already choked with cars at all times of the day. Sounds like a great deal. Thanks for further helping to ruin this city. I’ll see myself out, obviously this area has no place like people for me anymore. I can’t imagine having that much money and wanting to live in a place like this.