GREENSBORO, N.C. — Students moving into Greensboro apartment complexes continue to have problems with cleanliness and maintenance as classes begin.
University of North Carolina-Greensboro junior Haley Hall says when she walked into her apartment at The Vic on Saturday, it was 95 degrees inside and she says the whole apartment was a mess.
"Someone had cracked the base of the toilet. Someone had tried to fix it with caulking. Well you can't fix it with caulking because it's water and the water had leaked all over the floor and the only way they tried to fix it was they threw a towel down and left it," said Hall.
Hall said in addition to the toilet, there was trash, the toilet lid was torn off, the stairs were crooked and the locks fell off. She said it was nothing like what she and her roommate saw on a tour.
"The apartments were so nice. Affordable. And that's what really drew us in, was how nice and clean that they all were." said Hall.
Khalid Wangolo is a North Carolina A&T junior who says the conditions were unlivable in his unit at The Vic.
"So we saw the model home, it was really nice, really luxurious but what we moved into, what we're about to move into basically looked like a trap house," said Wangolo.
Hall and Wangolo both ended their leases. Hall moved home with her parents in Durham and now has to take classes online. Wangolo and his suitemates are now living in a hotel, trying to find somewhere to live.
"Very frustrating, very much so, because we're technically homeless," said Wangolo. "We don't have anywhere to stay."
Campus Life & Style, which manages The Vic, said they had a high amount of late move-outs which made it a challenge to turn over units. Move out is typically on July 31st and move-ins are around August 15. They say staffing played a role in the problems.
"There are many details, vendors, and coordination that occurs before move in. This has been a very challenging 'turn season' with vendors having staffing issues," said Jessica Nix, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Leasing for Campus Life & Style. "No matter the reason, if a unit is not up to par, we will work with the resident, our maintenance team, and our turn vendors to address move-in issues."
Nix says they will continue to work with residents to address any issues they may have. She says people do have the option to move out of their apartment.
Students moving into Block 43 in Greensboro also had issues during their move-in on Sunday. NC A&T has a master lease agreement with Block 43 but the complex is managed by Varsity Campus. The company says staffing shortages also led to issues during move-in and with turning over apartments. Now university leaders are calling on the company to take action.
"Get this right or we will seek to do business elsewhere," said Chancellor Harold Martin. "Our students and their families are too important for our university and quite frankly this community deserves better."
WFMY reached back out to Varsity Campus for a comment on the Chancellor's message. The company said they will be releasing a statement on Friday, August 19.