Residents of University Park apartments near the BYU campus were surprised to see a new addition to the sign sitting in front of the property, which noted the complex is no longer contracted by BYU housing.
However, they don’t need to worry about finding a new place to live yet. According to BYU spokesperson Todd Hollingshead, the change in contract with BYU housing is due to a change in University Park’s ownership.
“New owners have 30 days to reapply for BYU approval, and we just haven’t heard back from the new owner yet,” Hollingshead said. “We’ve reached out, but they haven’t gotten back to us yet.”
Hollingshead said current residents are welcome to stay at University Park for the time being, since they signed their leases while the complex was contracted by BYU housing. According to the university’s off-campus housing policy, residents will need to submit a waiver online letting the housing office know about the situation.
Hollingshead also said residents are free to move elsewhere after delivering a five days’ notice to the property owner.
University Park residents Jared Bledsoe and Jacob Burgoyne both noted communication issues seem to be commonplace with University Park’s new owner, Mike Wade. The Daily Universe is waiting for a response from the new owner. KUTV contacted one of the owners, who said he plans to resolve the issue with BYU.
Burgoyne, a public health student at BYU, said he has enjoyed the overall experience at University Park, but said Wade failed to respond to tenants’ requests regarding maintenance issues.
“The very first day (the apartment complex) changed hands, we lost power for an entire day,” he said. “We had a contact number and email for Mr. Wade, but he never answered.”
Burgoyne said the issues were eventually resolved, but tenants were never informed whether or not maintenance concerns would be addressed. BYU’s off-campus housing handbook says specified critical repairs like a lack of heating between Sept. 15 and May 15 or a loss of power must be addressed within 12 hours. Otherwise, owners could face a withdrawal of university contract.
In the event that property management or owners fail to respond to critical repair requests, tenants should reach out to BYU’s off-campus housing office, according to the handbook.
Bledsoe said Wade did respond quickly to questions about rent, however. “I sent him an email asking where to address my rent checks, and he responded within a few hours,” he said.
Bledsoe also said while he isn’t concerned with his housing arrangement, losing the contract from BYU housing could cause issues for prospective tenants.
“I’m definitely going to want to stay because it’s affordable and close to campus, but (it) makes it more difficult for people who are trying to buy into a contract,” he said.
