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Natalie D

1 reviews | Active since Mar 2018

16 Jan 2024, 13:55

Beautiful Estate in the most amazing Winelands region

It really saddened me when a friend saw this post about Aan de Wijnlanden Estate and asked me what's going on. and why the person posted such an extremely bad review. So I thought it fitting to share my experience here...

We've been here for just over a year. And we truly love it. AdW is a beautiful estate, with a sizeable clubhouse, a gym, a kids daycare, parks & trails everywhere - and the most breathtaking views. To top that off, we have kind, supportive, caring and friendly residents. Sure, there are a handful of naysayers with very negative attitudes towards the Estate, who blame the estate and management for everything that goes wrong, whether it's beyond their control or not (like Eskom or building contractor issues, etc.). You know, those ones who will complain about every little thing, just to prove a point, whether they have all the facts or not... Of course we have teething issues at our estate, we're a developing estate, things are going to happen as we grow and settle. We all knew this when we bought at AdW. Construction will likely be ongoing for the next 3 to 5 years. But that is also why we benefit from the good property prices. Also, our low levies and rates & taxes makes it one of the more affordable places to live in this area. There some (that handful) of toxic residents, who unfortunately seem to find fault with almost everything in life. My heart goes out to them and I pray they find inner peace and learn to be happy. But hey - there's the rest of us, several hundreds, who love it here and generally try to see all things good. We have socials, we visit each other, we participate in community events, and we enjoy life. We even have residents who make things, who cook and who bake for other residents, we sell and swop things on our WhatsApp groups, and we help when it's needed. What more could one want from community living?

It sounds like that negative poster is still living in the estate, so I have to ask myself, why? Why are they still here? They have freedom of choice - so if it is THAT bad, perhaps they should find another place that will make them happy. Or maybe they could just try to be civil about things and make effort to start getting along with others, while trying to also see the good that life has to offer...

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Natalie D's update16 Jan 2024, 14:21
Reviewer Update
PS. We have a quad bike at the estate for security to do their rounds. Some residents complained that it was too noisy, so they got a bicycle. Then others complained that a cycle is not fast or effective enough, so back to the quad bike... Makes me think of that old saying "damned if you do, damned if you don't." As for 'transparency'- every AdW owner is invited to the annual AGM. At the last one, past challenges were addressed, and future plans were highlighted. And yet, not a single person stood up and raised any concerns at this AGM. We have an online portal to log queries and complaints - and mine has been answered, albeit sometimes a bit later than expected. I've asked the previous estate manager for a meeting and got it. As for the Trustees - and this person expecting them to be available after hours because it suits them... I wonder if they expect the same unreasonable requests from their bank or their Doctor? They should take time off work to deal with such personal matters, like most other people do.