Blog Posts

Evaluating Reviews

Welcome back to the StoneGate Apartment Homes Blog! Reviews have become a part of our life, and when you are in the market for a new product, a new venue here in Williamsville, or a new service, chances are you take a look at the online reviews before you commit to a financial outlay. But reviews can be a confusing landscape, which is why we are following up our post about writing effective reviews with this post about how to evaluate reviews. Evaluating Reviews If you’ve ever taken time to read through a multitude of reviews, you know they can range from being helpful to being laughable, so here are some tips on how to evaluate reviews. Take the extreme reviews (both good and bad) with a grain of salt. In fact, consider tossing them out of the equation completely. Look for common themes among multiple reviews. If several people are saying the same thing, it’s more likely to be legitimate. Read the overall tone of the reviews — are they mostly positive or negative. Keep in mind that reviews only cover one person’s experience, and yours may be vastly different. Focus on the reviews that are most relevant for your concerns. For example, if the reviews are about amenities for pets in an apartment community, and you don’t have pets, you can disregard that review. Be aware that there may be fake reviews among the legitimate ones. Take some time to learn about the red flags indicating a false review as presented by Reader’s Digest. We hope these tips for evaluating reviews are helpful the next time you are looking at something new. We hope everyone in our apartment community is enjoying our New York summer! What do you have planned for August? We hope it’s something fun. Thanks for taking time to read our post today.

Writing Effective Reviews

Thanks to our residents of StoneGate Apartment Homes in Williamsville, New York, we enjoy a host of positive reviews . We’d like to thank those of you who have taken the time to write out thoughts and experiences of living in our community. We understand what a difference reviews can make — not only for prospective clients but customers of any product or service. We’re inviting all of our residents who haven’t yet written a review of our community to do so. We’re hoping that we can continue to identify areas where we can improve for our residents. Why Reviews are important. In this day and age, reviews are the name of the game. Whether you are looking for the best pizza in town, a reliable mechanic, or a reasonably priced photographer for your next event, reviews are a helpful tool in the decision-making process. What to Include in a review. When you write your review, do your best to remain balanced and neutral. Present the pros and cons and let the experience speak for itself. Stick to the facts, be specific, and strive to be objective. Take time to think about what you want to say and focus on sharing the experience. Include relevant details and keep your review fact based. There is no need to identify people by name in your review. Just describe the incident/experience and lay out what happened as objectively as possible. Take care to use correct spelling and writing conventions. Your attention to detail (or lack thereof) will affect the credibility of your message. Write in complete sentences and refrain from using more than one exclamation point per sentence. Make clear that this was your individual experience, and that others may have had different experiences. Let your thoughtfully written words validate what happened. A final note. If you’ve had a poor experience, the best avenue for resolving issues is to speak directly with a manager or decision maker. Polite, insistent requests for a win/win solution are your best bet. Have evidence to back up any assertions or complaints and have a positive attitude. How to Write Genuinely Useful Reviews Online from Life Hacker is a great source for additional tips when crafting effective reviews. Thanks for reading our post today!

Celebrating Independence Day in Style

Celebrate Independence Day in the Buffalo, NY area on July 4th by heading to an event or a fireworks show! The StoneGate Apartment Homes Blog is featuring several options to choose from, plus we have some patriotic-flavored recipes to color your picnic or barbecue red, white, and blue! We hope you have a fabulous Independence Day here in Williamsville, Buffalo, or wherever you may be on the 4th of July. Independence Day Events Head to Canalside for food, fun, and fireworks for the 4th of July! Check the Canalside July Calendar for specifics for the day. Food trucks, live music, and a brilliant fireworks display synced to a patriotic-rich soundtrack are hallmarks of this annual show. Find parking recommended for the day on Perry Street near the KeyBank Center or on lots and ramps on the east side of Main Street. If you want to travel a bit further abroad, plan a day trip to Niagara Falls and enjoy the fireworks over the water. Niagara Falls USA has the local scoop. Follow the Village of Williamsville Facebook page for events and announcements taking place this summer here in Williamsville. The Premium Guide to the Buffalo Niagara Region has a full complement of activities to check out this summer. Take a look and see if there is something happening that strikes you as worth attending, this month or next. Patriotic Recipes Patriotic Ice Cream Sandwiches from Two Sisters Crafting These patriotic ice cream sandwiches are our favorite way to celebrate Independence Day! You’ll love the way the gooey, chewy chocolate cookies taste with your favorite brand of vanilla ice cream. Don’t be afraid to shake things up and use mint, chocolate, or strawberry ice cream instead, if you’d prefer. Make your own sprinkles and enjoy! Red, White, and Blue Cheesecake Strawberries from Spicy Southern Kitchen Make this light dessert for your 4th of July celebration. Mix together cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, whipped topping, and almond extract to make the creamy, delicious filling for these cheesecake strawberries. Raspberry Pretzel Salad from Betty Crocker™ No summer recipe is more classic than raspberry pretzel salad. Our favorite part of this recipe? The delicious filling. Combine cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, whipped topping, and fresh raspberries to make the filling. Are there any other 4th of July events we should know about? Let us know in the comments. Thanks for reading our post! We hope that you have a great month here in Western New York.

Summer-Themed Movies to Watch in June

StoneGate Apartment Homes is excited that we have so many amenities for members of our apartment community to enjoy. This month we want to invite you to check out our Book and DVD Lending Library! We have a selection of DVDs and a sizeable number of books for you to choose from. Whether you borrow a DVD from our library, stop by a nearby Redbox location, or stream via Netflix, Amazon Prime, or Hulu we hope you get to relax and enjoy some movies this month. We are sharing some summer-themed movies you may want to watch this month on the blog. We hope you are enjoying the summer here in Williamsville, New York. Edge of Tomorrow (2014) Think Groundhog Day meets Independence Day — an alien race is assaulting Earth. Major William Cage (Tom Hanks) finds himself inexplicably thrown into a time loop-forcing him to live out the same brutal combat over and over. Almost Famous (2000) One of the best films ever, in our opinion. High schooler William Miller lives every rock-obsessed kid’s dream and gets to tour with up and coming rock band, Stillwater. (It starts in the school year, but finishes on the summer tour.) 12 Angry Men (1957 and 1997) The jury box is a sweatbox, and eleven jurors have let the soaring temperature go to their heads. Thank goodness for juror number eight (Henry Fonda). Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation James Stewart plays Mr. Hobbs, an overworked businessman who tries to take his family on a relaxing seaside vacation. What he gets instead is a rundown beach house, nosy neighbors and bored children who want nothing to do with him. Heading to a local theater for the movies is also an option. Check out Movie Insider to see what’s currently on the big screen. We’ve heard good things about Ocean’s 8 , The Incredibles 2 , and the documentary about Fred Rogers, Won’t You Be My Neighbor . We hope you enjoy one of these summer-themed movies this month. Last fall we shared a post with Fall-Themed Movies , which can also be enjoyed any time of year. We hope you enjoy one of these this month!

Frozen Treats to Beat the Summer Heat

Summer is rapidly approaching and things are heating up here in Williamsville, NY. To combat this, we’ve got some refreshing summertime recipes to share with you! Next time you’re out and about in the city and are feeling a bit overheated, make one of these cool treats in your StoneGate apartment. Recipes Fresh Raspberry Sorbet only takes 30 minutes to make, so be sure to prepare this for your next summer outing for a fun, creamy, delicious treat. We think adding lemon juice to the mix is a great way to add a bit of tang to the sweetness of this thick dessert. Garnish with some fruit or sprigs of your favorite seasoning to add some complementary color and texture. This Fresh Peach Lemonade recipe comes from Gather for Bread. It’s the perfect refreshing summer drink. You’ll need 3 large peaches, pitted, and cut into quarters, ½ cup sugar, 1 cup of real lemon juice, and water. Click on the link above to learn the tips and tricks to make this delicious and thirst-quenching drink. Have you ever tried s’mores in shake form? This S’mores Shake from Country Living is one of the easiest recipes we have on this list. When it’s too hot to make a s’more outside but you still crave a good fireside snack, try making this new twist on our favorite tried-and-true summer classic. Key Lime Mousse Tart is made by crushing NILLA Wafers and then mixing them with sugar, butter, and sweetened coconut flakes. You will love how the sweet and crunchy crust, tart filling, and creamy garnish combine for a flavorful summer treat. What’s better than pistachio flavored ice cream? Frozen Pistachio Pie , that’s what, and we found an easy-to-make recipe from the Cutestuff Cooks blog. All you need for the filling is pistachios, vanilla ice cream, instant pudding, and green food coloring (optional); swirl the top of the pie with fudge topping. Yum! What is your go-to recipe for summertime eating? Please share your favorites with our StoneGate Apartment Homes residents in the comments!

Get a Good Night's Sleep

In this post, Stonegate Apartment Homes is featuring a few tips and tricks to help you get a better night’s sleep. A restful sleep can make all the difference during the day and can help reinvigorate you during a stressful week. We hope that these tips help improve your sleep quality this month. Wake up at the same time every day. An easy way to improve your sleep is to wake up at the same time every day. Help Guide writes that sleeping on a schedule “helps set your body’s internal clock and optimize the quality of your sleep.” Naps, according to the Help Guide, can be used to make up for sleep throughout the day. Your naps should not be longer than 20 minutes. Get rid of distracting light. Use heavy curtains and blinds to keep the light out of your StoneGate apartment. Make the room as dark as possible by turning off your electronics and dimming the lights before bedtime. Your room shouldn’t just be dark — it should be comfortable. The National Sleep Foundation recommends keeping your room between 60 and 67 degrees for the best night’s sleep. Minimize stress. The Mayo Clinic writes that stress can do a lot of damage to a night’s sleep . Manage your stress by eating healthier, unburdening your mind by writing in a journal, and setting a schedule for your daily tasks. You will be amazed at the difference less stress can make when you are trying to get to sleep and stay asleep at night. Associate your bed with sleep. Make sure your bed is a place of rest and relaxation. Wear comfortable night attire. Reserve your bed only for sleeping. Don’t check your phone or your email, write, read, or watch TV while you are in bed. By reserving your bed as a sleeping space, you will find it easier to minimize distractions and fall asleep at night. Do you have any tried and true tips for getting good a good night’s sleep? Leave your best advice in the comments. We hope you have a wonderful month here in Williamsville, NY.