Who owns and manages a unit here
Two separate systems run in the same building at 211 North Ave: a professionally staffed leasing program that rents units directly to students, and a set of individually deeded condo units that private owners buy, sell, and rent out on their own. The building is a 2003-built, gated, three-story property organized as condominiums under a homeowners association named The Lodge Subdivision Association, per a Georgia MLS listing for the building. Units get bought and sold through ordinary residential MLS listings by brokerages such as Keller Williams Greater Athens, Coldwell Banker Upchurch Realty, and Our Town Realty, while the same address runs a centrally managed leasing office that Apartment Finder describes as operated by SPM. Some for-rent listings at the address state directly that they are managed by a private company and not affiliated with the on-site leasing office, which is a Zillow listing showing exactly that – direct evidence that individually owned units get rented outside the master program.
Even the basic unit count is inconsistently reported: Apartment Finder lists the property at 180 units across three stories, while Zillow’s building page lists 98 units for the same address. A buyer should confirm the actual count and the split between master-program units and privately owned units directly with the HOA.
Can I buy a single unit here, or only rent?Yes. Individual 2BR/2BA units at 211 North Ave are bought and sold on the open MLS as condominiums, separately from the building’s own rental program. Recent sales include $174,000 in August 2022 and $195,000 in April 2023.
What a unit costs to buy right now
The four verifiable sale and listing prices at this address span $103,900 in 2007 to $200,000 in early 2026, with the two most recent closed sales at $174,000 and $195,000 for the same 799-square-foot floor plan.
| Date | Unit / sq ft | Price | $/sq ft | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2007 | #1337, 854 sq ft | $103,900 | $122 | Sold, public record |
| Aug 2022 | #1333, 799 sq ft | $174,000 | $218 | Sold |
| Apr 2023 | #1233, 799 sq ft | $195,000 | $244 | Sold |
| 2026 (current) | #1334, 854 sq ft | $183,000 (cut from $200,000) | $214 | Active listing |
Price per square foot at 211 North Ave climbed from roughly $122 in 2007 to the $214 to $244 range across the three most recent transactions, and the unit on the market now has already taken an 8.5 percent cut from its original asking price. Redfin’s data for the 30601 zip code shows homes selling about 1 percent under list price and going pending in roughly a month.
Unit #1233, an 799-square-foot second-floor condo, sold for $195,000 in April 2023 through Keller Williams Greater Athens, the highest confirmed price yet recorded for a standard 2BR/2BA floor plan in the building.
What a unit rents for right now
Two different rent numbers exist for the same floor plan: the building’s own leasing office advertises $939 to $1,998 a month, while owners renting their individually deeded units directly or through outside managers have recently listed the identical 2BR/2BA layout between $1,100 and $1,650 a month.
The building’s leasing program
The on-site office rents by the bed to students, bundles cable, internet, and amenity access into the price, and runs a private shuttle to UGA and downtown. Base rates on Apartments.com run $939 to $1,998 across 898 to 1,028 square foot floor plans.
Private, owner-run leases
Owners who rent their units outside the master program list whole-unit rent directly: $1,100 on one recent Redfin-linked listing, $1,650 on a Zillow listing that states it is managed by a private company and not The Lodge’s office. These owners keep the full rent, minus their own management cost, instead of splitting revenue with the master program, but they also carry the vacancy and turnover risk alone.
| Unit type / sq ft | Recent price | Monthly rent | Implied gross rent multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 854 sq ft (#1334) | $183,000 | $1,100 (private, low) | 13.9 |
| 854 sq ft (#1334) | $183,000 | $1,650 (private, high) | 9.2 |
| 898 to 1,028 sq ft | $183,000 (comparable) | $939 (program, low) | 16.2 |
| 898 to 1,028 sq ft | $183,000 (comparable) | $1,998 (program, high) | 7.6 |
The gross rent multiplier for this address swings from about 7.6 to roughly 16 depending only on which rent track and which end of its range a buyer uses. That range does not net out HOA dues, property tax, insurance, or vacancy, so it is a starting comparison point, not a return figure.
Is the master leasing program or a private lease better for an owner?Neither wins outright. The master program trades a lower per-unit rent for turnkey management and steady demand from the building’s own marketing; a private lease can reach the higher end of the range but requires the owner to find tenants, handle turnover, and cover any vacancy months directly.
HOA, dues, and what’s confirmed so far
Georgia MLS listings confirm the HOA, called The Lodge Subdivision Association, bills a fee that covers cable TV, high-speed internet, exterior and grounds maintenance, trash, pest control, the pool and other amenities, and routine building upkeep, per Redfin’s listing for unit #1334. None of the listings found for this page states the dollar amount.
One data point on carrying cost: Clarke County assessed property tax on unit #1333 (799 sq ft) at $1,518 a year as of the 2022 record. That is a single unit’s figure, not a building average, since assessed values vary by unit.
What does the HOA fee cover, and how much is it?It covers cable, internet, exterior maintenance, trash, pest control, and pool access, according to Georgia MLS listings for individual units. The dollar figure was not published in any source checked for this page, so a buyer needs to request it directly from the listing agent or the HOA.
How this compares to other “investor-favorite” buildings near UGA
A local brokerage names The Lodge alongside six other buildings as investor targets near UGA, but only one of those, The Verandas, produced a verifiable current price. That building is a planned unit development, not a condominium, despite being grouped with condo buildings by the brokerage that names it as an investor target.
| Property | Product type | Price/rent found | Verification |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Verandas | Planned unit development, 3 to 4BR cottages | Active listing $349,900, 3BR/3BA, 1,500 sq ft | Verified, MLS |
| The Retreat on Milledge | Rental-only complex, 3 to 5BR, no individually owned units | $835 to $1,590/mo by bedroom, 2021 pull | Verified as rental-only |
| Summit of Athens | Named as investor target | No independently sourced price or rent data found | Unverified, open research task |
| Station on Milledge | Named as investor target | No independently sourced price or rent data found | Unverified, open research task |
The other four named buildings did not return public price or rent data during this research pass and remain open items for anyone comparing them directly to The Lodge.
What tenants say about living here
Reviews on ApartmentRatings.com span 144 entries and split between residents praising the shuttle, staff responsiveness, and gym equipment, and residents describing slow multi-visit maintenance fixes, disputed move-out charges, and gate access that is easy to bypass. One reviewer described the entry gates as inexpensive plastic that vehicles could drive through without resistance. Several reviewers reported disputed move-out fees, including a charge for leftover trash after a walk-through showed none. Pest complaints reportedly improved after a change in pest control, and maintenance response times were reported inconsistently, with some residents praising same-day emergency fixes and others describing repeated visits needed to resolve the same issue. For an investor, these reports point to operational risk that affects vacancy and turnover cost across the whole building rather than any single unit.
Location and commute basics
211 North Ave sits in Clarke County’s 30601 zip code, about 1.7 miles from Piedmont College and within the Howard B. Stroud Elementary, Coile Middle, and Cedar Shoals High School zones. The building runs a private shuttle to UGA’s campus and downtown Athens, though the exact schedule varies by listing, from weekday-only to extended weekend hours. Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center is about 2.2 miles away.
Getting the walkability numbers right
Walk Score’s website puts 211 North Avenue at 38 out of 100, car-dependent, per its own scoring page for the address. Zillow’s listing for the same address states 34, also car-dependent.
Why do the walkability scores disagree?The two figures come from different pulls of the same Walk Score methodology at slightly different times or address formats. This page reports both numbers rather than picking one, since neither source publishes the underlying calculation for this address.
Signs this unit is a stronger or weaker buy
- Rent track assumed matches the buyer’s plan. If the pro forma uses the leasing program’s $1,998 high end but the owner plans to self-manage a private lease, the realistic number is closer to the $1,100 to $1,650 range documented above.
- HOA dues confirmed in writing before the offer. Every gross rent multiplier above ignores dues that remain unpublished at the time of this research; request them before comparing to the $214 to $244 per-square-foot recent sales.
- Deed restriction and rentability confirmed. Ask the HOA directly whether non-student renters are permitted, since unit listings imply but never state a restriction.
- Unit count and ownership split verified. Apartment Finder and Zillow disagree on whether the building has 180 or 98 units; ask the HOA for the actual split before assuming resale liquidity.
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