Of the 100 most populous cities in the United States, ApartmentRatings.com ranked Madison third in its 2009 Renter Satisfaction Rankings Tuesday.

Ranked by user-submitted scores, 167 Madison apartments received a total of 1,809 rankings and reviews from tenants this year. Renters ranked their rental experience in terms of specific aspects such as noise, safety and maintenance, but also had the opportunity to comment on their overall satisfaction and individual experiences.

ApartmentRatings.com, the company behind the ranking, is an online rating community for rental housing that was launched in 2000. One of the largest sites in terms of apartment hunting, its goal is to help renters make informed renting decisions based on realistic perspectives from previous tenants.

While the rankings were favorable, Tenant Resource Center Executive Director Brenda Konkel expressed skepticism at the results, citing their apparent lack of scientific credibility.

“I don’t think [the ranking] means anything,” Konkel said. “It’s not a scientific ranking. I don’t know who does the website or where they’re getting their data from. I’m having a hard time believing we really rank third.”

Konkel said the rankings may reflect very one-sided views of Madison tenant satisfaction. There is always a mixture of people who take a lot of pride in their units and people who don’t.

Konkel also commented on Madison’s current housing situation, especially for University of Wisconsin students living in houses and apartments.

“We have a lot of housing that is deteriorating,” Konkel said. “I think a lot of people throughout Wisconsin would think Madison is expensive for what you get. Many of the actual units are in repair. Parents of students who come here are usually appalled at student housing — we deal with a lot of upset parents.”

In addition to the condition of student housing, Konkel also said there were numerous other aspects that factored into low tenant satisfaction.

“I know that showing apartments earlier in the year bothers many people,” Konkel said. “I think there are quite a few repair issues, and you don’t really get the same value for some of the apartments you should be getting. Some larger landlords aren’t as responsive to the needs of their tenants.”