Given the number of apartments, the tenancy for some apartments to be more desirable and how long the game has been running, many mix apartments have had at least one wealthy mixer with means living in it. This well off mixer sometimes invests in the apartment and makes it as nice as one can in the mix. Staff often allows it because that character has the means, pays the price or does the RP.
But now that is the new description for the apartment and lives on until someone redecorates and few will in any way that makes it worse.So over time, and the game has been around a LONG time, a lot of the apartments players get in the mix end up being pretty damn nice.
My proposed solution? When an apartment resets, set the room descriptions to some 'defaults' that are not riding the upper end of what the mix allows. And remove all player installed furniture. Just a reset back to what one would expect to find in that mix apartment.
I know that this would remove a lot of player contributed room descriptions but I personally think that the emphasis on theme is more valuable here than the need to preserve these descriptions. Further, this player contributed work can be replaced already with a new redecoration by another player.
Also, if there is no 'default room description' for the complex or if one prefers a bit more flavor, crowd source it. If a pad doesn't have an approved default description, give players a way to submit one. Then staff can review it like a normal redecoration request and, if approved, save it as that apartment room's default. Now when an apartment is reset, the rooms revert to these crowdsourced default descriptions.
Though my main concern here are mix apartments, one could clearly do the same to all apartments. I personally just see less need for it on topside apartments.