AvalonBay, the new Archstone Smith

So now that Archstone Smith has lost its independence and name. From Wikipedia:

In November 2012, Equity Residential announced a deal to acquire Archstone from Lehman Brothers; this deal was closed for $9 billion on February 27, 2013. As part of this deal, Equity Residential acquired 60% of Archstone's assets while the remaining was acquired by AvalonBay Communities

So you're thinking that "hey, this AvalonBay building seems like a nice place." I have gotten two notes from people telling me about bait & switch practices in AvalonBay units. And an obsession with charging people for carpet changes after they leave for damages that either don't exist, or that are part of living in an apartment for a year or two.

So if you're looking at an AvalonBay building, make sure you look carefully. And make sure you take a whole lot of photos of the carpet before you leave.

Quasi-Anti-Recommendations - 2501 Porter Street

From DC - even when folks enjoy a place - Archstone forces them out. This came from zhulinka on apartment ratings.

I was really happy living here, but the rent has been raised so I have to leave. For people like myself without a car, the large hill makes it a chore to get groceries, etc. The building is well managed, the staff working at the concierge are very friendly and always willing to help out. Maintenance is also very good--whenever I had a problem it was fixed right away. If it weren't so expensive here, I would renew my lease.

Anti-Recommendations - Archstone Hacienda

From Pleasantville California come these anti-recommendations for Archstone Hacienda.

I moved into Archstone Hacienda last May. I got my renewal notice this week and my jaw dropped when I saw that my rent was going to increase by $800. I guess I should have felt better about the renewal incentives they were offering. For an additional $800 per month, I could get either a new curtain rod, a new toilet seat, caulking, new door stops and my personal favorite - new light bulbs. I guess some people just don't know how to be appreciative.

I'm leading the stampede out of this apartment complex.

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Like other posters, I moved back to the US from overseas and moved here. I liked it a lot as I had a competent rental agent who really helped me. However, after 6 months I got a rent increase that ranges anywhere from 30-50%!

They say everyone's rent is skyrocketing, but that's not true. They are in walking distance to Oracle and comparing themselves to the new expensive stuff across 580 in Dublin.

Be very careful that you are only here for short term. A colleague of mine at work said he and his wife and done a similar thing and found their rent increasing 20%.

They do tell you about utilities costs and all the other stuff if you pay attention, but my apartment was in the $1600s when I moved in and now it's going for $2090-2795 depending on how long you want to lease. And that's about 1000 square feet only. Ridiculous. Absolutely insane.

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My husband and I looked at the place a year prior to moving here. We wanted to move to these apartments for several reasons, that looked nice, close to bart, and we were told that there was plenty of parking spaces-that was a lie. The apartment it self was nice and spacious but immediately started falling apart. Cabinet doors broke, the bathroom was put together cheaply; they haven't fixed a thing. The parking is what really erked us. we would have to rush home early to find a parking spot and other people would parking illegal so they would have a spot. Not to mention they are trying to raise the rent $250 dollars for a one bedroom.

Anti-Recommendations - Providence at Tewksbury

And from Massachusetts, apartment ratings denger gives us this -

This has got to be the worst place around.T he rent is high the apts don't stay warm HUGE heating bills.the pool area never opened when the hours are posted always problems there.the managment should be fired they could care less about you or anyone else,Alex has got to be the worst manager in the history of customer service. one time i called about the music above me it was so loud the pictures were shaking on my walls and he told me it's not after hours so its ok to play loud music.and the garbage thing thats a joke, walk a 1/2 mile to throw out thrash.i'm glad i'm out now i rent a house for 300.00 less and my utilities are decent and i don't have to listen to management tell me what to do and how to live.

Anti-Recommendations - Archstone Escondido

From apartment ratings, some words on Archstone Escondido - California.

I can not recommend this complex to young people starting their lives. The rent is so steep that you won't be able to save money or splurge on luxuries. To add insult to injury, the rooms are small, the pool and spa gates are always locked, and there is a lot of noisy heavy construction going on right near many apartments. Turns out some townhomes are being built right there on Archstone's flank. What makes matters worse is that the construction crew takes up a lot of the parking spaces and they make a lot of ruckus. Some apartments are literally right next door to the construction. The only thing these apartments have going for them is that they have washer/driers in the units to save you a trip to a laundry room. Not worth it, in my opinion.

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I've lived here for three months. I like the apartment because it looks updated and nice. However, the walls here are extremely thin. I can hear my neighbor's TV through the wall, neighbors running their water in their bathroom. Parking is somewhat a hassle but lately everyone has been moving out so it has gotten easier. A week ago one of the residents hit my car while parking and I call the office to see if I could get my assigned parking spot moved and was told that they did not have any empty spots available, yet there were 13 empty apartments listed on the website at the time. The construction for the new town homes is annoying as well. They are loud and potholes have started to appear as well. I live right next to the pool/spa and there have been some "trespassers" that like to be loud past 10 PM. Just tonight there was a group of 4 being loud and drinking in the hot tub at 3 AM. I called the courtesy patrol unit and nothing happened. I like sleeping at 3 AM so I filed a noise violation to Esco police. Ten minutes later and they were gone.

I like the apartment unit that I spend a lot a month to live in. However, when my lease is up in a couple of months, I'm out of here. The only advantage that Archstone has over their competition is that they have a washer and dryer in unit which does not make up for the high price in rent.

Too Funny -

This week's Post real estate section features an Archstone property. It's a new property, so the people who are asked to comment on it haven't had the opportunity to experience the full range of life under the Archstone banner.

I want the Post to come back to these folks after their first lease expires and ask them how they enjoy those $300/month bumps to get another lease.

$500 Community Area Fees?

I was scrolling through Archstone Smith's website (it's only fair, folks from the company regularly scroll through this site - no doubt looking for tips on how to be less evil? Ok, so probably not that).

Every property I was looking through in the DC area had a $500 community area fee listed. It didn't matter if the place had a pool or not, a useable roof or not, a common room that is more than a lobby or not. They all had $500 community area fees.

Just when I think these folks can't find any more places to grab money from renters.

Funny Stuff

Just ran across this from an Archstone press release:

"Through its two brands, Archstone and Charles E. Smith, Archstone-Smith strives to provide great apartments and great service to its customers – backed by unconditional service guarantees."

Gee, that's two big whoppers in one sentence. Great service and "unconditional service guarantees."

Maybe by unconditional they mean that there are no conditions under which they would provide guaranteed service?

Another Non-Glowing Consulate Recommendation

For the Consulate building in DC. Again - it's the Archstone Smith greed that ruins what could otherwise be a good apartment living situation. So typical of this group.

My problems with the Consulate. The apartments (1 bedroom anyway) aren't exactly the largest in the world and you pay alot. We currently pay $1600 a month and just received a notice that our rent was being raised to $1885. For about 700 sq ft, not worth it. Also, the no utilities thing is really a downer. When I moved in I was painted this picture that utilities would be minimal. On top of our $1600/month we pay around $30 for trash and water and our electric as ranged from $150-$200/month. NOT the $60/month that was estimated. EVERYTHING in the apartment is electric including stove and heat/AC. The patio glass doors are nice but provide little insulation. Although you can usually find street parking, you are sharing the street with the Consulate, the Massive Van Ness Complex across the street, UDC, and Howard Law School. I've had to wait 30 min for a parking spot since I refuse to pay the $165 for a parking spot.

We've been living in the Consulate about a year and a half. Overall it's been a great experience and we haven't had any problems. I do agree with previous poster that the constant construction has really been annoying (Especially since we were on the pool side and woken up by jack hammers every morning). The new elevators are almost done, and they're also re-doing the weight room and basement facilities. It's a block from the metro and grocery store, very convenient location and it's a super safe neighborhood. The management and front staff are always super nice.

If you have expendable cash or have a cushy job making 6 figures this is great place to live. But for the average person living on minimal salary it can make for a financial crunch. If it wasn't for the cost I would definitely stay here but I know there are much cheaper option in D.C.

Anti-Recommendations - Water Park Towers

Water Park Towers - Arlington, VA

Even the positive reviews can't bare Archstone Smith's money grabbing ways

1. This is really a luxury apartment. The rooms are very well sound-proofed, so you seldom hear your neighbors. The service is great; most problems get taken care of within 24 hours, no matter how much work is involved. The gym is OK and there are professionally catered tenant parties twice a year. There is even a voting precinct based here, so on election day you can actually vote in one of the lounges on the first floor.

But the prices are ludicrous. Most of the tenants are older because very few people under 30 can afford to live here. The rent goes up between 8 and 20 percent each year, depending on the unit and on a range of factors that they don't care to explain to you, so you never know what to expect until the increase hits you.

If you have tons of money, live here. If not, find someplace else.

2. I have lived here for over 2 years and the rents have become ridiculous. Another major downside is the train noise. The racket is loud enough that it can drown out conversation, wakes you up at night, and the vibration has shaken a picture off my wall. They have started to charge residents for parking as well.