I moved into a two bedroom apartment with a co-worker this June, and I have to admit we pretty much love the place so far. Not that it isn't without it's faults, and I hope nothing happens to change my opinion in the next year or so, but so far it seems to have been a good match for us, and I'm glad we chose to live here despite the negative reviews (which may be totally valid - your mileage may vary.)

Little more background about me: I'm recently out of college with a new job in the tech sector and needed to find a place in the area (work is in Redwood City) that fit my budget. It was definitely a "well, if it stinks, it's only for a year" kind of a situation and I wasn't expecting a palace at any of the apartment complexes I was looking at.

Over two days, we checked out about 10 different complexes around Belmont and San Mateo. We went with Carlmont Heights because of its location, size, extras and the absolutely gorgeous view we have off our deck.

Pros:
Large two bed/two bath cheaper than most of the ones we looked at. Most of the 2 bedroom apartments we investigated had one "master" bedroom and a second, much smaller bedroom. Our apartment has one bedroom with an attached bathroom, but the secondary bedroom is approximately the same size.
Free water & garbage collection: The only bills we're paying are electricity and internet - each about $30 a month!
Space - our apartment is much bigger than many of the others we were checking out at higher prices
Great parking! We were given two parking spots for no extra - most of the places around Belmont and San Mateo only gave one parking spot and expected anyone else to find street parking.
Great location - a short walk down the hill lands you in a shopping complex with just about anything you'd need (except for a good bar...) including Mexican, Japanese, Chinese, and Italian restaurants. The hill is great for a little exercise after a big meal. I work in Redwood Shores and it's a 12 minute commute - not shabby. Caltrain is a two mile walk, the park is a little over a mile away, and the fantastic Belmont library is just down the street. Its easy to get to 101,92, and 280, and Hillsdale mall is a short drive down El Camino.
Out of the way - Even though its close to a lot of stuff, living here feels safe and relatively quiet
Positive interactions with other residents - my direct neighbors are a fantastic couple, and I haven't had any negative direct experiences with other residents. Many of the comparable complexes we looked at were definitely filled with large families and lots of kids, with bikes and stuff everywhere, and I definitely wanted to live in a place with more young couples and professionals. Instead of shabby bikes strewn about by 10 year olds, we have rows of nice cars. That was a plus for me.
Wildlife - its fun to see deer, squirrels, racoons, and the occasional skunk shuffling about in the brush below the apartments!
The view. Yeah, many of the reviews here say to not let the view sway you, but everyone I invite over (especially at night) does a double take. I enjoy eating breakfast out on our deck while watching the sun come up over the hills and the bay. I'm not from the west coast, but this is what I wanted California to be like!

Cons:
- The water: it's definitely a little brownish/yellow at times. You have to run the sink for a few seconds to clear out the rust if you've been out of town for a few days. I use a Brita pitcher for drinking water.
- Thin walls and ceilings: We only have an apartment upstairs that connects directly to ours and I can often hear the teenagers living there clomping around. Hasn't kept me up, but if we shared other walls or had louder neighbors it would be a problem. Also, construction noises and sirens from the valley can be heard up here.
- Some shabby workmanship. Our apartment wasn't newly refinished, so we knew we were getting some older stuff, but the linoleum in the kitchen is bubbling up and the drawers needed to be cleaned or replaced. The appliances are working fine, though, and when we had a problem with the dishwasher, they fixed it quickly and its been fine since.
- Belmont isn't quite the place for nightlife, and there aren't any good bars one can walk to from Carlmont. St. James Gate is a good time, and a short drive away.
- Laundry is $1.25 in coin-based machines. They seem to work fine though.

Mehs:
- The pool isn't heated but seems fairly well taken care of. I've been maybe twice since moving in. The tennis court is old and from a seemingly bygone era, but I don't really care about the tennis court. In general, the grounds are well kept, with lots of flowers in continual bloom.
- No pets. At least the apartments don't smell like the previous owners pets, but I'd like a cat or dog someday.
- The garbage / recycling occasionally gets pretty full, but in general its fine.
- No grilling. It'd be nice to enjoy the view with a freshly grilled steak.

Hopes:
- The manager lady has been really nice so far. She encouraged us to fully document the state of things when we move in. We took photos and videos aplenty and I hope we can get most of our deposit back on move-out, but we'll have to see.
- I hope they don't raise the rent too much when our lease is up so we can stay if we want!

In conclusion - don't let the reviews sway you from checking out this place for yourself. It might be a good match for you too, and it definitely helps when you know what to expect or watch out for.

All in all, so far so good at Carlmont Heights!

User Responses
From: aogilmor	Date: 10/12/2008
Reserve judgement till you try to get your deposit back and get something fixed. that will turn it from "pretty good" to "hell on earth" pretty quickly. It did for us.
From: Anonymous	Date: 10/21/2008
You're experiencing the "newly-wed" phase! Enjoy it while it lasts! Once you get to the 1st problem, tell me how the maintenance guy treated you and how the female manager sits on the fence! I can't wait for the ---- to hit the ceiling!!
From: Anonymous	Date: 01/05/2009
If I were you, i will find a new place as soon as my lease is up. The worst place ever!!! the female manager's job is to collect your rent, that is all she does!!! do not expect things from her. she doesn't do anyting. you will get about 15% of your security deposit back with professional move out cleaning. they will find anyting to keep your deposit. you can find better place with same amount of $. why do you want to pay for rusty water? i put in the request number of times but it only got worst. i finally gave up and moved out for my own health. do not live here!!!
From: Anonymous	Date: 03/24/2009
To the last "Anonymous" commenter - I've been trying to find a good 2BD/2BA apt in Belmont, Foster City, San Mateo area under $2000. You say you can find a better place for the same amount as Carlmont Heights, any suggestions? It seems all the apartments in those cities listed on this site all have a below 50% recommendation (with a decent number of reviews) and reading through a ton of reviews, most complain about the same stuff (ie. maintenance, security deposit, interiors falling apart, neighborhood issues).

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