DON T RENT HERE! The place is a dump, contaminated with asbestos, black mold, lead, bed-bugs, thieves, liars and generally ghetto-trash kind of people. Surly and incompetent maintenance & leasing staff, like -----------& --------. Your delivery packages will go missing and vehicles will be vandalized. There appears to be no end to the inconvenience that the abatement project will put the tenants through, less than 12 hours notice before the water was shut-off.

I could have ranted on and on about my frustration with Harbor Cove but I have better things to do. Anyway, I invite you to read on, check-out all the other postings about Harbor Cove. Personally, I m going to contact the parent company Essex Property Trust of Palo Alto and make them aware of my situation at: http://www.essexpropertytrust.com/contact.html

User Responses
From: janieyang	Date: 06/10/2009
Hi there-- I am ----------, the Property Manager at Harbor Cove and would like to comment on your review. I would like the opportunity to meet with you, in person, to discuss your issues, but here are some important facts: 1) Our building does contain asbestos, but we are no different than many other homes, apartment buildings and buildings that were built pre-1978. Prop 65 signs are posted throughout the community disclosing this fact, in addition to providing you with a disclosure that you signed along with your move in paperwork. We are undergoing voluntary seismic retrofit and renovation to our buildings and some apartments and we will be abating the existing asbestos. The work is being completed by licensed contractors safely and to industry specifications and standards. Contractors no longer use asbestos in today's building materials. If you would like references and documentation that this is being completed, you are welcome to stop by the office. 2) Same thing with Lead. Many houses, apartment buildings and other buildings built before 1978 used lead-based paint in their painting materials. The paint we use today is lead free and our contractors completing the renovation are licensed and have taken every precaution to ensure that any work that they complete is done to industry safety standards. Foster City Building Inspectors are with us through each stage of work to ensure that the work is being done correctly. You are more than welcome to stop by to pick up our Lead Information Pamphlet. The Lead Pamphlet is something that you would have received at the time you moved in, as well. 3) We are VERY excited about our current and future renovation projects. Although this is a temporary inconvenience to everyone, it is much needed in order to maintain our community and to be competitive with other communities in the area. The voluntary seismic and hallway renovation to each building is estimated to take approximately 30-60 days. We are estimating that our future elevator upgrades will take approximately 14-30 days to complete. Notices and regular updates have gone out and will continue to be provided to all residents along the way. 4) For any work that we know will occur in advance (ie: water shut off for plumbing repairs), we do give notice at least 24-hours (or more) in advance. In cases of an emergency, however, unfortunately, sometimes we are not able to give notice ahead of time. Time is of the essence in an emergency and sometimes the water just needs to be shut off so that the repair can be completed asap. In some cases, we do call the residents, or knock on doors to inform anyone affected. 5) I, nor our Maintenance Team are not aware of any black mold at our community. If you are having issues in your apartment, I would like to send someone to take a look at it to assess if it is the "black mold" variety or if there is a leak in your apartment. Many times, discoloration that you find in apartments or homes may be due to cleaning issues (ie; mildew), which can be resolved quite easily. We also provide all residents with helpful hints on "How To Prevent Mold and Mildew" in their homes. 6) Unfortunately, bed bugs are a national epidemic. Many apartment communities, dorms, hotels and individual homes and businesses are not immune to this pest. There is much information provided through the World Wide Web about this particular pest that you can research. With any pest control issue, if a case is identified, we will take every precaution to ensure that the apartment and surrounding apartments are treated through a licensed pest control company. 7) Since I have been here, no packages have gone "missing" except for the few instances that I know of that were due to the vendor either delivering to the wrong building (since we have 12 of them) or simply the vendor missing us during delivery. In these cases, the packages were always traced and delivered to the addressee. Accepting packages is a courtesy that we provide to our residents. You can always make arrangments to be present and have them deliver directly to your apartment home if you are expecting an important delivery. 8) Everyone that rents with us is qualified based on fair and specific qualifications. We do not discriminate based on applicants' "lifestyles". Please notify us, if you are having any particular issues with your neighbor(s). 9) Although many apartment communities offer a courtesy patrol service, no one can guarantee your safety or your personal property. Vandalizm and other crime occurs in all communities and areas, even in communities that are gated and/or have limited access. We always recommend that residents be proactive with their personal safety ie: locking their vehicles and apartment windows and doors, storing any valuables out of sight, etc) to avoid being a victim. We have not been made aware of any recent incidences but would appreciate it if you would inform us if you are. Although no one can prevent crime from occuring, we can at least inform our Courtesy Patrol Service of any recent activity and/or work with the Foster City Police Department. 10) I encourage you to contact our office to discuss the issues that you are having. Although this website is a convenient tool for residents to voice their concerns, we deserve to be notified and given the chance to correct them rather than be blind-sided and find out about it over the internet. We would greatly appreciate it!! Sincerely, ---------- Property Manager Harbor Cove Apartments
From: cubspaw	Date: 06/15/2009
I need to apologize, it was in poor taste for me to name you personally; please accept my regrets. I do appreciate the timely reply, and the information provided was certainly in-depth (must have keep the Lawyers busy). I'm glad we have both had the opportunity to each say our piece. I have no interested in further dialog with your office at this time.

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