I will start out by saying I am not wild about this place by any means, but I will try to be fair.

First of all, the pros -
1. Management is polite and fairly helpful when you need something. Whenever I have had an issue about something, they do make time to hear what I have to say and make some sort of effort to at least meet me halfway.
2. Maintenance is pretty good. They take a little while to get to things that are not emergency issues (you have to request a work order, and the wait time is usually 48-72 hours), but, like they say, the squeaky wheel gets the grease, so stay on top of things and they will get done.
3. Management again - there was an issue about nine months ago where a crime was committed during the day, and the management responded fairly quickly by distributing letters informing us what had happened, and made an attempt to start a neighborhood watch program. unfortunately, the neighborhood didn't follow up, so things fell through. This complex isn't in the best neighborhood, so people need to take care of each other in order to be taken care of. Management can't be everywhere and neither can security.

Cons -
1. Parking, parking, parking - this is the biggest issue with me (and looking at some of the other reviews, it is with others as well). I have a roommate, and unless we get home before 4:00, there will be no parking near our apartment, and after about 6-7:00, there is no parking whatsoever. On two occasions I have had my car towed (once I parked in another tenants covered space, and another time I did not realize that the space was handicapped, so, my fault.) However, what I have a problem with is that management truly does encourage their tenants to resort to towing to solve their parking problems. This is not even remotely the best solution to this problem. The actions by management with reference to this problem seems to reflect the attitude of being too busy to deal with it. They seem more comcerned with other tasks to deal with a problem that has really gotten out of control. According to the towing company, they tow, on average three cars a night from Bella Vita alone. Last fall, when my car was towed for the first time, I spoke with the management about how to solve this problem. I was told that the parking lot has enough spaces to accomodate all residents, and the problem was that visitors were taking up all the spaces. I was then told they were going to start a program within a month in which all residents would have a parking sticker, and non-residents would not be allowed to park in the complex anymore. It has been several months, and I have not heard anything else on this matter. They have instead focused on their new exercise room, and new clubhouse, and of course, getting new tenants.

2. The grounds - Bella Vita recently remodeled, and while the landscaping and paint looks great in the front near the leasing office and model apartments, toward the back, it doesnt look so great. The pavement is uneven, the lawns are dead in some areas, flooded in others, and the paint is not as nice, and the fences around the apartments that have patios looks pretty rickety for the most part.

3. Inside the apartment - when I moved in, ther were a few problems that I had to deal with for about the first month; I had no plug for my tub, the bathroom door lock was broken, my door was a little crooked and therefore didnt close right (my dad actually ended up fixing it for me), I didnt have a plug for the kitchen sink (and i bought one for myself eventually - I am taking it with me when i go, too) and my water heater went out about a month after moving in. It was eventually replaced, but the hot water still doesnt last as long as it should. My drain was constantly clogged and maintenance had to come out no less than three times to clear it, and I finally got fed up and spent an entire afternoon cleaning it myself - gross. There have been other minor issues as well, but those were the mjor ones. Also, I can hear my upstairs neighbors all the time. I can hear fairly clearly, including the water running in the shower, etc., but that tends to happen anywhere, it just comes with living in an apartment.

4. Safety - first of all, this is not a great neighborhood. Things are going to happen, and it is not management's fault. There have been problems with crime at several surrounding apartments as well. However, the lighting around my apartment (nearer the back than the front) is definitely lacking. I won't walk around my apartment at night for anything. But they are putting in extra lighting all over, so hopefully that will help.

I guess that is all, but I would not recommend this place to anyone. too many problems to have to deal with.

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 04/29/2008
When i lived in this complex, a few years ago, we were issued parking stickers. The problem was, no one put the stickers on their cars like they were supposed to and management never pressed the issue, so the parking was always a problem. I think for the most part this place will continue to sprial down, just like it did when it was Baywood.

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