I've lived in tons and tons of apartments, and have considered practically every single apartment complex in this area. I can honestly say that this is the best place I've ever come across; an abnormally good place to live. You're truly lucky if you get the chance to rent a unit here. Saranap is a quaint little area nestled in between Walnut Creek and Lafayette. It's in walking distance to the downtown of both upscale towns, yet is quiet, spacious, and gives you the feeling of being far from the city. Saranap almost seems more fitting for being in the mountains than being a tiny little neighborhood in the middle of the East Bay.
The units are very large, one bedrooms are 725 sq ft and two bedrooms are the same basic layout with an extra bedroom. Each unit has either a yard or a balcony. Many of the balconies have a gorgeous view of Mt. Diablo, and the yards are gigantic. There are two sets of big sliding doors: one to the living room, and one to the bedroom. This makes moving around the apartment really easy. The layouts of the units are both aesthetically pleasing and practical, allowing for either a lot of open space, or a lot of furniture. Big kitchens, big bathrooms, decent storage within the unit (plus a huge outdoor storage locker in the parking lot) ceiling fans, and lots of light. There is only one assigned parking space and no visitor parking within the lot, but there is always, always street parking. The worst possible scenario is that you/your guest will have to walk a block or so, but for most of the day there is available space right in front of the complex.
We moved in right as management was changing. The old manager who others have referred to as "a drunk" seemed very nice to us, and we were looking forward to having her as a manager. Either way, the new manager is great. She's responsible and quick to respond, but so far has also proved to be very reasonable. Most of the time we've lived here we dealt directly with the owner, who has been just great. He truly went above and beyond to make sure we were happy with everything. So many of the places I've lived the management has either been so self absorbed that they can't be bothered with pesky tenants, or else is little more than a rule-enforcing robot. Here, the management is made up of actual people who desire communication and care about the tenants.
The neighbors are great, too. Everybody is very friendly and says hi to one another. Furthermore, everyone I've talked to is proud of this friendly atmosphere and find it important that this be upheld. So please, don't move here if you're a jerk, you won't like us and we won't like you.
We have had no problems with noise. In fact, I don't think we've once heard a neighbor through the wall or ceiling, demonstrating that the walls are built thick.
All of this is for a very reasonable rent and deposit. Most apartments in Walnut Creek for this price are hardly worth living in. We're very fortunate to have found Vista Palms.

Your thoughts? Post a response to this review. Display my response: with my username anonymously Responses appear below reviews and one response per user is permitted.

   Free estimates on moving trucks      Find apartment share/roommates