Review History for anonymous

Larkspur Woods


Review Author Icon

anonymous

Resident 2008

5/10/2008

okay, but way too overpriced

These are marketed as "luxury" apartments, but really they're just freshly painted units well-cleaned prior to move in that are similar to other units/buildings in the neighborhood but listed at much higher rents. Management is in general friendly and responsive to complaints, but regulations are strict (down to even the number of plants on your balcony/patio!) and inspections are very, very frequent (about 4 in the last couple of months). I'm a little uncomfortable about having strangers in my apartment when I'm not home, and management doesn't really seem to care about trying to coordinate these with the tenants. One of the reasons we like this place is that you can't find too many units in the same price range with an in-unit washer/dryer; even though it kind of sucks, it's better than using a shared room or hauling stuff to the neighborhood cleaners. The grounds are well-kept and landscaping is professionally handled at least once a week. Parking is fine (one assigned stall for one bedroom apartments, and a tandem two car stall for two bedrooms), with three total stalls for visitors. Street parking is fine during the day but good luck finding anything after 6 or 7pm. The property itself feels safe in terms of layout, lighting, etc. One thing that's seriously irritating is that there is no outgoing mail box here, and the mailman/woman refuses to take any outgoing mail from the individual boxes. We find ourselves going to the post office at least two or three times a week. How hard can it be to build an outgoing mail box! Plumbing seems dated and there were two units that flooded last year. We try to keep everything valuable elevated off the floor since we feel that another one is bound to happen soon. I think one or more of the units also had a problem with some sort of critter infestation because a couple days recently the Santa Clara Vector Control people were inspecting the complex; we haven't noticed any problems with bugs/rats/etc. Don't be fooled by the "work-out room" which is essentially a utility closet with a window and one stationary bike and one stair-climber, both of which appear signficantly outdated and I'm not sure even work properly. The pool is kept professionally cleaned, but is used fairly infrequently by tenants. Our biggest complaint has been the rising cost of rent at the end of each lease, which I suppose is a national trend, but leads to an inappropriately high turnover of tenants here. Most sign on for a one year lease at the introductory rate, but are forced to move out when the option to renew is increased by several hundred dollars. If you're looking for a short term lease, it's probably okay, but don't move here if you're planning on renting long-term. I'd consider a real "luxury" apartment with a higher initial rent that has the potential to stay relatively stable in the future, though I suppose this would be difficult to predict without talking to previous tenants, reading reviews, etc. The other significant drawback is noise; we can basically hear everything our neighbors do, from laundry to the TV/stereo at normal volume. I think there are only a couple of infants in the complex, which I have never heard, and thankfully pets are not allowed (otherwise I'm sure we'd hear the barking pretty clearly). I understand that this is multiplied 10-fold for downstairs units, who apparently can hear every single creaking step made my upstairs tenants. Happy hunting!

    Review 4 out of 4

    Share This Review

    Check Availability

    Larkspur Woods

    March 2024

    Sun
    Mon
    Tue
    Wed
    Thu
    Fri
    Sat
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10
    11
    12
    13
    14
    15
    16
    17
    18
    19
    20
    21
    22
    23
    24
    25
    26
    27
    28
    29
    30
    Beds

    0

    Baths

    0

    Share This Review