Avalon Mountain View

They allow dogs to swim in the pool. It’s disgusting. I have to explain to the kids that they can’t use it.

We have been here since Dec. and we love it. Bianca, Andrew, George, Ed, Yesenia and all the staff Rock. If you need anything they are there to help, they always say hello to us and are very friendly. Our fridge went out and they replaced it within 1 hour of my service email and also credit us for the food we lost. Best place I’ve lived in 10 years.

This is my fourth year living at Avalon Mountain view and I absolutely love it. Here are some of the highlights of the community:
— Amenities: Gorgeous pool, BBQ area, fitness center, and lots of green spaces, all meticulously maintained.
— Maintenance: the maintenance staff for the general complex are always working hard to keep the grounds in top shape. For individual apartments, maintenance requests are always tended to very promptly, and the maintenance staff are helpful, respectful, and communicative.
— Staff: The front office staff are the most helpful, courteous, proactive managers I have ever encountered in a housing complex.
— Animal friendly complex! Even if you’re not a pet owner, it’s so nice seeing other tenants around with their pets.
— Walkable to downtown Mountain View (SO nice given the parking issues there!) and the Caltrain station
— Walgreens, Target, Safeway, Whole Foods are all a 5 minute drive away
All in all, love this place and the location can’t be beat.

Before giving my recommendation I wanted to give some context — I’m a two year resident of Avalon. I previously was a Stanford graduate and lived on campus for two years. I live and commute locally at a Tech startup between Mountain View and Palo Alto.
To me, Avalon @ Mountain View represents one of the best communities in the area to create a wonderful home. To be clear, this Avalon is not for your run of the mill 22 year old looking to party. It’s quiet, family-​oriented, exceptionally clean, upscale and overall provides amenities that make the experience living here well worth it. Instead of running you through a few paragraphs, I’ll just tell you about the things I love most about Avalon:
— Totally renovated and beautiful interiors (at least in the apartment I resided in)
— Incredible community amenities including a great pool, BBQ, easy to use fitness center, green spaces for dogs and activities.
— Literally the best staff I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Between their maintenance crew (Ed and George) to the front off (Jessica Duran and others) — Avalon hires the best people. The maintenance team responds all hours of the day and I have never waited more than a few hours to hear back from the front Staff. As an example of how much the staff cares, one time my partner and I complained that our deck was rotting due to moisture and old age. The next week the staff had planned, approved and initiated an entire campaign to revamp all the decks in the entire complex. They will take your feedback and translate it into actionable change for the community.
— Tons of free parking. Yup, you heard me right… TONS of free parking. You’ll never have to worry about finding a spot or having company stay over.
— Controlled package center — the front staff will sign and hold all your packages for you. Gone are the days of dealing with ridiculous UPS and GHS delivery windows.
— Lots of young fun people and their adorable pets. My partner and I have met some great folks ranging a wide variety of backgrounds.
— Location is INSANE: 5 mins to the 101, 10 mins to 280, quick bike ride to Google, walkable to Castro Street in Downtown Mountain View, Whole Foods, Walgreens, Target, Safeway, 24 Hour Fitness, Bevmo, Trader Joes. This Avalon is literally in the center of burgeoning MV.
— Great outdoors everywhere: since this avalon is so close to different freeways its easy to get just about anywhere along the bay including Monterey, Avilla, Santa Cruz, Half Moon Bay, Pacifica, Skyline, and any of the beautiful hills surrounding Cupertino and San Jose.
I could go on and on, but reading some of these other reviews they are all focused on the price and the rent increases. Unfortunately, this is happening EVERYWHERE in the bay, not just here.
This Avalon complex may have a high price point, but you get exactly what you pay for — an incredible experience and a beautiful home. I can’t recommend this place enough.
Austin

We have been living at this community for several years and absolutely love the place! Walking distance to Castro St., Caltrain, El Camino Real and several local parks. Washer /​dryer in every apt. Quiet, clean and comfy. Kids and pets friendly. Both office and maintenance staff are extremely friendly and accommodating in every possible way. Recently renovated and replaced with new widows. Definitely recommend!

We have lived at Avalon Mountain View for 4 years. We have enjoyed our time here. The staff members have always been friendly, helpful and responsive. I can’t say anything but great things about the maintenance team. The grounds are always kept pretty as well.
I give Avalon 4 stars instead of 5 simply because the cost of living here. I do realize that it has more to do with the area than just specifically this complex, but it really has become unaffordable. We got a BMR apartment (1 bedroom) and are moving to a 2 bedroom condo in Sunnyvale for almost the same cost at the BMR cost.
Overall, it’s a very nice place, but not worth the new rates.

Summary: old average apartments at luxury prices.
Warning: Massive rent increase at the expiration of your lease.
— My rent was increased $ 1600/​month and I have been an excellent tenant. The message Avalon sent me is clear: we don’t want you living here.
Positives:
— The management and maintenance staff is great and go out of their way to improve things, if possible.
— Close to Castro street
— Maintenance request are handled quickly
Negatives:
— Small apartments and ultra tiny bathrooms. For example, the toilets were squeezed between the sink and tub; insufficient space as you can’t even lift the toilet lid without hitting the toilet paper.
— Windows are substandard. Mold and mildew will form.
— Next to the train tracks so apartments in the back will hear trains as they pass.
— The onsite gym is *not* 24 hours. If you’re a morning person who gets an early start to the gym, working out in the morning is *not* an option.
— Cell phone coverage is nonexistence; I had to obtain an ATT microcell in order to receive and place phone calls. By the onsite dog park, ATT coverage bounces between Edge, 3G, and sometimes LTE.

I am a new resident at Avalon Mountain View and highly recommend it to everyone looking for housing in the area. I am most impressed by how well kept and responsive the place is to residents’ needs. Everything is very clean, which immediately sets the place apart. Jessica at the leasing office is truly incredible. I was unable to visit the area to look for housing, so my search mainly relied on calling different places to find out more about them. She patiently and thoroughly answered my every question. Beyond the apartment itself, she explained to me its location in the complex and the city and its ideal accessibility to public transportation and major highways. Once I was there, she gave me a tour of the whole complex and my apartment and responded to my every concern by collaborating with Avalon’s maintenance team. Avalon Mountain View is the most responsive community I’ve been in touch with. I always hear back right away versus the sporadic communication I had with other communities. The community itself is very pretty and well laid out. It has a very nice pool and BBQ area and fitness center. They also plan fun community events for residents, such as holiday parties and brunch. My only suggestion for the complex so far is to change the fitness center to 24/​7, as its 6 a.m. opening is too late for my work schedule and possibly other working professionals who live in the community. Overall though, I am very impressed with Avalon Mountain View and am thrilled to be a resident there.

What a wonderful place to live!!!
Loved the fitness center, pool/​barbecue area, the location and apartment itself. but more than ANYTHING, the friendliness of the whole office and maintenance team
Everything was repaired right away, packages were handled excellently. and as a single mom with two kids I always had wonderful help with any issues that came up.
We also celebrated a birthday party by the pool. the kids had a BLAST :-)!!!
Thank you so much for a very enjoyable year and a half at Avalon Mtain View.
–Natalia

I wanted to give this place 5 stars because of MerIam, this lady has been there since we got here 2 years ago and she is probably the reason why we even renewed ! No one else in the leasing office is so eager to help with anything other than her, she is trully genuine !!! Recently they have had a revolving door with the leasing supervisors and when I need something and Mariam isn’t in, I hate to even go in the office because no even greets you and you’re made to feel like you’re a nuisance !!! Too bad they all can’t be that way and that’s why they get 3 stars!!!

Miriam, needs to be trained on customer service skills. Lacks phone etiquette.
Spoke to her regarding a market survey. She was extremely rude.

I lived here last year, and really enjoyed my time at Avalon — I wish I could find an apartment like it in Chicago! The management was great, they responded to all requests promptly and were always friendly. Though small, the apartment had a layout that made the most of the space. The pool and grill area were great for hosting larger parties. You also can’t beat the walk to downtown Mountain View. Other reviewers have noted bugs and poor cell reception, but I never had any of those problems.

I’ve lived here for a year now. I really like this place. Its relatively quiet, staff are really great and the management are a nice duo. It’s expensive like every other place in Silicon Valley, but at least here you know you have a great place to live.

Myself and my girlfriend have been here a couple of months now and we’re loving it so far. Location is perfect for us — near the Freeway for both of us to get to work, walking distance to shops, bars & restaurants.
So far since moving in we’ve had a couple of small issues with the apartment — have called or told maintenance and all problems have been fixed straight away. 1 issue in particular Eddie, the main maintenance guy came in and kept at it, trying various things until he solved the problem — did it with a smile on his face too, completely refreshing.
Fair enough, the place is costly — but everywhere around here is costly. Our apartment certainly seems newly renovated too. We haven’t been here long enough to renew the lease yet obviously, so I can’t comment on renewal increases. Haven’t had any bug problem that others have mentioned, nor smell of cigarettes. Can hear the neighbours the odd time but I’ve found that to be an issue everywhere I have lived.
The staff here are lovely & friendly, always chatting to me and giving me hints & tips.
All in all, we’re very satisfied so far. Long may it continue.

Pros:
Location. Near Caltrain.
Elevators.
Lot of parking and open space.
They collect packages and place it inside the house.
Cons:
Very Overpriced for what you get.
Apartments are very old and not renovated. White cabinets etc…
Expect a huge (Really huge) rent increase when you have to extend your lease…
Forget the deposit. They will anyway take it in the name of cleaning etc. how-​much ever you clean it.
The lobby is not clean most of the time and you will have cigarette smell often.
Management is very average for the price you pay.

1. Constant cigarette smoke that seeps into our apartment whenever we open our balcony door.
2. After setting up online payments and receiving a confirmation e-​mail they send up to collections because their online payment system didn’t work and didn’t charge us for the rent.
3. After trying to clear this up, they refuse to accept responsibility and refuse to accept my rent check and force me to pay a penalty (SCAM).
4. Our reserved parking spot always has someone else wrongfully parking in at night.
5. We always come home to mean, threatening notes on our door asking us to be quiet after we haven’t been home all day (??)

I’m really surprised by the negative reviews. My wife and I loved it there (and so did my dog).
I’m in a feisty mood, so let me battle royale the negative comments:
1. Price. Anyone who complains about the price — Y U NO live somewhere else!?? You can’t complain about paying for what you were told you’d pay. And coming from Indiana, I agree that paying anything over $ 1500/​mo is insane, but that’s the nature of Silicon Valley.
2. Bugs. Really?! Bugs? Where? I smashed a few spiders (like maybe 10 over the course of 12 months), but some of these reviews make it sound like there’s a plague.
3. No hot tub. Yeah, because I bet you signed a lease that included a hot tub, but when you showed up they ripped it out and put a sign there that said, «In your face.» (sarcasm font)
4. Amount of light. Pick an apartment that gets more light — they have plenty to choose from.
5. Barking dogs. Dogs do bark occasionally. Mine doesn’t since it’s a labradoodle, but you can occasionally hear them. But it’s not like they’re barking into the wee hours of the morning.
6. Hot water. You do know that you can control the amount of hot water you get… right? You control the hot water tank…
7. Cell phone coverage. (Actually, AT&T does suck, but my friends with Verizon get plenty of signal.)
8. Security Deposit. Haven’t moved out yet — I’ll let you know if they screw me.

I had a decent experience here until the end…
Put down a security deposit of $ 600 only to have $ 389 of it be refunded with the remained going towards painting and «contract cleaning» costs so that they could prep the unit for the next resident. I only lived here a year — why the hell am I paying for that? They charge more than enough in rent to cover those expenses… why leave someone with a bad taste in their mouth on their way out?

I’ve lived here for 3 or so years — in both the 2 and 1 bedroom units.
The good: Location, washer and drier in your unit, quiet complex
The bad: the price, NO HOT TUB, the price, the price increases, the fact that people can smoke indoors, cheap workmanship on the renovation
This is a nice complex, very close to downtown, so if you have the cash, it definitely makes sense to live here. However, I wouldn’t say that the cost is justified.
Considering that the only upscale options are Avalon, or the places right downtown (which are even more expensive), Avalon sort of wins by default.
However, it still doesn’t make sense how heavily they increase their prices from year to year. They explain it as the market cost, but I think there should be something to be said for repaying the loyalty of tenants. This year I received a notice that if I choose to renew, I’ll have to pay a $ 200/​month increase. Unfortunately, that tipped the scale from just barely worth it, to… well… not.
The other bummer about avalon, is that they don’t have a hot tub. THey used to. But, when they renovated (more on that later), they paved over it, and put in a water feature. Unfortunately, you cannot soak your weary bones in a water fountain feature. Well you could, but it wouldn’t be much fun. So, if you’re like me, and want a hot tub… you won’t find it here.
Now as for the renovation… they redid everything, but they did it with pretty cheap material. The counters are made out of plastic made to look like granite. They don’t really look like granite. The dishwasher is so loud that I have to turn my TV up just to hear what’s going on. The washer and drier (at least in my unit) has had a horrible noise, the tumbler has gone off its hinges, and overflowed in my apartment.
As for the service, there are some people in the office that are absolutely amazing! I can’t say enough nice things about Miriam. She knows how to get the job done.
In conclusion: If you have $$ and you want to live near downtown, this is a good location.
And, one final tip: I don’t recommend units on the backside of the complex. It’s right next to the train tracks and you will hear and potentially feel the train as it goes by.

Don’t let the 3 stars scare you, this is a positive review!
Avalon Mtn. View is a good place to live. My husband and I have had a good experience living here for the past 1+ years, but I’m giving is 3 stars because it’s been ‘good’ opposed to ‘great’ (4 stars) or ‘amazing’ (5 stars).
Community:
The community is quiet, all the other residents either keep to themselves or willingly engage in friendly conversation. The train does run on the backside of the community so don’t live on the back row of the apartments if that sort of noise bothers so. We hear the train from our apartment, but even when it’s a freight train it’s not obnoxious. The grounds are well kept and it’s an easy walk to Castro and the Caltrain/​VTA.
The office and maintenance staff is very friendly and helpful. It takes about 24 hours (if that) to resolve your maintenance requests.
The community residents are a pretty mixed bag, but I’m impressed at how young the community is.
Pool:
They say it’s a heated pool, but I almost never get in so I couldn’t tell you. The pool rarely gets overrun, you can almost always find a seat. I love the outdoor grill area which is comfortable and clean. The grills are really nice and so it the fire pit. I have enjoyed some BBQs and late afternoon sun in that area :).
Apartments:
Our apartment is a second floor with neighbors above and below. The upstairs neighbors can make some noise and although annoying I’ve never been «upset» with them. I can accept that I live in an apartment community in close proximity to others. As for the people downstairs… I question if they’re actually even there.
When we moved in the apartments had all been updated with new kitchens. The major appliances aren’t amazing, but they’re newer and work! Not to mention they were spotless when we moved in.
Bugs
A common complaint I have seen on Unilocal and heard from other residents is that the apartments are buggy. Our second floor apartment does not have a surplus of bugs. I’d also like to mention that the location of our apartment doesn’t get a lot of direct sun, so you’d expect a lot more bugs, but it’s not out of control or gross. There are bugs though, like with any home/​apartment. I find that using our screens and screen door have really cut back on the bugginess this summer. I can’t speak for the other levels of the apartments though. If confronted with a bug or spider I just break out the vacuum. Problem solved.
Utilities:
Our utilities are extremely low! To the degree that we have literally never turned on our AC or heat (in over a year).
Other features:
If you are a dog owner and love your dog, Avalon does too. There is a fenced dog park in the community. The entire community has poop bags stocked and the dog park features a dog water fountain.
There is a hose in the back of the complex for washing your car. A nice feature!
Bottom line is that I could think of far worse places to live. Definitely one of the better options we found in this area.

3 stars, but I still wouldn’t recommend it, if you catch my drift. It might be your only option if you wanna live in Mountain View, have pets, and have your own washer/​dryer.
Pros:
–Spacious apartments, kitchen has ample room for storage. After half a year, we’ve finally been able to fill all our cabinets with pots, pans, cups, plates, and food.
–Contrary to what other people said, we have not had a bug problem. Nor a noise problem. Most noises you hear from neighbors are when they drop something heavy. But nobody has really broken the 10pm-​8 am noise ordinance, at least in our building. However, we are on the top floor, so you might deal with bugs and feet from the apartment above if you live on a bottom unit. I’d suggest you get a top unit, if you can.
–Maintenance staff has been wonderful and attentive.
–Parking spaces aren’t insanely compact, like in other Avalons I’ve stayed at.
Cons:
–If you live near a dumpster, armadas of homeless people will periodically take the recycling. Some even engage in dumpster diving, which I feel is an invasion of privacy. The leasing office just tells us to call the Mountain View police, who have heard it enough times that it’s like a boy crying wolf. Besides, by the time they arrive, the bandits have left on makeshift bicycles. It seems to be an accepted practice in Mountain View, but it kinda undermines the «No Trespassing» signs.
–The train can be loud at times. 45 times per hour, to be exact.
–The A/​C and heating system is seriously flawed. One heater in the bedroom, which you don’t turn on for fear of catching the bed on fire, and one poorly placed A/​C in the living room. It’s not even summer, yet for the past month, my wife has disappeared in the middle of the night to sleep on the couch because that’s the only cool place in the house.
–The hot water takes a long time to get going, and then it’s boiling hot. Takes some getting used to. Let’s just say I know the number to the burn ward by heart.
–Balcony roof does not cover anything. It seems like the check bounced and the roofers just quit in the middle of the job.
–Gym layout is a little strange. Two elliptical trainers, which everyone covets, a stair-​stepper, 3 treadmills, exercise bike, and weights. Anyway, the layout is just messed up because the 2 trainers are next to each other, and the free weights are behind them, so that corner of the room gets all stuffy. I’d rather it have 3 or 4 ellipticals, and spread out more. (Sometimes when I get into the gym and it’s just one person on the elliptical, I don’t feel right going to the elliptical next to them, because that’s like getting into a doctor’s waiting room and sitting next to somebody when there’s 7 available chairs.) Also, they need to fix the cable TV situation.
Summation:
Regardless of all its cons, it feels like a secure place to stay.
The only thing with Avalons is that they almost always jack up your rent once the lease is up. I mean, every weekend there are scores and scores of U-​Hauls moving people in and moving people out. But that’s every Avalon, because of their leasing ultimatum… You can either pay $ 200 more per month for your new lease, or you can go through the hassle of moving.