Avalon La Jolla Colony

My boyfriend and I moved here several months ago and we absolutely love living here! The leasing team (Kara, Abbey, and Denise) are so nice and helpful! We looked at several communities in different neighborhoods before choosing Avalon La Jolla Colony. The updated finishes are beautiful and the washer/​dryer in unit is a dream come true. We love the close proximity to La Jolla and UTC, plus downtown isn’t too far! Can we stay forever?

So I’ve lived here for 10 months now. I haven’t lived in a multi tenant complex like this since college, so I didn’t know what to expect. I must say my expectations have been exceeded. I found that it has a good mix of young professionals, families, and students (to be expected for the area). They really care about their tenants and the girls at the office (Kara and Abby) are really attentive to your requests. Sammy also works at the office and he adds some good flavor to the group. Any time something breaks at the unit they send out Hector or Arturo or another guy, which I can’t say his name, and they get the job done. The grounds are always well maintained and they are now upgrading the units to be very modern with better amenities. The best part is they are super dog friendly and their is a park right next door that you can play with your dog at. Location, customer service, and over all value for your money are why I’d give them a 5 star. Hope to meet you as a neighbor soon.

Great place to live. Not one single complaint. Office staff is fantastic. Property is quiet, safe, clean, and plenty of parking in the garage at all times.

Honeslty, I have no complaints about living here. We chose an 11 month lease. It was an easy process, cheap deposit and its dog friendly. The location is amazing and the outdoor opportunities are great.
Staff: staff is good. Easy to communicate with and will help you if you need it.
Maintenance: I can rave enough about the maintenance staff. They are very friendly and are very good about responding within 24 hours. Never had any emergencies.
Amenities: gym is super small. We had a layout with a washer/​dryer inside, but they also have an on site laundry with lots of available machines to use. Parking is easy to find and they have ample extra spaces in the secured garage underneath.
Apartments: we had a two bed/​one bath layout. It was a good size but unfortunately, we need a little more space for storage. We have an unusual amount of equipment for work. It’s great for roommate situations or couples, students… etc
Location: is amazing. The parks and landscaping is lush and well maintained. The park is just amazing. Very close to trader joes, whole foods, vons, and Ralph’s.
Overall: a good experience. Would recommend to a couple or students who are new to the area. It’s a great way to lace to start in San Diego

Upset with the management of Avalon La Jolla community!!!
I have lived here for 6 months and had a variety of problems that you may expect and some strange ones as well. The one I would like to mentioned happened to me tonight. My parents are in town because I am moving out in 3 days so my apartment is packed up other than essentials. My dad woke up to the dishwasher noise thinking my mom had turned on the dish washer but instead found my dishwater flooding my kitchen. I immediately called maintenance and it took 40 minutes from my initial call for maintenance to come. I have only awesome things to say about Maintainance here! They have been friendly and extremely helpful for my time here. I am more upset with the way Avalon managed the situation. I ended up unpacking towels to control the water and now have to do wash on my own dime. This includes buying new detergent because I had used mine up in the process of packing.
This was an EMERGENCY and I was helpless. Surprisingly there is NO ONE on site that can help with maintenance emergencies. Also the hotline crew did not have any information about how I could turn off my water supply.
To my knowledge every «emergency» call goes through a process before anyone is sent out to deem it an emergency. This process needs to revamped. If avalon is to keep calls on standby until someone says it’s a true emergency than they should educate the hotline employees on information that may help the tenants momentarily fix issues.
This complex is old and un renovated. problems will occur, unfortunately if it is an emergency you are SOL. Again I would not say anything bad about the maintenance staff the way they are managed is not their problem. once the young man arrived he worked fast and hard to fix the situation in both apartments.

Pro: Great Views of the park
Con: Very noisy gardening. You’ll never sleep in.
Big Con: You will not get your deposit back /​you may owe more
The one thing I am not happy about and the reason why I’m writing this review is to warn you that you will not get your deposit back. We were there for three months, and after losing a roommate we broke the lease and moved to a cheaper apartment. We had a $ 500 pet deposit and a $ 99 deposit on the apartment. We had the carpets professionally cleaned before we moved out and we didn’t paint or damage the walls.
After hearing nothing from them for over a month, we get called saying we owe them more money. They took out the prorated rent for the extra week we were there along with the utility bills which is what we were expecting, but we were charged $ 500 for «damages» including $ 150 for repainting the walls, $ 150 for carpet cleaning that we already did and the rest for house cleaning. These are all ridiculously expensive fees for cleaning a 950 square foot apartment. The carpet cleaning we had done was only $ 70 for the entire place, and there’s no way they had to repaint 150 dollars worth.
They are calling me and my old roommates five times a day including our jobs even after we talk to them. This isn’t even collections, this is part of Avalon harassing us. I am very unpleased with the way they treat their past tenants and It’s even worse that they decided to get ahold of us two weeks after the bill was already due, and threatened to send us to collections within a week if we didn’t pay the bill.
I’m sorry but this is not a place where they will treat you well. Avoid any place like this at all cost and find a privately owned rental. Don’t ignore the reviews like we did :(

Hi,
Following our ‘Welcome Fall’ event today, I figured I’ll write a quick review here jut to raise some objective awareness :)
I just renewed my lease here at Archstone and yes, even though it’s true I also suffered a rent increase, compared to the other communities in the area, this is still the cheapest one — and I live in a 2BR/​1BA apartment.
I lived in an Archstone complex back in SF as well so you can tell I’m a fan, but I def love living in this one even more — at least it gets warm here in SD so I can actually use the pool :)
Anyways — it’s a great community, it really is. It’s in a great location, just off the I-​5 (that sounds like a humming sound that I don’t mind at all, I actually kinda like it — secluded yet still in the center); it’s not too crowded but you get to see your neighbors (who actually show up to events so you get to talk to them too), it’s pet friendly — and there’s a dog park right across the street and also a very green awesome park as the backyard where you can go running or do whatever sport you’re into; it’s walking distance to Vons (if you don’t feel like getting in the car and driving to Ralphs/​Whole Foods to only get milk) and there’s also in that square Starbucks, Papa John’s, Yoga place, Veterinarian, Mexican food place, mani/​pedi shop, a coffee place, an Italian restaurant and a few more…; Like I said — really cool neighbors; AWESOME staff (yay Ashley!) — they’re always smiling and helpful and fast to respond and really doing their best; cool events — like once every month or two; there’s the amenities that include the pool, the jacuzzi, the fitness room, laundry room and club room; maintenance team here are simply terrific — they’re so friendly and helpful and always get to you on a timely manner and are able to fix everything (Thanks, Hector!); you can choose to either park outside or get a remote to the underground parking garage (no extra $$) — and these are all of the top off my head.
My apartment itself is great — I am overlooking the pool and I get a lot of sunlight, it’s spacious and I have my own washer/​dryer in unit. The layout is great and the ceiling fans come in very handy on those hot summer days.
As for the ‘bad’ things… there aren’t really that many. Yes, there’s the rent increase which is a bummer; I had to call night patrol maybe twice (in the last 10 months) just to ask them to kick some youngsters out of the pool for being too loud (and they showed up a minute later, got them out and I was able to go back to sleep) and that’s pretty much it.
My boyfriend and his dog just moved in with me and it still feels like we’ve got plenty of space so that’s pretty cool. So yeah, I love living here — I’m close to everything, I have a neighbor who became a really good friend of mine and whenever something comes up — I feel like there’s always someone at the leasing office I can talk to that will help me solve it.

I’ve been living here for 9 months now and I love this place! Amble parking, pet friendly (doggie stations throughout the complex), located next to a well groomed park and a 5 min walk to the UCSD shuttle and Vons. Their best feature however are the maintenance staff. They are friendly and professional and will go out of their way to help you weather it’s replacing a refrigerator or fixing the facet, or even helping you jump start your car! I can’t say enough great things about them.
Of course there’s some minor issues like the office closing Monday and Sunday so it makes getting packages a little difficult (we get a lot of them) but I noticed it’s like that with other apartment as well. The only difference here is that with one call to the office and they will have someone bring your stuff straight to your apartment! That’s great service! One major complaint I hear from our neighbors is that management will hike up the rent after the first year so we’re a little worry about that since our lease is about to end but I can’t really complain about something that hasn’t happened yet.

This is a great complex! 4.5 stars
My partner and I have lived here for 6 months.
Office staff are friendly, quick to respond to/​follow up with any requests or concerns, maintenance or otherwise. They always greet us with a friendly demeanor and are happy to help us or even just chat about the day.
They even host monthly events, like a BBQ or an easter egg hunt– and each time they have prizes! I have even won a 50 $ gift certificate that way. :)
We love the bike and running trails nearby, park, and Von’s just a 5 minute walk away! The grounds and park nearby are impeccably groomed.
There are always plenty of parking spots. The typical clientele really varies from college students, young professionals all the way to retired persons, both single people, couples, and a few with young families. It seems like everyone owns a dog here and my partner and I feel really safe in this area (we don’t have a dog).
Our apartment faces the running path and we don’t hear any noise from the 5– we get all the convenience of being so close to the highway but don’t hear it at all, which is ideal. We do get some dog noise from eager dog walkers on the weekend mornings, but it isn’t too much of a bother. Now that summer is here there is more use of the park and paths and therefore more noise as well.
This is a great complex. We have become good friends with a few of our neighbors, but in general people seem to keep to themselves here. That is not the complex’s fault, as they have events to bring people together– there is even an outdoor concert happening this Sunday evening.
We would renew our lease if our apartment got better sunlight to grow food on the balcony and if it was closer to our work. The paint job in the apartment is not great– we have found multiple hairs painted on the wall… ewww. However I’m thinking much of that comes from lazy tenants rushing to move out rather than painters contracted to do work here. However, all in all we have been extremely happy here and would highly recommend the community!

We lived here for a year from 2013 through 2014, and while our experience wasn’t all bad, there were a number of issues that would prevent me from recommending this complex to anyone looking for a new home. But first, let’s get the good stuff out of the way.
The locale is great. It’s next door to a large nicely maintained park, walking distance from a shopping center with a Vons. A short drive to a large pair of shopping centers on Nobel Drive, the UTC mall, UCSD, and the ⁵⁄₅₂. There’s even lots of places to run, or even go for a ride.
The complex itself is relatively well groomed. Grass is nice and green, and the landscaping is well maintained.
Parking is pretty great. There are a LOT of spots, some are narrow, but you’ll be hard pressed to not find a spot.
Very dog friendly. You’ll see (and unfortunately, hear) lots of dogs, and there is a dog park across the street. They also have bag/​poop stations dispersed around the property, which is handy.
The maintenance staff is top notch. Seriously, these guys were on the ball. Any and all problems I had were quickly rectified, usually the same day. They’re friendly and professional, and I can’t say enough good things about them. If they represented the entirety of our experience here, it would be a 5 star complex easily.
Ok, so with that out of the way…
The apartment walls and floors are ridiculously thin. You can hear your neighbors TVs and music, and you can feel the floors shake when people in your unit walk around. For what you pay, privacy is basically a joke.
The ambient noise is terrible. If you face the park, you seriously luck out. The rest of the units are flooded with noise from the parking lot, interstate, and neighboring complexes.
The tenants have increasingly leaned toward younger college students in and around the complex. This meant an increase in noise at night, to the point where we were woken up many times by loud partying, or inconsiderate jerks yelling outside.
A lot of the new tenants are shockingly lazy when it comes to cleaning up after their dogs. There were countless times where I’d see a pile of poo only a few yards from a poop station. As a dog owner, that kind of crap pisses me off because it makes dog owners look bad. CLEAN UP AFTER YOUR PET!
There is a huge silverfish problem. While these insects are mostly harmless (despite their creepy look), they do like to eat clothes, and our apartment was basically overrun with them. I’d see at least one almost daily.
The new management seemed more inclined to get new tenants rather than keep existing ones happy, or enforce rules of the lease. One thing that shocked us was the number of middle and top level apartments with large dogs, something that was restricted in the lease. As I said before, the floors are thin, and our downstairs neighbor told us he could hear our dogs when they’d play, and they’re only 25lbs. Having 2 large 85+ pound dogs bouncing around can’t be fun for downstairs neighbors.
Another surprise was when they didn’t notify my girlfriend of a package arrival because they were «busy.» This was on a Saturday, and because their hours suck and they’re closed Sunday and Monday, she had to wait until Tuesday to get it. I was also rudely pushed aside when I stopped by to pick up a package. I’m sorry, but prospective lessees can wait 5 minutes while the existing tenants are taken care of.
The employees in the office cycle pretty regularly, so I will say that the lady we dealt with during our move out was friendly and helpful.
The parking situation seems to be more lax as well. I noticed an influx of cars without stickers, and people parking and then walking to a neighboring complex. There are lots of spots, so finding one usually isn’t a problem, but there were times when there were so many random cars, we had a hard time finding one.
We couldn’t wait to move out, despite loving the area, but the locale just isn’t worth the premium you pay… The location is great, it’s a generally nice looking property, and the maintenance staff is great, but once the initial sheen of the place wears off, you’ll want out.

We have lived at Avalon for a year and a half now, and while things have been rocky at times it is an overall okay place to live.
Pros:
Location is great! Next to a gorgeous park, and close to a shopping center with Vons.
Pool area is nice, and not really ever crowded. Great for BBQ’s in the summer.
All of the staff are incredibly nice, and if they can’t fix a problem for you its usually because its out of their control. Maintenance responds quickly.
Gym has all new equipment, and is never in use.
Cons:
The landscaper is on site everyday M-​F from 8am-​5pm, and walks around with his gas blower running for hours each day, always starting right at 9am, even on holidays! You will never sleep in with this guy around.
The laundry room is small, only 6 W/​D, and residents will leave their clothes in them for days so you can’t always use them when you need to. The W/​D themselves are old, and smell so gross, hate that we have to wash our clothes in them.
The will do a pretty steep increase on rent for your renewal, and it already is not a very cost friendly place to start.
All in all, I really have only enjoyed living here because of the location to everything else I use. The apartments are just really old, and you pay way too much for them.

This complex has gone over some changes over the last 2 years and a total change of management. It’s now owned by Avalon. The maintenance crew might be the best and most friendly crew I’ve ever encoutered. I just moved out and BEWARE of the process of that. Don’t for a second think you’re getting any of your security back. It won’t happen. They said we were getting $ 100 back after carpets and cleaning, instead send us a bill for close to $ 400 claiming we broke our lease and for things already covered in the rent agreement that you pay every month!!! (also someon else I knew that moved out had the same excact thing happen) Bottom line, the appartment itself is ok, the management is not helpful and the Avalon company WILL screw you.

We moved into Archstone La Jolla Colony (now Avalon Bay) after being in a nightmare situation at La Jolla Canyon (due to paper thin walls and neighbors who boomed video games that shook our walls – not late at night so we really couldn’t complain to the office, but it was still extremely loud).
We lived in the approximately 540 square foot apartment on the 3^rd floor right across the street from the dog park.
Pros:
–wonderful, friendly office staff that were very helpful and always keeping residents informed (I loved the 30-​day guarantee too)
–friendly maintenance staff
–lovely park next to the complex
–walking to Vons and restaurants
–balcony storage room
–being in the small, single bedroom apartment building seems to mean that your neighbors are «typically» singles or couples, thus reducing the likelihood of being next to a two-​bedroom apartment rented out by loud students or young professionals, I never once heard anyone partying
–ample parking
–friendly neighbors, maybe it’s due to dog-​owners being quite friendly in general but we got a lot more smiles than in other apartment complexes I’ve lived in
–easy lease break, you just pay one month’s rent and you can move out with a 30-​day notice
Cons:
–very small living space for the price
–freeway noise (the windows and doors seemed to be double-​paned but it was still pretty loud, however the freeway drowned out most neighbor-​noise!)
–lots of mold and condensation in the winter time
–the «token» neighbor who keeps their dogs off leash and lets them roam in the hallways or grassy areas near apartment building (while I like dogs, some people don’t and it’s hard if you invite friends or family over and they are afraid of animals which are off leash)
–move-​out charges: I understood the charge for deep-​cleaning the apartment, but being charged for some touch up paint was a surprise (especially as we left the apartment in prime condition)
–carpet had a bit of a funny smell when we moved in, not sure if it was due to previous dogs living in the home or something else

I lived in this complex for a year 2012 – 2013 and I wanted to wait until I moved out to write my full & honest review.
Pros:
–I was able to get a great deal on an apartment ($ 1170/​month for a one bedroom 630 sq ft) by watching their online system. Certain times of the year the prices will drop quite a bit (I got mine mid Feb). The exact same apartment right above me went for over $ 1400 a month, so I lucked out. This «value» is the only reason for the 3 star rating.
–The staff here is very nice
–Complex is quiet — I rarely heard any noise from other apartments or in the main areas
–I got most of my security deposit back when I moved out — based on some other reviews I saw I was not expecting this so it was a pleasant surprise.
Cons:
–They raised my rent quite a bit from year 1 to year 2, which is why I decided to move out. I found a HUGE (950 sq ft) & much nicer place for only $ 150 more per month.
–Safety issues. This was my main reason for moving out. There are regular car break ins and I personally had two friends have their cars broken in to. One night there was someone armed running around the complex, complete with a helicopter search crew — it was very scary. I never slept the same after this incident. As a female living alone, this community is not secure and does not feel safe.
–Water issues. In my entire year living here, I ***never once*** had a pleasant shower. The water temp would go from freezing cold to scalding hot at random 100% of the time. Showering was downright terrifying.
–VERY HIGH electric bill. I have lived in apartments for over 6 years, and never have I paid so much in electric –up until this apartment I would typically pay $ 40/​month and here I paid around $ 170 per month! I have no clue why — my guess is that something was wrong internally in the apartment that i had no control over, and I was forced to pay for it. Really annoying but no one would help me resolve the issue after many tries so I gave up.
Overall I would probably not recommend living here — there are better options all around the UTC area.

this is the worst apartment complex ever as well as info or signs on were to park for visitor’s frnd lives there i dont_​thank god_​the 2 girls at the main office gave both of us attitude and were extremely rude… i went to visit my frnd… i went in the main entrance and parked out front in front of the pool when i drove in there was no sign of guest parking. eitherway i was quick came to say hi less than an hr i was there as i walked out to the parking i didnt see my car. wasnt there… i went back to my frnds house and i’m like dude weres my car??? she walked outside and was like are u serious??? im like yeah my car is gone… we immediately went to the main office and asked if they had towed a gold camry the girl that was there said «ooh yeah we did. sorry!!“i said but i was here for less than an hr. why would you towe my car??? i was effing pissed off! i had to be at wrk at 2 i had less than an hr to get to wrk and my car was somewhere in mira mar. ridiculous they didnt seem to give a # 2 just a paper with the towing company#…ofcourse! i payed $ 263 to get my car back. thanks alot! i could of bought myself a new purse… im a very understanding person and i would of totally understood if they towed my car if i had left it overnight or maybe for more than 6 hrs. but for less than an hr? really??? one word ladies. KARMA…is a bitch!

I’ve been meaning to write up on ALJC for a loooong time. This 2-​star cumulative over a grand total of three reviews is pretty much proof of what people already know: most people reviewing their apartment complexes do it so they can bitch and moan in a passive aggressive fashion.
I lived at Archstone by myself in a one-​bedroom unit for over a year before getting married last summer. I’m pretty easygoing and don’t expect too much from my apartment complex other than a nice, quiet place to live with a professional, responsive office staff. I kept to myself generally and didn’t ask much from the staff other than to give me my packages, please :) Also, I was a first-​year medical student and spent the majority of my time studying… at home.
Sooooo…here are some impartial comments I have after reading the other reviews and the anti-​Archstone website that looks like it’s been taken down:
— You can hear and smell the grass being cut from 8 – 3 every Monday-​Thursday? Hmmm… I call bullshit. In fact I remember reading this review for the first time on a Tuesday at 1 pm… from my living room. And it was silent! I had to rack my brain to try and think of a single time that anyone’s lawnmowing had disturbed me. I also couldn’t even remember HEARING lawnmowers. Granted, I’m sure they were there, hence the beautiful grass, but they were definitely not loud enough to bug me. Perhaps that statement applies to people who live in different parts of the complex? In any case… not true for me.
— Bugs and mold all over the apartment? Again, I’m confused. Sure, I saw maybe three silverfish total in over a year, but that was it. No spiders. No mold. Maybe because I lived on the second floor? Or maybe because I normally clean my apartment. Not sure.
— I had no problems with management or maintenance. Whenever I put in a service request, the staff was quick to respond. I had ONE instance when they didn’t call me back to schedule an appointment when they said they would… and you know what I did? I called them to remind them… and they sent someone immediately. No fuss, no grudge, no big deal.
— A few pros: The dog park across the street and the huge green park next to the complex are amazing. The grounds are well-​kept and beautiful. And you can’t complain about having a pool and hot tub. Also, one of my favorite things about Archstone is the fact that you can see exactly which units (down to the apartment number) are available in real time via their website… and you can start your lease on any day of the month and your rent will be prorated. Even cooler is the fact that you can get approved and get your lease going online too… I secured my apartment online from LA one weekend before I moved to SD.
— Cons: The parking spots are definitely a tight squeeze, that’s for sure. Also, I did get solicitors occasionally, but it wasn’t that often… and I wouldn’t consider that the apartment’s fault unless I lived in a gated community. And finally, for my 13^th month, I did have a much higher rent since I was renewing for such a short period of time (longer lease = cheaper rent). However, it was prorated for the twenty-​two days I was staying there, which was appreciated.
I encourage everyone to review apartment complexes! Otherwise you end up with very few reviews and mostly crappy ones. This place may not have been perfect, but it kept me comfortable and happy for a year. Period!

I searched for the perfect apartment for months. Archstone La Jolla Colony is by far the best complex in the area. Great Location, all apartments are upgraded, awesome amenities. It’s quiet and serene at all hours… the complex backs a huge park.
All of this is reason enough to call Archstone LJC home but I can’t even begin to describe the appreciation I have for the staff at Archstone La Jolla Colony. From the beginning they have been very helpful and professional, made the moving process so much easier. Last week my dog walker lost my dog and the staff went to great lengths to help me find him. From calling Animal Control to Radio Stations, they went above and beyond their scope of responsibility in the matter and even comforted me when I was a crying mess. I am still amazed by the kindness of their staff. I couldn’t be happier calling Archstone La Jolla Colony home

The maintenance and leasing office staff are undoubtedly the highlight of this apartment complex. Amy, Melissa and Joaquin have all been immensely helpful during my time here – their professionalism and concern for tenants greatly exceeds that of other leasing offices.
The apartments are in a solid location with a park next door, dog park across the street, and trails throughout La Jolla Colony and Rose Canyon. Highly recommended.