Circa 37 Apartments

I moved to circa37 about 5 months ago… and I guess it’s sufficient time to have an opinion about place you live. So. Love where you live — this is all about circa 37. Management team is always nice and friendly, from the very first moment we met them till today. the apartment complex is always clean, quite and well organized. Yes, the $ is a little bit higher then the rest of mission valley area apartments, but you feel yourself treated well vs rent.

I lived here for 2 years before we decided to move on. For the first year, we had their largest model and it was my wife and I plus a roommate; our second year we had the smallest model available and it was just the two of us.
The staff is incredibly competent though there is a high turnover rate. Narciso heads the maintenance effort and does an incredible job.
The new appliances are all very nice though the freezers sometimes struggle with ice production. Energy bills here compared to the current place I live in without new appliances are significantly lower.
The pool is fantastic but the hours being cut off at 10 PM stink; while I was there there was no leeway. Weekends get very crowded here and it’s annoying when people try to reserve the cabanas at 7 AM but don’t show up until hours later. There is otherwise a great party atmosphere here. One time, however, there was an enormous fight that broke out that required the police to be called. Rules about no dogs in the pool area aren’t enforced which was gross and unclean.
The neighborhood is growing and I genuinely think the Civita neighborhood will be fantastic. The neighbors, in general were great!
So why only 3 stars? Several reasons:
1. There is a good deal of petty theft here. I’ve even had items like a potted flower stolen from my 3^rd floor apartment. A neighbor of mine had his gas siphoned. It is a constant complaint.
2. Homeless are on the property constantly.
3. The security patrol is a joke and seems to fire their personnel on a weekly basis.
4. Parking is terrible. Do not expect your guests to find parking here. Garages are super tiny too. Street parking isn’t much better.
5. The mail system is apparently very confusing for the mail service — mail is constantly mis-​delivered and packages left out should be expected to be stolen. I and my neighbors routinely had missing mail or packages. Routinely. As in, very often.
6. Finally, there is almost no way to get your security deposit back. Our first apartment we had all 3 of us clean and we got less than $ 6 back out of I think $ 800. The second apartment was no better. Their claims of repainting and amortization are… Off. Our leasing agent told us no matter how clean they hire a company to do cleaning so there’s almost no way to get any back. It’s ridiculous and something, had I not had to move quickly, that I wanted to pursue with legal counsel to see if their calculations were allowable under California law. I’ve never lived anywhere else that took so much from the deposit.

By fate I happened to be passing Circa 37 Apartments. I decided to take a chance and check out an apartment. As my present lease was ending in three weeks. I was extremely lucking walking in and getting Carol Lim as my leasing agent. I am close to 60 years old with a lot of anxiety and concerns about moving. Carol could not have been more professional, patient and understanding. Carol Lim took her time and listened to my concerns. Carol is an asset to this community as I am sure she would be an asset where ever she was employed. If you stop by the leasing office look for Carol Lim and tell her Dan sent you!
I did my research as to parking and noise. All big complexes have issues for guests parking. I currently live in Hillcrest, now try finding guest or street parking in Hillcrest. There is street parking around complex. Went back to the building at different times before leasing found the area very quiet as far as San Diego goes.

Stay away!
We stopped in to do some apartment hunting and they had no future resident parking. After driving around for a half hour I decided to just park in residence parking. As I walked inside I was warned that I would be towed if I did not move my car. I asked if they had a parking pass they could let me use so I could tour the apartments and was told no. So I asked if there was a place for guest parking that I may be able to use and was told sorry, we don’t have guest parking either.
Ok, so you have no guest or future resident parking, all of your street parking is being taken up by residents. How do you expect people to view your apartments?
I think I will take my business elsewhere!

Moved here from Chicago and was so happy to find this apartment complex! We are used to even higher rent prices and although on the high end for San Diego, we found their options more affordable than LA, SF and even Chicago. Units have nice finishings like dark wood inspired floors, grey walls, caesar stone counters, stainless steel appliances, annnnd lots of amenities! We surveyed all the complexes in the neighborhood and you get the most bang for your buck here. Staff has always been super easy to work with, especially Carol! take advantage of move-​in specials though-​out the year, referral credits, and they’ll even waive your move out penalty if you buy within the Civita development.
Its only been 6 months and we’ve referred quite a few people to the area. West Park is the complex across the street which is also under the same umbrella though has more a hotel vibe. Only moving out early because we decided to buy a condo more up north closer to work.
Definitely some negatives. Community is kind of mixed. lots of families, lots of kids, lots of pets. all great. but also a lot of younger more ‘eclectic’ group that definitely deter from the wholesome vibe. we have particularly loud neighbors above us, trash areas that accumulate, and we even have had some packages taken :(
i’ll update how move out goes but will definitely be sad to go! Will miss being so close to Ikea, Costco and Fashion Valley Mall. Will not miss all the rush hour traffic!!!

The good stuff: The apartment was spotless when my I moved in (except for a clogged shower drain, which was easy enough to fix). The staff is extremely pleasant, patient, and helpful. The leasing office is open everyday. The amenities (fire pit, gym, sky lounge, pool, hot beverages, sometimes even snacks) are kept in great condition and are very convenient and beautiful. The free tea/​coffee/​cocoa in the leasing center was a great touch (although I wish its availability spanned the clock more). The overall layout and surrounding area are very nice to walk around at any time of day or night. The no smoking anywhere within the community was also great for my wife and me. Their flexibility with lease breakage for military PCS transfers was very pain-​free. There were community events fairly often as well.
The neutral: Of the entire deposit, I received back 36% of it. I personally didn’t feel that $ 100 worth of paint damage had been done. If you choose to move here, it’ll probably be good to just expect that a majority portion of the deposit will not be returned to you. I may be wrong about this though, and I welcome Circa to provide some kind of statistic on how much deposit is typically returned.
The stuff that made me sigh: *some* of the other people in the community. The ones with the really loud muscle cars and motorcycles. Because everyone is super impressed with your 130 decibel engine at 11pm… and it’s so much better when you rev it up at 3am. It got to the point where I couldn’t sleep with the window open to enjoy the fresh San Diego air. Thank goodness Circa installed good windows and doors that block a lot of noise; unfortunately it didn’t help my AC bill much, Some of those same noise-​producing individuals felt it was also okay to smoke within the community (which, if you read the signs that are posted everywhere, is not permitted). It was just frequently aggravating to see some people living in the same pleasant community completely disregarding human decency by forcing their obnoxious noises, smells, and carcinogens upon the nice quiet folk who just want to live quietly and peacefully.
The verdict: The place worked great for the 5 months I was there, but I don’t think I’d move back. The strict pet policy (how many, what kind, additional pet rent) and loud vehicles are the biggest detractors for me, but I am finding that I just like renting a standalone house more than the apt complex thing. Circa is beautifully designed and staffed. I just wish the more obnoxious residents would learn some consideration for the vast majority of the decent people living there.

Best apartments I’ve ever lived! You can find here whatever you want: swimming pool, gym, pool, lounge, rest areas, even cinema! Apartments are big and bright, a lot of parking slots. Also is big plaza with Ralph’s, Starbucks, restaurants etc across the street. Missing valley have a great location, only 7 minutes to downtown and 10 minutes to the mission beach. I highly recommend this place to rent some apartments. And personal are always nice, friendly and helpful.

I lived here for three months, while waiting for my new condo to be ready. I enjoyed my stay here. The apartment felt and looked like it was new. Everything was in very good condition, and felt ‘upgraded’ over cheaper apartments. Staff was quite nice and very responsive. I didn’t have any complaints about the property or other tenants. I did see some complaints from others regarding smoking of pot, smoking of cigs, and other rules violations. I did not observe any myself. The gym is quite nice, with TVs on the cardio equipment. Pool is huge, with several cabanas and grilling areas around the property. All in all it should be at the top of your list for a centrally located property.
The only complaint I had was the EXTREME, and I mean EXTREME, sensitivity of the living room smoke detector. It was so sensitive that every time I cooked, it went off. This triggered smoke alarms in the whole building and I had to use my jacket to waft over the detector to get it to shut off. I had to resort to microwave dinners so as to not trip the detector everyday.

Moved into Circa 37 just a month ago and so far I have mostly good things to say. That’s not to say there aren’t any issues but rather there were no surprises! We have a first floor unit as wanted to have an attached garage, so we were prepared for neighbors above us (unfortunately when people are inconsiderate enough to jump rope on hardwood floors knowing fully well there are people leaving beneath, that’s hardly the fault of the community !) but yes the flooring and walls are very thin. Being on the first floor and facing westside drive we did encounter security issues a couple of times and I wish the community was gated ! But we kinda knew about this so can’t really blame the community. The staff — outstanding and ready to go out of the way to ensure your satisfaction. Maintenance staff is super prompt, apartments are in immaculate condition. Amenities top notch and appropriately maintained. The attached garage could have been slightly larger and finding parking outside your designated spot for a second vehicle can be challenging esp later in the evening. All in all would definitely recommend circa 37, just be prepared and don’t walk into this lease or any lease for that matter with your eyes closed !

This place used to be a great place to live. Now it has been taken over by college students who drag race down the street all night long and drunks returning from the bars yelling and screaming. Want a good night sleep? Well you will not get it at Circa 37!

This is absolutely the best apartment community in the world! The management staff is extraordinary, and the maintenance staff is A+. I’d happily live here for 10 years!

I moved in to Circa 37 when it was brand new and stayed for the better part of two years. I was hesitant on spending a bit more on rent when I first moved in. My hesitation was unfounded.
First and foremost the staff is attentive and courteous. The front office team responds quickly to concerns and was always helpful. The maintenance team (Dave and Narciso) are spot on. You can tell they take pride in the presentation of the community — they live onsite. They both became part of our extended family.
Second — The amenities are top notch, warning — they will ruin you if you look anywhere else-​nothing will compare. Cabanas with ceiling fans, satellite radio and wide screen TVs. It is like living at a resort but better.
Third — The community. The management hosts mixers and events for tenants which are always catered, open bar, etc. Movie nights, themed parties, always a good time. This is the only place I have ever lived where I really got to know my neighbors. We took trips together, celebrated life events, parties, everything. You always have those neighbors that make life difficult — it is apartment living and there is nothing management or a community can do to change that, it is what it is. taken as a whole the community is great. It is what you make of it so if you go in with a positive attitude you will have a great time, if you are someone who looks for the bad in everything, you will find it.
You get what you pay for here. It costs a little more than market but you get a lot more for it. At the end of the day, I had a great time. When I took the last box out of my place when I moved, it struck me that I was really going to miss all of Circa37 when I was gone.
And I do.

I LOVED living here for nearly two years. I moved out with the intention of moving back when they start leasing apartments at West Park. The plans for this community look AMAZING. Being centrally located to so many amazing places in San Diego is what makes living in this part of mission valley so awesome.
Some of the low ratings here are by residents that many of the rest of us did not get along with and were happy to see leave. My building was amazing. There would always be smiling faces and hellos when I was leaving or coming home from work. I do feel sorry for those who rated this place low. Having some interaction with some of them I would venture to say they are the type of people that would not be happy anywhere. I think some of the people that live here sometimes forget that it is apartment living and you will have some of the same problems here as you do anywhere else. Its more an issue of common courtesy for you neighbor. Clean up after yourself, respect the common area rules, and don’t be loud and disruptive.
I have lived a nomadic lifestyle all over some of the most beautiful parts of the United States. San Diego is my favorite and if I couldn’t live with my feet touching one of the sandy beaches along coast then Circa 37 in Mission Valley would be my top choice.
Circa37 deserved every bit of this five star rating. The place is clean, new, beautiful and well kept. The people that work here are what make this place so special. Any problems I had were quickly addressed and resolved. Most importantly those problems were never repeat issues. The maintenance staff were super fast and helpful. The leasing staff led by Amanda were super friendly and helpful. In fact, I am no longer a resident there and I have received several follow up calls regarding important mail delivered there that has not been forwarded to me. Which was such a legal life saver. I have received follow up calls regarding when West Park apartments will be available for leasing.
Amanda and Genevieve (sp) are both SUPER SPECIAL and AMAZING. I wish them all the best as the construction continues and that community grows. I know they will ensure such a pleasant stay for new and current residents.

Hello Friends!
If there is any place in Mission Valley to live, Circa 37 would be it.
Frankly, for how close the property is to the 163, 8 and 805 freeways, and having the Mission Valley Mall, Fashion Valley and Hazard Center within walking distances, along with all of the promising modern eclectic properties, parks, trails, and businesses to be constructed in the Civita area, I’d make the argument that Circa 37 is one of the best places to live here in San Diego. And I would win.
Being born and raised in the North County, to living and owning a home in the Chula Vista area, and working downtown, Circa 37 was not originally my first choice, as we were looking into a modern style apartment in Scripps Ranch named Solterra. However, as soon as we walked in the door of Circa 37, and were greeted by Carleigh, we knew that this would be the site of our new home.
From the lavish, modern designs of the buildings, exterior colors of reclaimed wood, industrial steel and greenery, the attention to detail in the espresso brown kitchen cabinets paired nicely with stainless steel appliances, the massive ceilings in our loft, gorgeous gray accent wall, washer and dryer in the apartment, along with the industrial spiral staircase and rustic dark wood flooring, our Circa 37 loft is, by far, the most awe inspiring property that I’ve ever lived in. And that’s just the loft.
The exterior buildings, to include resort style amenities like a 25m saltwater pool, huge top floor lounge with full kitchen, billiards and fireplace that offers Yoga Wednesdays free to the residents, plenty of lush greenery for my dachshund Bailey, cabanas with flat screen TVs, modern downstairs lounge, massive propane firepit, impressive gym, free coffee and tea, and stainless steel community barbecues are what makes us smile the moment we pull into the driveway at the end of a tough workday.
As someone who has an Ironman triathlon in his sights, living in Circa 37 is very conducive to my training needs. I have a garage to keep all my bikes and wetsuits organized, plenty of hills to climb, Fiesta Island just 3 miles away, open water swims at Glorietta Bay just minutes away, Mt. Soledad just north, running trails through Mission Valley, and the 25m saltwater pool means I can get my mileage in daily. Having a state-​of-​the-​art gym with plenty of room for weights and Insanity means I have no reason not to keep in shape for the task ahead.
Lastly, the customer service, maintenance and security are of particular note here at Circa 37. From Carleigh, Holly, Amanda and Genevieve, I am always impressed by their service, gratitude, friendly smiles, and the time they take to get to know all of the residents. They took care of us from day one, and made us feel at home in our new surroundings. From the community events, checking in of mailed packages, quick turnaround on service requests, taking time for good conversation, ability to pay rent online, and even post on the Facebook-​like Circa 37 resident portal, these ladies know how to run a business, and should be commended for their hard work in working with oftentimes challenging requests from a plethora of residents.
Overall, we are proud to be residents at Circa 37, and coming from the glowing faces and remarks of our friends and family who visit, we hope that more of our friends and colleagues take the plunge and become our neighbors sometime soon.
And if you’re on this Unilocal page, and are on the fence choosing between Circa 37 and another property, here’s one suggestion: Come by and take a tour. If you were like me in the same situation, that other property you were looking at would soon be forgotten after you’ve seen this place with scenery that comes straight from a West Elm catalog.
–BB

I was so excited to be a part of this luxurious community. Shoot, paying almost $ 1800 for a 650 sqft 1 bedroom apt I better be treated like royalty. However, that was not the case. My experience here was so unpleasant that I got out of my lease.
1. Customer service is HORRIBLE! Actually, it was quite pleasant! The ladies that were there the first month of me living there were amazing. However, as one of them slowly disappeared it got worse and worse. My sister and I walked through the leasing center to go to the business center and the staff blatantly stared at us while they were talking about their plans for lunch and the weekend; not one even said hi, even though they saw us. On a separate day as my sister and I were leaving the leasing center after speaking with Amanda (manager) the staff were busy talking amongst themselves that they didn’t even say bye to us. It wasn’t until my sister (out of annoyance) said bye did they say bye back. This happened right in front of Amanda! Which, I’m kind of glad it happened because I was speaking to her about the lack of customer service and favoritism towards certain tenants. Other incidents happened but what set me off was last week when I was putting in my 30 day notice and had questions about terminating my lease. I was explaining to Holly (also one of the staff that ignored me today) how dissatisfied I was and felt constantly harassed (more detail to come), in addition to the lack of customer service. I also stated that I felt that the staff was constantly changing I couldn’t keep up. She must have took offense to what I said because her remarks were «well I’ve been here for 7 months AND I have NEVER seen you here» «we only had 1 change of staff (under her breath)» «…you only have 1 week difference from your 30 days notice to when your lease is up. I’d just stay if I were you». Ummmmm, excuse me did you not hear me complain to you how I don’t want to stay here any longer?
2. Favoritism towards tenants runs rampant within the staff. Like I mentioned earlier while my sister and I were ignored when walking through the office, another tenant came in, it was all «attention on deck». The staff pretty much were foaming in the mouth excited to talk to this tenant. Another incident was when I had a few of my friends over and one of them brought his dog, Tank (half dachshund half min pin) to the pool area. We thought this was ok since we’ve seen many lap dogs and big dogs around the pool. Now Tank was laying down on one of the lawn chairs with me minding his own business soaking up the sun, until a staff came out and stated only service dogs were allowed. I apologized and took Tank back to my apt. However, as I came back to the pool I see the same staff petting a 75lbs+ poodle (with no service pet id) and allowing the poodle to stay!
3. Harassment. I don’t like conflict and I hate dealing with it. So I always try to mind my own business; whether if my neighbors were loud, rude and obnoxious. However, when I did call security a few times I never had a follow up so I’m assuming nothing was taken care of. I left my trash outside of my apt for no more than 3 days (I got sick and was bed ridden) I got a hand written note saying «take your effing trash out… no one wants to see your shit» I get it. However, there are nicer ways to notify me. Additionally, everyone in my complex leaves trash out for days outside their door just because of the hassle of throwing away the trash. I went around the whole building the same day to see if anyone else who had trash by door had a note. Nope, just me.
4. Miscommunication. I get told one thing from a staff and then another by another. My move out date has been a nightmare. I was informed my move out date would be the 15^th; even told Amanda when she asked me what I was told my move out date would be. But they wrote down the 14^th. On the 14^th, Genevieve (asst. manager) called asking when I would be dropping the keys off. I informed her I was told the 15^th and she stated that it was ok. Well, she never told me that they would charge an additionally $ 58! Don’t you think if my prorated amount of $ 797 changes I should be informed?! And the best part! I wasn’t informed of this until 3 weeks after I moved and was sent a nice fat bill of $ 458. My deposit took care of the $ 400 and now I’m stuck paying the $ 58. Oh yeah, $ 400 for painting 2 walls, cleaning my carpet and utilities that I was supposedly late on… I also found out they bill utilities every 3 months which was the reason I was late. Strange, since my rent fluctuated anywhere from $ 5 – 40 a MONTH, not every 3.
And to make my experience even better, I got 2 of my very expensive Pottery Barn bar stools stolen from my garage while I was moving out.
Bottom line: circa 37 is a beautiful establishment with horrible staff members and shitty residents. 0 STARS

All I can say is WOW!
This is the best apartment complex I have ever been to. The staff is amazing and they always have a smile on their faces. Amanda, Geneveive, Carleigh, Holly, and Narciso do an incredible job maintaining the complex and ensuring the tenants are taken care of. I love the amenities including the new gym equipment, the loft, and the Las Vegas vibe pool. The facility is pet friendly, but rarely do I hear barking dogs from my apartment. I hope to be here for many years to come. I would recommend this complex to anyone who wants luxury, comfort, and outstanding service.

This was going to be a 5 star review until my move out experience. They charged us $ 134.79 to repaint the apartment even though I proactively went to maintenance and got touch up paint colors for each of the walls and touched up every scratch and scuff and patched every hole from our pictures on the walls. In addition, and I do realize this isn’t completely their fault, our room mate short paid his last month of rent based on the date he felt he needed to move out and never told us he did that. Management never bothered to tell us we were delinquent until after we moved out on the 22^nd, even though rent was due on the 1^st. We were notified on NEW YEARS EVE of all times that the money was owed immediately and we would have to pay it that day or they would send us to collections. We moved to Temecula so having to drive all the way back to Mission Valley to settle a balance owed by our room mate, that they should have notified us immediately that it was past due is just shady if you ask me. Fortunately, we got ahold of our former room mate, and after a lengthy and uncomfortable discussion he agreed to pay the balance due, and the net result is that he paid only the past due balance and not what he actually owed and we got ZERO of our $ 500 deposit back. The place also has a lot of inconsiderate pet owners who don’t clean up after their pets, or even bother to keep their pets on a leash. Lots of barking dogs, although management does do a good job of notifying the owners IF someone actually reports it to them.
On a more positive note, they are very nice apartments and the community is beautiful. We never had any problems with our neighbors and noise, this is the first apartment I’ve lived at where I haven’t had problems with adjacent neighbors and noise, these are very well insulated places for the most part, but we had a top floor corner unit. Maintenance is SPOT on, they work 7 days a week and are out within 24 hours of your call fixing whatever needs to be fixed. Kudos to Narciso especially, he has always been on top of things and very friendly to deal with. The resident functions are always great, there is always something fun going on, including weekly yoga class. Genevieve and the staff definitely go out of their way to make sure residents have an enjoyable living experience there.
Overall, I’d say it’s a pretty good place to live, they just need to get better at dealing with room mate situations and keeping everyone in the loop when there are problems like the one we experienced.
A few tips if you’re going to move there. Check the garage first and make sure your car will fit — most of them only fit smaller cars. Also make sure your patio furniture will fit, the balconies are pretty small, and i always recommend a top floor corner unit. Keep your stuff locked up, do not leave your bike or anything else outside, lots of thefts here, as with most apartment complexes in San Diego. Also don’t mail anything important to your home address here through USPS, the mail seems to frequently get lost here, we frequently got our other neighbors mail, which I realize is not managements fault, but it’s something that really bothered us and needs to be addressed with the postmaster.

I come to visit here often as I know people who live at this apartment complex. From a visitors standpoint its great. They say they are non smoking community but you will from time to time see people smoking. The pool area is great, you might as well be at a resort, that’s how it feels. Parking at times can be difficult but other than that the complex is really cool and its close to everything (mall, grocery stores, highway).

Dope

So we’ve been here for 3 months now and everything has been great. I love how you can accomplish a lot of things on their online community.
You can pay rent, request maintenance (we needed a faucet handle fixed and it was done by the time I got home, awesome), and you can also post to the leasing ladies and residents any concerns/​ideas.
The gym area is nice and clean. Not as big as I was hoping, but it’s still darn good. It reminds me of a gym at a nice hotel. Treadmills are up to date with technology and overlook the pool area which is nice.
The pool is salt water, feels great. Love that it has lap lanes so that I could get a workout in the morning. The cabanas are a nice touch. A couple with TVs. It’s got a small vegas vibe (without the vegas) which is awesome. And theres also grilling stations and a large fire pit.
The apartments themselves are unbeatable right now. It’s hard to find rentals with hardwood-​like floors, updated appliances and modern cabinetry. It looks and feels like a condo/​home and we treat it as such. Our balcony is large and spacious and so far, all the neighbors seem like young professionals and families.
At my previous place at the Promenade Rio Vista, most neighbors were either complaining it was too loud or actually just too loud. Lots of college students so the higher price point of Circa is actually good. And at least you get what you pay for.
Hopefully I can stick around long enough to see more of Civita being built. On paper, it looks like the perfect, central place to live.