Apartment ratings (dot com) is basically populated by people who have an axe to grind with their current complex and management. Basically just ignore the noise, but look for tactile evidence of a problem (i.e., police raids every 2 weeks, theft, etc.). That being said, I checked the ratings of a complex where I used to live in Los Angeles, and the ratings and comments were somewhat accurate, although overly negative. 1 bed for $2400 seems very expensive to me, unless the square footage is 1000+.
That's not at all unusual in San Francisco. Some would call it a steal. I think the current average here is actually much higher. Despite the crashing housing market, rents remain crazy in the Bay Area. It doesn't surprise me to know that it's the same way in the South Bay, as that's the nexus of the tech industry. The salaries that tech yields plus the perceived desirability of being here continues to keep landlords setting high rent rates that seem crazy to anyone but possibly Manhattanites in the US.
Dude, I live in livermore( 30 miles from sanjose and about 40 or so miles from the City but only 7 miles from the BART) in a nice 3 bed , 2 bath apartment with parking and a garage for $1,425 a month( water and garbage included).Paying 2400 dollars for a one bedroom is nutty.
Some of the snazzyer apartment complexes (archstone cupertino) do actually charge about 2100-2300 for a 1 bedroom. It scares me. We live in a duplex now and would love to get another or a small house. I don't think we could handle living in an apartment complex. Not with all the music equipment we own. Shoot neighbors see us moving in with a drum set, 5 guitars, amps, and a weiner dog...hahaha. We just found out a friend of ours is interviewing for jobs around San Jose and renting a 4 bedroom house for $3000 sounds way more resonable than renting a 700 sqfoot apartment for $1900. Do any of you know which way the traffic runs? Say South to North in the AM?
Yea, Archstone charges up the ass. Morning traffic, 280N, 680S sucks ass. 880 and 101 is also horrible. Not too sure about the 85, you'll most likely exit that if you're teaching at Kennedy.
I leave at 530am so I hit no traffic and that's coming from south san san jose. I can tell you that. 85N around 700am is bad. (there are 2 lanes..the 3rd is carpool only) 280 N isn't to bad...it flows but can get trafficy. 101 and 880 I'd avoid. But it all depends where you live. If you are going opposite traffic you will be fine. You can also, depending on where you live, take city streets or the expressways.
seriously, Archstone is insane. But the kicker for me with the some of the apartments are the lap pools and workout facilities. Save me money on a gym membership. But with the price of gas and car repairs it almost seems worth it to find a place in Cupertino. Our friend was mentioning Daly City..we all would love to be close to the city...but if the commute sucks then no way.
i know someone who commuted from watsonville to american canyon on a daily basis. i dont' konw what that has to do with anything... just wanted to add that
wtf? serious? 1 bedroom apt for $2400? dude, for that kind of money, you can rent one of my bedrooms in SF and you have access to the toy room. just don't touch anything.
i've got a very nice three bedroom in a prime locale (if a little noisy sometimes) in the mission district for $2500 a month. deals are out there.
Just got my corporate summer housing: Archstone Cupertino: 5608 Stevens Creek Blvd Cupertino, CA 95014 not bad... will see what happens when I have to get my on place come fall
We are checking out a place there tomorrow. 2 bedrooms 2 bath in some old Ophanage it's right on the 280 at 11th street. It sounds nice and it's under $2000! Yipee
Just got back from our housing foray... some thoughts (note: these are just my impressions based on the sum total of our experiences and research): Our criteria generally consisted of: (1) 2 bed / 2 bath, (2) 700+ square feet, (3) < $2000, and (4) parking sufficient for 2 vehicles. We looked at around 15 properties. Prometheus communities We visited a lot of Prometheus managed properties because the apartments fell within our price range even for larger floor area models. Ultimately we didn't go with these because the management seemed sort of 'anonymous' and the apartments felt underpriced relative to other similarly-situated properties. This suggested to me that the rent would be hiked in later renewals. Avalon communities Overall, I've heard good things about the management on Avalon properties, and the amenities and units were great, but the apartments are a bit above our desired price range. Good point: they offer the option to purchase a second parking space for $20-30/mo. They were one of the few (possibly only) properties to offer a guaranteed second parking at the outset. Vendome (San Jose?) Brand new building (built 1-2 years ago), and state of the art facilities, fixtures etc. Reportedly, these were intended to be luxury condominiums, but became leased apartments (probably due to the real estate market). Pricey, but worth it in my opinion if you like the high-rise lifestyle. Nantucket (Interland properties) (Santa Clara) This would have been our second choice. We spoke with a departing resident (left for work reasons) and she seemed very satisfied with the management and property. Unfortunately, they only had 1b/1b apartments available. Springwood/Renaissance (Yamaoka Asscs.) Also good properties- these are managed by a family-owned company and the management personnel seemed fairly personable. Springwood is less expensive but it is a little older and out of the way (Mountain View). Also, the available unit was next to a freeway off-ramp, which is almost an automatic pass for me (I do not relish the thought of listening to passing trucks as I drift off to sleep). Renaissance (Sunnyvale) was nice, but I think they only had 1b/1b again. Good point: they offer T1 lines in the apartments. One Pearl Place (N. San Jose) I'll just say read the reviews and look at the surrounding complexes if you are considering this one. Parking seemed almost unavailable for a second vehicle, and the leasing agent told us that we would need to share the available street parking with the complex next door. Yeeeeah. No. Otherwise the apartments were new (less than 4 years old) and it is located near a shopping center and other nice things. Sedona Lane (Santa Clara) I really liked this one, although the property was a bit older. I've heard good things about the management (girlfriend's co-worker lives there) and it seemed like a quiet area. Again, no 2 beds available. Family Tree (Santa Clara) There was a 2b/2b available when we visited a few days ago, but it was located near a high-traffic area of the property and the street. Also, the property seemed to have additional or higher fees relative to other properties- i.e., there is a charge to use the fitness center, which was free to use in all other properties we visited. Otherwise, the apartment was attractive, and it seems like a good choice if you're looking to raise a family. I think there are parks and schools nearby, as well as a USPS and a Safeway within a short distance. Ultimately, we settled on a smaller complex in Mountain View with townhouse style apartments... 900+ ft2 and $1800/mo. Quiet neighborhood. It's a little further from San Jose area than we would have liked, but it met the criteria so to speak. If anyone has specific questions, PM me, and I'll give you my honest thoughts. I didn't want to go into the gory details here. Joe- thanks for your offer of help, and sorry I didn't get back to you. It was a super hectic week- I was hardly on the boards at all!
Congrats I work in Mtn View and if you end up working in San Jose or going south on 101 to work you will be golden because you are going against traffic. Glad you found a place okay! Maybe someday when you guys get settled we can all grab lunch or head up to the store.
Definitely, and thanks. You going up to the S7 anniversary? I think I will try to be there- settled or not!
