Allston Place Apartments

My girlfriend’s daughter lived here for the first half of 2015. My girlfriend had to sign to guarantee payment of rent. Because the owner can ruin your credit over part of a bill not paid on time, I would avoid this business. After paying the full promised rent until the end of the lease, the rental agency added another $ 700 in «fees», utilities, and clean up – even though hours were spent cleaning the apartment by the renter. All billing was presented with a threat of turning it over to collections in 7 days if not paid in full and the extra utility bill came in while still living there with the threat of eviction within three days if not paid on time. The office is rarely staffed and phone calls are often not returned. Beware!

Reasonably priced, close to campus and provides a safe and friendly atmosphere.
Melissa and the staff were easy to work with.
The studio apartments were nice and spacious. Internet connection is available with CAT5 cabling.
Overall a nice pleasant experience

I just moved out from Allston Place and have stayed there for one year. (And I know the rental market in Berkeley quite well.) Before I moved in, the older reviews on Unilocal shouted STAY AWAY and I was worried. But then I found it’s not bad at all. I’ve always wanted to give a truthful review but I waited until I moved out and got the final account balance.
[Management]
Overall the management has been friendly, helpful and efficient.
1. Selam Haji was my contact window and she was really nice and she herself stayed in Allston too. She helped me with the keys and let me stored some of my luggage two days before the scheduled move-​in day. That helped ease the hassles of moving. She patiently answered every question I asked via email or in person.
2. The maintenance team (two cool decent guys) has been very responsive too. Upon request Alfredo ordered a whole new window of blinds for me because the old one had some damages caused by previous tenant (s). Throughout the year, almost all maintenance work requested through their online system was taken care of within 48 hours. I don’t wear shoes inside my unit and they’d take off their shoes when entering for maintenance.
3. Packages and mails: hmm this was a little bit messed up. The leasing office receives packages from UPS etc for tenants, but their email notification system is not very reliable. And they don’t have enough people to really guard the package room in the office, so your packages are basically unattended. (But I’ve never lost one.) Also, the office is two blocks away from Allston Place working until 6pm Mon-​Sat, so if you’re expecting something big or heavy or urgent… The post office does not deliver packages door-​to-​door either (even though unlike UPS etc, the post office ppl have the access to your door), so they only leave the notice in your mailbox and you’ll have to pick them up at the post office. I also had trouble using the post office services «Change of Address» and «Hold Your Mails» with my Allston Place address.
[Environment]
1. Public area was basically well maintained considering the number of tenants. They do regular cleaning on Mondays, including the lobby, the elevator, the fantastic rooftop, the garbage place/​parking lot, hallways and laundry rooms. The only thing I didn’t like so much was the garbage/​recycling place. It often smelled and messy but I couldn’t be sure whether it’s the tenants to blame or the management. There was no bins for bottles/​plastic recycling either. I had to take them to the streets.
2. Safety– well I feel safe most of the times. The gated front door means something I guess. The fire alarm (or false alarm) system can be annoying, but I was on the second floor with a big window so I chose to stay in with my earplugs on knowing I could jump out of the window safely if necessary: p
3. Noise– One of the shortcomings. it’s downtown so I’d say you have to bear with it for the LOCATION. Those live houses/​restaurants (Jupiter etc) can be loud from time to time. And the apt units facing the parking (the back lane of Sliver restaurant etc) were restless and affected by unpleasant noise every day from around noon to almost midnight. But it’s quiet after midnight. Garbage trucks come every two days in early mornings (6am, 8am or 10am) and they are not working discreetly. The tenant upstairs (3F) was annoying (bumping against the floor for hours after midnight) at least one day per week. I didn’t know why. I never file a complaint so I don’t know how the management could do with it.
[Money]
1. Utilities: As the water and garbage are included in the rent, only the electricity bill matters. I think the billed amount has been truthful and reasonable ($ 20 – 30 for a studio and I cooked every day), but they did charge $ 3 fee every month for handling the billing.
2. Rent: Please double check the lease agreement and be noted that the rent they quote for you might not be on a monthly basis but one of the 12 installments per year. As a one year lease runs from 8÷15−7÷31, you’d pay 12 installments for 11.5 months. Re-​calculate your monthly rent to know the exact amount!
3. Moving out costs: well I was tidy and clean so they only charged me $ 70 for carpet cleaning (of a small studio), which I am happy to pay coz they did it for me when I moved in. Treat the apt like your own and you’ll be fine I think.
In all, Allston Place is pretty ok as long as you negotiated a quote for rent acceptable to you.

Great place to live in as perfect location (just right distance from campus, so close to BART, and a ton of good restaurants in Downtown Berkeley, as well as close to Walgreens/​CVS.
Maintenance help is very helpful, and quite prompt. The office staff are rather friendly, and professional. They also hold some events for residents at the leasing office (just down the road) which is fun.
The apartment itself is a delightful place to live in, rather luxurious looking for a reasonable rent. It’s clean and new. They provide couches, TV, coffee table, microwave, stove/​oven, and a fridge. So it’s quite welcoming and not a hassle when looking for furniture. I live with 3 other people in a two bedroom. One thing that is lacking is that the bedrooms are quite tiny. If two people want to live in one room, we are pretty much forced to get a bunkbed, and even with that there’s hardly any room for desks or a dresser. The closets are nice, and the sliding doors have mirrors from floor to ceiling.
They remodeled the rooftop deck and the hallways and it looks great. It’s nice to hangout/​relax on the roof.
Overall, a wonderful place to live in!

Most of the negative reviews seem to be a 2 – 3 years old. I can only speak to my experiences here in 2013 and 2014, which have been great. The staff – especially Selam, the on-​site manager – have been very friendly and immediately responsive to any questions, concerns, or requests I have had since living here. Food events are hosted at the main leasing office at Stadium place once every few weeks for residents. Although I haven’t been to any of these because of my work schedule, I appreciate their efforts to give something back to residents and create a small space for people who live together to get to know each other.
As for the building itself, my studio apartment and all others I have seen are well-​kept (besides general messiness from people living there); wear and tear is minimal. The hallways were recently renovated with hardwood floors. It seems very apparent to me that upkeep is a priority, unlike several other apartments I have lived in.
UPDATE: I removed one star because of parking issues. Please note: If you live here, you cannot receive a Berkeley parking permit! This was not clear at all to me when moving in. The owner of the building decided not to be a part of the City of Berkeley parking program (why???). I just tried to renew my parking permit and was informed my current address was not eligible. Yes, there is a small parking garage in the building, but the spots are few and the cost expensive. Parking in other garages around the area is also scarce and expensive. My only option after July is to park several blocks away, where parking zones don’t apply. So if you have car and want to live here, be prepared to pay for a parking garage.

I currently live in this apartment building, and have lived in several apartment buildings in Berkeley before this. Let me just say that this apartment building is a complete upgrade from ANY other building i’ve stayed in berkeley. It’s clean and pretty spacious. The leasing office is located down the street and the ladies in there are very nice and helpful. plus they put on different events for the tenants. Like taco night and breakfasts! hello free food? Im all about that. I never hear any noises from neighbors and many of my neighbors are super friendly! I would definitely recommend living here. it is a a 100% upgrade from most of the dingy, run down apartments you’ll find in Berkeley!

This place should get NO stars. It is the absence of stars, a place a star has died: a black hole.
I made the worst mistake living here, and if you are doing so now, get the hell out. If you’re considering moving here: please read my review.
You may be enticed by the proximity to campus, free interwebs (it went out a few times I was there), the rooftop terrace (a glamorized name for what it actually is — a roof deck), the laundry machines on every floor and the overall razzle-​dazzle, almost-​but-​not-​quite dorm image Peak Campus (the parent company) tries to project — don’t be fooled. The management doesn’t give a flying fuck about your concerns and is really out to profit off college students. Do yourself a favor, and live somewhere a little cheaper and further away from school. You might even get to experience some resident, Berkeley culture…
The list of grievances I have against Allston are as following, in no particular order:
I was awoken EVERY weekday to the sound of garbage trucks picking up trash. The sound is tantamount to a rocket lifting off. Because the building is an area with a lot of restaurants, garbage/​recycling has to be picked up every day, and the sanitation folks don’t care that the sound of clanging garbage trucks wakes you up at 7 AM. Berkeley City Ordinances don’t allow for garbage pickup before 7 AM (believe me, I called, and did the research), but there were plenty of mornings I was woken up around 6 AM. When I complained to Stadium/​Allston place, they told me to get earplugs. Heyo.
Because this is in the downtown area of a somewhat urban area, be sure to prepare yourself to be awoken by the most unsavory of characters at all hours of the night. The Allston courtyard is ‘the spot’ for every homeless person to chill. I’m aware and sympathetic to the fact that these people need a place to rest their feet, but many of them set up camp in the courtyard and cause a ruckus. I’ve heard fights, seen people smoking crack, witnessed drunks trying to climb up a terrace… literally everything. When you are getting up at 6:30 AM to the rancor of the Berkeley sanitation department, you really don’t want to wake up to a shouting brawl between drunken hobos at 3 am. Allston does have a courtesy officer who you can call, but what’s the point if they’re not keeping a night watch and patrolling the area? It sucks to wake up in the middle of the night on a weekly basis, call the courtesy officer, and then fall back asleep after a blow up between some crusty punks.
Speaking of noise, the near-​bye restaurant, Saturn (great food), loves to steam clean its floors between the hours of 2 – 6 AM. Don’t know why they do it at that hour, but it’s just another thing to check off your list of ‘what I don’t want to be awoken to.‘
The management is entirely unsympathetic to any of these things, and truly, they probably don’t have any power to stop it. The things they do have control over, such as the rent (it’s too damn high), getting things fixed properly/​on time, or following basic tenant-​renter laws, are performed with the least amount of concern.
When it was time for me to move, I WAS SO EXCITED TO GTFO, they did everything they could to screw me and my roommate over. We tried to schedule a viewing of our apartment so they could access us on possible damages before we could potentially be charged (we knew reading past Unilocal reviews that they might do that). They said they didn’t have time. When we did get out of dodge, they sent us a bill to our respective locations charging us hundreds of dollars for things that realistically they had no right to, as they fell under ‘normal wear and tear.’ I had consulted with the renter’s board, and technically they couldn’t even charge us 30 days after the move out date — it was illegal. We also asked for receipts (we have the legal right) and found out that they double charged us for cleaning the carpet. They ended up docking that, but it was obvious they were just tacking on unnecessary charges. Upon move out, we had scrubbed the apartment top to bottom, repainted the walls, and spot-​treated the carpets, AND took photos. We threatened them of the fact that we had these, but they would not budge and said our charges would be sent to collections. I considered taking them to small claims court, but the cost of missing work, filing a claim, and then accruing any possible charges I would be left with were about the same as the actual fee we owed. Unfortunately, we weighed our options and paid — knowing full well that they were legally in the wrong. THESE are the sorts of managers and business practices Allston employs.
SO, if this doesn’t convince you not to live here, I don’t know what will. Avoid this place like the plague and tell everyone you know.
BUT, if you enjoy stepping in human feces outside of the back exit of the building (a lovely parting gift from the homeless/​Berkeley high kids) — then by all means, move in.

DO NOT LIVE HERE.
They are way overpriced and tried to scam me of more money every month by increasing utility bills. Furthermore, my electric meter was spoilt for months, and I had to settle on a fixed price to pay for electricity every month. which I think was still overpriced for 1 person living in a 1 bedroom. No doubt I enjoyed the apartment being very spacious, but the management were not very friendly and helpful. I have also experienced lost mail. Upon move out, the apartment did not inform me that they were going to move my things, and store it at the storage center. When I went to collect them, SO many of my items were missing!!! That amounted to almost more than $ 600. I am extremely upset! I now have to file a claim and HOPE I will get reimbursed. Never. again.
Not to mention the fact I think they take advantage of students.

Overpriced. Stairwells smell like urine. Management is shady, they try to rob you upon moving out. Do yourself a favor and don’t live here. The only good thing is the location if you go to Cal, which is the only reason they’re in business: TAKING ADVANTAGE OF STUDENTS.

The lease says you have to keep furniture six inches from the wall.
The lease says if you don’t pay rent they can evict you without going to court, and your stuff belongs to them, because you abandon the property. The lease says they can make new rules after you move in and then fine you if you don’t follow them.
Plus, the lease says they can take away any and all amenities, like the bikes or the roof deck or the lounge, at any time with no reduction in rent.
Why would you sign that? — READ IT!

UPDATE —
Things may seem well and good while you’re living there but just wait until you move out. I thought the new management would be better about moving out but it seems like they’re just as shady as the old management.
All moved out, ready to face the real world (of student loans) and my room mates and I get a bill from the new manager.
«Please remit payment immediately.»
We take a look at this bill and it’s almost $ 800! For what you may ask? $ 200 for carpet cleaning and $ 500 for painting. First of all, we had no major paint repair needed and we hired a carpet cleaner before we moved out. Secondly, after 2 years landlords are legally not allowed to charge for painting and carpet cleaning because by law, there’s about a 2 year lifespan for both of those and they must repaint and re-​carpet anyway.
Unfortunately, we had to get a lawyer involved and the management ended up dropping the charges because they can’t charge us without evidence of the repairs that they did. Apparently, they took pictures but they were «damaged.» Right.
So now, they’re claiming they returned my roommate’s deposit but my roommate never saw that check. Neither has the bank.
Just stay away from Allston. They’ll take advantage of the fact that you’re a college student and you probably are unaware of rental laws and regulations. Luckily, my roommate’s parents are in real estate and are very aware of Allston’s violations.
To pretty much sum up my review, the people that run Allston and Stadium are a bunch of CROOOKS.
¹⁄₅ only because I can’t give negative stars.

I’ve been living here almost 3 years now and all I can say is don’t bother — NOT WORTH THE PRICE ANYMORE.
Jeff and Jeremy from the post below me are both gone and they were really the only people in management and maintenance, respectively, that would get your work orders done. Jeremy left early last summer. Jeff left a couple months ago and it took the new management about 6 weeks to come in and complete my simple 2 minute work order. Usually, I would just see Jeremy in the hallway and he’d hop in and do it on the spot or come back the next day. The new person who came in reported to the office that I had a pet (which I overpaid 500 $ to have) and I guess they loss that record and have a new policy where they don’t allow pets at all. Just a lot of miscommunication all around — not something you wanna deal with in the middle of midterms.
The building is old, and many people are frustrated about how taking the elevator up is ½ as fast as just using the stairs.
It used to be a great place to live if you could afford it. I have the cheapest apartment right now (studio) and that’s only because Jeff cut me a deal this last renewal. Year 1 — 1400, Year 2 — 1800 (discounted to 1600 by Jeff), Year 3 — 2200 (discounted to 1600 again by jeff). They used to include electricity in your rent, but BEWARE, they just changed the policy and you have to pay for it yourself. I didn’t know about this and I got slapped with 180 $ worth of late fees from the company just for a 32 $ electricity bill I didn’t know about because I just sent in the same amount of rent every year for the past 3 years. Just got my renewal notice again and they are asking 2300 now and it’s just ridiculous. For that price, just go next door and get a 1bedroom at Gaia.
Even if you manage to afford an apartment here, beware that there are many hidden fees. There’s no security deposit, but that just means they can overcharge you for every little thing when you move out.

I have been with Place Property for 4 years, both Allston and Stadium Place. To be frank, the only complaint I have is the constant change of management., but this is understandable because lack of competent people out there. I avoid the upper management and always went straight to Jeff and Jeremy and all my requests are done immediatley

OVERPRICED! I lived at the sister property, the Stadium Place apartments, where Jeff is now managing. He was super friendly, made us feel really comfortable, but ended up being manipulative and out for all that they could steal. We were charged absurd «fees» to have the apartment cleaned and the carpets replaced, even though we were assured that it is their policy to replace the carpets with each new tenant (which they never did for us). We were charged for the kitchen, the bathrooms, the carpets, and even the sofa. This place has brought me nothing but misery.
I agree with Alice P: Get EVERYTHING in writing, and take copious pictures of anything that they might be able to charge you with (like the black stain that developed mysteriously after the carpets were «cleaned» prior to move-​in), but seriously, just don’t get involved with them.

I completely agree with the first review. OVERPRICED, the «amenities» never materialize, they try to overcharge you on your bill with «fees» (if you ask what they are, they say you don’t have to pay, that it’s a mistake… but I can’t imagine how many people don’t ask… what a great revenue stream for them, right?) and because they have no deposit they try to screw you over with charges after you leave.
I’ve had so many problems, my advice, if you decide to throw caution to the wind and move in (DON’T), is GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING, MAKE SURE THEY GIVE YOU A COPY OF YOUR CONTRACT, TAKE PICTURES OF EVERYTHING (WITH TIME STAMPS), AND NEVER LET YOUR GUARD DOWN. I can’t emphasize this enough.
Please, please, please, don’t live here if you don’t have to.