Esplanade Apartments

Gonna keep this review short and sweet. I’ve been living in an upstairs unit in The Esplanade for two years now. I’ve had so many happy memories here. The pool/​hot tub area is epic. The gym is also perfectly stocked with equipment. The layouts are beautiful and the remodeled units (I don’t live in one) look dope. Parking is never really a problem in the area. Very central and out of the immediate bustle of downtown San Jose. These positives aside, I have two very deal-​breaking issues. Issue #1: new management recently mandated that no grills are allowed to be kept outside in the parking lot. If you’re a big bbq’er like I am, a small 15″ Webber ain’t gonna cut it. I have a normal sized propane grill (3’x2’x4.5′). Not large by any means, but in the 4’x4’ entryway connecting many areas of the apartment it becomes a massive MASSIVE obstruction. My theory is that since the blacktop was resurfaced, management doesn’t want anyone to skew the new image of their pristine new parking area. Therefore you are not asked, but required to bring your large grill inside after use. If you don’t think it’s that big of a deal, trust me it is. Issue #2: my bike of 4 months was stolen. It was locked upstairs in our «secure» gated parking area. My loss is one of many, including my roommate who got his bike stolen a few years ago. Bike theft plagues The Esplanade. Rather than being proactive after COUNTLESS bikes have been stolen off the property, The Esplanade still has yet to show plans to increase the surveillance of the traffic in and out of the gates. I know that bike theft isn’t going to go away just because someone sets up a camera, but surely there are other benefits for entrance/​exit surveillance to justify the expense.
3 stars because it really is a cool place to live. It’s just been spoiled for me.

Luxury apartments, more like beautiful high-​ceiling townhouses. I love the 2bdrm I’m in. Enjoy my neighbors but thankfully don’t hear them. Everyone seems to have a dog or a cat. Rent is fair.

Who likes apartment shopping… uh, sadly no one. It’s like doing taxes or the work commute. The ever rising rents in SV have made it even more dreadful. In my comprehensive apartment search, I came across The Esplanade. At this time, my review is for the staff and general layout of the Esplanade. I can’t provide the experience of actually living here and therefore must pull 1 star.
The crew at Esplanade is top shelf. Stephen, Jags, and Grace are a pleasure to work with… never pushy, always informative, cordial and responsive. We were looking for a 1b/​1b and Esplanade has a lot to offer. Nestled in the heart of Japantown, It’s close to 87 and 880… making most commutes easily accessible. If you like Japanese food, then you’re a walk away from good eats. It’s a modernly and attractive complex that is progressively updating. All the 1 + 1’s are on the ground floor which is a must for our super sweet cripply dog. She’s got the heart of a lion, but the legs of a wobbly chair… aww. Small grassy plots surround the campus, so potty time is a breeze. The layout of the place is very convenient. The assigned parking is immediate at the back door of each unit, so getting your groceries in the kitchen isn’t a cardio workout. The first floor is common garage, second floor is covered parking. Both are gated and secure. The renovated units are the ones to get. laminate, tile, dark cabinets, stainless appliance, modern fixtures, etc. You can save a few hundy on a non-​renovated unit, but those are so 1985 deluxe… almond, tan, plastic counters, etc. We were so looking forward to living at the Esplanade, but ended up compromising and found a place with a bit less for enough less money… but that a different review.
The Esplanade is an absolute consideration if you have the cheese. Unilocal on!

I’m moving to San Jose in a few months and called and spoke to Grace. She was so helpful and answered all my questions. Her customer service skills are superb and she know everything about her community and neighborhood, including estimates on utilities, where Target is and the height of the ceilings. Grace qualified me over the phone to make sure I wasn’t dreaming beyond my means.
I cannot wait to see it in person next month. After I move in I will update and add the extra star if I am as happy as I expect to be.

Happy resident.
Super friendly staff
Amazing maintenance
Convenient location
Spacious rooms
Dog friendly
Nice pool and convenient located gym

I have been waiting to write this for a while now, cause you never know when things can go bad at a new apartment, but I’ve lived at the Esplanade for over a year now and have had nothing but positive things to say about the property, the leasing office, and the maintenance.
Stephen, Grace, and Jags are always pleasant and helpful. It’s one of the few properties that I’ve lived at that feels truly like a community. A lot of the neighbors know each other, especially the dog people. It’s a very pet friendly place, which is the main reason we chose it. The patios on the first floor are great for dogs because it’s a large space with tall wooden fences. No worry about the dogs climbing under or jumping over the fence, which was something we kept running into when looking at other places in the area.
We’ve had a coupe maintenance requests throughout the year, but all were addressed as soon as we brought the issues to their attention. The two maintenance workers who come are always super nice and friendly too, so that’s a pleasant change from my LA maintenance experiences.
The only real complaint I have is one that isn’t specific to the Esplanade, but applies to the bay area in general. It’s expensive… Like really expensive. That being said, the Esplanade is still cheaper than a lot of the other places we looked at and is in a much more desirable location (for us at least). And let’s be honest, moving to the Silicon Valley and complaining about prices is like moving to Seattle and complaining about rain. Because of that, I can’t knock them any stars off since it’s nothing specific to them and anyone moving here should know what they are in for in regards to price.
I really think this Japantown is one of the hidden gems of San Jose and I am really glad my wife talked me into living at the Esplanade, cause as far as apartment living goes, it’s about the best I’ve ever had.

Leasing at the Esplanade has been a breeze accompanied by great customer service. First, we would not have even considered the Esplanade if it were not for Chantee who works at another Essex property, but she went above and beyond to assist us in identifying the right property, in the perfect location, in our price range. With just one inquiry from me, Chantee called every Essex property in the San Jose area to identify the one that best met our needs based on location and move-​in date. This was super helpful as my husband and I were moving from North Carolina and unfamiliar with the area. Essex has staff that is highly trained in great customer service to do this for someone who would not be staying at their particular property due to location.
I know that this high standard of customer service must be the same across the board for Essex properties because Sarina, who Chantee put me in contact with, and Grace who both work at the Esplanade were very helpful and responsive to all of my request for information on the property and very pleasant to work with upon my move in. Upon move in today, the property surpassed my expectations. If this is any sign of how our stay at the Esplanade will be, I am very much looking forward to living here. The only reason I did not give five stars is because I just moved in.

My husband and I have lived here for 2 years and are just about to sign our 3^rd year renewal. I have highly recommended this community to everyone, let me tell you why!
1. The high ceilings and fun curved entry architectural detail entering our dining room makes our apartment feel more grand then your run-​of-​the-​mill apartment box.
2. You have a front entry to your apartment and a back entry, which opens directly to your assigned parking spot! No need to shlep arm fulls of groceries down long hallways or up and down stairs.
3. You have central air conditioning, full sized washer and dryer, your own water heater, and a dishwasher! (remember this fact when you hear or read complaints about the price, you get what you pay for. Don’t want these conveniences? Go somewhere else without them and pay less)
4. You can walk to many places downtown, or to great restaurants just 5 minutes away in Japan Town.
5. The grounds are always kept up to the highest standard. I’ve never seen a piece of trash lying around– not once.
6. The work orders are completed fast and efficiently.
7. The staff is friendly and attentive! I particularly love Jags (the community manager) and Stephen (the leasing specialist) — they rock!
I know what you’re thinking, there’s got to be some bad points, right? Well alright, I’ll give you that. No apartment community is entirely perfect, but that’s just the point you have to remember when reading other bad reviews. The fact is, you are living in a tightly packed apartment community. You can’t expect everything to be perfect all the time. In my opinion though, this place comes darn close!

Just Awesome!
Extremely friendly staff, very clean and modern, really good use of space, relatively fair rent for short time lease (4 months).
The maintenance couple are very friendly, helpful, prompt, knowledgeable and respectful.
Once I arrived, I requested to change the lights of the apartment from yellow to white because I had a newborn, and they did it right away free of charge.
They pick up the phone quickly, which wasn’t the case in many other apartment complexes.
The location is really good, safe and nice. There’s a farmers’ market on Sundays within 5 minutes walking.
We leave because my husband’s internship is over in San Jose, but I wouldn’t leave if that wasn’t the reason.

I love this place!
I have been here over 1 year.
The location is perfect and walking distance to all the cool Japantown stores/​food.
The Staff (Grace/​Jags/​Stephen) are very good to work with
The maintenance crew is awsome, we have had to call to clear a clogged drains and fix a small piece of minor trim (I was being lazy), they showed up in 15 minutes both times. The units have their own laundry inside the unit, it’s like no apartment I have ever lived in before, I am so glad I live here. They keep the grounds clean, are pet friendly, and keep up the pools impeccably.
Couldn’t be happier,
Art

We lived here for about 2 years and while I wish we didn’t have to move, a couple of things conspired to convince us otherwise.
First the good parts:
1. On site gym = dump your gym membership
2. On site lap pool = about 50 feet long
3. Japan Town neighborhood (sushi places, Sake tasting festival, Obon festival, farmers’ market, Roy’s Coffee (love, love, love Roy’s) Nijaya Market, and yes, even the local optometrist is great, too) = go car-​free!
4. Nice, friendly, helpful office staff.
5. An onsite marketplace for emergency needs.
5. Just a great, overall vibe. Don’t forget to check out all the Christmas decorations around the complex, too. Really gets you into the season.
The not so good parts:
1. Dog park. We could never sleep in because of the constant barking and growling that started every day at 6am or earlier and went through the day until 7 or 8pm. And I’m just talking about the dogs. The owners were bad, too. If they weren’t talking loudly to each other they were talking loudly on their cellphones. The apartments are built in such a way that there is an immense echo.
2. Dog FIGHTS in the dog park. Some owners have to wait outside the park for other owners to finish up because of the aggressiveness. We’ve seen two pit bulls get into it in addition to a big dog kill a small Pomeranian — grab and shake = neck snap. Your dog may be socialized with other animals and people but there seemed to be a number of owners who never bother doing the same with their pets.
3. Student parties. Students must have a lot more cash flow from mom and dad than I did when I was in college because by golly, they have PAR-​TAYS like it’s the end times. The office staff is good about giving out warnings but this past year I think they were fighting a losing battle. And no, I don’t particularly appreciate the Thursday night, 2am, falsetto Celine Dion renditions of My Heart Will Go On while the rest of the drunken crowd shouts backup. Some of us actually work for a living and appreciate our sleep. Oh, and then there’s this one guy living in the building perpendicular to Bldg 5 who shouts and screams every single freaking Saturday and Sunday, all day long, during football season. ???
Overall, the first three not-​so-​good-​parts we could’ve managed but the last two were the real deal breakers.
4. Freight trains. The first year we were there, this wasn’t a problem (the freight line runs directly behind the historic brick building) because it wasn’t really in use. This past year, the freight lines started up and for people working at home or having kids down for a nap, this was a nightmare. Almost every day, train horn blasts started as early as 7.30am and could run through 5pm. I know this because I worked from home and had a heck of a time coordinating my conference calls around the noise.
5. Rent increase. For us, an un-​renovated, 2 bedroom loft apartment rent increase was over $ 2600/​month. The people who moved in right after we left are now paying almost $ 2800 for the same place, no renovations. If they’d wanted renovations, it would’ve been over $ 3000/​month. That’s a mortgage payment on a $ 925,000 house.
We ended up finding a comparable place that’s much quieter, for almost $ 1000/​month less and decided with that kind of savings, it was silly to live there any longer. I wish we could’ve stayed – I really do miss Roy’s and Nijaya Market. And yes, four stars, I’m still a fan. Just one who now lives further away.
PS — before I forget, there is a new, 200+ apartment building going up right next door to the historic building. Construction was just breaking ground when we moved out.

This review has been long overdue. I stayed here in 2008 – 2010 and have a great experience living there. I almost did not rent this apartment after reading some negative reviews about this place. I’m glad I checked out this place myself and didn’t pay attention on those reviews.
I rented a 2 bedroom lofts — tall windows, high ceiling, lots of natural lights, open floorplan and a good size kitchen. It’s one-​of-​a-​kind apartment lofts in San Jose. My unit was a corner unit facing the leasing office/​clubhouse/​swimming pool, it was a quiet neighborhood I never had any issues with noises. The awesome thing about the corner unit, it has an extra storage space in the back of the walk-​in closet.
The office and maintenance staff were very friendly. They responded quickly if I needed to get something fixed in my apartment. They offered a FREE Carpet cleaning If you renewed your lease before their deadline, which is great!
Sadly, i had to move out due to work relocation. I was going to hire a cleaning lady to clean up the apartment but the Staff member told me upfront that it’s better to let them clean it because they may have a different standard. If they think the apartment is not clean enough, they’ll hire someone to redo it again. I appreciate their honesty, and it saved me sometime to look for the cleaning vendor. I left the apartment as it is when i moved out. Few weeks later I received the moving out expenses detail from Esplanade. Their vendors seem to have some decent prices. Yes, they took some of our deposit to do all the work but everything seems to make sense to me.
The only thing I don’t like about this place is having to pay for water and garbage
2 years after I moved out from the apartment I had a package that was accidentally sent to my old address in Esplanade. To my surprise, one of the staff called me to inform me about the package and asked when I could come by to pick it up. That’s how nice they are!

We’ve been living here for just about 3 months now and we really enjoy it. Grace has been our go-​to since we inquired about living here. She’s very friendly and prompt on answering my emails when I have any questions or concerns. If there’s any problems I need to address, they make sure it’s fixed right away, so I really appreciate the effort they put in to solving our issues.
We decided to go with the Ascot floorplan because it’s a little more open and really like the layout when we have guests over. Very convenient for entertaining (or watching tv while doing dishes! :-)) We waited a little longer to get the apartment we did, it has an extra «den» in the back. So grateful for it because living in a 1B/​1B, it gets cramped… so it’s very nice having an extra place to store your stuff away.
I only have a few small complaints: it’s a little expensive, I’m pretty sure Big Foot lives above us (I swear they only sleep during the day and do wii-​fit during all hours of the night), and the pool can get pretty rowdy. During the hot summer days I think too many people are getting in there that don’t live here (2-​guests per apartment). You can tell which people don’t live in the complex, because they don’t take care of their surroundings. We called Orion security one evening because these teenagers were having a rowdy water balloon fight in the pool (with other small unrelated children right by them) since it was after office hours, but we got sent directly to voicemail and never saw anyone come by. After a half an hour, we decided it was too obnoxious and loud… so we walked back to our apartment.
I’m a little afraid of rent increases, it seems like we have one coming to us from what I hear from all of the other reviews! But all in all, we really do enjoy it here. We don’t own a dog, but we really like that it’s a dog-​friendly complex. We get compliments from our family & friends that come to visit that it’s a beautiful area and our apartment is lovely :-). Oh, and LOVE that it’s walking distance from Japantown (we’re big sushi lovers) and Sunday farmers markets, so convenient!

I really like it. It’s surprisingly quiet, considering the area and that the airport is close. We’re new to CA and it took us 3 months to find a place that would allow our dog (staffordshire mix), that was in a good location and was worth the expensive rent and this place has it all for us.
We were told about the Esplanade by the staff from another complex where they wouldn’t allow our dog. We first came a Saturday afternoon with no appointment and Stephen kindly gave us all the info we needed. After an exhaustive search for better/​less expensive options, we came to the decision that this place was worth the couple hundred more than other places. So another Saturday we came back to talk to Stephen, he showed us a loft and a remodeled 1 bd, and we were able to move-​in immediately (literally, that same afternoon). The place was clean, shower drain didn’t work well but it was fixed right away by the very friendly maintenance staff.
The remodeled unit is great: stainless steel appliances, pergo floors, really nice looking; washer and dryer in the unit and parking garage with direct entrance. I have not detected the «buttery smell» from the brewery that some reviews complain about, common areas are clean including the dog park and staff has been very nice and efficient in my experience.
— — -
After living here for 5 months I’m still happy with the place, they have updated the landscape which looks nice, they’re currently working on one of the pools which I think they could’ve done during winter but they keep the noise and dirt under control.

Plan on outrageous rent increases, 2009 I moved into a 1×1 rent was $ 1395 every year the rent has gone up I am paying $ 1830 now and just got a renewal notice… the new rent…$ 1976 this is for a NON renovated unit.
Staff is great, and has no say in the rent increase but ESSEX is pretty shady with its pricing practices and after checking with the Rent Board this property is not subject to San Jose rent control
I have heard from several tenants that getting ANY of your deposit back is next to impossible.
Complex is nice and staff is great but a one bedroom for 2k hummmm yeah that equals a 2 star rating
Owner replied with a canned form letter reply, If you read other reviews you will see that they obviously have a PR person handling social media and are trying to give the impression that the leasing office will work with you with regards to rent increases. This is not the case at all. It is very much a take it or leave it situation. Additionally the month to month rent offered was $ 3716
Essex taking advantage of the fact that they are not bound by rent control and that with the change in the economy and more people can’t get home loans but have the income to afford a mortgage payment, they are renovating units and raising rents
Think about it 3 years ago they where making a profit charging me $ 1395 Now they want $ 1976.
That is called profiteering

Moved in last week and I have to say it is wonderful. Steve W. who rented us the apartment has been GREAT! We rented a «Balmoral» and love the layout. This is a very dog friendly community, they even have a small dog park in the community. Each apartment has a full size washer/​dryer, which was a must for us. They even have the apartments set up for ceiling fans if you purchase and want them installed, they will install them for you. Yes, I did that!
So far so good!

I LOVE LIVING HERE!
PROS! :)
Great office staff!
Great Maintenance staff!
Great Amenities!
Amazing Location!
Ok so I came from a place where it was not a big deal if your water was off for more the 24 hours. Or if you got Carbon Monoxide poisoning. And if the trash bin was leaking black thick ooze into my parking stall… oooo well!!! 4 legged creature in attic… too bad!
Therefore moving into the Esplanade was like moving into a Palace!
¹¹⁄₂₈ 8:00pm My sink is not draining… to many lemon peels ;(
¹¹⁄₂₉ 9:30am I call office and inform them of the problem and give them permission to enter.
¹¹⁄₂₉ 2:30pm I come hope to a well draining sink!!!
I love living here. And the office staff and maintenance all rock shout out to Jags, Stephen, Reuben, and Everyone who makes this place so cool!
:)

Dollar amounts and availability are good for ⁰⁶⁄₀₉ only.
Apartment viewing by appointment only. Not open Sundays.
We absolutely fell in love with these two bed/​two bath layouts and we’re finding that our search may ultimately come down to availability.
Deposit $ 600, Pet deposit $ 250, Pet rent $ 35/​month for both cats (yay!)
They have two layouts that satisfy our criteria: the Hyde ($ 2,376, 1204 SF) and the Kensington ($ 2,386, 1204 SF).
What we love about the Hyde layout: the dining room and living room are located in one continuous area, so it doesn’t force you to have one designated barrier between the two rooms… simply put, you can have a bigger dining area and a smaller living room or vice versa, depending on your furniture placement. We also loved the «landing» area that you hit once you go up the stairs. In the Hyde, there is a very sizable desk and enough room on the other side (nearly 15×9 ft) to put another desk, and *boom,* you have your office area upstairs and now that first-​floor guest room will fit an actual guest bed and bookcases. Let’s go back downstairs, because I love the intelligent guest bath situation. There are two entrances… one by the front door and one accessible through the guest bedroom. Genius!
What we loved about the Kensington layout: the washer and dryer is upstairs (you know, where we had the office planned for in the Hyde). Having the washer and dryer upstairs is super-​convenient, since it’s right next to the master bedroom, where all of the clothes get hung and folded anyway.
The Deal-​breaker:
The living room is only 11X11 ft. We currently have furniture (and Xbox Kinect/​Rockband set-​up) for a 13X11 ft room. Call me spoiled, but I love my games!
It’s not a huge deal-​breaker, though. So we’ll wait a while and see what they have available in a few weeks, just to keep our options open.
I asked about guest parking: non-​metered, no permit required. And I asked about inflation. Our current apartment rent has gone up 20% every year. The very informed specialist (Stephen) thought that was ridiculous. The Esplanade has seen rent increase/​decreases from 6% to 15% and that 15% actually went down quite a bit. He’s an actual tenant and has been one for several years, so I trust him when he tells me that if rent goes down, we’ll feel it just the same as when it goes up.

I recently moved to the Esplanade, and I love this place so much! Initially, I was concerned after seeing a few bad reviews on Unilocal,but I have had no problems or complaints since moving in.
I found this complex after seeing an ad on Cragislist, and I called their 1 – 800 number at 11:15pm. Someone quickly answered, and he scheduled a tour for that weekend. The next morning Stephen called me and spoke with me for quite a long time explaining the amenities as well as the options for floor plans. He really sold me on the place, and when I arrived for the tour on Saturday, he spent a long time with me answering all my questions.
After an exhausting day of apartment hunting, I called Steve about 5:00pm (the leasing office closes at 6:00pm, and I asked if I could stop by again (this time with my tape measure to make sure all my current furniture would fit. Stephen patiently helped me measure the rooms, and he even worked late to make sure I was able to lock in the price and apply that night.
Throughout the whole application process, Stephen has been always very friendly and professional. Honestly, he was the one that sold me on this property, and I am so glad that I moved here. My apartment is beautiful, and I couldn’t be happier. They accept dogs (with no weight limits), and I really enjoy taking my dog on walks in the area.
I’m not sure where all these bad reviews are coming from, but I have had a great experience here. :)
Pros:
Lap lanes in the pool (I love swimming laps)
2 pools & a hot tub
Fitness Center– that has the basics (which is all I ever use)
Great floor plans (vaulted ceilings, lofts, etc)
Beautiful grounds
Friendly staff
washer/​dryer in unit
Security (cars are parked out your back door only residences on that building can access
Cons: none so far

I went to view a 3×3 and a 2×2 at the Esplanade this afternoon. While the girl helping me was very friendly, the prices I was quoted on the phone weren’t correct. Then again she did remind me about 700 times that «prices are subject to change daily,» so perhaps it really DID shoot up $ 400 overnight.
Either way, I was only able to view the large but otherwise unimpressive 3×3 because the property manager had left and taken the keys for all the other units.
Really? I made an appointment and you don’t provide your rep with keys? Total disaster.