Rental Experiences -- Oxford Manor

Oxford Manor Apartments -- 1 star rating

This place is so bad it gets its own review.

I'm going to do my best to give a honest opinion of Oxford Manor. I would not recommend living here. My recommendation is the result of a combination of the tenants they accept as well as the condition of the building, the way the building is managed, and the responsiveness of the management.

The good: The area is very residential. Plenty of parking. Plenty of hot water and good water pressure.

The bad: I feel like I'm living the projects. The majority of the neighbors are, for lack of better words, ghetto. They go from "hood rich" thugs to ex cons. I honestly have never seen so many crappy cars/suvs on Dubs. Many of the tenants don't seem to have a job and you will often hear your neighbors party during the week up through the early hours in the morning. Many just don't seem very educated or respectful of both their neighbors and surroundings. They smoke everywhere even though there is a ban on smoking in Belmont, and management doesn't care. The neighbor above me leaves his TV on full blast up through 4am. The walls are VERY thin so you WILL hear everything. If you do need to move in just pray your neighbors above and below you are quiet. The hallways smell of pet urine. This is a pet friendly apartment but it seems like the majority of the tenant here do not respect the property. The best bet is to not rent anywhere in Belmont between El Camino and US101 - the whole area is second class.

The ugly: Initially I had a great impression of the management. They were very accommodating and friendly. I should have know something was wrong as I went to sign the papers. I was never given a receipt for my deposit nor did the lady there seem to have any property management experience (she didn't know what to do and I had to tell her). The building was very poorly maintained. Management claimed they inspect every unit and refurbish them before renting out, but I moved into the unit with a HEAVY gas smell as well as damage to the balcony. I had to demand a response before management will actually respond with PG&E. Turns out the gas hose was disconnected and the damage on the balcony has still not been addressed. The fridge leaks. The sink is rusted. I took many pictures of the condition of the unit and sent them over to the management. None of the items have still been fixed/replaced 3-months in. I had notified the management of several noise complains (see above) and they ignored me. There was always promises of things will get done but no action.

Most recently the prior on site manager was fired and a new team was brought in. I am hoping for the best but I'm not holding my breath. From what I heard they have a laundry list of items they need to fix from the prior manager's neglect before they even get to my concerns.

Interesting note: Management do not pay for water, and the individual residents are pro-rated the water bill. Per individual, you pay about $50/month for water, on top of your regular PG&E bill. Most apartment complex cover the water and garbage. This means if I am paying $1,250/month for rent, I'm actually paying $1,300/month.

Since the management do not pay for water, they will leave the sprinkler on until water overflows into the storm drain.

Currently, there are still periodical gas smell in our apartment unit, management has so far been negligent.  They made numerous appointments to repair the damage but no one ever shows up during the appointment time.