Apartment Review for Harbor Oaks - Sacramento, CA

Not many places allow dogs, and Harbor Oaks not only allows them, but has large porches with tall fences, beautiful landscaping with a lot of trees and the complex is right next to a park and decent walking paths away from traffic.

Parking is a problem. Everyone is alloted one car port space, and garages can be rented (though the entrance is too narrow for our standard car). There are unassigned parking spaces that can be tough to get at night. Parking on the street is allowed, but break ins are guaranteed.

Crime is a problem only for the car. Our car has had windows smashed and things stolen several times...very costly and annoying. However, a security guard was finally hired and we haven't had a break in since. We always feel safe in the complex. (Crime is becoming a problem at the park across the street, however. Lots of teenagers hang out there late at night blasting car stereos, there is increasing remnants of drug activity on the ground every morning, and several homeless people are sleeping there at night.)

Noise levels between apartments are pretty great. We only hear neighbors when in the bathroom. All our neighbors are very quiet. We get incredibly annoying blasts of rap at 2-4am from teens hanging out at the park in their cars, and the bars on the river can get loud at times, but overall it is a very quiet place.

"Storage space" is deceiving. When we looked at the apts prior to moving in, outdoor and indoor hall closets and garages were specifically pointed out to us (and labeled on the brochure floorplans) as "storage space". However, tenants routinely receive notices and are told by inspectors that we are not allowed to use any of these spaces for storage. Kitchen storage seems ok until you try to use it - Much of it is unusable.

Maintenance for the apartments is abominable. The maintenence men are lazy, incompetent, and rude beyond belief.

Office staff are very friendly and attentive. Every meeting I've had with them has been positive, even when I've had a complaint. An added benefit of the office setup is that they get all mail packages and we just pick them up there.

We like the layout of our apt - lots of interesting windows and nice light. The bathroom is larger and has more storage than most apts. The bedroom has a nice walk-in closet and sliders to the patio. The dining room and living room are small, but surprisingly comfortable. The patio is quite large and actually functions like a room. The grounds are beautiful and views from inside are nice.

The apartments are being renovated one at a time, so I can't comment on how well the renovated ones function. I can say that they didn't fix many of the most annoying problems, like that the hard flooring in the kitchen doesn't extend to the dining area and the limited counter space is eaten up by a microwave hanging from the cabinets, the kitchen storage space is so poorly designed that there is very minimal useful space and no spot for trash in the kitchen, and the stackable washer and dryer washes so few clothes (3 loads = 1 normal load) and works so poorly (takes 2.5 hrs to dry!) that we do laundry constantly. I am suspicious that the clogged plumbing, the mold in the floors, the rats in the walls, etc have not been dealt with in the renovation. (Renovation seems to be superficial only - the crappy dysfunctional appliances are being replaced with the exact same models, the floors and counters are redone, but not well. The cabinets are replaced with the same unusable layout, etc.)

Overall, I do not recommend the apartments to friends and don't even have friends over because I am embarrassed by the nasty condition of the interior. However, for people who have large dogs (and lots of money because these are expensive apartments), Harbor Oaks is a fair option in Sacramento.

Adagio, just down the street, is less expensive, cleaner, better maintained, and has better appliances (full sized washer dryer) and storage, plus allows big dogs and also has a park across the street.