Vantage Pointe Apartments

It would have been nice to be reminded that I needed to call them to say I was moving out. That said, my lease got extended. It was whatever. That’s my fault.
It was pretty chill living here. People were cool, the location was alright, the amenities were fine, and we had a parking spot on the first floor. Thank God for that, because their parking situation is goes all the way down into the bowels of Hades… you may never come out.
We prided ourselves on keeping our place spotless. They gave us $ 4.44 of our security deposit. It’s this type of stuff that make people hate you.

Below is my original review… I have had so many people write me personally to see if I am a real tenant and if this is my real view of Vantage Point. Let me say, I am absolutely a real tenant… Everything I say below is true and still holds true 6 months after moving in. I am actually surprised at the negative comments and reviews because I completely disagree. I haven’t had the same unpleasant experiences. And trust me, at 51, I expect better than the average bear. We are very satisfied with our choice and have absolutely nothing negative to say about our apartment, this building, the staff or the location. We love it here. Please feel free to write me with any questions and if you do decide to move here, let me know… I would love to hear from you. I can even you a mini tour and show you around if you like.
*As mentioned below… Our hallway on the 17^th floor, has now had the upgrade and it is gorgeous.
New to San Diego, all the way from South Carolina… We were not quite sure where to start, when looking for a place to call our West coast home. We worked with an agent for several days, saw some awesome properties but none that fit just right. Just as we were about to settle, we get a message from one of the staff members at Vantage Point saying the one we had requested to look at, on their website several weeks prior, was ready if we wanted to stop by to take a tour. As crazy as it sounds, we were literally minutes away from signing a lease with a highly rated property but we knew it wasn’t exactly the perfect match.
Our first request, walkability… (We now realize, that’s just about anywhere, downtown San Diego) Also on the list was a good monthly rate for a nice apartment, a gym, a pool and an awesome view would be a huge plus.
We postpone the signing at the property that we were about to settle on… Even asked the agent we had been working with if he was sure there were no other high rises with availability… He said no… So, we decided to do 1 more tour before signing… That one more tour… Vantage Point.
Yes… We read the reviews. Yes, the agent we had been working with said it had a reputation for parties. Yes, it takes a little bit of time to get out of the parking garage but it is gated and secure. We have been here for 3 months and we absolutely love it! We have a very nice large 2 bedrooms, 2 baths on the 17^th floor, 2 large balconies with a gorgeous view of the city lights… We can see the water front, Coronado bridge and Petco Park… We are right in the middle between Little Italy, Gaslamp, Balboa Park and The San Diego Zoo, the Marina District, Horton Plaza… We walk everywhere! Sadly, the Donut Bar is only a block and a half… That’s just to damn close!
There is a mix of all ages here… We are defiantly not the oldest. With that being said there are a lot of younger people but all have been very nice, friendly even… In the 3 months we have been here, we haven’t heard or seen any parties. Maybe that use to be a problem but not now. A lot of cook outs and gatherings on the 10^th floor deck and pool area just below us that we would love to crash but no complaints. A different food truck comes by every weekday afternoon for the residents, we have a dry cleaning service and a lot of local restaurants will delivery here. We have the nicest and friendliest ²⁴⁄₇ concierge/​door people, package drop off and pick up service. Tom N Toms coffee shop and many personal service shops on the bottom level… From nails, to hair, to skin care and even a pet grooming parlor. Maintenance is very respectful and seem to be on top of everything but only had a few minor issues when we first moved in that were quickly resolved. I do notice, they also clean all of the gas grills every single morning, as well. I thought that was cool.
Elevators have only been slow 2 times for us but both times was during a scheduled move in or move out reserve. It has to be done… We used when we moved in. So, if that is happening, we just go to the other end of the building where there are 4 instead of just 2.
The hall ways on some floors still haven’t been updated with the new paint, our floor included at posting date so I look forward to that.
Last but not least… We looked at a lot of properties.
By far… We really do get the most for our money at Vantage Point. The efficiency we were going to settle on would have actually been more than what we pay for this wonderful large 2 bedroom because we would have had to pay for parking separately. Here, we get 2 spaces that are included with the apartment.

I’m surprised that my experience has been positive since I was a little apprehensive after reading some of the reviews on Unilocal.I’ve now been there two years and haven’t had any problems.
Highlights:
The evening concierge Maureen is fantastic! There are so many things she has to deal with since there is a LOT of activity while she’s there and she always seems to juggle everything very well.
The maintenance team is amazing! I’ve never lived anywhere — rental or homes I owned where repairs are made within 24 hours and sometimes on weekends.
The custodial staff (may be the same as maintenance) is very quick cleaning up after the dogs whose owners rudely don’t clean up after themselves. The common areas are kept as clean as possible. With hundreds of dog accidents are going to happen.
Even though there are many dogs living in the complex, having the dogs is more of a positive than negative. I don’t think it’s realistic to have a dog «park» on the premises but I guess owners demand it.
I’m not a party animal and I’m happy to say that I’ve never been disturbed by residents partying in the complex. There is the inevitable urban street noise but the building was well built and with the windows closed you only hear the sirens. I use the A/​C a good bit to cut down on the street noise and I’ve been shocked at how reasonable my electric bill has been even during the hot months. My biggest bill is the common area bill that includes water, trash, etc that you have no control over. It’s too bad that the building wasn’t built to meter water usage for the individual unit which would create an incentive to conserve.
Overall I like living at Vantage Pointe. The size was a little overwhelming at first but I’ve adjusted.

I have been waiting a year to write this review and we’re finally out of this hell hole so here it goes …
You’ll LOVE Vantage Pointe IF:
1. You don’t like hot water or working air conditioning. During our time there, we experienced a period of almost 2 weeks without hot water. We had to take cold showers and the water pressure was almost non-​existent. It did not just affect us. It affected several units on several floors. There was one morning when they came while I was still asleep. No one rang the door bell. I woke up to maintenance men opening my bedroom door and coming into my bedroom. Our bathroom was not in the bedroom. It was a one bedroom apartment and the bathroom was across the hall. So it’s a little more than concerning that they would be going into our bedroom while they assumed we were not home to fix an issue with the bathroom? There were many occasions while I was home during the day that maintenance let themselves into my apartment without knocking or ringing the doorbell. Additionally, there were at least 2 occasions where our air conditioning stopped working completely and had to be fixed. The first time, they wouldn’t even fix it until my husband complained to management about the maintenance team. The last time our air conditioning was not working, it came with flooding coming up through the flooring.
2. You don’t want to ever get your deposit back because they charge you to do a «detailed clean» of your apartment after you leave even though the apartments are not clean somehow upon move in. I wonder where this money goes? Upon moving into our apartment, the floors were dirty, there was some kind of brown molasses like stuff on the borders of the windows and the bathrooms had clearly not been cleaned either.
3. You want to pay hundreds of dollars for parking and then have other people park in your spot and management will do nothing about it. Your apartment, depending on the amount of bedrooms, will come with one or 2 parking spots. We needed an extra spot which we waited months to even become available and then when it did, they charged us $ 200/​month for it. There were several occasions when I would come home and someone would be parked in my spot. When I told the front desk, they just gave me a pass to park in guest parking basically until the person left. They never towed or took action on the people abusing parking which is probably why it happens all the time to several residents.
4. You like waiting 10+ minutes for an elevator and/​or want to walk up to 40 stories of stairs daily. You can ask anyone who’s lived here for any length of time and they’ll tell you that almost every single day, there is at least 1 elevator that has been reserved for moving and 1 that is out of service. Which leaves 2 elevators to serve 40 stories of tenants. It is not uncommon to be waiting a very long time for one to get to your floor. Many people end up taking the stairs. I have a dog and every time I had to go to the first floor just to take them outside to go to the bathroom, it would be at least a 15 minute trip.
6. You don’t care about your stuff getting stolen or getting injured or killed. While living there, there were numerous, regular instances of theft of all kinds. People’s motorcycles were stolen, cars broken into, etc. One tenant told me in one of our lengthy elevator rides that his motorcycle was stolen and that when he reported it to the leasing office they let him know that they had absolutely Zero cameras in the parking garage and could not help him. By the way, you will get no cell coverage while you are down in that garage. And there are no cameras. So you have nothing assuring your safety for the long while you are down there. And you will be down there a while. It takes about 10 minutes just to drive to your spot if you aren’t on one of the first levels and then you can expect that lovely elevator wait. People also drive about 30 mph down in a parking garage that is really only wide enough for one car to be driving one way. They were daily incidences where I was nearly hit both in my car and walking. It is not safe for many reasons.
7. You like the smell of urine, vomit, feces, everywhere you turn. This place is disgusting. Whether it’s from dogs or people (it’s from both), there is pee everywhere. At least once a week, there is urine in the elevators that you either end up stepping in or having to jump over it. I’ve witnessed guys peeing all over the place in this building. Which brings me to my next point …
8. If you want to live in a frat house. This place is nothing but an overpriced frat house. There are constantly black out drunk people everywhere. There have literally been people passed out on the ground in the elevators. It is SO loud. It reeks of weed and cigarettes (yeah, I wouldn’t take their no smoking rule very seriously).
There’s so much more I want to say but I’m literally out of characters. This place deserves to be shut down. Good riddance!

I have lived here for a little over a year and cannot wait to leave. The overall lack of consideration of their tenants, lack luster service, broken elevators, and the fact that this building is one giant frat house should make it an easy decision to pass over when looking for a place downtown. If your heart is set on living in the downtown/​east village area I would highly suggest you look elsewhere and spend the little bit extra for a place that actually cares about its tenants. Renter beware!

I very upset that I pay $ 200 for parking yet someone parks in my spot. After I’ve reported 5 hours have passed and they are still there, but if I didn’t pay for that spot I would have been towed for sure. Their response time should be immediate if I’m paying that much being in front of the entrance gate (especially that parking spot I’ve almost been hit multiple times just being by that gate). Be on top of requests that should be resolved immediately.

Unilocal is censoring my review and has deleted twice. This is my 3red post. Unilocal removed but I am reporting: The Asian lady at the front desk was very rude. I was there to visit a friend and she tried to force me to leave my ID when I am visiting a resident. When it was confirmed she let me enter. On my way out I advised that there was water spilled in elevator for north one. Her response was I am never allowed in the building again. I will advise my friend that he should have a word with her superior.

Overall I am happy at Vantage Point. My floor is quiet, in fact I rarely see or hear any neighbors. My unit is very nice aside from the old carpeting in my bedrooms. The living room carpet was replaced before I moved in and looks nice. The bedroom carpets look terrible. I am not going to take a star off for this but it does really bother me, especially the stark contrast where the old and new adjoin. A luxury building should not let a new tenant move in with carpeting that looks like something you grandmother would have.
Aside from that, I do really like my apartment, the amenities and the staff. Lorraine is a very helpful leasing agent and Sammy in maintenance goes above and beyond to help you. Close to freeways, Gaslamp, great views, dog friendly. Beautiful pool and common areas although the fire pit never seems to be working. I would definitely recommend this building to a friend.

Doug at the leasing office is so amazing! His helpful nature is so comforting!
It’s not common, thanks to him I signed my lease! He made me feel at home!

We were blown away by the courtesy and professionalism of the staff here at Vantage Pointe. Our leasing consultant Cerena really went above and beyond to help us move in quickly taking care of any problems that arose and making our move in happen on such short notice. This has been the easiest and most pleasant experience we have had moving into a new home.

My review is just for the concierge Alex! You know, the mall cop dude!
I helped my friend move in one evening and had the pleasure of meeting this wonderful fellow. At the time of our arrival, Alex was trying to clean some huge streaks and chunks of dog poo that some wonderful dog owner had left behind in the front lobby.
So he’s got the wet floor signs out, paper towels and bleach, and is trying to clean other people’s dog poo off the floor while running to and from the desk to keep serving people while other people keep walking through and spreading the poo further.
I loved his attitude, he wasn’t annoyed or embarrassed, and he was friendly to every demanding person including myself. He multi tasked and got every person seen to, and was considerate all the way through it.
He’s a funny guy, excellent customer service and VP is lucky to have him. Go Mall Cop!

Update:
Multiple roach incidents, endless cigarette butts on our balcony tossed by neighbors above, the carpet just absorbs dirt no matter how often I vacuum, the elevators are rarely all working at the same time, and I got a «pay up or get out» notice on my door, despite having paid my rent 4 days ago. I hate this building. Do not live here. Do not give these people your money.
************Original Post*************
I’ve lived here two weeks. Best piece of advice: INSIST YOU SEE THE EXACT UNIT BEFORE SIGNING THE LEASE. We saw a similar floorplan, but our unit did not have the same flooring and I spent my first day cleaning all the things that somehow weren’t cleaned before we moved in (grease splatters in the kitchen, finger prints on the ceiling from changing light bulbs, etc). Moving in has been one problem after another. The unit has all carpeting when we requested one with none: plus the tack strips are all exposed, the carpet is stained, thin and has ugly traffic wear. Cigarette butts magically appear on my balcony, my dogs are a wreck with the construction noise from across the street and omg BUGS. I’ve lived downtown for years and never had the level of mosquitos and flies that I’ve had here. The roach I killed at 2AM was the last straw and I had to request pest control service. How none of this was fixed before we moved in boggles my mind. «Frustrated» is an understatement.
I’ve voiced my concerns to leasing and maintenance, and to their credit everyone has been sympathetic and friendly… But no one has fixed anything. Each solution seems to be «tomorrow» or «we can move you to a different unit» (with much less square footage or only one parking space for the same price) or «someone else has to take care of it». Still waiting to see if these solutions will materialize…
So far, most of the other reviews seem accurate. Great community amenities (pool, gym) but insanely crowded. The lobby looks like the entrance to comicon at times, there is vandalism in the hallways, the non smoking policy is obviously a joke and the parking garage is terrifyingly tight. There are a surprising number of 20 something party people for such an expensive building; Like every trust fund baby in the city has been placed here.
Personally, this chaos isn’t my scene, I’m apparently too particular about my living space for them to handle, and I regret moving in. That being said I’m crossing my fingers and hoping things will improve… And lowering my expectations. I’m obviously not going to get what I pay for and suggest anyone else carefully consider that possibility before signing a lease.

I’ll start off with a positive, this being my first Unilocal review ever, i want to make sure to give as many details as possible.
Pros: The complex is gorgeous itself and the views are amazing. It’s nice to have guests come over and ask if this is a Hotel and are in awe of such a nice lobby and amenities.
Staff: The staff is very friendly, unless there’s a problem, then its no one’s problems but mine.
However, that being said. Whoever designed this building sucks. Who came up with the brilliant idea to build 2 bedrooms and only allow one parking spot and not have options to add on another space for additional cost.
The sweet good old community wanted/​selling ads allowed me to post an ad that i was looking to purse an additional parking spot. The end result? The guy sold his spot to 4 different people and made off with over 2 grand! What happened when I told Vantage Pointe leasing office? Nothing. Said they couldnt do anything about it. Have they sent out an email warning others of this scam? nope? I see a new car parked in this guys spot almost every day. he took off with the money and ran.
Elevators: there should be a policy that people moving in or out CANNOT reserve the elevators during the time when people are leaving for and coming back from work. I’ve waited 25 minutes for an elevator after a long day to find out elevators on both sides are being rented for people moving. Also elevators seem to break pretty often in the building, another round of applause to the architect and designers.
Dog «park»: It’s absolutely disgusting and a hazard to all dogs who go in it. The first time i brought my dog into it. i had to walk out right away. Not only was the smell unbearable… my shoes and my dogs paws were completely soaked in dog urine from only a few steps in. They took out all of the dirt and tried cleaning it. and it was fine for about 3 days. Its too small for the amount of dogs that are brought into it. and even walking past it at night you get this awful smell that lingers in the air.
Ive only been living here for almost 2 months, and already cant wait for lease to end and move to a different building with a better property management company in charge.

Great place to live. Friendly staff. Amazing views great service. Can’t beat that. Highly recommended in my book.

Apartment Complex Critiques are TOUGH! People expect a lot and are very critical of the place they live. So how did Vantage Pointe earn FIVE STARS?
The concierge are extremely helpful, friendly and when they do need to make tenants aware of the rules, they do it in an amiable and respectful way. The main selling point for me was the 24 hour security, and how key-​fobs are needed to gain access to all elevators and community doors. It is a secure building.
The maintenance team is great. Amazing Experience! I’ve never had a maintenance person be so friendly and sincerely want to fix everything as best as possible. I should have video record him and sent it to the last place I lived for their training.
But the greatest asset to Vantage Pointe by far is Cerena in the leasing office. We came downtown to look at a different VERY TALL apartment complex and after deciding against it stopped by Vantage Pointe on our way out of Downtown just to check it out one more time. The first two units we were shown we really didn’t want to live in and we were about to leave then Cerena told us about a unit that was coming available that sounded perfect. We jumped at the opportunity without seeing it. A few hurdles arose in the process and Cerena went out of her way to bash through the road blocks and make everything as easy on us as possible. As a graduate of Dale Carnegie’s Effective Communications Course I hold communication and customer service at a high level, and I don’t have much patience for people who don’t. Cerena’s excellent customer service abilities are extremely refreshing.
What can Vantage Pointe do to improve? Well… this is a big one: The Jacuzzi Jets don’t stay on. Even with the timer cranked all the way to on the jets go out after a few minutes then they automatically turn back on after a few minutes. I’m 100% confident that this is fixable and that they will fix it. The pool table is kind of like golfing on a putting green. The slab has a slight crack and you have to read the green to make the shot. I’m sure they will fix this as well. But in the mean time it ads another dynamic to shooting pool.
The views are amazing, and the location is perfect. You can walk to Gaslamp, the Bay, and Balboa Park. The commute in and out of downtown could not be easier with the ramps to the 163 and 5 two blocks away.
Everybody I talk to loves it here. I would recommend Vantage Pointe without the slightest bit of reservation.

Beautiful in every way and the customer service is great !!!
Loves the gym, the pool, and the recreation room. There is a coffee shop and a salon as commercial space and overall the look and the chic quality of the building has engulfed my thoughts for a possible lease for a unit in this tower. Thus far the best I’ve seen and worked with din who offered many unit options and was an eloquently styled person !

*** Unilocal HAS DELETED ALL THE PICTURES OF THE COCKROACHES, 10 ELEVATOR OUTAGES, AND VICIOUS DOG BREED PHOTOS *** 01/​08/​2016
Like others on here, this is the worst apartment building that I’ve ever lived in. I broke my lease to get out.
Cons:
ROACHES! See pics
Cockroaches are found in a lot of apartments, including mine (see pics). I’ve had 5 separate roach sightings in my apartment since I moved in ~8 months ago. According to landlords «it’s an unavoidable part of downtown living».
ELEVATORS? SLOWWWWW
Slow, constantly broken elevators are probably the avg residents’ most common complaint. You won’t appreciate this until you wait 20 minutes for an elevator to arrive, only to squeeze in with 15 other pissed off residents. I’ve been trapped once in one of their malfunctioning elevators! See pics.
AGGRESSIVE DOG BREEDS
Restricted breed dogs are very common here, it’s true (see pictures). Most are act okay but I’ve personally been lunged at by a pitbull. Please do not bring children here.
LOUD!
Construction to the West, sirens & horns often, people running down the hall at 3AM drunk as hell. Many Middle Eastern students studying abroad live here. I keep a sound machine and the fan on to sleep.
SMOKERS
I agree that some days you come home and your apartment just smells like smoke. The rule about no smoking is a joke, unfortunately.
URINE SMELL
When you put a dog pee area directly next to the main entrance of a massive high-​rise apartment building this happens.
INVASIONS OF PRIVACY
When building management wants to do anything in your apartment they don’t ask you, they tell you and just come in. (see pics).
PROS:
— If you have one, «Restricted» dog breeds are not kept out
— Cheapish rent
— Some of the views are great
— 2 of the concierges are really great at their job.
Unfortunately this is by far the worst apartment building I’ve lived in downtown. Think twice. The property manager Lety Rodriguez is a really nice person, but is clearly not capable of keeping this slum of a building together.

If you make it to the end of your lease here expect a minimum of $ 200 increase in rent for your next year. While construction is going on across the street. Also around 3,000+ cleaning fee for a 900 square foot apartment. It’s like they contracted out Kayne West and/​or Halliburton. Or use you to fund their renovations.
Talk to anyone downtown and you will know there’re are plenty of options that are much better for the same price or less! If you need dog friendly there is a building right across the st from the Quatyard Dog park (real dog park not piss puddle vantage point has) that a couple friends were able to break their lease and move too.
The front desk lady with the red curly hair has is very selective in terms of who she allows to park in front. If you have a BMW or Cammero she will let you park all day no questions asked.
If you have a Camry though, like my girl friend they will force you to move to the move in area within 10 minutes. Then they will let anyone double park you and leave.
Had a foster dog with torn stitches bleeding all over car while waiting for someones guest to move their car which trapped us in. Had to wait 45+ minutes. They were not threaten with towing like we were and no effort was made to try and find them to.
Key Fob — went through 12 batteries and broke twice making it a pain in the ass to get into the parking garage.
The worst part about this place is they make move out as difficult as possible. If you need a piece of furniture disposed of. NO PROBLEM it only costs you $ 250 per item. Or if you a spoiled douche bag which most of the people living here are as you will find out once you get love tapped by a dunk with too much with too much horse power while walking to your car in the garage you can just leave your shit in the hallway and they will through it away for free after a week or two.
Also people write shit on the walls, steal lights from the hallway, pretty often and it takes a while for it to get fixed as well.
The Jacuzzi fits about 4 – 6 full sized adults without having intertwined legs. It usually has about 8 people.
Basically the policy’s put in place punish you with harsh fee’s for following the rules and reward you for trashing the community. I feel bad for the front desk workers who have to deal with crazy policies.

I am sad to have to write a review like this. I live in this building right now and I am being forced to move out by inconsiderate tenants all around me.
I am being generous by giving two stars. One is for the view and the other is for the location of the building.
I moved in here less than a year ago and am already having to go through the time, effort, & expense of moving.
Here’s why:
1) This is a non-​smoking building. NOT! Every night I try to sit and relax in my living room and the room fills up constantly with other people’s cigarette smoke and marijuana smoke. I have asthma and have tried everything I can with the management to no avail. After emails phone calls and notifying security they just tell me I have to deal with it since no culprits will admit to causing the problem. Furthermore, when I move out and they are going to charge me the full amount of my lease. So it seems the troublemakers trump people who follow the rules. LAME!
2) If you want peace and quiet DO NOT, I repeat do not move into Vantage Pointe!!!
When I signed my lease there was an empty lot across the street. I asked my leasing consultant if they had plans to build anything in the near future and her reply to me was «Well they have not done anything in several years so I doubt it». FOUR DAYS LATER they started demolishing an old building on the site and started digging and construction starting at 5 AM going through 7 or 8 PM every single day except for Sunday. The noise is unbearable. I work from home and even with my windows shut can hear the noise as it bounces off of the other tall buildings and magnifies it.
3) Dogs are everywhere.
The entrance to the building has a putrid smell since there is a dog park right in front of it. Careless owners also leave dog feces and pee on the side of the building and sometimes even in the elevator. It may be hard to find a place downtown that allows dogs but on the other hand if you don’t own a dog this is the worst place you could be.
The staff is for the most part friendly and helpful and I am sad to have to go. I only wish that the good tenants were cherished and the rule breakers dealt with.

I come here to visit my very good friend Shar Mia. She moved here this summer and I helped her move for a couple of days. So obviously this review is from a visitors point of view.
Move in is made easy for tenants here. They have designated parking near the front door and concierge can schedule for you to have your own elevator for the designated time!
This a dog and cat friendly building and it appears that most of the tenants have animals. There is a pet area with synthetic turf. The lobby area is beautiful and upscale with a very nice sitting area, a model of the building, concierge service and security doors.
The apartment my friend rents is a beautiful corner unit on the 27^th floor with breath taking and amazing views. The gym is spacious and has everything any gym rat could want. When I come to visit I can always find street parking, a ++