Elan at River Oaks Apartments

Update: About 2 weeks after my previous review, I haven’t seen any mice and the place seems to have been cleaned up quite a bit. I started to notice more events that the leasing office is trying to do. (i.g. breakfast days and dog socials). So they are trying to make things better for the residents. That’s a bonus.
We were still unhappy about our neighbors upstairs which prompted us to move out. After many complaints, the neighbors were still disrespectful and rude. Starting around 8pm every day, the whole place smells like weed. We have to close our windows and doors to prevent it from stinking up our place. The leasing office has said they’ve talked to the couple upstairs which led to an improvement in their noise except they’re still pretty loud. They argue almost every night and someone occasionally is hammering stuff at 2−3am in the morning. Carolyn offered to move us to a different unit, but we felt like the community just wasn’t for us. We decided that we were only going to be living there for a few more months so we’d tolerate the people upstairs.
Will update after move out process is complete.

Updated review: Now that I have lived at Élan for almost two months I figured I would update from my original first take on the community. We are so happy here, as I said in my last review we came from Fountains of River Oaks across the street and though the rent is a bit more here, it is worth it. I feel like we live on a resort, all the staff is so friendly and it seems someone is always working to keep everything maintained and clean. A big issue I had at River Oaks was the noise, not so much from neighbors next to us but just from traffic and such since the bedroom window backed up to the parking lot– sun would beam in and you’d hear everyone leaving for work, leaves being blown right at your window at 8am etc, at Élan the first floor is above the garage and the patio is well protected before hitting your room and living room I have overslept plenty of times since it’s so peaceful! (Might not be an issue for some but for me this was a huge deal, I need my sleep.)
Gym is great, I love the community board and the daily emails updating us on things happening. Food trucks seem to be daily here and a few weeks ago as I drove out to work on a Monday morning was handed a packed breakfast by Élan staff! (I think this was a special occasion, but still so neat.) All pet owners seem to be very respectful with clean up and we haven’t had any issues with any appliances (our washer broke 3 times at Fountains of River Oaks and flooded our entire apt plus we had to have the patio door lock replaced twice and still could never get it to properly lock. so if safety is important to you, Élan is a better option.
I am trying to think of a complaint because nothing can be perfect, all I’ve come up with is a guy in the gym the other night didn’t use headphones and him blasting music was pretty annoying. That’s the worst I’ve got.
Thanks, Élan. You’ve made my stress levels go way down living here.

Leasing office: all stars team, especially Carolyn — she is totally awesome! Élan was our last stop in a day-​long apartment shopping tour as we were almost ready to sign the lease for another apartment in the same neighborhood. Carolyn gave us a tour around the complex and showed us several apartments. We loved the place and the apartments — high quality, new appliances, great planning and tons of amenities. She answered all of our questions throughly and gave us a bunch of great advices. No pressure, friendly, professional conversation led to a quick decision — we went back to her office and signed :) Carolyn made our move from the East Coast an easy and pleasant experience. All paperwork handled remotely, in time and with precision. All details were covered in advance, so the move in was a smooth and easy process — thanks to Carolyn and her colleagues in the leasing office. So, here we are — 6 months later, no regrets and love the place even more. Good job, team Élan!

Currently living here now.
My car recently got broken into while it was parked in the gated portion of the parking lot. They pry’d out my stereo.
I reached out to the complex. The complex didn’t do anything. Told me to file a police report. The complex also said they have video cameras pointed only at the cars entering the gates. But only police can look at the footage.
I can assure you, I am not the first and will not be the last to be victimized by an auto break in here at Élan. Yet, the cameras only point at the gates, which doesn’t show anything. Cameras should be throughout the parking lot.
If you do a tour here, they will say there is security doing patrols, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a patrol in the lower parking levels. There’s also only one patrol throughout the night covering 10 or so buildings. That’s very insufficient if you ask me. They will also claim the lots and community are gated. So either it’s really easy to sneak in and break in to others’ cars, or one of the other residents are breaking into cars.
For how much rent is up here, security should be more thorough.

Where should I start. Let’s see:
1. Infestation problems
2. High utility charges (and they don’t have any clue)
3. Towing from wrongful places for wrong reasons and saying it is a fire lane when it is not (Administration again not taking any action against it)
4. Losing rent checks
5. Delays in getting answers to residents
Everyday is a nightmare, but only because now we have signed a lease, we are stuck! The management sucks big time and gives all types of stupid explanations which doesn’t make any sense! We definitely are moving as soon as the lease is over. If you haven’t gone through the previous comments, make sure you check the previous reviews as well. Some people are lucky to have good apartments, but most of them are having this issue it looks like.
Some people have put good pictures as well.

I stayed here before from around 2011 – 2012. It’s a nice area with easy access to nearby tech companies. Overall, this was a nice place to live. There was garage parking and the management was responsive. And this development had studio floor plans which made it a bit more affordable. I remember having issues with AT&T DSL internet, but Comcast ended up working fine. Good community!

I’ve lived here for 2 years and hope to stay another year. I was very surprised to see such a low rating! I have had a good experience here. Maintenance is timely, front desk is friendly and Basira really tries to resolve any issues.
My 2 bed/​2bath apartment is spacious and private. I rarely hear next door neighbors, but sometimes upstairs. The remodeled units are nice and larger than newer complexes. My appliances were all brand new when I moved in.
A little more attention by staff to community areas would be nice. There are street lights and stair lights that have been out for months and still not addressed. These can be safety concerns. I sent a message to the GM months ago and no response was ever given.
Rent increase this year is up to the 8% max. I would like to think Élan would like to keep their residents, but it seems like my rent is going up to that of a new resident. I hope this is resolved and I can stay living here as I really like it.

SERVICE HERE SUCKS!
1) I moved into the apartment in the 28^th of July 2015, paid the $ 600 deposit and the first month lease. On the 5^th of Aug 2015 I get a mail saying «You have a late fee of $ 50»!!! I was shocked as we had already paid the rent when we moved in. When I called them they inform me that I had to pay the prorate fee, which I knew had to pay but did not know had to pay by the 1^st of Aug which was ridiculous because we just moved a couple days back and paid the entire month rent. They could as well collected it with the move in fee. When I called the leasing office to ask for an explanation, Monique from the leasing office rudely asked me «Did you think you could stay here without paying the rent»!?! Seriously this how you talk to your renters!
2) Just two months after we moved in we had the heater not working, called them as an emergency. But they took three days before they could come and fix it.
3) One our bathrooms (next to the kitchen) was clogged called in as emergency and asked them to fix it. The person at the leasing office claimed it could not be registered as emergency as we had two bathrooms. I told him that the condition was bad as it was just next to the kitchen and we needed it fixed at the earliest. They took 4 days before some one could come and get it fixed.

I wanted to spend some time living here before writing a review so that I can write from experience.
I’ve been living here in Élan for almost 10 months now and I absolutely love the place.
My lease signing process was very smooth and Carolyn and Basira were super helpful in going over all the details with me. Carolyn took extra efforts to make it a comfortable move-​in for me, in terms of dates and follow ups.
It has well maintained amenities and all my friends and family visiting my house, have always admired it. There is ample open space to keep the place well ventilated.
I haven’t found any issue with the management overlooking my requests. They are very prompt and the community web portal is very active.
The tennis court is in good shape with Free (ok, almost) classes twice every week.

Not sure why all these bad reviews. Been leaving here 4 months now. Apartments are very nice, they take good care of them, stuff is very friendly and always trying to help (Carolyn is amazing), maintenance guys are fast at responding and grounds (with pools, gyms and tennis courts) are always well kept.

I would like to start off saying this is a great place to live. We lived here for over 2 years and did not run into a single problem, either with appliances, maintenance or leasing office. I will be completely honest here and say that I have completely enjoyed staying at Élan for the time that I did. Seriously, there is nothing the management does not do to make the residents comfortable.
The building we lived in, building 1, never had any break ins or issues with stolen packages. We followed the community portal quite frequently and did not hear too many issues with building 1.
We were forced to leave due to an unfortunate incident and absolutely hated moving out. The management team stood by us firmly and helped us in every way possible. I have to mention a special thank you for Eva Sharp who is the manager for the property. She is an extremely polite and understanding person. She understood our ordeal and made our moving out as smooth as she could.
There definitely is a problem with the flooring though. We could easily hear the family upstairs run around the apartment (so not cool for adults to run around non stop). Residents need to understand that every one deserves to enjoy their home in every way possible. Community living calls for some level of understanding between neighbors, which unfortunately is lacking. Taking extreme measures to get your point across only leads to more trouble. Perhaps Élan can have a community event to talk about noise/​running/​rude neighbors. A good way would be to get people into the same apartment and have some one run upstairs to demonstrate just how bad it is.
Overall, i would say its a great place to live, barring a few serious glitches, its a well running system.

I regret ever going to this apartment complex.
I spent a great deal of money moving into this community (down payment, rent, movers, time off from work).
They post signs everywhere «no smoking», and the day I moved in the tenant below me started chain smoking. Me and my partner felt sick, we could not last another min in that apartment.
We complained to the leasing office they came and inspected the situation, and informed me they had no idea this person was in violation.
Yeah right, the balcony looks lived in, I don;t believe the leasing office was not aware of the smoking issue in this building that is clearly identified as a non smoking building (which was reviewed in detail when we signed the lease).
This is a clear violation of CA housing laws and I was exposed to second and third hand smoke. There are other issues with the facility, however my health comes first and I had to leave.
I paid out of pocket for another mover, a hotel to stay in because I had to work during the week and could not move «again» until the following weekend. I had to find another apartment because they lost my trust. Smokers in this community don’t smoke 30 feet away they smoke right next to the building or like in my case below you. No respect for fellow tenants. As a nurse and major advocate for healthy living I was not going to expose myself to toxins.
The company promised to refund me my deposit and 1^st month rent. Guess what… I’m still waiting almost a month later.
I now have financial deficits and the company does not care, I’m now getting the run around.
If your looking for a two bedroom in Silicone Valley. DONT TAKE THE BAIT” you will pay dearly, theres a reason the 2 bedroom apartments at Élan are 1,000 less per month compared to competition.
I will soon look for guidance, and will continue to post my experience so others don’t fall for this poorly managed development. They are quick to take your money, however give you lots of excuses when they have to give you a refund.
I’m serious look elsewhere.

I moved in 2 weeks ago and the move in experience was very good will give 5 stars for it. But ran into multiple issues with the appliances and regarding hot water in past 2 weeks and had to call maintenance several times. They are very good in following up once the maintenance request was completed but very very bad in responding to the maintenance requests. I am very disappointed and didn’t expect to run into issues in my first 2 weeks especially when you are paying ~$ 3K monthly. I will wait for few more months and update my review.

I would give this place 0 stars.
I called in before hand to schedule an appointment for a tour. They told me to come in at 5 which was at their closing time, so I did. When I had arrived at 4:40pm which was before their closing time, they looked at me like I was some kind of outcast. It wasn’t even a hello how can we help you but more of a Hello wtf are you guys doing in here at this time. Then they kept questioning what time was your appointment for, who did you make the appointment with, we don’t have you in our system. Everyone kept asking each other «HEY! Did you set up an appoint at 5 today???» Their responses were dramatical, «NOPE IM GOING HOME!!!» For me it was like what kind of customer service is this? No one was professional, no one was apologetic, no one had sense of urgency to help but they only had an urgency to go home.
Be careful of a lady named Teresa or Theresa because she will give you a stare down and a mouthful when you just ask a question. I will never ever come back here or would recommend anyone to come here.

I’m surprised the overall rating is so low. If you look carefully, you’ll notice reviewers who give low ratings are complaining about ridiculous things. For example, of course you’re going to be penalized if you exit your lease early.
The complex itself is nice. There are several pools and hot tubs amongst the buildings, and a nice «fake» pond near the leasing office. The tennis courts are a cool feature. Each building has its own gated parking which seems very secure and they recently even installed cameras. There haven’t been any break ins I’m aware of during my time here. It borders a small retail center with a Starbucks, Chase bank, dry cleaners, and Subway. There’s also a Patxi’s pizza (excellent) and Wahoo’s Tacos in the neighboring Crescent Village complex.
The apartment units are pretty good. They’re not luxury quality, but solid nonetheless. My 2 BR has 2 balconies, 1 of which is huge and allows plenty of space for a gas grill (although there are community grills as well) and even a patio table with chairs. The wall thickness must be decent because I rarely hear noise from neighbors. Try to avoid a unit facing Montague Expressway because I think that might be a little loud. The best units face Élan Village Lane. Minor caveat — each Tuesday & Thursday (I think) is garbage/​recycling day, and it gets noisy for a few minutes around 6:30AM when Élan staff rolls the large bins from the garage to the street. It will wake you up if your bedroom sliding door or window is open, but if they’re closed it’s not really a problem.
The residents here are a mix of young families, tech workers, and a handful of older residents. For the most part I think everyone is respectful and quiet. No complaints.
The staff is what makes this place 5 stars. Shawn and Bisira, as well as all the other staff, are incredible. They’re genuinely nice people who are knowledgeable and eager to help. I should also note I had a couple very minor maintenance issues and they were taken care of in ~1 day.
I’m moving out in a week due to my lease ending and a new commute. I’ll update this review if there’s any BS with my security deposit. I’m not expecting to get every penny back, but I’m hoping they’re fair.

Great apartments!
Carolyn (who is amazing) from the Leasing Office was extremely helpful and knowledgeable and after a couple of questions about my needs and wants she paired me up with the perfect apartment. Great floor plans, HUGE balconies, and located in a quiet, picturesque area. Very dog friendly! The main office (which includes a business center, clubhouse, main pool and Jacuzzi) are all resort style so it kinda makes you feel like you’re on vacation, which is really neat. There’s tennis courts, ponds, fountains, weight room, cardio room, lots of fun things like parks/​shopping/​food to walk to, the entire package!
There were a couple of standard move in requests that I made Carolyn during the walk through (like a door stub was missing the plastic piece, a blind missing a shutter) and they were fixed faster than I could blink by the maintenance staff who are also very friendly. I feel safe in this complex, the cars are gated in the building and each building is gated but in a subtle and tasteful way. This was built in 1991 but it doesn’t feel that way at all due to all the internal and external upgrades throughout.
All in all, I would say that Élan at River Oaks is by far the best apartments that I looked at in the San Jose/​Santa Clara area, and I did a whole lotta looking. Thanks again Carolyn for making the leasing process painless and for finding me my home.

So far its awesome!
Leasing process was smooth, Carolyn was super helpful and attentive, and the entirety of the paperwork was very transparent (cannot always be said about apartment rentals).
We asked that we get a fresh coat of paint on our deck and within a week we had a super friendly maintenance guy named Ralph come take care of it for us.
The pools are nice, the workout rooms have brand new equipment, and the tennis courts are usually available to use. I don’t feel like I need an extra gym membership, which is super convenient.
Overall, we love it. Thank you for a great experience so far.

I haven’t moved in yet so my review is only about the pre-​move and leasing process.
The complex looks very very nice. The photos on the website aren’t exaggerations at all. It is that beautiful. The club house is sensational, the pool and common areas look very well maintained. Indoor parking is a bonus and secure. Elevators are spacious and there are small touches like shopping trolleys near the elevators to help you move your groceries from the car to the apartment. The apartments are very spacious, airy and very well laid out. All have open views — you don’t look into an opposite apartment. Much much better than some of the creaky wooden overpriced crap I’ve seen in Sunnyvale.
And now for the best thing about Élan — Carolyn at the leasing office. Extremely helpful right from showing the demo apartment — twice, to helping me select the floor plan and identify the best apartment from the ones available based on my requirements. After a month of visiting countless apartments around the Bay Area, its wonderful to finally work with someone who understands that you’re looking for a home for your family and whose intention is to help you find it — thanks Carolyn.
There’s some strong negative reviews about Élan on Unilocal.Not commenting on their validity but my experience so far has been very strongly positive. So I’m glad I didn’t rule out Élan purely on the bad reviews.

No complaints here… Amazing and friendly staff … Well kept… Quiet… Great community and enjoy the neighbors.

I lived at Élan only as long as I had to. What originally started as a really enjoyable home eventually became a nightmare. I was not able to see my specific unit when I toured, so I was very sneakily taken to a unit in the inner buildings, away from the Montague side… What I saw was beautiful and very well staged.
I came back a month later and took my apartment. Nice, there’s an elevator, it made it easier to move in… except that moving in or out completely inconveniences everyone else in the building, since there’s only one and it’s incredibly slow. Get used to that problem, especially on weekends, since people are CONSTANTLY moving in and out of the units. Élan’s turnover is incredible.
Turns out my apartment was a mere 30 feet away from the 8 lane express and a major intersection. I was promised that the apartment was properly insulated so I would never notice the highway. I assure you that they were lying. The cars are very easy to hear straight through the poorly insulted, not nearly thick enough, glass doors. If it’s raining, the effect is multiplied DRAMATICALLY. I gave up on sleeping without earplugs. Oh yes, don’t forget about the rush hour traffic on that highway, and the firetrucks that frequently come through.
So the location I was given sucked, what about the rest of Élan? The garage gate was broken on multiple occasions within 6 months. When I asked for a second garage remote to get in, I was flat out told no. Not even at a price. One tenant, one remote. So if you have other vehicles, get used to the (very limited) guest parking or trying to remember your remote, since parking is completely unregulated. Why am I paying $ 2200/​mo if I can’t even park my vehicles? Hope you don’t need one of the shopping carts available for resident use that they tout so highly as a helpful feature, since they’re never ever around when you need them. Most of those are broken in various ways as well.
The elevator is useless depending on the time of day, so get used to the stairs. Oops, you don’t want to go in there! Carpeted stairs… but with plenty of water soaked in them.
The gym that is actually useful (with the ellipticals, etc) closes at 10, despite the weight room being open 24 hours. The hot tubs are useless, barely lukewarm. On the topic of hot water, I hope you enjoy being scalded routinely. There is a double boiler setup to make sure that you never run out of hot water… but it’s also completely unregulated. At any given point, you can be taking a shower at a reasonable, warm temperature when the second boiler kicks in – suddenly increasing the temperature at least 30*F. God help you if you had the single dial faucet set to full hot. These swings occur FREQUENTLY. In a single 15 minute shower, the temperature changed dramatically 3 times.
Don’t be home during the day, because renovations are not announced, even when they are directly above your head. The staff doesn’t know when the workers are coming, as evidenced by them telling me the work was to end by one date and it continued on for another week. The main street (where the leasing office is) is completely filled to the gills during business hours, either by the nearby construction workers’ cars, or people trying to go to the shopping center adjacent to Élan. Those people don’t care and will park anywhere, including up to and inside the roundabouts. This is despite a big «No Parking, 24 hours a day» sitting right next to these parked cars.
Everything about the place has a nice, but half-​assed or run down feel to it. The elevators, which once may have been nice, have not been maintained very well. The carts are broken, aesthetically and otherwise. The garage gate radio system BARELY works, both with the RFID they initially offer you (which is useless) and the button-​oriented remotes.
On the whole, the unit itself isn’t too bad; the quality is very average. The sound insulation between units is pretty good: I only hear my next door neighbors having sex if it’s really quiet or if I’m in the bathroom; I also think that my upstairs neighbor is a 400lb ghost wrestler. The counters and appliances are pretty nice, but if you get stuck with a stacked washer/​dryer, be ready to wash nothing more than maybe 4 shirts at a time.
When posed any sort of complaint, the staff really doesn’t care about the tenant at all. It’s very very thinly veiled niceness from most of them, especially when it comes to pretty much anything I’ve mentioned in this review. These people exist to take your money. When called out on the prices of other units that they list on the web, they weasel out of the good price by explaining that «prices change daily,» even if that price was posted THAT DAY!
I strongly advise that anyone who values their sleep and sanity stay away from Élan and look at any of the other complexes nearby if you absolutely must be in this area.