I lived here for over 10 years. It was my first place in Los Angeles and was terrific to live in. I resided in a 1-bedroom unit, was waitlisted for a 2-bedroom, and then eventually moved into one about four years ago. The pool is nice, the laundry is not too busy on certain days (you just have to plan well,) and it's near Honolulu Ave, which has tons of restaurants and shops. You could walk down (only about half a mile), but that walk back up can be killer on a hot day. Maintenance has always been kind and responsive - Jeff, from my first few years, and Pablo, the last few. They are great guys.
The things I didn't like include: being right next to the freeway (while convenient, it can be noisy and very dusty), how dusty my units got no matter how much I cleaned, and having to share laundry. In addition, the prep for the 2-bedroom was shoddy at best: the cabinet on the bathroom wall, for example, came off and so did the shower rod, which was replaced by a plastic one held up by tension. I was told they'd order a more permanent replacement, but over a year later, I still had the plastic one, which kept falling off whenever you moved the shower curtain the wrong way. My mom had to tape it together.
Management can be hit or miss, and I must say, the rating I give now is a result of the move-out process. If I had to separate the experience of living here and the experience of leaving, I'd probably say 4 stars for the former and 2 for the latter.
I rarely received responses about certain points of the move-out process despite emailing numerous times and calling and leaving a message. When I was trying to get a reference for my new place, management NEVER responded to my current manager despite her leaving numerous messages and emails. I was the one who had to call and was told that the new manager had to send a form. I'm not sure why Hillside management couldn't have just said that instead of ignoring the messages. I almost lost my new place because management here was so unresponsive.
I emailed about the move-out walkthrough and my availability for that and was told they'd get back to me to set up a time by 5pm one day. Never got back to me.
I was never told my prorated rent amount, and when I checked my Resident app, the full month's rent was deducted, which was rejected because I didn't have that amount in the account (having used it for a security deposit).
I logged into my account again and saw the amount of about $380, which, doing my own calculation for proration (rent/30 days x # of days occupied), was about right, so I dropped off a check on my last day at the complex.
The email I received the next day was that my rent amount "bounced" - which was the autopay of the full amount - and that I needed to pay $505. Using the formula for proration, I deduced that that amount was the prorated amount for an extra day of occupation + a $50 late fee. I was asked for a cashier's check. I paid that amount because I didn't want the rent to be even later. I drove there to drop it off and was there right before 5pm, knocked, but there was no answer - though I did see the light on.
I have since asked for how the amount I paid was actually calculated because that was never made transparent to me. I take issue with the late fee, having never been informed of what the rent owed was. I was signed up for autopay, but on the first of the month the autopay was still set to the full amount, which they tried to take out.
It absolutely disappointed, frustrated, and upset me to be completely dismissed as a resident - and a good one at that - for over ten years when I was leaving. The move-out process was already so very stressful, and the only one who helped with it was Pablo. I understand that maybe they didn't need to do the pre-move out inspection because they were going to replace everything anyway, but the complete lack of communication was confusing, especially about the prorated rent and the reference.
I'll reach out to corporate to try to get an answer, but we'll see.
Update: I was provided with an answer. I was charged an insufficient funds fee, plus the late fee. I wonder what the legality is of charging the NSF fee when they tried to take out the full month's rent amount, which I have a record of from my bank, instead of the prorated amount. So if you're moving out, be sure to cancel the autopay feature. read more