It's an old building with solid walls and I love that all I need is a light fan in the summer because it's always room cool temperature and warm and cozy during winter. It feels like you're housed in a cave on a cliff by the ocean. I would give it a higher rating if anything can be done about the noise pollution down below read more

I would not recommend living here as a renter. You will be treated like a peasant. The manager Dan and the woman who works in the office with him have specifically told me that their loyalty lies with the landlords and not the tenant. Please ensure that you take a photo of every single thing. Upon time to renew my lease my landlord is forcing me to move out by saying I need to pay $6,000 to restore the window hinges in my unit. Mind you, the window hinges are almost 100 years old and were never previously repaired. Thanks Angie and Damone for being greedy landlords. As another consolation, I paid a $300 move in/move out fee when I moved in and now Dan is saying I need to pay another $250 to hire a company to observe and take photos/videos of my move so any damage I'd documented. Somehow the $300 I paid upon move in is not longer applicable. I was in a shoe box with no parking or storage for $2500. If it wasn't for my lovely neighbor and other residents I met in the building I would not have moved here in the first place. Also, I had a guest park in the front driveway. We signed in the guest parking book, we put our phone number and unit. When the concierge arrived, the concierge called the wrong number and had my friend's car towed. The woman in the office and the concierge couldn't have cared less, I ate that cost and paid $400 to get my friend's car back. It's honestly so disappointing. Hope this helps someone! read more

you're only allowed to tour the building if you have a realtor with you, what kind of nonsense is that!? I understand this location is clearly buy not rent but that's just downright ridiculous, I personally would rather see the place BEFORE I even bother to contact a realtor over some tiny ass room in a hotel read more

this man stood in my way and told me to park right . i explained to him to keep a healthy distance. this man refused and stood at my window and told me he was going to call someone and they will come immediately. i kept telling him hes preventing me from parking correctly by standing too close to my car and in the parking space which i have been parking in for the last few months i have been utilizing and never had an issue like this .. on top of all that , this man called me a stupid black dike bitch ! being that i was respectful and still was disrespected i believe ppl that live here own the parking stalls im really not sure . you should relocate if you dont like the lgbtq community. i believe this was my first male version of a karen type situation ! read more

By far one of the most beautiful and historic homeowner associations I have seen! I almost want to move here. I have been to most of the historic buildings in Long Beach and so far this is one that really stood out to me. The French architecture and the view of the ocean mesmerize me. Scott Maurer has the amazing job managing this community. This place gets five stars from me! read more

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Historic elegant landmark Whenever I drive by this 16-story French Gothic building with ferocious looking gargoyles sitting along the roof, it has always intrigued my curiosity. The Villa Riviera was originally built as a luxury resident at a cost of $2.75 million in 1930. At 447-feet high, the only taller building was the year older Los Angeles City Hall. Home to some movie stars, it was equipped with luxurious features, including a ballroom, roof garden, high-speed elevators, and a 100-car garage. Shortly after opening, the great depression hit and the building was sold and turned into apartment's. In 1933, the Long Beach earthquake violently shook the building, no structural damage sustained. That's because the sturdy skeleton was held together by triple layers of earthquake resistant rivets with thick poured concrete. Silent film star, Norma Talmadge and her ex-husband 20th Century Fox president Joseph M Schenck bought the building during the 1930's. Talking pictures put an end to her film career and owning the Villa Riviera. During World War II, the tower and its balcony were used by the Navy to watch for enemy ships offshore. The first Miss Universe pageant was held here in 1952. Converted to condominiums in 1991 and added to the National Register of historic places in 1996. In 2008, a $4 million face lift that included restoration of historic elements took place. If these Gothic walls could talk, what tales they could tell! read more

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For as long as I can remember, people have told me that parts of the Ghostbusters movie were filmed right here at the Villa Riviera Condominiums. When I spotted the 'Open House' sign as I was walking by, I had to stop and check the place out. The real estate agent warmly welcomed me and we entered the narrow elevator up to the condo for sale. I couldn't help myself, I had to ask about the Ghostbusters movie. She stared at me like I was crazy and calmly informed me that had never happened. D'oh, I felt like a dork. The real estate agent explained Villa Riviera was built in 1928 and was originally a hotel. It became an apartment building before it became condominiums. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. The building has a lot of character because of its age but there has also been a lot of renovation so some of the condos had some modern components mixed in. One condo even had a lion shower head. I loved the view of the Long Beach Bicycle Path. It's an awesome building. If only I could afford a unit. read more

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I love it here. What an amazing piece of history . The building reminds me of NYC.

I Have stayed in this building for a few months, in the past and I have to say it's definitely one of the most secure and structurally sound buildings. Historically there just isn't any like it with it's gothic towers and gargoyles it is a favorite of filmmakers! Also built by the first silent filmmaker for his actress wife Margaret. You find history here a part of old Long Beach shoreline hotspots . read more

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The Historic Villa Riviera was built as a Stock-Co-Operative and sold for private ownership in 1928. The Sales Manager, Frank Merriam, later became the Governor of the State of California. Later in 1937 after a stock market crash in 1929 and an earthquake in 1933 the entire building was purchased by the husband of a then silent screen star, Norma Talmadge and turned in to a luxury seaside hotel. After approximately 18 years as a hotel the building reverted back to private ownership status know as "Own-Your-Own" sometime in the early to mid 1950's Later that ownership status upgraded to that of Condominiums. Susan Boyle DOMA Properties Inc BRE 01056722 Villa Resident read more

Oh this is dream living. I went for a New Years get together at my friends apartment that overlooks the ocean. They have a shared balcony that is pretty substantial. What a view! Beautiful. I want to live there! read more

This is a beautiful building. I have driven by it on several ocassions and loved that I had the opportunity to tour the building since I was meeting a client there. The art deco styles and gothic design is amazingly beautiful. read more

Noise: I rented a unit in this complex in 2014-2015 (8 months). I ended up breaking my lease and leaving. My unit faced Ocean Boulevard and the amount of noise coming in from the street made sleeping extremely difficult. I am writing this on yelp, because before I moved into the unit, I searched on yelp about it, but no one had said anything about noise (or really anything at all). I am not a light sleeper. But the noise was so bad that I finally had to move my bed out of the bedroom and closer to the front door, away from Ocean blvd. In the middle of my lease, they began building a huge complex across the street. This only added to the noise pollution. Parking: I got beach parking, which worked out fine, except for major events like the Grand Prix when parking was a veritable nightmare. Cost: I felt that I was paying too much ($1700) for a converted studio unit that didn't have a partial ocean view. I know of at least one rental unit in the complex (a 2BR with a partial ocean view) that was $150 more). Living in an Old Building: This building is old and so are its parts. While I was there, there were plumbing problems at least twice. On one of those occasions, the bedroom and kitchen were completely flooded from water coming out of the kitchen sink. Depending on your unit, this may happen more or less frequently. Staff said that this was happening because of the use of the garbage disposal by some units. The elevator also broke down at least once a month. Staff and Condominium Association: The staff of the building were nice and fixed things when they broke. Having said that, the staff was limited by the policies of the Condominium Association. From my experience, I found that the Association cut costs when it came to building maintenance. For example, when I moved in, I paid a mandatory $300 move-in/move-out fee for the specific use of the freight elevator. As per the Condominium regulations, I booked the freight elevator in advance of my moving out. The freight elevator stopped working in the middle of my move. According to staff, the elevator had not been working previously (that weekend and/or a few days before and someone had been sent out to fix it). But the staff said that the freight elevator was not fixed and that the Association was cutting corners when it came to fixing it. Suffice it to say, having to pay 300 dollars for the use of a freight elevator should have given me the peace of mind that it would be operable. My move was delayed, and the movers had to move everything in the regular elevators. My couch, which of course didn't fit, was left behind. The staff delivered it to my storage unit the next day. The staff were excellent, but I can't help feeling that the Villa Riviera Condominium Association had failed to live up to its claim for the building, as a place where "class and elegance spire above the Southern California coast." I had to pay out of pocket for the time lost. The money was not a big deal, but when I wrote to the Association about what happened and requested compensation, I never received a reply. Neighbors: People were friendly; one experience with a bigoted resident. Not a whole lot of diversity in the building. Beach: Living on a beach was lovely. Best part of the experience. read more