Star Harbor - Alameda, California

Allison W.

I’ve had an incredibly frustrating experience trying to upgrade my partner’s lease and getting myself added to it. We’ve been working on this for three months, and despite reaching out over a dozen times, nothing has been done to resolve the situation.

The communication has been poor at best. Each time we followed up, we received vague or conflicting information. It felt like we were being passed around with no real answers or updates. Every time we thought we were getting closer to a resolution, it seemed like another delay or roadblock popped up.

The most frustrating part has been the lack of action on adding me to the lease. We’ve clearly communicated that this is an important step for us, but despite our efforts, it still hasn’t happened. This level of disregard for a straightforward request is deeply disappointing.

To sum it up, the entire process has been a major inconvenience, and the lack of follow-through is unacceptable. After so much time and effort, we feel completely ignored and disrespected as tenants. I would strongly recommend the management team reevaluate their communication processes and actually follow through on promises made to tenants.

Robert S.

For our time here I give it 5 stars. Staff is great, in particular Lacee, Jordan, Petko and the rest of his staff. We were the first tenants in our unit, so everything was brand new. Maintenance requests were handled quickly and with care. Never hear anything from neighbors or staff which is great for privacy. It’s a very dog friendly place. Great parks near by.

I would say if I had any feedback, it’s just a couple things. Lease price is a bit steep here without the concessions, compared to other areas that have far more amenities. They use flat white paint on all walls, which easily creates marks just by touching it. Lastly, the package room is quite the mess, although they have done a lot to try to fix this and it’s mostly tenets who never pick up their packages causing the issue, for example I’ve seen my neighbors packages sitting in there for upwards of six months.

But all the above are just some minor nitpicks to share with the staff, none of them should discourage anyone as it’s a great place to live in Alameda.

Haru W.

They did a great job creating this beautiful and unique community. My townhouse unit is so spacious and I love living here. But as much as I want to give this place a better review I can’t ignore all the issues that I have found since I moved in.

1. Uber Eats and other food deliveries don’t come up to my unit. They can’t find their way in and I always end up going down to get it.

2. Finding a package in the package room is a big challenge. The room is so messy with so many uncollected packages everywhere. They have assigned shelves for each units but most of the time I find my packages just on the floor or on random shelves.

3. They have serious pest problems inside and outside of the unit. I have found 3 centipedes and at least 10 spiders in my unit in the last couple of months.

This place is overall very good place to live. I just hope they take these issues seriously and make it better:)

Candace L.

This review is based solely on the tour of the complex and first impressions.
I now understand why so many people here rave about Lacee. She's truly a gem of a human being. I toured many apartments where you can tell the leasing agents are tired or don't like people very much. For being the last tour of her workday, Lacee was full of enthusiasm and I could tell she actually listened to what I was looking for because she showed me different units that would meet different needs. I appreciated that so much, it's frustrating when you tell a leasing agent "I'm looking for natural light" and they show you a dark apartment in a corner. I never felt that way with Lacee. When I asked her the hard questions, she didn't dodge anything. She answered with clarity and in a way that was comforting that Alta Star is aware of peoples needs and feedback. That's a rarity.
The property itself is larger than you'd think, because there are mid-rise apartments in the middle of that brick exterior. It's almost like two complexes in one: a new, kind of generic new apartment building and then the exterior apartments with that brick wall and the vaulted ceilings (on the second floor) that give more charm. For the area and rent ranges, I wish there was a pool/hot tub area but the two roof tops provided make up for that loss with the views of SF and Oakland hills.

Glen J.

Alta Star Harbor has been a well kept and quiet place to be. The amenities of the rooftop deck area for gatherings offers expansive views of the East Bay. The well configured gym and adjacent yoga studio are clean and climate controlled. Additionally, the security of the complex is great for peace of mind. It should also be noted, Alta Star Harbor is very dog friendly!

As for the staff and crewmembers who keep Alta Star Harbor functioning, clean and staffed, all of my encounters have been positive. Assistant Property Director, Lacee, has offered great communication from the start. In fact, it is hard to think of a better first person to meet that could represent Alta Star Harbor.

David S.

Upgrading my apartment here has been a saga worthy of a sitcom. Picture this: over a dozen attempts in nearly three months. No exaggeration! I've even memorized their catchphrase: "I'll get back to you tomorrow," which is code for "See you never."

To the management team: Why is your staff making this such a miserable experience for me? I have more documented cases of being ghosted by your staff than the Ghostbusters. Simple requests like "Can we talk about upgrading?" or "Can you fix my lease to include my partner?" were ignored for days and weeks until I had to show up in person. Even then, I was often met with the infamous "I'll get back to you tomorrow."

Today, after more ignored emails and finally confronting them in person, my confidence in their ability to handle even basic tasks is at an all-time low, with my move-in date looming.

Ronen B.

I’ve been living here 10 months now and here’s what $5300/month in rent (3 bed/bath + 2 car parking + water/trash/assorted fees) gets you

Cons first because I was angry at the time I wrote this:

1. Almost monthly intrusions into your living space for “repairs” or “meter checks” or whatever bullshit they concoct up. Keep in mind this is a brand new complex. They spring these with little or no notice by slapping a paper on your door (no emails for whatever reason) which besides the tackiness is a security issue. I can tell which of my neighbors isn’t home by how long the notice stays on the door.

2. The first month I moved in they had a fire alarm test. They ran the alarm (I tested it, at 250 db indoors - you will have hearing damage at this level, as each unit has an alarm) for two hours on two separate days. If you have pets or small infants RIP. From what I understand they will do this every year.

3. Water has been shut down twice now for “repairs”. Once again this is a brand new complex, what exactly are they repairing? To be fair the water was up and running within 2-3 hours even though the estimate was 9-5.

4. Take a lovely walk down piss alley. Residents have been letting theirs dogs piss within the complex with impunity. The smell can be substantial on some days. One resident let their dog shit on my patio.

5. The hidden fees. Grey Star who is the property manager is being sued by the FTC for hidden fees. Google it. They’ve been charging me $5.15/month for the privilege of providing me with my monthly bill. This was not disclosed when I applied here and I’ll be waiting for my $0.25 settlement check in the mail from whenever this gets sorted out. It’s only 5 bucks but it’s the undisclosed nature of it that doesn’t sit well with me.

6. The package room is an abomination. Impossible to find your package without spending 10-15 minutes sorting through all the misplaced mail. The postman delivers your mail whenever he feels like it, tracking be damned( though admittedly this is not the fault of the apartment)

7. When the power goes out the doors stop working since everything is opened by some shitty app called Brivo. I found this out when I couldn’t access my car in the indoor garage after a power outage. This happened about a week after a tsunami alert, so in the event of an emergency I guess I’ll just die.

For the Pros:

1. Jordan is fantastic, if you’re making an appointment or have an issue reach out to him and not Olivia. Also maintenance requests are handled swiftly and done well.

2. Physical Safety has not been a concern, package room while being a shitfest is still a secure location. I’ve had packages go missing but I don’t think it’s from theft, just shitty delivery. The surrounding area is safe for walks even though Oakland is right there.

3. Other reviews complain about bugs but I haven’t had this problem in the 3/3 townhomes fortunately.

4. The gym is well equipped with high end gear - peloton bike, Olympic barbell, kettlebells, rowers, racks etc. there’s even a separate yoga studio.

5. Neighbors are quiet and keep to themselves. There are some shitty pet owners here though.

6. They do occasional community activities and Christmas parties. While I could give a shit about these I think it’s a nice gesture and it doesn’t go unnoticed.

A lot of the positive reviews on Google are from people who just moved in and hadn’t been there long. I’ve watched the ratings decline from 5 stars to where they are now. I too was thrilled when I first moved in only to have my experience change as time went on. They have their work cut out for them if they want to get to full occupancy because from where I sit I see more people moving out then moving in. While I’m on the fence if I will renew, I don’t dislike living here either. Solid 3/5 for now.

Elaine L.

I am a new tenant but wanted to share my new experience. Lacee in the front office is amazing and so helpful! She made my experience so smooth and so easy. The property is beautiful and well kept. The gym is amazing!