Sonterra Apartment Homes

Current Resident 47568

Resident • 2010 - 2011

Nice Hill Country Apt.

Nice place, organized management. Lovely views in Phase II. The only drawback is the dumpster, full to overflowing too often. Neighbors okay. Parking was not usually a problem, but spend the extra $$ and get a unit with a garage, is my advice.

Current Resident 913930

Resident • 2008 - 2011

Somebody's padding the reviews!

I've been here 3 years and other than the management, nothings changed! They are painting the place, but, three years later and the laundry facilities are still out of order, they would rather you just buy your own, or they have a rental provider. Parking is bad if your out after 10 pm. My view is of someone else's balcony, which is a 50/50 chance here. There are many problems here, the maintenance staff quits and changes. I've had major scratches put in the paint of my car probably because someone else thinks they should have where I parked! There are nice places nearby surrounding this place in all directions for the same price. There are many other complaints I can get into but, your on your own! Just use due diligence and do your homework! You've been warned!

ljsljs

Resident • 2006 - 2011

Finally

Finally, a postivie review. I thought I was the only one who liked it here. I have been here five years and love it. Quiet, great view from my balcony and repairs have always been made in a timely manner. The office staff now is great. Not so good in the past, but seems to be much better now. I think it is a great place to live too.

Current Resident 775574

Resident • 2011

Little piece of Paradise!

I've lived at Sonterra for 4 years now. I love my apartment, and I adore my view. I can see for miles from my balcony, it's awesome during 4th of July, New Years, and meteor showers! I've never had an issue with parking or noise, in fact, it's one of the quietest I've ever lived! Everyone in the office knows me by name, and have always been so sweet. I stop by to get my coffee and granola bar(or some of those sinful cookies). I called to get my garbage disposal looked at, and they replaced it SAME DAY! Since I've been here so long, they even replaced my carpet AND gave me upgrades at renewal time. The personal training classes are awesome; his work outs hurt so good! ;-) I'm thinking about going to some of the yoga and self defense classes. I have hesitated from moving because I love it here so much. If I could buy my apartment I would. LOVE IT!

Current Resident 469294

Resident • 2010 - 2011

This is the worst apartments i have ever lived.

Bad maintenance and Very bad management.!

tullip98

Resident • 2009 - 2011

Stay away from Sonterra!!

Stay away from Sonterra Apartments on 620- they are horrible- the office is always rude and disrespectful. Maintenance requests take days and days to be answered, and then are only fixed half the time. They make sure your lease ends on an odd day of the month (not like the 1st or the last day or the month) so that if you aren't extremely careful and accidentally turn in notice 1 or 2 days late, you have to pay a pro rated amount of the market value of the apartment- as well as the month to month fee- 2 days late on our notice has cost us $300 and this is after our apartment flooded 2 months ago because of a mistake by contractors they hired to do the roof when we were out of a place to live for almost a week- they offered us nothing, and didn't pay to replace any of our property that was damaged due to their contractors negligence. Then we were expected to pay for all the extra electric- and water that was used during the clean up of the flood- and because of the higher bills resulting from that, they are now saying that they aren't going to accept our rent unless we pay the full amount of the water bill- which is in dispute- along with the rent. Meaning we are trying to pay our rent to them, and they aren't accepting it AND are going to charge us late fees on top of it. STAY AWAY FROM THEM. They are also owned by a private trust, which means there is no one above the apartment manager that you can speak with about any issues you have. and did I mention the apartment manager is 2 tacos short of a platter? There are hood rat children running around who are rude and disrespectful

privatedetective

Resident • 2010 - 2011

Extremely Noisy Apartments. Terrible Customer Service from Staff and Management.

This apartment community would do better to have more attenative Management. Our experience started badly with unethical behavior of a leasing agent that left is feeling like we were working with a sleazy car salesman. The apartment is spacious for two people and in a great location so we rented here in hopes of never dealing with him again. We have found the maintenance staff to be very excellent and professional. More professional than we could have ever expected in an apartment community. We've been unable to enjoy our apartment home for many reasons that would be resolved with proper management and oversight in rental applications and tenants. The noise level from the surrounding appartments is excessive. Mostly from over occupancy of the 1 bedrooms. One of our neighbors appear to have 3 adults and 2 children living in a 1 bedroom. The kids living in the den, one adult sleeps on the sofa and two adults share the bedroom. They also have several (4?) dogs all in this 1 bedroom apartment. There are always children playing ball in the parking lot. Bouncing balls against the side of the building. When they loose control of the ball it slams into the garage doors and dents them or into the side of our vehicles; Setting off car alarms or cracking tail lights. Every weekend that we've lived here there has been policeman at one building or another. Our neighbors have loud parties during the day and management won't do anything about it, you have to wait until the courtesy patrol is on duty at night. They shouldn't advertise a one bedroom with a den if they are going to allow occupancy as if it were a two or three bedroom. Most all the units in our building have atleast 5 people living in it.

eb0ne

Resident • 2008 - 2011

Horrible Customer Service. Beautiful Grounds.

This complex is beautiful. That is the only item positive about this residence. The staff is rude, incommunicable and ineffective. (1) I have had to ask them to fix our dish disposal and thermostat on several occasions and the issues still persist. (2) They raised our rent after we had been living there for two years when our rent was supposed to remain the same. Instead of admitting their mistake they simply stated that rent was raised for everyone because they're "at 99%" occupancy. (3) The fire alarms were not working for the buildings for a length of time which they notified us via door flyer a month afterwards. (4) The most gross offense was when, after living here for two years and paying our rent on time, they refused to accept our late payment. We provided a young woman in the office with a check to pay our rent and she stated they would only accept a certified check. When we tried to explain the issue and get further clarification on this she refused to speak with us. And when we would not leave- she threatened to call the cops! Please save your money on something worthwhile where the residence is not only beautiful, the service is satisfactory as well. Lest, you end up in jail for trying to pay your rent.

Current Resident 131547

Resident • 2010

Love the apartment, hate the staff

We recently moved in and were thrilled with the price for the area/amenities. Open floor plan, crown molding, large walk-in closets, attached garage. Great location and gorgeous residential neighborhood. Unfortunately, the customer service is non-existant. The leasing consultants, specifically Michael and Maria, are absolutely, positively, the worst I've encountered in 7 years of apartment living. Once you choose this complex, you are nothing but an apartment number. During the application period, they did not follow through on anything promised, such as returned phone calls or emails. We had to follow up days past the promised return contact date, only to be lied to about attempted contact. You have to ride them to get minor things done. They were not upfront with terms of the lease and mislead us on the exact location of our unit. Lots of children here who desperately need a playground, as they end up playing in the street or snooping in your garage. In short, we love our apartment and will avoid the leasing office at all costs. We recommend the units themselves, not the management/ownership.

Current Resident 882718

Resident • 2006 - 2010

I love my apartment but can't stand the unprofessional office staff. They are very nice until you have a problem, then they turn hostile. They don't return calls or follow up with complaints. I'm just waiting for a change in staff. Forget going to management there isn't any, literally. I can also hear every footstep my upstairs neighbor takes. It's the worst for noise in any apartment I have ever lived. It has also become overrun with kids and big dog and nothing gets cleaned up.

Current Resident 775055

Resident • 2009 - 2010

Disappointed

We lived here for 9 months and are happy to reach the end of our lease. The apartment itself was fine, clean, worn carpet, cabinetry in fair shape, nice big windows... but you cannot for a second forget that you are living in an apartment. The walls are thin, the plumbing is VERY LOUD, and stomping/walking around in the above floors is heard with what seems to be normal activity. Children (elem/middle school age) congregate all around our apartment. The parking lot and the areas JUST outside our apartment are their playground, so we hear screaming shouting children for 4 hours after school lets out and all weekend. I've lived in 7 different apartment communities and can't say I've ever been bothered by apartment noise as I have here. If you're looking for a quiet, peaceful community this is just not it. The noise intrusions were enough to motivate us to move our family out. The common areas are covered in dog poop. The office staff aren't concerned with enforcing community policies.

aliciamapp

Resident • 2009 - 2010

I LOVE THIS PLACE!

I have lived here twice and the only reason why I moved the first time was moving in with a boyfriend and second because all my classes at ACC I could only get in central, east or south austin the drive was taking a toll on me. The apartments are 10 years old and are taken care of sooo well. Property is owned by a family trust so you can see how they are personally making sure everyone gets great property maintenance. Beautiful property on 42 acres of land. Maintenance always came within a day or two. Crown Molding, AC is strong, very well insulated, they recently in the last 2 years even upgraded all the apartments inside even though it wasn't even needed! went 5 months without having to ever tun on my AC from Dec - May even when it got "warmer", faux gas fireplace lights up with a switch, huge living and bedrooms even in their smallest floorplan and you can even get 1 bedrooms study or attached garage. I had the smallest floorplan without a den or garage and my rent was still only $550/month! They only wanted to raise my rent by $10 too... I bet the Concordia students are loving the new campus on 620...going from -----hole apartments to luxury living for less! oh man what a steal!

PrivateD

Resident • 2010

Apartment is great; Staff and Courtesy Patrol could be better.

We moved here 6 months ago, in spite of the male Leasing Agent's inappropriate comments to my wife. The women in the office were very nice to deal with, so we just overlooked his behavior since we liked the apartment and location. The community has a resort feel. Very relaxed and feels safe. But there were several things not working when we moved in that should have been fixed before our move in. It was very time consuming to get the matters resolved. We are also certain that something of value was stolen from our apartment by one of the maintenance staff. Not a good way to start off a lease. I recommend using a nanny-cam as we do even if you plan to be at home when they enter. The pool area was a party atmoshpere and the chairs were junk. Recently the manager has done a fabulous job of Redecorating the pool with new patio furniture and plants. A new policy and reminder was sent to the residents and it has calmed down greatly. However, don't expect to use the pool or hot tub until 10:00 pm as posted. The "curtiousy" patrolmen will run you out of the pool by 9:30 even if you are quite adults doing nothing but enjoying the ammentity you pay rent to enjoy. Some are nicer than others but they need training in resident retention and approaching people more kindly. The noise in the community is minimial but the noise from our neighbor is excessive throughout the night and AM hours. We have beeen unable to resolve this by contacting management or following their instructions to call the "curtiousy" patrolmen. I'm not sure why, but a couple of times that I went to work out early in the morning, there were chain locks on the pool gate and no way to get into the workout room that is advertised to be open 24 hours. The clubhouse for phase II is lacking in features and attention. There are many nice people in the community and we have liked every resident that we met. With the exception of a few hosting the party crowd at the pool. Also, there is not any place for children to play. It would be nice if they adapted a playground into the vacant area by the phase II pool. We have trouble getting the electric gate to open and notice others have the same problem. Is annoying when in a hurry.

unhappyresi

Resident • 2005 - 2010

Average compared to others.

Not Good Management. Parking is adequate. bed Bugs. No proper maintenance (A/C filters, Duct cleaning

PrivateI

Resident • 2010

Have had to make the best of it

Moved in a couple of months ago and had many maintenance issues that should have been fixed prior to our move in. We have had many sleepless nights because of noise and atleast once a month there have been several police cars at buildings around us. Phase II is not as manicured and cared for as Phase I. We seldom use the pool because of the constant party atmoshphere of alcohol use, profanity, and adult volleyball that takes over the pool area. The pool furniture is old and mostly broken vinyl strap furniture. There is not a proper grilling station like there is at Phase I. Most of the grass areas need to be replanted and are just dirt. No beautiful flower gardens in this Phase. The staff completely neglects this side and offers less in amentities for the clubhouse. We are also certain that a maintenance man took a wallet from our apartment. The wallet was empty but he most likely did not know that at the time. The staff are friendly but again, Phase II is mostly neglected because the staff is only insure at Phase I.

Current Resident 195171

Resident • 2010

HORRIBLE PLACE TO LIVE

My wife and I just moved in a month ago and are already searching for ways to get out of our lease. When we moved in, there was a laundry list of things wrong with the apartment. Such as, bi-fold doors have fallen off track THREE times now, blinds in living room have fallen and have been promised to be fixed 3 times but never have been fixed, bedroom is 15 degrees hotten then rest of apt, lightbulb on patio melted globe making it a fire hazard, blinds fell out of wall and replaced poorly, door to patio wont open, the bathroom shower faucet had to be replaced FOUR times, and still doesn't work. Gaps between tub and tile (no caulking) fan has broken twice now. If that's not enough to keep you away from this horrible apartment complex, the management will. We have a crazy neighbor upstairs who complains about out our "huge dogs" (we have a 10 pound poodle and lab mix) Called the cops on us for NOTHING, floods our porch with water and dirt at least twice a day and the apt management says "NOTHING WE CAN DO!" Needless to say, we've never been so unhappy with an apartment complex in our lives. All my neighbors say the same. STAY AWAY!! And two of our neighbors have bad black mold in their laundry rooms. And the gyms equiptment is constantly broken and they "promise to fix" but never do...

Current Resident 194303

Resident • 2010

people who live here are great, mngt is horrible

i have lived in sonterra for over 4 years. i love the people in the community and that is why i stay. however, it seems like the management's sole priority is to argue with and make everyone unhappy. phase 2 property is very much neglected. we have broken workout equipment, no bbq grills, broken gates, and one dumpster that the raccoons have taken over. however, phase 1, the side they show for potential new residents is in tip top shape! now, they have enforced security at the pool to babysit, and u will be banned from pool or evicted if caught drinking a beer! i have played water volleyball for years and is a big reasons why im here. they have now told us we are no longer allowed to have these "pool activities," even though they're holes built in the side of the pool for the net. they also use the fact that we have volleyball as a selling point for potential residents. once u sign that lease, they will deny it!

Rosiela

Resident • 2010

I LOVE IT HERE!! It feels like a Resort

I have been here for a couple of years now and have loved it. Of course parking WAS a nightmare but recently (past 6months) I have never encountered a problem with the parking. The staff actually have a stuctured procedure being implemented with the New permits. Hearing the tow trucks come in and out was a little bothersome but in the end it was for the better because now i have no problem finding parking! The office staff is very courteous and professional. Everytime i have a concern they always listen and rectify my needs, especially Rosevelt who really makes me feel valued and appreciated. I used to live at communities where the staff only cared about getting me in the door and then when i became a resident i was less important. That does not happen here at Sonterra, I truly feel as appreciated as the time they first sold me on this property. I love this place so much I am going to renew my lease for another year (If i could do for longer i would). I have been reading these comments about how the office staff changes constantly. That does not bother me at all because they are just advancing to different communities. I am proud to live with a company who treats their employees well because in turn they treat me well! Everytime I renew i feel it is reasonable because every year I get a pay increase as should any working person. So to increase my rent 10-80 dollars is not unfair. I noticed when I take a high increase the next one is not high at all...which makes sense, plus I am satisfied and dont mind paying the extra dollar.. Overall I love Sonterra and have refered my friends and they loved it! Everyone is so quick to mention and over exaggerate negative things but never want to tell the good! If you want excellent service than come live in my Community.

Current Resident 783559

Resident • 2010

I am a resident at Sontera apartments. Originally this complex had many activites for kid and families but with the recent loss of leasing agent Stacey Montoya beware apartment lookers! The last standing apartment leasing agent Micheal is rude after move in. When asking for a repair from HIM he promptly tore down maintenance and told us how worthless they were.

Lanajsmith

Resident • 2006 - 2010

Water bill

My water bill went up eleven dollars this month and I was gone over a week. What gives?

Current Resident 202931

Resident • 2008 - 2010

Not the Worst, But Not the Best!

We have lived at Sonterra for two years and during that time we have seen management change over twice. Some pros to the place are the location, price and maintenance staff. To elaborate a bit, the location is wonderful. The landscaping around the area is gorgeous and you are right down the street from major shopping and recreation. Price was very fair for my fiance and I as we moved in during a special. Lastly, the maintenance staff is very friendly and knowledgeable.They were able to help us with problems with in a day and fix it the first times. NOW for the cons: Parking Gate Security Noise Lack of childcare area Disgusting Ventilation The parking situation is HORRIBLE if you live in the back of the apartment. On a nightly basis I have to park around 10 spaces away from my 3rd floor apartment. A lot of people double park and a lot of visitors come and take up the close spaces instead of parking on the side of the building. If you can get a covered parking area! The gate never properly works either. It is very annoying that everyone can open the gate and a few times people yell out the code for others to use. ON THAT! Security and safety is HORRIBLE in this place. There was not a problem when we first moved but within the last year we get a monthly letter warning us of attempting mugging and break ins for cars and apartments. Another thing that has also recently became a problem is the next door neighbors ventilation fan blows into our master bathroom. This means we get to smell every time they smoke and take a poo. It is beyond gross and there is nothing they can do to fix it. Lastly, the noise at these apartments are horrible. I can hear the people below us and can tell when they are walking in and out of their doors. I feel horrible because I could only imagine how loud we are to them. The doors also slam and shake the whole apartment. There have also been a lot of families recently move in with VERY destructive children. They are loud and stay out late. They will play in the driveways and block the gates. Not only is it highly unsafe but incredibly inconvenient. They also destroy everything in their path, from trees to the sides of buildings. Again this is not the worst apartment but certainly not the best. We have yet to move out(75 days!) and have informed the front staff that they would need to replace the carpet in our second bedroom. Lets hope we get some money back.

kris838

Resident • 2009

Great Apartments & Office Staff

I've lived in Sonterra for almost a year now and they've always been great! The office staff is helpful and very friendly. My bedroom is the corner one, so (as in most apartments) it's colder in winter and hotter in summer. I talked to Stacy at the office about this back in June and within 1.5 days, I had a gorgeous ceiling fan installed, free of charge. My roommate and I went on a cooking spree one super-hot day a month or so ago, and were using the AC, stove, oven, dryer, and dishwasher (yeah, I know, ridiculous, but we were trying to get a bunch of stuff done). Pretty soon we tripped the circuit breaker for our apartment. Not just the little circuits in the apartment, but the one based outside. We called maintenance (late evening on a Friday) and the guy on call called back and was at my apartment fixing it within 5-10 minutes! Also, any time I have a problem, maintenance is there that first day 90% of the time, though occasionally it's the next day. During the summer, there were a handful of kids running/biking around and playing, but that's summer for you. I haven't heard much from them at all since school started. Also, some pets are allowed and there's a fee to keep them... not sure what it is since I don't have one. There is a restriction, though - we have brand new carpeting in our apt, so no pets allowed. Like I said, not a problem since I don't have a pet! Overall, this is a very nice apartment complex with great, friendly, & helpful staff!

Current Resident 403290

Resident • 2008 - 2009

Getting the heck outta here!!!

So we moved in this place almost a year ago and our lease is a month from being up (thank god)! We have had nothing but noise since we have lived here. We knew we were going to have to handle some noise from the pool during the hours that it was open, yet we didn't know we were going to have to handle people yelling and screaming for all hours of the night. We have to call the cops nightly because there is always a couple and most of the time up to 30 people at the pool partying till 4 am. You know i knew i was going to have to hear yelling during the day. But i didn't know it was going to be at 2 am. We have notified the office several times and the only thing they can tell is "call the cops". They refuse to help us in any way on this situation. The other NOISE complaint I have is they like to mow the lawn at 7 am every friday and they like to run a blower at 8 am sharp at the pool everyday. We notified the office on this one and they said that their schedule does not fit our schedule and that they cant do anything about this. So if you work late at night and plan on sleeping in, It wont be at Sonterra. Other than that the apartment is decent and we do like the two car garage. A little pricey though compared to alot of the other deals you can get on apartments in austin now. Were finding 2 bedrooms from 700-900. Not 900-1100 like were paying here for the noise of the pool. Thank god were moving somewhere else!!

dec1

Resident • 2009

Super

I have lived many places over the years. Managment is professional and curteous. Maintenance is done quickly. They have had a couple of movies in the pool..cool and a catered bbq lunch and volleyball with door prizes. Being close to the lake is also a huge plus.

Current Resident 942165

Resident • 2009

Disappointed

I've only lived here a month and I've had to call maintence almost every week. Constanly something is breaking. So far they have been quick to fix but becomes annoying to have so many problems so early. Also, not very dog friendly. No where to walk your dog. Cars fly up and down the road and that's the only place to take your dog.