Review for Sterling Oaks Apartments

Sterling Oaks is a very attractive, safe and friendly complex. The units are relatively spacious, with high ceilings and washers and dryers in every unit. Of course, you do pay dearly for all the amenities...perhaps the highest apartment rates in Chico.

There are a few criticisms I do have. The management can be difficult to reach and slow to respond to repairs. Probably 9 or so months ago they came through the apartments under what would now appear to be the "guise" of assessing repairs that needed to occur in order to budget for 2007. 9 months later the light over my stove has YET to be replaced. In addition, a broken sprinkler head has been gushing onto my patio every time the the sprinklers go off for two days now, even though I notified the management as soon as I was aware of this occurring.

Be forewarned...the management will enter your apartment for sometimes almost unnecessary reasons with as little as a day's notice. Case in point...to retrieve serial numbers off of everyone's hot water heater, when the tenants could simply call the office with that info. This can be problematic for pet owners that may not be able to confine a pet to a bedroom if they are not home at the time management arrives. Better if there were a way tenants could schedule management "visits" when they're truly necessary.

Tenants are permitted to have pets here with a deposit, and there is a (supposedly) a weight limit for dogs. That is why I chose to live here. I needed a place that would allow my dog. I was thoughtful enough to request a downstairs apartment so that any romping my dog might do wouldn't disturb tenants below me. Don't expect other tenants to be as considerate. It would be nice if the management would limit people with dogs to renting downstairs units. The last people above me had a small horse. Need I say more?

Lastly, the management seems to be rather lax with respect to their office hours. When I attempted to call when the geyser was gushing onto my patio I got no answer, even though the office should have been open already for an hour. Yesterday when I attempted to stop by, there was a sticky note on the door saying they were out to lunch, but would be back by 2:30. Okay, no big deal, I would cut my errands short if need be and return before 4:00, their closing time. I returned at 3:30 and they were all locked up (sticky note gone).

Don't get me wrong, by and large I think this is a very pleasant place to live. I just wanted any prospective tenants to get a full picture from someone that has lived here nearly two years.