Ashton Austin

Amazing place, amazing staff. Moved here 2 months ago and could not have scripted a better experience. I highly recommend the Ashton to anyone. Everyone’s been great but Michael and James on the desk and Jason in the office have been stand-​outs!

We absolutely love living at the Ashton Austin. Not only is the location the best you can ask for downtown (right across from Lady Bird Lake path, tons of restaurants/​bars/​shops), the building itself has wonderful amenities and beautiful common spaces. We moved from a large home to a 2br apartment, and we are shocked at how much closet space/​storage this apartment has. We have a south facing view (same as pool) on the 23^rd floor that overlooks the lake and we have the most amazing sunsets. It is also very quiet on this side. We are extremely comfortable in our apartment, and we always have the amazing common areas to use– such as the beautiful pool/​hot tub with the most amazing unobstructed views, workout room, lounge, etc., so we never feel claustrophobic. The front desk staff– James, Michael, Lenore– are all wonderful and welcoming and the residents are really friendly. They hold a lot of resident events that are well attended and fun. Our leasing agent Jennifer, was not only so helpful during our search, but she also plans many of the events and everyone loves her! Also, the maintenance staff (we have dealt with Maria, Josh and now Jeff) is wonderful– any time we have made a request to have something fixed, it is done that day. A very efficient process. We have been here over a month and can only say positive things about our experience here at the Ashton, and we hope to be here for a long time.

We moved to te Ashton in April and we are loving to live here. It is located on the heart of downtown where you can walk to great restaurants and shops.
We also love that has a lot families that live here and everybody is super nice. Including the incredible staff they have. They keep the common areas very clean.
During summer they have a guard at the pool making sure it does not get transformed in a club! You will never have to worry about people playing loud music or getting the water dirty with cigarets and alcohol.
The park garage is around $ 100 and rent goes from $ 2300 — 10k. We rent a 1 bedroom and is very big the floor plan. With a walk-​in closet and great view!
Talking about view, we are facing downtown and we never have any issues with the street noise either.

Great views and a prime location in the downtown area.

My dad stayed here on a VRBO (vacation rental by owner). Oh my gosh, it was so nice. The apartment we stayed in was two bedroom/​two bath and it was gorgeous. The view we had was absolutely amazing!!! I wanted to be on the balcony the whole time. The pool area is also really nice. I spent quite some time in the hot tub. The only downfall to this place is that you can hear the loud club music every night. We were on the 26^th floor and it was audible inside and outside. I would without a doubt live here if I could afford it and lived in the Austin area. We will most certainly stay here again for a VRBO if it is available.

We rented the penthouse here for a bachelorette party. The place look identical to the pictures and even better in person. We slept 10 gals in here no problem and easily could have slept 13. The pool is great and there’s a huge hot tub next to it. The views of the city are incredible.

The building and common areas are great. I loved that they had a starbucks coffee maker downstairs and the saltwater pool area is fantastic. There’s where the 2 star vote came from. That being said, this building is pretty expensive for what you get.
The doormen are hired from an outside company and totally worthless. Quite often there’s no one at the front desk. So if I come home early with the house key and my husband came home later you could not open the front door or the elevator because you need a key fob. So then you are stuck waiting until someone else comes home or wait until the front desk guy decides to quit watching TV in the gym and come back to work (true story). I understand «security» but they don’t stop anyone from coming in and getting on the elevator even when there is someone at the front. They don’t ask questions or even ask what tenant or apartment they are visiting.
We had random workers just open our door and come in to «fix something» even though no work request had been made. I’m sure our big dog helped ensure that wouldn’t happen again but that’s unacceptable.
We lived there about 10 months and in that span of time the pool had been closed 4 times because people had broken glass on the pool deck/​hot tub area. On 2 separate occasions numerous bikes had been stolen. Someone had come in with a big cable cutter and cut all the cheaper bike locks and stole several bikes. The fire alarm system in the apartments would go off at least once a month. One day it lasted for 4 hours. 4 HOURS! I work from home and it’s hard to do a conference call when your client can’t hear a word you’re saying because it’s so loud.
As others have said the north side is pretty noisy. There is no cleaning staff on site over the weekend so the floors come Monday morning are disgusting. There’s recycling on the 6^th floor of the parking garage so if you want to be a «green citizen» you’re going to have to schlep all your stuff down there. They wouldn’t alllow it in the garbage rooms on each floor because they thought it would start smelling bad. Really? How about hiring someone for $ 8/​HR to come take the recycling out once a day? That’s what you’re paying the high prices for.
When you move out make sure to clean for the next tenant. If you don’t clean they will charge you $ 400. Of course I believe you should leave the apartment in good condition, vacuumed, etc. I’ve lived in nice apartments before and this is the first building that doesn’t do a turnover clean for the next person. What’s up with that?! I did a walk through with the building manager who said it looked great and then more than a week later someone else on the staff said they wanted to replace the carpet. By this point I had moved out of state. I argued and won but get everything in writing when you move out.
If you’ve ever lived in a big city apartment (NYC, Chicago, SF) you will be disappointed with the lack of attention to detail and lack of professionalism from the management staff. I get that this is Austin and they’re still trying to figure out the high end thing– but if you’re charging high rents you should be prepared to offer a high end product. If this is your first semi-​decent apartment out of college you probably wouldn’t know what you’re missing.

I moved into the Ashton this month from Gables Park Plaza. Not only is this building so much better, it is the most gorgeous apartment, and the people are amazingly friendly!
My roommate and I use the amenities almost every day. Workout in the gym that has it all, plus TRX and a range of free weights (weights that go up to 50lbs is a plus for us girls). Almost every night we head up to the beautiful pool or soak in the hot tub. BBQ on the roof for dinner. You can also schedule time in the movie theater, which is nice because you don’t get stuck planning movie night, and end up with it occupied. Bikes/​Canoes for free to use whenever you want in the lobby too!
When we first moved in minor things needed to be done… fridge wouldn’t make ice, and disposal wasn’t working. These things were fixed the same day. Everyone made it a huge priority to get everything how we wanted it. There were a few things I needed in the apartment, that wasn’t standard in the building, and the manager Liam actually went out and purchased the items for me. They have gone above and beyond my expectations.
I referred a friend of mine to them, because of my experience here she is moving in next week! They made that easy and flawless too!
There is no doubt the Ashton is an expensive place to live, but it is worth every penny in my opinion! Luxury living all the way!

As far as Austin rentals go, this place takes the cake on amenities, security, view (most units), and I love that they throw (sponsored) social mixers at their (very cool) pool and clubhouse so other residents can mingle. You gotta be willing to shell out if you want the hotel-​like luxury rental lifestyle. The general average age for residents is higher than average ages at other downtown rentals (Monarch, AMLI, Gables etc.) but I suppose that is expected.

Ok I don’t live here… was just visiting a friend.
This is some Jefferson’s Penthouse moving on up living…
W.O.W!!!
Beautiful view– almost 360 glass view… more than 180degree view… it was nighttime and the City of Austin looked fabulous! Didn’t get to enjoy the pool however the view of it is magnificent!
If you’re looking for a high end place to live in the proximity of downtown Austin this is for you. Since I didn’t stay more than a couple hours I can’t speak to the noise level of the building nor the staff. The building is and units are high end-​from the view to the appliances to the cabinets and floors…
Check it out at least!

My top pick for apartment living in Downtown Austin.
The layouts are great, the interiors are high end and beautiful.
All common areas are clean, and well maintained.
The staff — love them!!! Awesome people to work with.
24 hour security.
Great views.

Now that I have moved out, I can write a review of this apartment building without fearing any surreptitious reprisals from the staff there. I had a less than spectacular experience living in this building. It is an expensive building, and I could only afford to live here because my ex was making good money, but being expensive is not a guarantee of quality. The building is incredibly noisy. They should have warned us about this when we toured, but of course that would run the risk of losing their commission. I know many people in the building who have moved from the north side (the noisy side due to the warehouse district) to the south side, and it seems like such a hassle that the staff should warn people up front. It would avoid a lot of anger and frustration on both sides.
My other big issue has to do with their management practices. They get you to sign a lease which is very expensive, but which is probably par for the course for the «convenience» of living downtown, but the price you pay during your first term is not the real price. The real price is OUTRAGEOUS, and you will only find out what that price is when your lease comes up for renewal. They count on you deciding that moving is a bigger headache than just paying their extortionist prices.
The building is nice, and the apartments are actually very nice, too, but the whole experience of living here, with the constant demands on your attention to pay attention to every little guideline having to do with parking and visitation and all their obscure and arbitrary rules and the rest of it just makes me remember the place with an impending migraine, so I’m about to end this review.
Some of the staff *seemed* sympathetic and like they really were trying their best, but I signed up for an apartment, not to star in a residents-​and-​staff-​against-​the-​evil-​corporate-​overlords Lifetime movie of the week!
When I finally dropped out of the production, I’m sure they had no trouble recasting my role.

I must agree 100% with Apple J., I was one of the first 10 occupants to move in this building, and I was moving in from San Diego, pretentious yes, not so much hustle and bustle and the EXTREME prices of Manhattan, but still a cool 1k less than the apt I had in Little Italy close to DT SD.
I will first say the building was nice, I liked the amenities, and the staff seemed somewhat cheerful and pleasant. Who wouldn’t be if they were getting your first months rent as commission and getting to live in the building as well… not many people I know that work in a law office as clerks get to live in the same neighborhood as the managing partners of the firm… Much less be on the committee of the HOA and decide what color your house should be,
I digress, this SLAMMING of the Ashton goes much deeper than unjust laws and retarded parking enforcement (although one time a delivery driver got towed out front and then refused to deliver our food to us… and he couldn’t have been parked there for more than 10 minutes!!) This review has to do with something more important than not being able to have a freaking beer in the movie room without having to hire out your own security… ya, that’s right! Upon arrival in the sweltering heat of South TX in July of 09, we moved our stuff into a nice little one bedroom that overlooked DT. We were younger and stayed up rather late anyhow so didn’t so much mind the 4 – 8 private concerts we could hear from our deck every night of the week. I did mind the fact that at MOST, there were 20 other people living in a 36 story building and we were allotted a 4 hour time slot to move all of our things in (and we were purchasing mostly new furniture and such, not wanting to drag some of our older things from out west) So of course that was great when shopping we had to make sure that they could deliver on our schedule and promise to be there promptly or they would be shunned, and my rear end would have to go another week without the comfort of a couch to rest it on.
Which brings me to my point, I guess, we did indeed decide on a nice sectional from a showroom in the vicinity who could accommodate our «move in slot» and had what we wanted. Even though I gave them detailed directions on the procedure of the «move in slot» and the «move in elevator» these poor bastards still parked in the middle of Colorado in a semi, flashers blinking and all. Of course I was promptly called and was held 100% accountable for these baboons and their antics. So as I was judged by cast and crew in the lobby I had to show these guys were to park and unload my asses new best friend.
This is where I really want to jump through this screen and really make someone accountable for what you are about to hear… — So the couch gets delivered, I am not in the apt, my poor gf who works nights in the medical field is half awake from a 12 hour shift trying to tell these guys were to set up the couch. As I return home to welcome my new sectional I realize the ottoman had scratched the hardwood floors (which I guess have been upgraded to bamboo on my dime so say another raving review). I obviously call the furniture store and complain and I also call the maintenance supervisor to report the issue so I would not be held accountable. The ottoman (plus a couple of other pieces) get replaced of course and the maintenance supervisor was OH SO HELPFUL in dealing with the adjuster who came out to look at the damage that was done. I SPECIFICALLY ASKED THE MAINTENANCE SUPERVISOR FOR ALL RECORDS AND COMMUNICATION BETWEEN HIMSELF AND THE SUPERVISOR. To what I thought was my delight he sternly said that he would take care OF EVERYTHING and that was part of the luxury of living at… huh huh uhuh, wait for it… THE ASHTON! And said we would get a copy of everything when it was resolved. I politely obliged, who wouldn’t, and then to my regret/​stupidity put it in the back of my mind. BY NO WAY AM I ADMITTING FAULT, but this is where I accept the fact I became complacent and actually trusted someone else with a very important matter… my mistake.
As time does, it went by, and nothing got done. I put in a couple calls and never an answer back… the scratches on the floor became the «norm» and I only ended up staying in the condo for about 5 months out of the 12 month lease. Work took me elsewhere, and my gf pretty much used it for a place to sleep in between commuting and working nights. Ramble Ramble, bottom line, floor never got fixed, THE ASHTON TRIED TO CHARGE US 3K for a couple scratches, plus some other BLATANTLY ILLEGAL charges for leasing/​renting in the state of TX.
NOW AS THE ASHTON HAS APPARENTLY CHANGED HANDS AND I THOUGHT THIS MATTER WAS PUT TO BED I GET A COLLECTION FOR 3K PUT ON OUR CREDIT, BETTER YET… ALL THIS AMIDST TRYING TO PURCHASE SOME INVESTMENT PROPERTY!!! WAY TO BE ASHTON, YOU MIGHT BE THE WORST «FAKE» EVER!
(yes, so angry there is no need to proof this)

NO HOLDS BARRED REVIEW FOR THOSE SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING THIS BUILDING:
I was one of the first people to move into the building. I signed a lease via fax without ever even setting foot in the building.
I have lived here just over a year now and renewed my lease out of convenience more than anything else, ie i loathe moving .
One of the main reasons I picked this building was location AND CONVENIENCE.
Initially I found the management to be very accommodating and going out of their way to woo and please. They are still always professional and I commend them for this, BUT they are not as interested in pleasing the residents they have as they are in garnering new residents and increasing occupancy and the bottom line.
I moved to AUSTIN [keep it weird, mellow] from the ever wonderful yet chaotic, expensive, pretentious, hassle-​fraught NY. I had no idea what I was signing up for at this building.
1. They have more rules and policies than the pentagon and the UN building combined! …e.g.one idiot frat boy threw some beer bottles down to the pool area [and was booted appropriately] and now the rest of us who are civilized and mature cannot have any glass at the pool area… and GOD help you if you do bc the front desk watchdog will politely bark at you and stand there until you relocate the glass.
eg.all pets must have photos and immunization records on file with management in addition to a $ 300 deposit and a $ 200 nonrefundable fee… BTW, I’m supposed to bow down and thank Hanover corporation as they do not charge a pet rent. This is this industry’s version of the airlines charging for even one checked in piece of luggage… I mean really… if I live in the building, am I going to board my pet elsewhere???
eg…if a guest stays longer than 2 [yes ladies and gents TWO] days, they have to be approved by management and a fee is administered…
WAIT…did I say I was moving to Austin or New York!!!
And.the above when I’m paying $ 2400 for a one bedroom +$ 135 monthly parking for a ‘reserved’ [aka we want you to reserve since we’re not going to assign spots] spot so that I am relieved of the hassle of having to look for my car every time…
—-WE’RE STILL ON ONE PEOPLE
2. The exorbitant rent. I was lucky bc due to the fact that ‘market demand’ ie waiting list for my particular floor plan and unit was not that high… my rent only jumped up roughly about 9%…while some people had to give up their first borne if you get my drift.
3. There is NO place for guests to park. Guests must drive around for street parking which can be very tough on weekend nights OR pay at a lot. I find it unacceptable that I live in Austin, and my guests have to pay for parking. Of course, guests can park in the ‘future resident’ parking for a max of 2 hrs and then be towed.
I spoke to a TENANT who has been towed twice from the building! How is it that such a high end building does not require the towing companies to check the list of license plates…
My friend’s car was towed [finally inspiring this much needed review to lay out some truths] when she signed in properly and was there less than 1.5 hours. The tow company says they ALWAYS check the logs… [the management is grt about joining marketing forces w select other businesses and promoting them… usually a good thing…]…the towing company has no incentive to check the logs… if they come… they want to tow… it is up to the front desk person to say yay or nay to towings based on the log…
4. Front desk person. The day guy is an angel from above but most other front desk people who work here are complete incompetent buffoons lacking in the commonest of CS [it ain’t so common]. One in particular is older: I would venture to say that little occurs in the attic of his mind… besides webmaking… and dust collection.
5. most management live in the building. This is very odd. I see them all the time –when they’re off… and it feels a bit big brother… like they’re omnipresent. Like… god forbid if you have glass by the pool and one of them happens to be chilling by the pool…
6. Conveniences that exist in theory: the impotent business center
*there are state of the art touch screen monitors that are rather large and nice… BUT…
*they put in a scanner/​copier/​fax machine without a phone line… this was just fixed after 1 yr!
*very difficult to open complete range of files on the computers
*can’t save anything to the comps — it will be deleted in 1 hr
*can’t pull up flash drives on the computers
*the systems boot you off sometimes every 5 minutes
*can’t go on a lot of sites… bc we live in the Pentagon and the security settings are very high.
7. Noise level. The live music capital of the world definitely declares itself at night when those of us facing DT are trying to sleep or experience much needed peace. The bldg materials r not top quality and the acoustics outside are horrible… as high as 22^nd floor.
Grt amenities.

OK, I’m lowering my rating. My lease renewal just came up and my rent is going up way more than I have ever experienced! Buyer beware, this is their strategy: give you 1 – 2 months of «free» rent, and then raise rent a ton above the «standard» rate after you have been there 1 year. Pay a ton your first year, get ripped off the second…

I have lived downtown in a leased high-​rise for almost 3 years now. I have watched the Ashton being built, open and now operate. The finish out is amazing, the location is perfect, the views are beautiful and the staff is top notch.
I have several friends that live there and I have had a chance to visit quite a bit. The events are well done. The pool is beautiful and relaxing and I have never seen it out of control as I have seen with other high rise buildings downtown. I would say that if you are a party monster, then this isn’t necessarily for you. It ain’t Vegas, baby.
The price is more than other buildings in the area, but in my opinion, it is just a much nicer building than the others and should garner a higher price. I think the fact that the price is higher, yet it remains full, speaks for itself.
I saw a review with some negatives about the staff. So far my experience and the experience of my friends that live there has been positive.
If I were going to say something negative about the building, it would be the fake plants in the lobby and common areas. I understand that it is hard to grow plants without a lot of sun. It is just a personal predjudice. I have an aversion to fake plants and dried flowers. Thankfully there were no dried flowers on the premises… as far as I could tell.
When my lease it up this year, it is my goal to move over there.

I’ve lived at the Ashton since April and couldn’t have chosen a better place to live. I’m an amenities guy and they don’t get any better than what is offered:
amazing salt water roof-​top pool (the nicest in Austin)
jaccuzzi
movie room
top of the line workout equipment
²⁴⁄₇ security
gated & covered parking
In addition to the actual location where you can walk to just about anything you want, the Ashton has all the apartment trimmings anyone could ask for:
balcony
bamboo floors
stainless steel appliances
granite counter top
AND MORE!
To top it off, from front desk, leasing office, and maintenance staff they have the highest level of staff an apartment complex can offer — absolutely top notch — 100% professional, available, competent and friendly!
I’ve lived in several cities over the years and have always been happy with my choice of residence, however I can honestly say this is the best selection I’ve ever made … the Ashton is by far the NICEST place to rent in Austin. If you can find a vacant apartment, I highly recommend living here.

I have lived in the Ashton for a year now and currently lease two units. The finish is nice and the location could not be better. It is incredibly quiet. The very first weekend that I moved in last August was the first weekend that the pool was opened. Some of the younger residents invited a huge number of their friends to party at the pool. It was like the Palms in Vegas with furniture moved, loud music, and lot of drinking. The management immediately resolved the problem by limiting guest to 2 per unit which was a GREAT fix. The most amazing part of that party Saturday at the pool was that I live right on the pool deck and couldn’t hear ANYTHING when my door was closed! Fantastic!
The amenities are perfect and the rent is VERY reasonable considering were we are located and the style and. I have looked at units at the Austonian and the W and my rent is less than my tax and HOA would be at those buildings with zero headaches. If I have a lightbulb go out, the maintenance team replaces it immediately. Incredible! I am constantly surprised by the level that the management team and maintenance team go to in order to ensure that the residents are all taken care of.
The staff at the Ashton are 100% professional, available, and competent. Most of the management and leasing team as well as the maintenance team live on-​site which is awesome because they understand the dynamics of living here and are available in emergencies. While I see that another reviewer has an issue with the team here I don’t believe that most residents feel that way. As someone with two units and plenty of life experience (retired Lt Colonel USMC and owner of several multi-​national businesses), I have nothing but praise for the team. As a matter of fact, the staff are the reason that I enjoy living here so much.
The vast majority of the residents are amazingly enjoyable and friendly people. There are a number of families and a lot of us own dogs. It is sort of like one big family.
Living on the pool deck, I see all sorts of people come and go. The pool is absolutely amazing (the best pool in Austin.) It is kept clean and in good working order. The only issue there is that there are a couple of «cougars» that look more like saber-​toothes that are out there just about every night with their bottles of champaign or vodka. Harmless really but good for a chuckle. hahahaha Bottom line, we have an incredible infinity edge pool, a great hot tub, a beautiful fire-​pit, two gas grills, and plenty of seating.
The building management is accessible and reasonable at just about all times. Stan and Abby are always looking for ways to make life more fulfilling for the residents in the building. When a water pipe burst a few months ago, it flooded our apartment. Within ten minutes every single staff person was in our apartment helping move our belongings and setting us up in a hotel. Christina and Abby brought their own personal towels to help stop the water. They ruined their own high-​heels helping us when they could have gone home and changed first. Stan brought in movers to move our unit into an empty unit, paid for us to stay at a hotel, and gave us brand new floors, paint, and even doors! We left for a week to Mexico during this on a previously planned trip and returned home to a brand new apartment that was better than when we moved in! They took care of us like we were family and went way, way beyond what they needed to do. Dennis and Dave are friendly and incredibly knowledgeable when it comes to fixing the building, repairing walls, or doing just about anything that the building services/​maintenance team can do. As a matter of fact, Dennis was one of the people supervising the actual construction of the building so he has an incredible wealth of knowledge of how every single area of the building works. I am amazed that they can take care of us so quickly we need help! The concierge team is great as well. James, Paul, and Rand are always professional and helpful.
The Ashton gets 5 stars for location, service, amenities, and most of all for the incredible staff and team that helps this building run like a clock. I don’t know how they do it with so many prima-donna’s living here but they do!