Pine Lake Terrace Apartments

The new owners have made this place so much better. Everything from the dog park, to the playground out front. They even installed cameras everywhere. We have a community center now too which is perfect for any parties. Also they put a lock on the front gate. I see nothing but good things with the new owners.

UPDATE! We were made to move our sturdy plastic containers full of our holiday decorations and other seasonal belongings from our patio to the storage units in the the parking lot because our containers were «UNSIGHTLY.» We dutifully complied with management and put our possessions into the storage unit and locked it with good quality locks. Recently, ALL of our holiday decorations, which included family heirlooms and hundreds of dollars worth of items were STOLEN!!! The thieves broke into EVERY storage unit in our area and eventual into every storage unit on the property. TEN days later the locks were cut off again but there wasn’t anything worth stealing in our unit after the first theft.
Last night, my husband and I chose to sleep in our car in the safety of the Ralph’s/Walgreen’s parking lot for fear that our new car would be stolen! WHY, you ask??? Y To answer your question.. Because another one of our neighbors’ cars was stolen just two nights prior! Since everyone has removed everything from the storage units our cars are being either broken into or COMPLETELY removed from our unsecured parking lot!
We are now so afraid to leave our apartment untended because another apt recently had an attempted B&E, rent checks were stolen out of the check drop box and the police are at the complex many times due to very noisy and domestically violent neighbors.
We’re hoping to move soon because we are now very fearful living here. My advice to all new prospective residents is to run like your butt is on fire in the opposite direction of Pine Lake Terrace Apartment Homes! Don’t be fooled by the newly updated units and seemingly calm atmosphere because it’s a frightening place to live!

Another Updated Review
3÷15÷16
I’m now giving this place 5 stars.
If it weren’t for Crystal, we would have been outta here at the end of our last lease.
She is the apartment manager of PLT. If you have a complaint or issue she is the one you would have to talk to. She has even given us her number for after office hours that we can either call/​text. Along with an emergency maintenance number as well.
So she has played a big part in why we decided to sign another lease.
TBH: If she ever decided to leave this apartment complex to work elsewhere, we would most likely leave.
It pays to have a great apartment manager!
She actually listens to our concerns and let’s us know how she will deal with it.
Anyway.
A lot of remodeling has been done.
–There is now a playground for children at the front of the complex.
–They have completely new drought resistant landscape.
–We have security, but I don’t think most tenants realize since they’re undercover. (I mean, unless that has changed. I have never *knocks on wood* gotten my car broken into since living here)
–Pass Codes have been added to the Laundry and Gym room. (Seriously, there are people who intentionally leave the door open though which is annoying.)
— They have a «dog park» located at the center of the complex.
It’s a small gated area where you can let your furbabies run around without their leash. They have two pet waste baskets on each end of the «park»
–The parking situation has definitely been a lot better since the new stickers were issued out.
–Garbage situation is handled accordingly aside from those tenants who move out and leave their big furniture by the dumpster.
PSA: Come on, people. You cannot leave huge furniture by the dumpster. The garbage peeps will not throw them out. And in most cases you will probably end up getting charged for the disposal.
–Now that the lake is gone, the complex is a lot nicer with its new landscape. There isn’t copious amounts of duck/​geese dookie.
Just some dog dookie that certain tenants don’t pick up. ()
–Overall I’m glad and happy with the new renovations. For an apartment complex built in the 70s. It has definitely come a long way and into this new modern age.
I would definitely recommend this place. Especially if you work at Disneyland (we live literally like 3miles away)
****If you ever decide to move in, just tell Crystal that you’ve «read Chelsea’s Unilocal review!» ******
Also if you would like to no more about PLT or have me send pictures feel free to message me. I will usually try to get back within the next day or two.

Property has new owners they manage to changes that are nice for property but they don’t spend money on security on sight patrol and no security cameras and front gate stays open a lot front doors of property are not lock all this has not been change even though car have been broken into many times I had my car broken into this morning so I’m speaking from experience. By the way pictures are uploaded so you guys can see for yourself.

If I could rate this place a zero I would. The office is always closed, we always have maintenance issues and it takes them forever to resolve because there is never anybody around. The biggest thing that made us move is the fact that our AC unit has been down for over 2months and after much effort and complaints to them nothing has been done. As a matter of fact I’m sitting in my apt where it’s currently 91 degrees … This whole summer the AC unit has not worked. Forget this place people, also there is so many car thefts it isn’t even funny

Alrighty, here goes nothin. I moved here Nov 2014. Since then, management has changed 3 times.
The move in process was fine. Got a tour which highlighted the apartment, pool and beautiful lake. The 2 people at the front office were nice. There was an issue in which we were assigned a parking space that already belonged to someone else, who then threatened to tow my car. Then I was assigned another car port place, also occupied. 3^rd time’s the charm, and I finally have a place where I can park my car under the covered parking. As a goodwill gesture the manager (at the time) called me and apologized.
From my understanding, each apartment gets one covered spot and one unreserved spot. Sometimes the parking gets full and people are forced to park in the street or in the neighborhoods surrounding the complex.
Next issue we had was no hot water. Sometimes for 1 or 2 days in a row. When we contacted apartment personnel, it was always an answers to the likes of «it will be getting fixed sometime within the next few days.» The amount of cold showers that I have taken here is more than desirable. Once again as a goodwill gesture we recieved a $ 100 check from the office as an apology of sorts.
Up until about a month ago, the laundry rooms were iffy. At least ¹⁄₃ of the machines were always broken, one even got stolen at one point (huh?) About a month ago they «renovated» the laundry room, which from what I can understand consisted of adding credit card payment to the machines (not actually updating them) and putting in a new floor.
They also «renovated» the gym, but the TV is never on and 1 of the ellipticals squeaks horribly, and the screen of the other elliptical is broken. We were told that they ordered a new screen. 3 months ago. Still no new screen has been installed.
Then there’s the trash situation. People leave fridges, mattresses, heck even 3-​piece sofas out near the dumpsters, and they don’t get picked up for weeks at a time. It is unsightly, and causes the dumpsters to overflow and STINK. My apartment window is lucky enough to face one of the dumpsters. It’s not a pleasant «night breeze» if garbage is involved.
Then there’s the power outage that was never addressed. Our power was out for 2.5 days straight. When I first contacted the apartment manager about the status of the outage, she expressed sympathy but did not give me an estimate as to when it would be done. My roommate texted her the next morning. Nothing. After the temperature in the apartment reached 95 degrees the next afternoon, I called and texted her. Still no response. The food in our fridge went bad and my pet was overheating and panting. We estimated over $ 200 worth of food lost from our fridge.
One day, the office gave us a 1-​day warning that they were going to change the codes on the gate clickers. We were to come in between office hours that day (8 – 5) to get it fixed. I work at those times, as do many of the other tenants. When I returned from work that afternoon, there was a pileup on Euclid of people who were confused as to why they couldn’t get into the gate.
The complex prides itself on being a gated community. But about ¹⁄₃ of the time, the gate is left open. Sometimes for a week straight. Not really «gated» now is it? As somewhat of a silver lining, neither mine nor my roommates’ cars have been vandalized or broken into, but that might just be luck.
The pool is neglected. I swam in it once. There was a greenish sediment on the bottom of the pool, and I regretted it immediately. Next thing I know, I hear that the health department is being called in because of the pool’s conditions.
A week ago we got a letter on our doors explaining that they were draining the lake that surrounds the complex, with the intention of simply repairing it. It was a beautiful lake with ducks, turtles and hundreds of beautiful koi fish. They drained it. The ducks had nowhere to go. They sat in about 1 foot of water quacking sadly as their home, where they have ADORABLE duck babies every spring, is now slowly disappearing. The koi fish and the turtles died. The complex did not do anything to relocate them, as far as I can tell. The lake is now a empty pit filled with a layer of what I can only assume is dirt/​duck poop/​dead lake animals. We then got a letter arbitrarily explaining how the lake was leaking and wasting water, and they’re going to add in some nice pathways and kids playplaces and bbq pits. We’ll see how that pans out, sounds like it could be nice! I just know that I will miss seeing the ducks and their babies, as well as the nice fountain sounds.
But the saddest thing is, the current (and only) apartment manager Crystal is very nice, at least when you can get a hold of her. You can tell that the decisions being made are not by her. She’s trying her best, and I sympathize with her because of the scrutiny that this place is receiving, but it looks like they need to take their tenants’ opinions more into consideration.

When my wife and I moved in July 2014, everything went really well. Obviously, there were problems as nothing can ever be perfect, but things were more than manageable. One major thing that drew us to this place was the fact that we could set up an automatic EFT online to pay our rent and utilities at the beginning of every month. Whenever we had issues, we could trust that the management would handle it in a timely manner.
This past January, a couple days before rent was due, we found a notice posted on our door that management had changed to WestStar Property Management. With this came a change in office staff and a cancellation of all online payment options. We went into the office to pay rent with a check and to try and find out what the new online portal would be to pay rent. The new portal came with a fee for every transaction (there wasn’t one before). In addition, the office went from being open 5 days a week to 4 days a week and the office staff went down from 3 to 1.
Starting around March 2015, we started to notice that the water pressure in our kitchen faucet was getting lower and lower. At that point it was still manageable so we didn’t say anything at first. In May, however, the pressure was so low it took forever to get anything filled or washed, so I reported it to the office manager on a Thursday, who told me that she had scheduled the maintenance technician to come take a look at it the following Tuesday. I was home the entire day and he never showed up. Around this time, my wife and I were distracted by more pressing life events and a vacation, so the faucet took a backseat.
When we got back from our vacation in mid-​July, we immediately reported the faucet issue again. However, our reports fell on deaf ears. Every single time I tried going into the office, the door was locked and there was nobody inside. One morning, I went to the office shortly after it was scheduled to open and found one of those clock signs hanging on the door that said «Will return at 2:30.» I returned at 3:00 and found the door still locked with the same sign hanging there. This time, there was a couple waiting at the door that said they had a 3:00 appointment to rent an apartment. I made small talk with them for a few minutes until another woman came by and said the office manager would not be in that day. I returned home and sent the office manager an email about the faucet again.
A few days later, I noticed a few other things in the apartment needing maintenance so I submitted requests for those too. I still did not hear back from the office manager about any of the issues I brought up.
In early August, we found a notice posted on our door that the gate to enter the parking lot was being reprogrammed the next day and that the office would be open late to allow people to get their remotes reprogrammed. I was able to get my remote reprogrammed, but it took my wife over a week to finally find the office manager and get her remote reprogrammed. I reminded the office manager of our maintenance requests and she said she’d get them logged.
After another couple weeks, my wife and I had had enough and decided to move. We gave our notice that we were moving out in 2 weeks and signed a lease at another community. The next day, I finally got an email back from the office manager basically saying that our maintenance requests had been addressed and asking if we were still moving out because a penalty would apply for breaking our lease early. We said we were definitely moving out and asked when we could drop off our keys and remotes. No response.
We finally got everything moved out of the apartment yesterday and I sat waiting for the office manager to give us a move-​out inspection. She had already left the office an hour before closing (around 4:00) to go to the bank and «make a deposit» but she said she’d be back soon and would call when she was back. She never called and she never picked up when I tried to call or text. Around 6:00, I sent her a text saying that I would wait until 6:30 then drop the keys, remotes, and early termination penalty check in a sealed envelope in the rent drop box.
At 6:30, the maintenance technician came into the apartment and started yelling at me for «the way [I] talked to her» and that you don’t talk to women like that. I asked if he was there for a move-​out inspection and he said «I don’t see any major damage, give me the keys and get out of here.» I asked what his problem was and he said something to the effect of «you asked me to fix 3 things in here just to move out 2 weeks later.» I tried pointing out that we were leaving *because* things weren’t fixed but he wouldn’t let me get a sentence in, calling me a whining resident and saying that he could be rude to me because he was off the clock. I gave up, took pictures to protect myself and my wife in case they claimed damage, and left.
Avoid this place at all costs unless management changes soon. It’s not worth the headache.

So far so good.
Night and day difference of where we were living. Crystal is amazing so far! Very helpful and trying to work on getting us a move in special.
Great pet policy!
Hard floors… granite…new kitchen…
Moving in this month… will update as things come up.

I’ve been living in PLT since October, and when I first moved in here, I loved it. It was clean, quiet, the management and matainence staff were so friendly and helpful, and they let all the residence know what was going on with the complex. Now, all of that has changed.
Recently, the property was sold to WestStar Property Management and all of the staff has changed. The first month our rent was due, they didn’t let the residence know how much we owed (it changes based on community water usage) and that we could no longer pay online. There was a week when they removed all of the dumpsters, without letting residence know, so trash was just thrown in the corrals and never picked up, even when the dumpsters returned. The matainence staff from before used to walk around the property and sweep up any loose debris in the carports and sidewalks and clean the duck poop every day. I have yet to see the new management do this even once. It’s making the property look run down and unkept.
They have also started construction on the carports, not sure why, or how long it will be going on for because nothing was posted, emailed, or sent out to the residence until a few weeks after it started (pic below.) Unfortunately, they just apologized and didn’t give an explanation. And it was just posted by the mail box and not sent out to each resident (old management would post notice on each door and email the residents)
They have also not put out poop bags for the dogs, so the grass areas are covered in poop. They changed the office hours to Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday which makes no sense considering they live on the property.
Sorry this review is so long, but things need to be addressed quickly.

I’ll be honest, I’ve thought long and hard about to exactly tackle this review of Pine Lake Terrace… And after today, I think it’s finally time to pull the trigger. I’ve been a resident here for the last four years, and in that time, have watched four separate management teams go by, with the second manager, Sherry, being the best by far. I’ve also now been a part of a company swap, with Aimco selling us to WestStar Properties, with very little warning on the matter.
When I first moved in, I lived in a single apartment in the back, and little did I know I was living by convicted drug dealers and felons. There was a raid on one apartment, a foot chase through the complex another night, my car was broken into, and there were constant couple arguing with one guy abusing his girlfriend. The manager at the time wasn’t really cleaning up the complex, and I was about ready to leave.
Sherry came in and cleaned it up quick. She took care of the people who were causing problems, cleaned up the entire property, brought in a great group of maintenance guys, and just really turned the whole complex around. It was great, she was easy to talk to, and wanted to make living here a great experience. But just about overnight, Sherry disappeared, and a new management team was brought in by Aimco.
This last group has all but undone all of Sherry’s work. The complex started seeing more criminal activity under their watch in anytime I could remember. Five cars have been stolen in the last few months alone, one washing machine out of the laundry room, multiple cars being broken into… It’s an absolute nightmare. Aimco and the managers didn’t seem to want to deal with that at all. We have gates that anyone can get into, so there’s nothing private about the property, as much as they’d like you to believe. On top of that, they say we have security, but that’s really not true. There was a security patrol for about an hour every night, and that’s it. But I haven’t seen that in months. The last managers, Michelle in particular, weren’t exactly helpful, and caused more problems than they helped fix things. She’s also the reason many didn’t know that Aimco was selling us, as she kicked the new manager off property when she tried to come and talk to her new tenants.
The new manager is nice so far, but WestStar has some serious clean up to do in the wake of what Michelle left. The laundry room is an absolute mess. The coin machines are a pain to use, and half the time quite a few of the machines aren’t even working. Michelle let it get so run down, it’s a nightmare to go in there at all. The apartments are older, so they’re quite out of date. Drawers are falling apart, mold in the bathrooms because they aren’t properly ventilated, the living room closet door is broken, and the dishwashers don’t really clean all that well. We also have an issue with the water in the complex, almost like clockwork every month, where we have no hot water. That’s part of why I’m writing this today, because we’re now going thirteen hours without hot water, and not really an end in sight it would seem. Also, half the equipment in the gym doesn’t work very well, which is frustrating as someone who tries to go in there on a daily basis. Screens are broken, it doesn’t calculate what you’re doing, nothing. This are the kinds of things that need to be fixed, but haven’t been.
I expect better for what we pay to live here. The laundry rooms are in an unacceptable condition, the apartments themselves are livable but very much showing their age as they fall apart around you, the gym has half working equipment, and the security is a joke. I will say, I like the location, there’s a lot of stuff that’s easy to get to within walking distance, but you’ll have to pay no mind to the homeless people in the area, who on occasion wander into the complex. Also, the ducks and the lake are a nice way of at least offsetting the less than stellar way the complex has gone, giving it a tranquil feel. For what my roommate and I are paying to live here, it’s not worth it at all. Your money and time would be best saved for another place that is willing to fix the complex and take care of the tenants. We’re giving them a few months to turn this around, but if they don’t, I won’t be re-​signing a lease for another year here.

I haven’t updated my review in a while. So for the benefit of those looking into this place, here are my personal views based on my current experience at Pine Lake Terrace and it’s representatives.
The reps aren’t of much help. They’ll lure you into this place, but once their job is done, it is done. I’ve recently brought it to the attention of the property manager that I have seen non-​residents enter the property through the front gates. Note: the front gates serve no purpose, as ANYONE can walk into the property at any time.
Not sure if there is a «No Soliciting» sign up at the front entrances, but due to no locks or anything, expect a religious visit or 2 a month, or some dudes selling magazine subscriptions or books. I guess what they mean by «gated community» was «hey, we build a gate around our community».
It’s true what other’s have said, cars do indeed get broken into not regularly, but I’d say often? I sent an email to the property manager regarding ‘un-​welcomed’ people walking onto the community and I also asked about the safety measure management would take, and I also offered suggestions as to how to reduce these incidents. I received a response– not from the property manager, but from the other person working there, Reyna. Her response (to summarize): At Pine Lake Terrace, resident safety is our number 1 priority. I’ll notify the courtesy patrol, but if this continues you’re better off calling the police. Of course, that last part was an exageration, but that’s pretty much what she said.
A few things: If safety is a priority, why do the gates continue to remain wide open after business hours, or after sunset? Also, that courtesy patrol that you speak of, only makes an appearance around midnight, sticks around for a bit, then leaves. Lastly, are you simply telling me that since anyone can walk in, and since the patrol only makes hour-​2hr visits, the only option for a safe community is contacting Garden Grove PD?
A lot of the reviews I’ve read here on Unilocal may seem a bit too far over the edge. Trust me, I wish they were. It’s true, burglary is an issue here. A washer was even stolen from the laundry room! Open parking spots in the outside spaces has become an issue. Now, why? My guess is that the vehicles getting broken into are those parked in the car ports, which are located under the apartment units. This means, that unless you are driving/​wakling by, no one will witness a break-​in. So what do people do? They park out in the open spaces where their vehicles are clearly visible from their windows. Makes sense…

I want to thank Michele in the leasing office who helped waive a late fee I was charged because I could not pay my rent on the 3^rd due to a problem with the credit card payment by phone option. Michele went out of her way to waive the $ 40+ late fee after i explained to her what happened. It’s little things like this that make me appreciate living in Pine Lake Terrace. Thank you Michele!

The worst 2 management ladies EVER!
They act like high school girls with their snotty attitudes. They don’t care to help you and are so unprofessional.
Cars are always getting broken into. My roommate got her car broken into not even after 10 minutes of being home.
Apartment itself is spacious and nice.
Restrooms are too small.

This apartment and it’s management is a mess. They do nothing but harass their residents. A car alarm broke off recently in this complex. There was no one to be seen. We tried calling the emergency service department of this community, only to not get connected. The number was given manager herself so I’m sure it was correct however no matter what, the call wouldn’t go through. We had a horrifying night and had no one to reach out, literally all night. I back that they did a lousy job painting and carpeting. I have had nails get into my feet around the edged, the paint peeling off from the bathtub. Spiders are everywhere. They charge you for pest control but nothing happens to them. The staff is unfriendly and feels like you are approaching a parole officer every time you talk to them. The maintenance guys are nice and helpful but there is only so much they could do. The management is lousy and they redirect to their website for very question the residents have. Why and what are they here for then. This place will be better of with the maintenance guys alone, they work their best to resolve everything they can, that’s the only good part about it

They also need to update their website as far as I am concerned. The resident portal only allows you to pay rent and submit a service request. You cannot access copies of your lease and in truth we were never given a copy or a link to a pdf of a copy when we renewed. Now that we are trying to move out, they keep leaving us renewal notices to try to get us to stay, at an additional $ 400 a month. Also the tenant history reference that our real estate agent needs didn’t show, because Aimco emailed him someone else’s rental history reference. So yeah, don’t rent through Aimco period. Their whole system is designed for sales and not service.

I am not renewing my lease here! The security is a joke, cars get broken into, laundry gets stolen out of the laundry room, there is no lock to this «gated community» and our previous neighbor had her doors mashed in from the swat team and GG police because she was a felon who had skipped bail. Turns out she was doing drug deals out of her apartment and harbor in another fugitive in the house. As far as saying they do «background checks» yea right. Storages get broken into and cars have gotten tagged. Steer clear of this place. Packages also get stolen off of porches if you have a delivery. This place has turned into a s**t hole. Their corporate office should be embarrassed. Keep looking, so many better deals and peace of mind out there. Can’t wait to move!

The complex is infested with black widow spiders even though they have regular visits from an exterminator. There are so many spiders that live in the patios, you almost never see anyone in their own patios other than someone smoking. There have been car break ins even though they have security drive through the complex (they literally just drive through once). Pulling out of the parking lot is dangerous, you can hardly see oncoming traffic and there is a constant flow of pedestrians/​cyclists coming from the opposite direction. You get one carport and one free spot, the trees over the free parking drip sap all year round onto the cars. It’s a very old building so things are always breaking or leaking and there are terrible pipe issues causing recurring problems with the toilets. NO RAMPS and there are stairs at every entrance, both from the parking in the complex and walking in from the street. I feel that the rent is too high and they charge water, gas, trash etc. on top of your regular rent.
Yes, the ducks are nice and there are people doing the landscaping all the time. The apartment looks very nice from the outside. On the inside, there is always paint peeling from every room (it was only painted by management before we moved in). The carpet wasn’t installed nicely so it was always coming up/​apart from the edges.