Swiss Village

I’m going to keep this short and sweet to the point. I lived here from 2005 – 2007, moved bought a house. I loved it though formally Swiss village then. Then 2010 – 2011, I moved in while I rented my house out I liked this place close to UCSD Sripps restaurants just a nice area. I came back in 2013 now known as the 4^th Avenue apartments, and it is just so poorly ran. The former Apartment owners Husband and wife, well the husband passed away and the wife could no longer run it by herself, so her long awaiting daughter took over. Plastered the outside to make it look modern. Yet from other complaints you will read, the electrical system, and plumbing are left probably over 50 years old. nice on the outside horrible in the guts. This place used to be fabulous, a lot of people have live here 15+ years. They start your rent out fairly low, but believe me when your lease is up it will go 10% higher with another year and 20% with a month to month been watching it for the last 7 months with other displeased residents. The daughter now has also made residents start paying water, trash, sewer, every month plus 3.75 for a company to bill you plus wants you to call sdge and say you are going to pay gas for the water heaters, it’s insane seriously. one bedroom over 60 $+ a month, and mind you their are no separate meters it’s a guesstimate and you are paying for the water leaks and public outside water including the pool. and like me I came back for a reason… I’m getting the heck out of here now, too bad the greed and lack of business skills is destroying this place. I’d like to link you to a great review place also of the 4TH avenue Apartments aka swiss village where people have put very current reviews of this place and you can only post a review if you are a current renter, one post and all is verified before the post, most wont do a Unilocal view because of fear of retaliation, i’m not, it was already brought to my attention by a managment member they know what I said, SNAP. when you go to this site look at both swiss village and 4^th avenue aparts same reviews same place you will see one review click on it and tons of recent residents have posted. Thanks you reading.

If you have been thinking about moving here… don’t. Now «Fourth Ave Apartments» I am glad I only lived here one year. Upon moving in I was told construction would be completed within 6 months. I believe it still drags on. There were constant plumbing issues, leaks (serious leaks), and limited parking (due to construction vehicles and clumps of dirt taking up spots). Lights were left dangling from wires in the hallways, workers entered my apartment without previous notice (and left items behind), and the building itself was not secure. I was surprised one day when I went to throw away garbage, only to find a man inside the garbage container! How does that happen when there are locked gates? Additionally, there was no handicapped entry in the front – is that legal? For a property of that size I would also advise them to have a better after-​hours service solution. One repair guy who lives 30 minutes away isn’t the greatest option, particularly when your ceiling is raining down from a broken pipe.
The only positive thing I have to say is that the service guys were nice. Happy to be out and in a better facility. The only reason this place keeps tenants is because of the location – which is awesome.

So they renamed the place and I created a new page for «Fourth Avenue Homes» which is what they’re renaming it to. I’ll copy and paste it here as well.
—
For those skimming:
–Remarkably bad property management.
–Aging plumbing and electrical.
—
[Fourth Avenue Homes] is the renamed «Swiss Village Apartments». It’s still being renovated and while the current renovation won’t last forever — there are some things future residents should know about the property management and the property itself.
Simply because they remodeled the outside does not mean the insides of the building aren’t falling apart. Plumbing frequently does not work. Water has twice come through my ceiling from the toilets, showers, and dishwashers from upstairs. Even without the construction they still had to shut off the water with some frequency to repair the aging pipes as they’d clog in one place or another.
Mold! Do you like mushrooms? Did I mention the plumbing is bad? Because mushrooms were growing in the hallway one morning. Full. Blown. Mushrooms. I have pictures of it. After months of insisting they remove the dry wall and get rid of the nasty carpet in the hallway they finally opened up the wall to reveal black mold all over the studs and the backside of the drywall. Disgusting and deplorable.
The electrical is aging and behaves oddly as well. Not sure what’s going on with it.
The biggest problems come from the management. Constructive eviction? Habitability? 0 regard for the residents.
Removing an exterior wall? Taking down your front door? Whatever. No compensation. No warning. No alternate place to stay. They’ll insist they come into your apartment. They actually tore down my exterior wall once.
They also refuse to finish repairing the water damage to my unit. The floor was soaked with toilet water (from the upstairs units) on one occasion and stained the carpet pretty badly and caused it to come loose from the floor. They re-​stretched it but it’s just too damaged to stay anchored. As a result there are just nails sticking up out of the floor they won’t do anything about.
Yes, construction won’t go on forever, but it’s been over a year of this I think and the abject disregard for residents is shameful.
Oh, and one time my sick neighbor cracked his head open in the hall way with no one around. Blood went everywhere and the paramedics picked him up. It took two trips to the front office to get them to, you know, CLEAN THE BLOOD OFF THE WALLS.
I gave it an extra star because I enjoy my neighbors. So, really nothing to do with the property itself or the management, but also an ephemeral characteristic to the place that could change.
I’ve lived here since 2009.

I wrote a review a couple of years ago on this place. I rated it four stars then, and I will rate it four stars now. Look it’s no secret that we have been going through a renovation that has been going on over a year now. The renovation has taken way too long — in my job we renovated a corporate café that was stripped to the bones and remade into an amazing café in like six months. In that way, this development is taking way too long.
But — the management is sympathetic. The improvements the construction company are doing are significant. When it is finished, this complex will be modern and drop dead gorgeous. I do wish they would give us reduced rent considering my wife and I have not had a balcony in six months, but our balcony is going in tomorrow.
I have to tell everyone that they have really been responsive to our needs. Our fridge was on the fritz and was not cooling things properly. We called them, and they replaced our fridge with a new top-​of-​the-​line unit that was almost twice as big as before. Then our dishwasher went out and was not draining. We called them and they replaced it with a brand new unit that works like a dream.
The management has been stable for a couple of years. Look, we live here because of the close proximity to great restaurants, a safe neighborhood, and the fact that we can purchase exclusive parking spaces at a minimal cost. This development has a pool and a pretty good laundry room. The complex is gated, and they are very vigilant about towing people that park in our lot without proper authorization.
Is it a little tough with construction going on every morning at 8 AM? Yes. I would not like to be awakened by jackhammers and loud construction voices. But I can see the progress going on and when it is finished, this complex will look like an exclusive resort.
Don’t listen to the divas that hate this place. My wife and I have a great relationship with the management and they are great about informing you when work needs to be done.
This place loses a star because as it is an old building, the plumbing loses a star because the shower temperature is uneven, especially since we live on the third floor. I will be taking a nice shower, and all of a sudden it will get scalding and I will have to take a step back until it equalizes again. But for my wife it doesn’t matter because she loves hot showers.
This place is rad and the neighbors are great. Every time we get in the elevator someone makes conversation and is friendly. We love Swiss Village.

My partner and I moved into Swiss Village 2011, and love it. The staff is always willing to help and very friendly. The manager Rosemary is great, she always makes sure all her tenants are happy. In 2012 we bought a house and moved out, but soon after we decided that we did not like our house, so we moved back to Swiss Village. If Swiss was bad do you think we would really move back?
I have read so many bad reviews about this place, so many are not true. Yes, the construction can be loud at times, but it is common sense. If you see that there is construction going on, you must think that there will be noise.
Regarding the dogs, yes there are many dogs in this community, but they are all friendly and everyone picks up after their pets. I feel sorry for those people that dont like dogs, they are the most loving animals.
People complain about having to pay for parking storage, have you seen the rent around this area? It is at least $ 400 more a month. I prefer to pay less rent, and pay $ 30 a month for parking, then pay $ 400 more of rent.
The interior of the complex is in bad shape, but it will soon be replaced. The management team is working to make this complex as beautiful as possible. Once the renovation is over, I guarantee you that the people with the bad reviews will want to move back in.
Ok one last thing, I read a review that said that there is helicopter noise. OMG seriously? You live between TWO hospitals, which both have trauma centers, its common sense that there will be helicopter noise.

I wish I could not give a star!!! My partner and I
Moved in 3 months ago and life had been hell because of this place!!! They showed us the place when construction was on break so we could not here the noise, they lied about the construction! You can’t park anywhere they went ahead and made sure there new office was finished with air conditioning was finished before anyone that was paying to live there was happy. I got in the elevator and the lite fixture fell on me and cut me up I went to the office they said sorry and said we will have someone call you from corporate and its been a month and they said there is nothing they can due!!! Hahahaha this place is a joke!!! It’s a dog pound every person that lives here has at least one dog I’ve seen per in the elevator in the stairs!!! This place is a hot mess!!! They make us pay or a balcony that they tore down and we won’t get back for 6 months!!!
Please please don’t move here they are mean and sketchy people they loose your rent then try to evict people they are shady people I can’t wait to leave!!!

A couple more incidents that have occurred recently:
My refrigerator died. On Saturday night. I called maintenance Sunday morning but they deemed it not an emergency and I didn’t get a new fridge til Tuesday. I lost about $ 200 of food.
I dropped a cashier’s check off in the drop box for rent. They lost it. The office told me they had complaints that the drop box had been unlocked all weekend, so they called the police. The police said there was no evidence of tampering, so basically they left it unlocked. They called me to say they never got my rent, I explained to them that I’d dropped it off. They then served me an eviction notice. The money has been withdrawn from my account; I can’t just write another check.
The construction is so awful the entire building shakes all day. Things fall off the walls.
Don’t sign a lease here.

The positives: large for the area, you can walk to places. Negatives? They change management often, maintenance can be tempermental, old kitchen and now they are doing major restoration (They started with their new, spacious office) and now there is scaffolding outside the place. There is NO security so be wary. Everyone seems to be able to have a «medical excuse» for one or more dogs. Place is like a kennel. Even 20 somethings have dogs! Want reserved underground parking? Extra money, as are storage units. If you don’t pay for parking, good luck. The southbound traffic on 4^th can be HORRIBLE — especially after 4 PM and on Friday nights. The hallways are depressing and are more like an institution. Sure, sure, they say they are making improvements, and looks like eventually they will do some. There’s termite damage, old plumbing, old electricity, in short, it’s an old place. So, if you are without a car, retired, work at the medical centers and can walk, then this is your place if you go informed. If you do not renew your lease, the rent rockets by $ 100.
I rented at this place hastily two years ago. Just be wary. I understand they raised their rent. Generally, the tenants are nice, but there’s trash everywhere and the maintenance guys are cleaning all the time. I could go into details, but this is just the gist.
Am so happy to be out of there. I may have to drive farther to work, but it’s worth it to me.
The photos of this place are old — they tore up the fountain and now removing the clapboard roofs. It’s under construction, so means blocked parking spaces, dirt, noise, etc.
⁵⁄₂₀₁₂. RUN, RUN, RUN. Don’t rent. Look elsewhere. This place is a mess and infested with vermin. There are plenty of nicer places close, that are suitable. RENT AT YOUR OWN RISK!
11/​04/​2012 RUN, RUN, RUN! Don’t rent from this place unless you think a construction zone is your kind of place. It’s going slowly and probably won’t be anywhere near finished for six monthsmore, if then. Management is indifferent, maintenance is not there, and with everyone having a dog, the dump smells. No parking, scaffolding everywhere. And, they have not, and probably will not, address the core issues of electrical and plumbing. They would literally have to tear the place down and start again. There are tons of other places about the same price — right outside the gate on 4^th Ave for rent. I am so thankful to be out of there now six months. I visit a friend periodically, and the place gets worse and worse. How a prospective tenant leases from them is beyond me. Wonder what they tell them? It’s a wonder that tenants don’t leave in droves. Do yourself a favor, DON’T LEASE in there. Do so at your own risk.

I’ve been here for almost 3 years and there have been 3 different management teams in place.
Negatives —
Very bad cell phone reception.
If you are getting home anytime after 8pm odds are you will not find a place to park. You will either have to park on the street (and move your car by 7am of else you will get a ticket), or drive around to the back side of the building.
The Helicopter noise is a little irritating but you get used to it.
The doors on every floor are the ugliest shade of pink I have ever seen.
There seems to always be something wrong in my apartment. Right now the toilet backed up and I can’t shut the water off in my shower /​bath tub.
Positives +
It’s quiet
All the neighbors are pretty friendly
Close to a lot of great restaurants in Hill Crest
Thats about it.

I have lived here for over a year now and renewed my contract for another whole year.
Although some of the points former reviews made are valid I think a 1 star is pretty unfair.
This complex has flaws for sure
–cell phone reception is fairly poor. However, I am pretty sure it is the area. My friends who live on 6^th and Arbor have the same problem
–helicopters do fly by as the complex is located in between two hospitals. However, this is fairly rare and I would say happens a few times a week. To me that is not a big deal.
–The exterior of the complex as well as the hallways are outdated.
–The front fountain is still out but it is not dirty looking at all.
— The management has switched several times while I lived here but it seems this new one is here to stay. She is good and knows what she is doing. It seems that most of the problems are from the owners not the management.
–There are balconies in some units, but you can only have 2 plants in pots and patio furniture (I suppose I could understand that somewhat)
–In the time that I lived here they have turned off the water maybe 5 times total and all came with notices. Maybe I just wasn’t home when the random shutdowns happened.
Now for the positives
–the interior of the apartments is great. My apartment feels huge and is actually pretty big as well (713sqft) which is pretty big for this area.
–there is gated parking (although you have to get here by a certain time to get a spot since they are not reserved)
–all the fun Hillcrest stuff is within walking distance. To me this is perfect. I don’t want to live right there on University but I want to be able to enjoy all that without driving.
–The complex is kinda pet friendly. They say they are not but if you have a doctor’s note saying your animal helps you in some way then it is fine. They don’t charge pet rent or deposit.
–The neighbors are very nice (or at least mine are)
I would say that overall this is a decent complex. Living in apartments in general usually has a down side but this one is not bad.
I like this place and would stay here as long as the rent doesn’t go up.
Also they say the exterior is going to be renovated and they started on some things but I don’t see any major changes yet.

worst place to live ever.
— little to no cell phone reception
— cable lines in the building are really old. i had to deal with the cable company furiously until i gave up and just got DSL (which also still sucks)
— the listing lies about the pool being heated. it’s not
— they turn off the water without warning you
— on the first floor, they installed stoppers so that the windows can only open like 2 inches. (wth is the point of sliding windows??)
— the new rental management company is TERRIBLE. they repeatedly make errors and think i owe them money, they lose paperwork, they never pick up the phone even though two people work in the office, they don’t respond to e-​mails, they TOWED MY CAR FROM MY PAID GARAGE PARKING SPOT and would not refund me

I’ve never written a review on Unilocal before, but I feel compelled to. This place is a mess. The inside hallways are disgusting and poorly lit. The garbage cans in the lobby (if you can call it a lobby) are overflowing, and no one from the building seems to empty them. There are flyers and garbage all over the floor in the lobby. It’s supposed to resemble a Swiss ski lodge, but the entire look comes across as 1970’s cheese. They seem to change management every few months. They turn off the hot water for a few hours for no reason (without any notice to residents) on a regular basis. It’s incredibly noisy in the parking lot and on all sides of the building. Police and medical helicopters fly overhead all the time, often very close to the building. One building manager yelled to her maintenance people from across the parking lot all the time, and with everyone’s screen doors open, that means she was yelling into their apartments. Another building manager had kids who treated the grounds of the complex as their personal front yard. They’ve been repairing the exterior of the building for almost a year now — removing shingles, so for now it’s all discolored and looks horrible. There’s supposedly a fountain in front of the leasing offic, e but they’ve had it off for over a year, I guess to save money. It just looks like a dirty, unused swimming pool now. The leasing office’s voicemail says «located in the beautiful heart of Hillcrest», but it’s not in the heart of Hillcrest. The rent is relatively cheap for the area, but it’s not worth it, at all. If you’re interested in renting here, spend a few hours at different times of the day and night and you’ll witness what I’m talking about. See if you can find any of the residents, and ask them about this stuff.