AMLI South Shore — Local services in Austin

I've lived at the AMLI South Shore for a little over 3 years, so the goal of this review is to give a clear-eyed account of what you can expect when living here. (Also, I'm giving it 4 stars when I'd probably rate the place more at 4.5. Not gonna round up, though, because 5 star reviews always seem a bit like they are shilling.)

One thing to note is that there's a big divide between Building 7 and the rest of the complex. Building 7 is newer, more expensive, and right on the river. The other buildings are older and have more affordable units. The good news is that even those of us in the older buildings can still go over to Building 7 and use their very nice common areas. So if you decide to live here be sure to spend some time hanging out at the rooftop deck in Building 7, because it is easily one of the best views in the entire city.

The location absolutely cannot be beat. The trail is one of Austin's true gems and the access to it that you get from AMLI is better than anywhere else. You can also walk to Emo's, Come & Take It Live, the Buzz Mill, and dozens of excellent places to eat. You're right in the middle of Austin without being downtown, so if you have to drive somewhere you'll be able to get there much faster than you'd expect. That said, Lakeshore Blvd is getting increasingly crowded, so be prepared to deal with some frustration driving in and out of that entrance during rush hours.

Having 1618 Asian Fusion on site is a blessing and a curse. It's a great spot to take a date and the food is excellent (if you work from home, order your lunch to-go from there and you'll never be disappointed). However, it also causes a snarl of traffic and some chaos in the parking garage during the evenings and weekends. If your unit has windows or a balcony near 1618 you are going to be hearing loud groups leaving the place on weekend evenings, and loud refrigerated trucks making food deliveries early in the morning. For me, personally, the positives outweighed the negatives.

The place is very well maintained, though it is showing its age (other than Building 7). There's always going to be some major or semi-major repair happening somewhere around the complex, which can be annoying but is far better than the alternative.

Don't be shy about putting in any maintenance requests you need, especially if it's something you notice in a common area. The staff is really good at taking care of things once it gets brought to their attention, but I've definitely seen some things go unfixed for a while because we all assumed someone else will be the one to bring it up.

They are very good about listening to residents and improving where they can. The package room used to be complete chaos, and the prospect of getting a package delivered was very stressful (especially during the holidays). Then they installed new package lockers, and now getting a package delivered is much less stressful.

On the subject of deliveries, the USPS postal carrier assigned to AMLI isn't going to ever bother trying to get a signature for a certified letter (or any other signature-required delivery) so if you are getting one sent to you expect to have to go to the local Post Office to pick it up yourself. This isn't a problem specific to the AMLI, though, as conversations I've had with resident in other complexes in the area confirm that they have the same problems with their USPS service.

This review is laughably long, but if you've made it to this point then you probably do want to live here. So I say: go for it. It's gonna be kinda loud and kinda messy but also years from now you'll look back at your time here and be glad that you got to...

With so many great options around this area, please avoid choosing this complex. It has been made clear over and over again that management doesn't care about your experience here, they just want your money. It was fine at the beginning of my lease with my only complaints being homeless people in the pool (with security showing up 45 mins later), door to the garage always jammed shut, and chainsmoking neighbors up until 3 am right outside my window. Of course the leasing office does nothing about this. But then like everyone else has mentioned, construction started all of a sudden at 7 am with beeping and banging and powerdrilling, every second until 7pm. On top of that, they took away all of our amenities that we pay for including the roof and pools, without compensation at all. They blamed the roof closing because of three days of rain Half the reason I signed was to have access to this roof that theyre all of a sudden going to take away and not reduce our rent? Then, they deactivate all the locks on the doors (except for your personal appt door) because their current system isnt working and theyre saving for the new system and hoping to put it in (its been months). As someone who lives alone and has woken up to banging on their door at all hours of the night this is very concerning knowing that management is just letting anyone wander into our hallways. The leasing office said theyve "added security" I havent seen one security guard since. Also without warning I walk out of my door to realize my whole door is wet with paint with no sign. Great! I also come home to realize all my patio furniture and rug has been stacked in a corner and is now soaked because of their power washing. I go down to the leasing office almost every week with a new complaint and theyve done nothing for me except call me and tell me "sorry and theres nothing we can do" and "management hasnt been able to see eye to eye with the construction company." It has made clear that no matter what happens to you in this building, upper management wont change a thing to make you feel compensated or more comfortable. Please go somewhere where they actually value their tenants.

coming back to add to this review because things cant seem to stop going wrong. all my balcony furniture is covered in soggy dust due to construction. I woke up to a construction worker THROWING ladders onto the balcony I pay for that is now destroyed AND being used as construction storage. Leasing office has told me for the seventh time that "Robert the community manager will call and they willl tell construction people to be more considerate." NOTHING IS DONE FOR ME, Robert never calls. The next day construction noises start at 6:30am and once again theres a man outside my bedroom window on the balcony I pay for. This complex is an...

Absolutely miserable.

Lived here for 2 years and everything was fine. Then, with almost no notice, they started construction in 3 different parts of the complex. They snuck a construction addendum into their leases for their current tenants who renewed without going into any detail about what to expect as far as upcoming distractions or ammentities to be lost.

In addition, they began renovating units in the complex with virtually zero regard for those still paying to live there. The past 6 months has been constant noise -- renovations above us, below us, and to the sides; renovations of the hallways; renovations of the patios. It has been constant hammering, yelling, and drilling, and of course there was no addendum for these renovations.

I also lost access to my patio for a week over the holiday weekend, having to move all of my outside furniture inside my 800 sq/ft apartment sk the workers could drill, hammer, yell, and curse right outside my door. Happy Thanksgiving!

I can't suggest avoiding this place enough. They showed just how little regard they have for their tenants in this entire experience -- and when you bring any complaints about it they just point to the addendum, even if the bulk of the issues aren't with the major construction project.

They have a pretty standard response for similar complaints about this, which you can find on all the review sites, suggesting that the reviewers simply don't appreciate the changes. This is not true at all. I'm sure the changes will be great for the next group of tenants who get to experience them. The current tentants just get to live in an active construction zone while having many of the ammentities past revoewrev have praised taken away from them, including: no more Draft Pick, or any bar/restaurant; no more food trucks; no more open field along the river to enjoy; no more direct river access; no more fire pits. Who knows what will be next, because they certainly won't communicate it to you.

I'm sure they'll also talk about how they're trying to minimize impact on tenants by limiting the construction hours. As long as you aren't in your home weekdays between the hours of 7am to 7pm, it's generally quiet. If you work from home, better expect to find somewhere else to work with no notice.

I'm sure the reviews 2 years ago were great. I'm sure the reviews in 2 years will be great. But the reality is right now it's an awful place to live, and this is a pretty clear sign of how little they actually care about...