Avalon at Prudential Center — Local services in Boston

Walls are paper thin. We paid extra for a view of the Charles. What we got was at best affable door service, sometimes downright mean. They seemed only really care about the ultra wealthy residents on the Penthouse even though we were on the 20th floor. The biggest issue is a noise pollution internally; a piece of blue board separating us from the hall way, units to our sides and above and below us. We both worked from home on occasion and had a VERY difficult time concentrating. When brought to the attention of the Avalon - the national property company as well as management firm, we were told basically to suck it up and deal with it. We brought in Inspectional Services Department and they verified our complaints as well as other broken fixtures and lack of updates in the kitchen and bathroom and BTW we were paying A LOT OF MONEY in rent per month. We ended up mutually agreeing with Avalon to break the lease without cost and drop all charges including those supported by ISD findings. We moved out and where then several month later hit with a MASSIVE BILL to the tune of approximately $8000.00 for unfounded claims and concocted anecdotes - basically MGL illegal retaliation without any grounds. We fought it. They reduced the "charges" and we paid the blackmail-esque, huge corporation fees to avoid the time suck of a legal battle. But that's not the end, they then even though signatures and documents were all signed to the contrary continued to bill us still for the full amount after paying the mutually agreed settlement amount AND PUT THIS ON OUR CREDIT REPORTS without grounds, and once its there with the big three credit agencies, if next to impossible to get off. We countless hours fighting with Avalon and those three to remove it and we never could until finally we gave in the the blackmail and paid it off, yet it still appears and is damaging to our credit scores, just a bit less than not paying. The entire experience was awful and post move out even more. We paid a large amount upfront and (moving costs which is very difficult to move in FYI - you have to come in though the loading dock in the shaws/star market with no help from Avalon of building management or staff (EG doormen, et cetera) Even the movers themselves said they had never seen anything like this. This occurred at one of three large Boston properties in Back Bay - 770 Boylston, with sister building 780 and 790; there is also highly advertised but horrible amenities in the building itself. So my humble opion is RUN, don't walk away from #AvalonBuildings, they may give you a small company feel to sell you with no realtor fee but then its big company "we don't care about you one bit" bureaucracy, inefficiency, and just a lack basic human decency on top of illegal activities. Give me a Brownstone any day over a building like that especially owned/managed by Avalon BTW we always paid our rent on time and never caused any issues and they stole our security deposit for nothing. I hope the detail here may help even one person(s) from having a similar experience.

*BIG FYI - after writing this detailed review, I rad the others, everyone else outside of the quasi-legal battle of an erroneous bill, had the SAME EXACT COMPLAINTS and with only one review with 4 or 5 stars with nothing written do you really trust that? Probably an Avalon employee and...

I was a resident from July 2023 to July 2024. There were many issues with the apartment. The kitchen sink flooded multiple times soon after I moved in, and the apartment was covered in dirty, disgusting sewer-like water. The problem took months to be resolved. The AC never worked and the heating was excessive, and there was no control over it. Only one window in the apartment opened, and only by a small amount, which made it hard to get proper ventilation or to dissipate the excessive heating. There was no overhead lighting, which made the apartment always look dingy and dark. The washer and dryer in the unit took several hours to finish a cycle and were very loud, such that you could not have work calls or watch TV while they were running. The building is old, which shows everywhere. The walls are thin and you can hear everything from your neighbors, including upstairs neighbors. Plus, the whole area is noisy and you can often hear very loud construction work starting from 7 am. The building also has pest issues, as I saw mice scurrying about in the apartment multiple times. It's almost impossible to be at peace there.

Rent is excessively high. I paid around $4,000/month, and they tried to raise my rent to almost $5,000 after a year's tenancy.

Worse, Avalon has unlawfully retained my security deposit. They claim I gave insufficient notice that I wasn't going to renew the lease, when in fact I gave almost two months' worth of notice, and then offered to stay on an additional month, but was told that they had already leased out the apartment to a new tenant whose lease would start right after mine. There was no provision in the lease stating that they could keep the security deposit in this manner, and they cannot do so under Massachusetts law. I intend to sue to recover the...

Yesterday, again, the maintenance fellows came to deal with a plumbing problem. They worked diligently for a couple of hours then realized it was in need of the outside plumbing company. So they arranged for the job to be completed the next day - and yes it was fixed. The Avalon crew were fantastic. Jonathan supervised the job and he with others were so diligent about solving the problem, very polite and accommodating. I appreciate their promptly fixing the problem . Thank you.

Yesterday the maintenance crew cleaned the heating coils in our place, and repaired the thermostat controls ! I had asked for the service - usually an annual ticket item - but with the work on the roof it had been delayed. Jose and particularly Jonathan were very professional, giving advice on how to manage the heat and air conditioning and stuck with the job until it was completed. Thank you

The Maintenance crew has been wonderful. Just moved in a year ago and we all had to work out some kinks in the new construction, but Maintenance came quickly every time we brought something to their attention . AND they fixed everything perfectly. We're talking about washing machine, disposal, skylight, door stops, AC regulation - they have an expert on hand for all situations. They are always so accommodating and polite, too. Thanks so much for their fine service.

Very quick response to maintenance request. Greg (new to the team) came up right away and worked on the byzantine heating system till he and we were completely satisfied. He also managed to master a thermostate which had perplexed others. Very professional, polite and competent. Nice...