Villas at Playa Vista - Malibu — Local services in Los Angeles

DO NOT MOVE HERE! My husband and I lived in Malibu for a little over 2 years. We knew moving into the building that the rent was overpriced but we were willing to pay it so we could live in the Playa Vista neighborhood. Not only did our rent increase about $400 each year, but the quality of the overall living experience SEVERELY declined (specifics listed below). With what you get in terms of appliances, amenities, service from the management office, neighbor behavior, etc, the units should be priced no higher than $2500 but be prepared to pay no less than $4800 for a one bedroom. Their claim of “luxury living” is an absolute scam. The unit - space/sizing is ok, pretty decent for a one bedroom but prepare for really cheap appliances that often are faulty/break, cheap cabinets, blinds, etc. Matenience - in the beginning, they were on time, efficient and fixed whatever issue we had. Now, if matenience shows up at all (no one came for our move out inspection- 2 hours of wasted time at home waiting for them) they’ll show up at the very end of the arrival window and MAYBE fix the issue. Our AC unit broke 2 out of the 3 summers that we lived there. The 2nd time it broke, it took almost 3 MONTHS for it to get completely replaced. The management office was incredibly unhelpful (we had to follow up with them multiple times to get anything done) and were downright rude when we got frustrated (after having no AC for 3 months!) They only responded to us once we threatened legal action. Additionally, as other reviewers mentioned, the elevators are constantly broken, doors into the complex either don’t open or don’t lock (huge security concern), internal hallways smell like a dirty gym bag, etc. The tenants - the building has been renting to more and more college kids who consistently throw parties and smoke weed nonstop. We’re lucky that our direct neighbors are not the party throwers but our building consistently smells like weed. Every. Single. Day. It’s nauseating. The building has made idle threats to handle it after receiving numerous complaints but that was months ago - the weed smokers are still going strong, EVERY SINGLE DAY! Beyond the kids, the other tenants are typically rude, entitled and disrespectful to the grounds themselves. (The dog poop EVERYWHERE, puddles of pee in the package room, the disorganized/messy gyms, and overflowing trash on the ground should be evidence enough) The management team - unfortunately, they have been useless since day 1. Any issue you have, they clearly want to appease you in the moment but they don’t actually do anything to fix the issue. They NEVER communicate but yet expect you to know everything and give you attitude if you ask for clarification. You also must REPEATEDLY follow up with them for them to do their jobs. Our final apartment inspection took a full 15 days post move-out (which we had no communication on how long it would take..) and once it was completed, the email communication on how much remaining rent we owed was incorrect. We actually owed less than they communicated - they’re either extremely careless or trying to take your money, watch out either way! Also, they will absolutely charge you a move out cleaning fee ($200-300), no matter how much you clean the unit pre- move out. The complex/grounds - the cleaning teams do the best they can but like I mentioned above, it’s hard for them to keep up with the amount of trash and poop ravaging the complex. Also - if you have environmental allergies, beware! The landscaping may be nice to look at but the amount of allergies I and my dog have dealt with year-round made us miserable. At the very least, there’s constantly twigs, leaves, sticky flowers, bugs etc that will enter your home on a daily basis. The infestation of crows is also a treat - the amount of bird poop on the ground has now surpassed the dog poop.

Just know that as the rent increases, the quality decreases. The amount of empty units in the building is laughable. I would highly advise you take your money elsewhere than this joke...

DO NOT RENT HERE. The maintenance and sales staff are very nice, that’s about it.

I pay a good amount of money for this:

Incredibly loud fire alarms go off at random, which I understand in a new building, except it’s been a recurring problem for over a year.

I wake up before 7am every weekday to the crashing sound of dumpsters being emptied into trucks, this is not once or twice a week but every morning.

Good luck if you have a problem because management does not want to be bothered. You can put a service request in for something and they tell you the call you back, they will not they just want you to go away.

Here’s just a few examples:

One afternoon the smoke detector in my bedroom started going off randomly, I called the building went through their automated system until I got a hold of somebody and they told me it couldn’t be taken care of until the next day. They actually expected me to sleep through the alarm. I had to throw a fit to get somebody to come fix it that afternoon.

My microwave stopped working, called and put in the service request which took a few days for the maintenance guy to come take a look at it no big deal it’s just the microwave. When the maintenance worker said he couldn’t fix it he told me management would be in contact, they were not. Called them after a few days and they told me that the microwave manufacturer was going to be stopping by in the next week and would come and fix it. No follow up for a week. Called again and was told they would call me right back after they figured out what was happening, never received a call back. Had to basically hound them until somebody came and fix the microwave 2 1/2 weeks after broke.

I’m on the first floor with a patio by the leasing office and I have a friendly doggie that likes the layout in the sun. I was told by management at my apartment was the non-dog apartment and they would be willing for me to break my lease or relocate. When I asked where it said that on the lease they just disappeared. They just didn’t want people to see the dog when taking them on a tour so they straight up lied.

I have a fire pit on my patio. I was told the fire department came by and did a walk-through with the manager. I was told it was illegal for me to have that and it needed it to be removed. This confused me because during my tour they told me this would be a great spot for a grill or fire pit, I called the fire department and asked about regulations and they told me that they had no idea what I was talking about and no one ever went there. When I called management and asked them what firehouse came they said it was a woman with a badge and they didn’t get any documentation or record the visit. Just another lie.

I was waiting for a payroll check to come in the mail and the company forgot to put my apartment number on it so I went to the management office to see if they had it. They pulled out a stack of letters to go through and when I asked what they do with them I was told they just keep there for couple weeks before they give it back to the post office. They have every single person’s name that’s signed a lease and make no attempt to provide them their mail.

For the rent I pay I expect a little bit of effort from the staff. It’s one thing after another that keep adding up which make this place not worth it.

The pool is...

My stay at Villas at Playa Vista Malibu was cut short and ended with exorbitant move-out fees. The experience with management was deeply frustrating and disappointing. I highly do not recommend staying here if you value peace of mind, transparency, or respectful management.

Dismissive Communication: Questions or concerns we shared via phone or email throughout our stay required repeated follow-ups. Upper management was often dismissive and often contradicted themselves verbally without providing written clarity, which lacked professionalism and made it difficult to trust the information we were given. Towards the end, we had to be proactive in requesting a response or written documentation. (We didn't for one item at move-out and, of course, got conflicting information about move-out fees and paid the price for it. No pun intended).

Maintenance issues: We dealt with a persistent noise issue in the apartment that created a constant, disruptive sound. Despite submitting documentation and having months of maintenance visits, the issue was never resolved and was eventually dismissed as “normal.” This was deeply frustrating and could have been avoided with clear communication and accountability early on. A normal issue shouldn’t require months of back-and-forth or that many maintenance visits.

High Move-Out Fees: After all this, we were verbally told what fees we would be charged upon move out (in addition to our lease break fee). It ended up being much higher than was shared. To be fully transparent: we were charged $638 for painting and cleaning. When we inquired, we were told the fees were presented to us are “standard.” The full fees were not shared with us. It was complete shock. Having lived in a few apartments before, I’ve never been charged for what should be considered normal wear and tear.

I’ve never had such a disappointing experience with a customer service or leasing office. At times, I felt under subject of landlord intimidation/landlord bullying. The very team meant to support residents often came across as indifferent and dismissive. In one instance, while discussing the ongoing noise issue in person, the manager continued watching a football game on his phone as I shared the noise/habitability concerns I had with the apartment. It was disheartening and reflected a lack of professionalism and care for tenant experience.

My experience felt unorganized, unresponsive, and unprofessional, which is especially disappointing for a "luxury" apartment. I do not...