Avana Minnetonka

"I've encountered significant challenges within this community, particularly concerning the management's response to the issues I've faced. Over the past year, my primary concern has been the persistent smoking within the apartment complexes, which has significantly impacted my living environment. Despite my efforts to address this, including relocating apartments within the community three times, the situation remains unresolved. Efforts to communicate with the management team have been frustrating. I have made numerous attempts to engage with the leasing office, particularly concerning the refund of my security deposit. Despite utilizing their recommended processes and systems, including a 'smart disburse system,' my attempts have not been successful. This has involved multiple visits to the leasing office and phone calls, each time being directed elsewhere without resolution. The lack of clear communication and the apparent inefficacy of the systems in place have led to considerable frustration. Despite providing alternate contact information when suggested, the anticipated resolution has not been forthcoming. Overall a very bad experience."

"Updated review: Moved back 3 months ago. Lived here a decade ago when it was The Cliffs. Sadly it's no longer The Cliffs & it really shows. First the good, because there is some good. The buildings are largely unchanged and I've always had an affinity for the architecture and layout of the property, even 40 years later this place reeks of posh living, at least from the outside. The staff. Patrick and Dave are genuinely solid individuals. The maintenance guy I talked to resolved an ice maker issue I had and genuinely seemed to care, as this issue required follow-up. The area still beautiful & convenient. Now the bad & some of it is out of management's control, however The Cliffs kept most of these things in check and I'm not understanding how we've fallen so far so fast. Start with a simple one. The car wash stall in the building I'm in has been largely unusable since I moved in. The only way I've actually washed my car here is by using my own hose I kept from the house I owned; the dog wash isn't even plugged in, doesn't have faucet handles or hoses. And that's when there's not someone using the car wash as a parking spot which these people do often. The pool has been closed week in and week out. It'll open for maybe 3 days then I get another email it's closed again. The "laundry lounge" apparently had homeless people living in it? That's locked and not an amenity that's available to use. When the pool is closed that means no sauna no hot tub; so the "amenities" this place is chalked full of aren't exactly useable. Just about every single day some idiot piles old broken crap just outside of the elevator in the room leading to the parking garage. No cameras in this room. Staff just carts the crap away and I'm sure we pay for it, as it's shared utilities and trash removal is one of them. The nice thick carpet padding in the unit is gone, which makes the soundproofing less throughout the building and from unit to unit you can hear more from your neighbors. There used to be after hours security on the grounds making sure people weren't parking in the car wash stalls and using the pool etc , management confirmed that's a thing of the past. Residents have complained of vandalism and been told the cameras do not work. People smoke in the underground garages and on the property even though it's non-smoking; which I'm fine with as long as I can do it too. Used to be able to smoke on your balcony when it was The Cliffs, apparently now only something reserved for squatters and rule breakers? I have 2 places on my balcony with piles of bird plop, mentioned it to management and was given some line about not being able to disturb homes that wildlife make or some crap....they're rodents with wings, fix the issue, this is where I pay to live, I don't see you collecting market rate rent from pigeons. And lastly no, owner, whomever you are that sees this, I don't want to call and have a conversation about this, I'm in building 4. You're either going to fix the issues or you're not, I don't want to chat about it. P.S. the garage springs for the door sound like crap and totally disturb whatever serene living jibber jabber you outline in the description of the place. End of the day it could be worse but it certainly is no longer The Cliffs."

"My experience at Avana Minnetonka has been nothing but disappointing due to severe management issues. In the last few months it has become very apparent that lease violations are apparently tolerated as we have had severe neighbor issues that have been failed to be addressed. Maintenance takes months to respond to minor things. The pool is always broken. Vandalism is rampant. Your mail is not safe here, we have had a ton of things stolen, and they "fixed it" to where it's now even more inconvenient somehow. The buildings are beat up and likely have code violations to the broken or lacking handrails all over, there is trash everywhere, everything smells horrible. Overall, I do not recommend this property due to its inadequate management and substandard living conditions. If you have any issues they will just ignore you or send you to a call center where nothing will come of it. Horrific experience living here, especially since Greystar took over."

"I have lived in this apartment complex for a year and I have never had problems with my delivery packages since August of this year, I have three packages that have been lost, or rather stolen, and the administration does not respond or take responsibility, there are cameras and they say that they don't work and I add that in my underground parking lot that I pay to have it, a bicycle valued at $400 was stolen and I have a camera in front of the parking lot and the building administration said that they don't work, they are just for decoration I guess. If you plan to come live here, it is better that you look for a better place because there is no security in any apartment building here. The last package that was stolen from me was yesterday it was delivered to the reception office according to USPS and the building office they say if not there isn'tdelivery. USPS will open an investigation because I already made a claim for this matter, that package is valued at $300 and I will not let anything else go to lost."

"I wouldn’t move here again if it was the last place to move to. I have lived here since February and it’s been a nightmare since. The only reason this place gets two stars is due to our actual apartment layout and square footage. If I could pick up our apartment and put it in another community run by someone other than Greystar, I would. First, the package room. It is terrible. There is one package room for all of the buildings in this community. A few months ago, they changed the code for the package room; however, they did not change the code on the entrance to the actual building where the package room sits. Many vendors leave your packages by the door of the building rather than the package room. You’re told you need to spend $20 to create an account for their Parcel Pending locker system, which we did. I can count on one hand how many times our packages have actually been delivered in a secure locker. Many of the vendors don’t know the code to the package room, nor do many of them cares. In the last week, I’ve had two packages delivered, by two different companies, and neither of them was to be found when I went down to get them. Other people going through your packages and/or taking them is not unheard of. You can see the pictures for proof. We are supposed to have a call box that our guests can use when they visit. It’s supposed to call our cell phone and we can buzz them in. It has never worked for us and when guests have tried calling it, some random guy answers the phone. We assume a former resident? The “secure” doors are constantly held open with any object that people can find. Residents and vendors often take the landscaping rocks to hold open the door. Why do we pay for a “secure” building when it is always open? The alarm on the elevator in the main building (where the office is located and where we live) has been going off for over a month. Nobody has taken care of it or done anything about it. Getting a hold of someone in the office is not going to happen. You can try calling Avana’s main number and it’ll bring you to people at a call center or representatives working from home but you won’t actually talk to anyone in the office. Try emailing incessantly and walking down to the office and MAYBE someone will get back to you in a timely fashion. There was black mold underneath and behind our toilet. I put in a request and maintenance came and sprayed the mold, while over spraying and bleaching my rugs in the process. Avana did credit our account for the rugs, after I emailed pictures and complained. Your rent is one thing. You’ll pay your rent plus you will pay for common area electric, gas, trash, water, sewer, pest and the billing system they use. Since we have moved in, this is anywhere from $150 to $200 more per month. You’ll also pay your own electric bill on top of that. The amenities are fine. Indoor pool/sauna/hot tub, small gym and outdoor pool. We get emails all of the time with something being broken and them having to close something. To try and mask the inconsistencies and mismanagement, they’ll make the community rooms look pretty and put on ice cream socials. I would much rather forego the ice cream socials and not pay the $5 per month for their billing company to create my bill. Most of our neighbors have moved out, with the same, if not worse, complaints that we have. We have emailed the property manager (we are on the third property manager since we have moved in in February) multiple times, have called and have contacted corporate. Save yourself and go elsewhere. It seems too good to be true to get a property for the price they advertise, it is! You’re not getting what you pay for and you’re going to be severely disappointed."