Miramonte

I’ve lived here 2 years in a 2B/​2Ba and don’t plan on moving elsewhere for a while. I’ve become good friends with a lot of my neighbors and in general other neighbors are friendly.
Pros:
— Best maintenance crew of any place i’ve ever lived; friendly, professional, efficient, and responsive
— Well maintained grounds
— Thick walls keep out neighbor noise
— Pool/​hot tub is well kept and the timed fireplace is a nice touch
— Friendly front office
— Better parking availability than most other buildings in the area
— Location. Location. Location. We’re on the greenbelt, quick access to 101, 5 minute über into Old Town, and 15 minute to Tempe.
Cons:
— Rent went up $ 100 when I renewed lease. Seems steep.
— Wifi connection in my apartment is not great. I have 50mbps which should be plenty fast for light use (only a handful of devices, web browsing, netflix, etc…) I had Cox come in to inspect and they said it’s the wiring in my unit. Other neighbor friends have said they don’t have same issue.
— Single pane windows and old window frames make for poor insulation and don’t do a good job blocking out noise /​weather.

Don’t move here! The owners are heartless. They are raising the rent on our 95 year old grandma on a fixed income who has lived in her apartment for 9 years. She has never been late and they refuse to work with her. Do you know how tramatic it is for her to move now! Unbelievable. She cried for days!

Miramonte is a great place to live. The apartments are slightly older, but are well maintained. I’ve never lived in an apartment with such ethical, responsive staff. Maintenance generally comes the day after a request is submitted, and the office staff notifies you if maintenance determines that they need to order a part that will take a few days to arrive. The management changed about six months ago, but I have not noticed any differences in quality or responsiveness since the switch.
A couple of things to keep in mind:
1) This place is pretty good when it comes to bugs, but there are mosquitos outside and I have seen a couple of roaches over the two years I’ve been here. I know that sounds terrifying, but realistically, you are going to have occasional roaches pretty much anywhere you live in the Phoenix/​Scottsdale area, and this apartment has WAY fewer roaches than most. The mosquito thing is an issue because, in the one-​bedroom model, there are no windows in the kitchen/​living area, so if you burn something in the oven, you have to choose between letting the mosquitos in and having a super smoky living area.
2) The pool is beautiful and well-​maintained (one of the previous reviews complained that the pool is difficult to swim laps in and the pool gates have locks that stick — I have never encountered either of those issues).
3) The shelves in the kitchen cupboards are not moveable. If you are the type of person who cooks, I would recommend against living in the smaller sized two bedroom layout, because the kitchen does not have a pantry and the immovable shelves make it difficult to find space for your cutting boards, cereal, flour canisters, etc. The kitchen in the one-​bedroom or larger two-​bedroom model is better.
4) Contrary to their advertising/​pricing, this is by no means a «luxury» apartment. The prices fluctuate a lot and are occasionally outrageous for what this apartment is. I ended up moving out because I wanted to transfer to a two-​bedroom, and in the ten days it took me to make up my mind, they raised to price of the unit I was interested in from $ 1250/​month to $ 1475, which was way too high for what Miramonte has to offer.
5) This is the best apartment I’ve ever lived in. The staff are great.

Lived here for a year a couple years ago in a 1BR/​1BA. The apartment was really nice; I loved the French doors that opened to the patio, and although having laundry in the patio’s closet was a foreign concept to me, it was nice having in-​unit laundry. Plenty of storage space, especially with the walk-​in closet in the bedroom. The appliances were all modern and up-​to-​date enough for me, and I felt as though I got my money’s worth. I had trouble with the toilet clogging up a handful of times, but I was able to call maintenance and get it taken care of quickly enough. I think the longest wait I had was 40 minutes one night.
The gym and pool were great; the cabanas, grills, and picnic tables really lent themselves nicely to hosting friends and family over for BBQs or small pool parties. Guest parking was always available, and there were several bike racks, but be careful: my seat was stolen off my bike after having left it there for just a week. There’s several grocery stores nearby, too, which was always convenient, and the close access to the dog park and Chapparral Park was great for going for a jog or walk.
Really enjoyed my time at Miramonte. I only moved out because a room opened up in a friend’s apartment, which was both a bit cheaper (although nowhere as nice) and closer to work, but otherwise would have stayed indefinitely!

I was recently asked by Miramonte to write this review. Now seems like a good time to do it, as I definitely won’t be sleeping while the landscaping crew is outside my single pane windows before 8 am again. This is a pretty regular occurrence on Thursdays, but occasionally it will happen on other days too. I work from home, and my main complaint about this place is the noise.
Some pros:
* Location: near the 101, old Town Scottsdale, and restaurants /​groceries, and a good place to be in the valley
* The staff are nice. I especially like the maintenance guy who is friendly and gets things fixed really quickly. I like the online ticketing system. The staff sometimes give out free tickets to local events or host parties for residents in the pool area.
Cons:
* The noise, as I wrote above. There’s an elementary school on one side (it’s really only the screaming that bothers me), and Hayden road on the other. This has bothered me more over time instead of less. There are a few dogs that bark in the morning and night, and with the way the buildings face each other, the barks feel like they echo like in a cave. The air conditioner is the loudest I’ve ever encountered; I can barely use the phone when it’s on.
* After my lease was up, my rent went up 18%, when my friend’s rent at another complex stayed the same.
* Not enough parking for guests. My guests frequently find themselves walking quite a bit.
This place has been ok, but not great. I’m excited to move in about a month.

My family and I have lived here for almost 3 years now, and we are staying put for a while.
The community is small, but we love that about Miramonte. Most neighbors are very friendly, and the grounds are always kept tidy. The pool area is beautiful and very relaxing, offering a fire pit and cabanas. We love swimming as often as we can! The fitness room may be small, but it gives you enough to sweat and burn.
The neighbors, most anyway, are always friendly. Parking is never a problem, in the 3 years we’ve been there, only twice has our parking spot been taken. When it is, we ask nicely for it to be moved and it gets moved.
Maintenance is incredible, super quick and very friendly. The front office staff is also very friendly and helpful.
We have a small dog and 4 year old, and we love it here. It’s the perfect little place for us, and we recommend it to anyone. We do face Hayden road, but noise isn’t too bad. In the mornings, you can sometimes here the band at Saguaro high school play, and i’m sure the neighbors facing Pueblo elementary hear the giggles, screams, and running of small kiddos, but other than that we have no complaints!

I have lived here for over a year and like it a lot. The location is great, the grounds are clean and staff is friendly. The apartments are older but it helps with the noise levels from neighbors. However, our unit faces Hayden so there is a lot of noise from the street, so if you can get one that’s not directly on Hayden.

I lived here for a year from 2012 and I had a great experience. The management team and grounds team are awesome — so friendly, helpful and efficient. The grounds and pools were kept so beautifully. I would definitely recommend living here. If you get a choice then try for one of the apartments which faces the court yards but away from the pool. It is close to Hayden Road on one side and a school on the other so noise can be a factor but can be avoided if you choose right.

The apartment is older but it is in a great location. Staff is friendly and attentive to tenants needs.

I use the swimming pool here when our heated outdoor pool is being maintained. Management was easy-​going and friendly both times I’ve gone to retrieve the pool key (last year and this year, around the same time-​frame). However, the gate’s lock is always a hassle to unlock. Both times I’ve let management know that the key, or lock, needs to be replaced.
The pool is irregular in shape, so it’s hard to get a decent exercise. I finally opted to just swim the perimeter. (The pool at the complex I live in is geometric, but there is a straight path that allows for sufficient laps.) Miramonte’s pool is very deep (about 8 feet) in most areas, so what it lacks in distance, it makes up in endurance– I find it harder to swim with that much more water underneath.
On my first time swimming there last week (Wed), the water temperature was almost as hot as that of their jacuzzi! It’s a good thing I didn’t have much time to swim, or I probably would’ve had a worse headache than I ended up with when I finally surfaced. I didn’t have time to stop at the office to file a complaint, but I did mention it the following morning to personnel at the complex I live in, and by Friday, the water temperature was back to normal temperatures, which is around 82 degrees F at my complex’s pool. I thought that was fantastic to have that one issue addressed right away. :))
Thank you, btw, to the young man with the great smile who assisted me that first day in opening the gate for me! I very much appreciated your help! :)

Well kept common areas and neighbors are nice. pool area is pretty cool too. The management is also really friendly and respond well to our needs. Happy with our choice to live here.

Miramonte is a decent place to live. The occupants are nice and almost everyone says hello, it’s clean, and it has a great pool set up. The pool is heated and is surrounded by cabanas features a fire pit, and a spa.
The grounds are clean and well maintained and the maintenance crew is pretty responsive. There is also plenty of parking which seems always hard to come by in apartment complexes. The only thing I don’t like about this complex is it’s proximity to Hayden. Unless you’re located on the very West side of the complex you constantly hear traffic. If you like to have your windows open on nice evenings as I do I recommend investing in some ear plugs.

I think I might have spent a little too long deciding what to include in this post, but as someone who has spent a long time renting and had some pretty miserable experiences, I try to include everything I wish I would have known. Apartment reviews can be TERRIFYING, there are some angry renters out there. Here’s what I took from my lovely 10 month stay at Miramonte.
1. This apartment doesn’t look like much from the outside, and its nothing fancy for sure, but in my experience the office staff is extremely helpful, the maintenance man is reliable and friendly (eventually I even had no problem giving him permission to enter while I wasn’t there) and its very reasonably priced. The interiors are updated with nicer carpet, newer kitchens and they have washer and dryers! big plus for me.
2. The pool is awesome, when it works. They have been having some issues but I do believe its fixed now. The gym is tiny but usually empty.
3. its pretty quiet, most of the time. I lived upstairs and was never bothered by my neighbors noise. But I do believe my downstairs neighbor was slightly annoyed by me (and I am not loud and hardly home.) So Point A – live upstairs. I’ve found that to be true in EVERY apt complex ive ever lived in. Point B – PLEASE NOTE – THIS IS IMPORTANT – there is an elementary school on the east side of the apartment complex. I lived directly up from the parking lot, facing the school playground, and you could absolutely hear little kids playing in the morning. It didn’t ever bother me because I work all week, I only discovered this when I happened to be home sick one Wednesday. If you work a Monday-​Fri 9 – 5 you really wont notice so I would not let that deter you from moving in. However if you sleep in late during the week, choose your location carefully, don’t get a unit that faces the school.
4. The office staff will really try to be accommodating. A new office manager took over a couple months after I moved in and you can really tell she wants people to be happy about the complex. I lived here while in the process of buying a house and definitely did my share of calling the office staff with questions about extending my lease, ending my lease, month to month options, etc. When my house closed 2 months before my lease ended, of course I couldn’t get out of my legally binding contract (no surprise to me there) but I was surprised that they were very helpful about my options to sublease it myself or find someone to take over my lease completely. They definitely did as much as they could.
5. Parking for visitors isnt the worst I’ve seen but it can be difficult. There are always tons of spots open on the south end of the complex, but in the evenings most of the other public ones are taken.
6. Bugs– always a big concern of mine and I would have no shame in admitting if I found them. (see my other apt review, ha!). Honestly, I found one big cockroach about a month after I moved in, called the office, they had the sprayer come and I never saw another one again. (I lived there for 10 months)
7. charges. They WILL charge you for damages done to your walls or carpets, for anything that is not top-​notch clean, or anything that isnt as it was when you moved in. But they aren’t trying to scam you. Use your common sense on this one, you get a form to fill out when you move in that lists every detail of every room, FILL IT OUT. Keep a copy. Be present when they do the final walk through and you will be aware of any discrepancies. Just be a responsible renter and you will only pay the standard $ 35 carpet cleaning fee.
Hope that was helpful to anyone considering an apartment here. Granted all experiences and units are different, so if you move in and hate it, whoops. If you move in and like it, as I did, you’re welcome.