Casa Serrano Apartments

Pros

• Jojo was much more pleasant and helpful.
• Micah was great, kept the place clean, performed pest control well, and communicated effectively.
• Emilio, the maintenance man, is good and responsive.

Cons

• The building is poorly managed, with frequent turnover and managers who are cold, unhelpful, or intrusive (entering apartments without permission).
• Maintenance issues are chronic, including a dishwasher that doesn't clean well, a cramped laundry room, and frequent plumbing backups causing flooding.
• Pest problems are rampant, including cockroaches and bed bugs, with pest control efforts described as inadequate.
• The property and hallways are dirty, the trash area is consistently full of pests, and the pool is filthy.
• The neighborhood environment is unsafe, with homeless individuals nearby and a naked man roaming the area.
• Security and access are unreliable: intercom often nonfunctional, elevator frequently out of service or dirty, and the parking garage can be accessed with a main door key from outside.
• Deliveries are mishandled: a resident named "Queen" intercepts deliveries and leaves notes, causing misdelivery and confusion; delivery notifications are unreliable.
• Billing and finances are suspect: residents are billed for issues not caused by them, and late fees are charged due to mismanagement.
• Overall, the complex is characterized by bed bugs, cockroaches, and subpar amenities in addition to persistent management and safety concerns.

Review

The overall impression from these accounts is that the building, managed by G&K Management, is a chronic problem: a place with persistent maintenance gaps, chaotic management, and a neighborhood atmosphere that many residents would rather avoid. Across stories, the exterior and interior feel unwelcoming and unstable, with dogs barking incessantly, drunks and drug use outside the building, and a general sense that safety and order are not prioritized. Several reviewers emphasize that the combination of unreliable management and frequent disturbances seriously undermines the quality of life for those living there, including older residents and people who travel for work.

Maintenance and daily funcionamento emerge as a central grievance. One recurring theme is the dishwasher that never cleans well, even after a replacement, paired with a woefully underpowered laundry setup - one washer and dryer per floor in what is described as a closet-like "wash room." This limited access makes doing laundry a long-running hassle, pushing some residents to use off-site laundromats to ensure their clothes actually come clean. Beyond appliances, there are repeated water problems: a resident returned to a partially flooded apartment, with evaporated standing water suggesting it had persisted for some time, and another account of kitchen and bathroom sinks backing up so badly that water overflowed into the hallway. The problem often seems exasperated by assumptions about the cause (stuff being dumped down the garbage disposal) and by a perception that upstream issues and poor maintenance coordination are not promptly addressed.

The management situation is described as inconsistent at best, and actively problematic at times. Early on, a manager named Matt is portrayed as cold, unfriendly, and unhelpful, only to be replaced by Jojo, who is described as pleasant and responsive but who eventually left. When Matt returned, residents say his intrusions into tenants' apartments - unauthorized entries - reappeared, contributing to a climate of mistrust. Compounding the frustration are alleged accounting and billing missteps: residents claim that managers failed to properly manage payments, and that old balances and late fees were imposed despite no fault of the tenants. A temporary manager named Micah is praised for introducing basic pest control and communication, but that improved period was short-lived. The current situation is painted as a loop of temporary fixes followed by long periods of neglect, with the sentiment that management is largely absent when issues arise.

Security, access, and common-area conditions are another major thorn. The building's parking garage lacks a safe, direct pedestrian exit, forcing tenants with luggage to drag bags down front steps when elevators are unavailable or unusable. Elevators themselves are described as frequently dirty or out of service, and intercoms sometimes fail, making deliveries a source of stress and miscommunication. The front of the building is described as a magnet for unsavory activity and overcrowding, including homeless individuals who hang out nearby and occasional alarming encounters with strangers. One resident recounts a disturbing incident of a naked man roaming the area, while another notes a resident "Queen" who collects deliveries and sometimes misplaces or steals items, leaving notes that mislead tenants about delivery status. Deliveries and package security feel unreliable, and the trash chute area is repeatedly cited as a hotspot for pests and mess, with trash dumped on the floor and boxes left where they shouldn't be.

Amenities and general cleanliness contribute to the negative experience. The pool is repeatedly described as filthy and never properly cleaned, which compounds the sense that the property is not maintained to a reasonable standard. Hallways are consistently described as dirty, and the overall environment - along with the noise from upstairs neighbors - adds to a sense of disorder. The trash area, in particular, becomes a recurring problem, with pests and litter appearing frequently and boxes not properly disposed of in the garage's designated area. For what the rents and fees are purportedly designed to cover, reviewers feel there is a persistent mismatch between expectation and delivery, especially when it comes to basic upkeep and responsible property management.

Pest infestations and health concerns loom large in the narratives. Bedbugs and cockroaches are highlighted as significant issues, undermining even the most basic comfort of living there. The persistence of pests appears tied to broader maintenance and management failures, with residents blaming previous and current managers for not implementing consistent pest control strategies. In at least one case, tenants report actively dealing with bed bugs on their own due to a lack of reliable property-level assistance, underscoring a broader pattern of neglect rather than proactive problem-solving.

The financial and personal toll on residents rounds out the collective critique. Besides the confusing and late-arriving bills that can trigger late fees simply because notices arrive two weeks late, there are deeper concerns about accountability and fairness. One resident recounts a costly car damage incident caused by a garage door mishap, which was not adequately signposted and was blamed on a manager who wasn't available. Elderly tenants appear particularly vulnerable to the confusing billing practices and to the overall sense that individual tenants are left to fend for themselves. Taken together, the reviews portray a cycle in which residents feel overcharged, underserved, and unseen by a management team that lacks consistency, transparency, and timely responsiveness.

In sum, the collection of experiences paints a strongly negative portrait of this property under G&K Management. The recurring themes - persistent maintenance failures; a revolving door of managers with uneven accountability; safety and security concerns; pervasive pest problems; and financial practices that feel opaque or unfair - combine to create a living environment that many reviewers would not recommend. Several reviewers end with a clear warning to prospective renters: avoid this property and seek alternatives that offer better communication, reliable maintenance, and a safer, cleaner, more predictable rental experience. For those already living there, the sentiment is one of ongoing frustration and fatigue, with inconsistent attempts at improvement and a sense that real change remains elusive.

Pharmacies

• CVS Pharmacy (0.5 miles)
• Walgreens (0.9 miles)
• Mary Jane's Melrose Holistic (1 miles)
• Rite Aid (1.4 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (1.6 miles)
• Walgreens (2 miles)
• Rite Aid (2.1 miles)

Restaurants

• BCD Tofu House (0.6 miles)
• Chick-Fil-A (1.3 miles)
• Park's BBQ (1.4 miles)
• Taco Bell (1.9 miles)
• Republique (2.1 miles)
• Del Taco (2.2 miles)
• Mohawk Bend (2.5 miles)

Cafes

• Starbucks Reserve (2.5 miles)
• Lamill Coffee Boutique (2.6 miles)
• Verve Coffee Roasters (3.3 miles)
• Starbucks (3.4 miles)
• Starbucks (3.6 miles)
• Joan's on Third (3.7 miles)
• Alfred Coffee & Kitchen (4 miles)

Parks

• Echo Park at the Lotus Festival (2.7 miles)
• Pan Pacific Park (2.8 miles)
• Plummer Park (3 miles)
• Runyon Canyon Park (3.4 miles)
• Hollywood Bowl Overlook (3.8 miles)
• Lake Hollywood Park (4.2 miles)
• Elysian Park (4.3 miles)

Theaters

• Regal LA Live & 4DX (2.8 miles)
• AMC The Grove 14 (2.9 miles)
• TCL Chinese Theatre (3 miles)
• Alamo Drafthouse Downtown (3.1 miles)
• Universal Cinema AMC at CityWalk Hollywood (5.3 miles)

Transportation

• Union Station (4.2 miles)

Hospitals

• Kaiser Permanente West Los Angeles Medical Center (4.5 miles)
• Kedren Community Health Center (4.9 miles)