Raymond Apartments

The good:
The place accepts bets.
Art makes the place feel like a community.
Location. Walking distance to three bart stops.
The carpet in the public areas is so bad, if your pet decides to try destroying it they won’t do any noticeable damage.
Maintenance requests are responded to quickly.
The building is old enough it falls under rent control. (this and the accepts pets are why one stays in this dump)
The bad:
Multiple hot water failures. The hot water has been out for over two weeks this year. And the compensation was a two dollar bottle of French wine that had oxidized and was usable only for cooking.
The ceiling tiles in the first floor hall way are held up with visible electrical tape and duct tape.
The washing machines frequently overflow spilling water into the hallway.
The dryers are $ 1.75 for a small load, and you get to run them twice to get most things to dry.
The trash is a health hazard about ten percent of the time.
Repairs are the absolute cheapest to temporarily bandage over the problem. Basically, if it requires a part, the repair will be so bad you will be better off repairing it yourself, and eating the cost.
Single pane windows guarantee that you’ll be cold in the winter and hot in the summer.
Well, that’s not completely true.
The heat rarely works on first floor, even in winter, but people on the fifth floor tend to leave their windows open to try and deal with the faulty heating system that keeps their apartment in the 90s or above, even with their radiators off.
The front door is a disaster.
You only get one key card so you can’t give your card to guests. Well, you can, but then you have to use your phone to buzz yourself in.
Speaking of the front door buzzer. You need a 510 number for it to call, so half the people don’t have a phone number connected, so people are motivated to circumvent the security system and there is an active market for the universal access code, due to the puritanical attitudes about tenants having guests that they might need a card for. To show how crazy this is, I got two keys to my apartment and only one front door card. This is entirely because the owner does not want to pay for additional cards, even though you get to pay a fifty dollar deposit per card.
Also, mold is a serious problem and you will get used to cleaning your bathroom with bleach once a month just to make sure the mold dies for a short time.

I am disappointed with the owners at The Raymonds. I wanted to move there because the building was pet friendly and the rent was very reasonable. However, they have raised the rents as well as require that you pay $ 100 a month for dogs and $ 50 a month for cats.
This building is not in the greatest shape. It smells like animals and mold. The elevator doesn’t stop level with the floors and the area is okay, but not worth the price.
I lived in Adams Point. I think the owners believe this area is comparable to there. It is not by any means and neither is the building. They are asking too much for what you get. Perhaps if they were more reasonable again with rates and didn’t charge a monthly pet fee they may at least get steady renters.
Again, I am disappointed that they are trying to make more money off people than the building is worth. If they ever bring their old prices back I would love to move there, but not now for the price.

If you are looking for a place with all the amenities, this is not your place. However, if you are looking for a place to call home in downtown Oakland, I would definitely recommend you take a look at the Raymond Building. It is definitely nothing special but I don’t have too many complants.
PROS:
Walking distance to a bunch of great spots in Downtown Oakland
Only 3 blocks from Lake Merritt (and the Lake Chalet Boathouse)
Laundry On-​Site
Elevator
Newer appliances
Resident named Art who is the man!
CONS:
Limited Parking
Performing Arts Center across the street can get noisy in the evenings
Building manager is a resident who is in charge of upkeep, which is sometimes overlooked