Mostly all good so far. Are there issues? Of course, but every building has issues. Take our issues listed below with a grain of salt. They're meant to be descriptive but not turn you off from one of the better rentals we've experienced. Again, show me a perfect rental complex and I'll show you a unicorn. The Good: (to be clear, the positives FAR outweight the negatives for us) 1. We mostly got used to the noise and eventually automatically tuned it out. Years of living in big cities will do that. YMMV 2. Building is in relatively good shape, well maintained, clean 3. Location is solid, you have the beautiful river walkway nearby and if you work at OHSU, you cant get much closer to the tram. Also, there's a train right in front to take you to downtown, etc. 4. There is a gym! Its imperfect but hey, its there! 5. One of the quieter areas of Portland. Feels safe, upscale-ish. 6. Maintenance guys are great. They're pretty quick to respond, very friendly and fixed every issue we've had in good time. Cant ask for more. 7. Leasing office/managers are friendly and responsive. (Only one of them who I wont name, is a bit standoffish at times and not as friendly. Cant win them all I guess) 8. Some units have central air which we consider essential. 9. Lots of big bright windows! 10. Some units have nice large balconies like ours! 11. Spacious apt's 12. Decent rental value for everything you're getting here, all things considered. 13. enclosed garage available (for a fee). You WANT this in PDX At the Ella, nitpicking, these issues currently are: 1. BBQ's never work. They're "under repair" indefinitely. 2. Rooftop is cool but no awnings or umbrellas to protect from constant rain or intense summer sun. So, largely unusable outside of rare perfect days. Also, rooftop sofa's seem to have no cushions which is uncomfortable. 3. Walls & windows transmit noise from the street from beeping parking lots to people's conversations to loud garbage pickup at 330am, neighbors stomping, trains & trucks passing by. We got used to it, no different than any city living imho. 4. Gym is too dark, needs better brighter lighting. Also, somewhat lacking in equipment, ie, no lat pull down machine or lat-bar/bench to attach to the all-in-one either. No row machine or row attachment with bench for all-in-one. Chest & shoulder machine really only fits ppl 5'6" and under, hard to get your arms under the handles. Gym needs bit more equipment. 5. Quieter area of Portland, not much to do and most close quite early. Mostly resident doctors & retirees living here. 6. Fees: $275 for EV Parking or $225 for regular. $300/mo for "building fees". This is in addition to your own electric, internet, etc. Seems a bit excessive to us. 7. No bldg wifi in a neighborhood with poor cell reception. Would be a huge plus if Ella could offer this, esp for music on my phone while at the gym, directions when stepping out, etc. 8. No supermarket in this neighborhood, def a bummer.

My experience with this property was poor throughout the time I lived there but deteriorated significantly during the move-out process last month. I will focus on that for this review. After vacating my apartment, I was charged “standard cleaning” and “standard carpet cleaning” fees that were not included anywhere in my lease. Management told me informally on three separate occasions that these charges were required by “apartment policy,” but they were never provided in writing, never disclosed as a lease term, and not explained at move-out. According to the Portland Housing Bureau, ORS 90.300 and ORS 90.302 limit deductions to actual damage beyond normal wear and tear and do not allow automatic or ‘standard’ cleaning fees. This was especially surprising because both management and the lead maintenance staff told me directly during my final walk-through that the apartment was clean and showed nothing beyond normal wear and tear. I contacted management multiple times by email and phone requesting clarification, including what cleaning was performed, where the charges were authorized in the lease, and any supporting documentation. I received no response, and it has been nearly a month since my first attempt to contact them. I have contacted them over five times via email and phone. I have documentation showing the unit did not have damage beyond normal wear and tear, yet these charges are still being applied. Management also stated that these fees are assessed as a matter of “policy,” meaning they are applied regardless of unit condition to every tenant, which is a direct violation of ORS90.300. The lack of transparency and communication made this a frustrating experience. Prospective tenants should carefully document move-out conditions and review deposit deductions closely, as standard fees may be illegally applied without prior written disclosure and disputes can be difficult to resolve.

I've been living here since January 2025, and while the location and apartment layout have some strong points, the overall experience has been deeply frustrating due to poor management and ongoing security issues. I'll break it down below. Pros: The apartments themselves have a great layout – spacious, modern, and well-designed for comfortable living. If you work at OHSU, this is an ideal spot; it's conveniently close, making commutes a breeze. The maintenance team is a bright spot – they're reliable, friendly, and actually get things done when issues arise in the units. Cons: Management is awful and dishonest. Patrick at the front desk has a serious issue with confrontation; he'll straight-up lie to your face just to avoid dealing with a problem. This sets the tone for the entire team. The garage (which I pay $200 a month for as "secured" parking) is a joke. It's been broken every single month, with the most recent failure leaving it stuck open for over three weeks. They hired security guards, but they don't check IDs or verify who's parking there – anyone can just wander in. My car, along with three others, was broken into even when the gate was supposedly working. I had about $2,000 worth of tools stolen from my locked vehicle. I called the police (I have a case number) and requested footage from the garage cameras. Management first refused, citing "privacy" concerns for other renters. When the police showed up, they flipped the story and claimed the cameras couldn't capture my car due to the angle – and apparently, nothing showed up for the other three cars either. Patrick insisted he'd reviewed all the footage, but that's clearly nonsense. One of my stolen items (a backpack) was later recovered, but the office never bothered to notify me; I only found out when I went down to complain again. Their "compensation"? A measly $200 credit. Given that the elevators require a key fob and the garage is meant to be secure, I'm convinced it was another resident who did this. They schedule full-day fire alarm testing for the building, but no one ever shows up. It's disruptive to plan around, and it never actually happens. As of November 2025, the nearby ICE protests (the building is less than two blocks away) have made life a nightmare. Noise levels are through the roof, adding to the chaos. Despite all this – broken garage, security failures, and increased disturbances – they had the nerve to send out lease renewals hiking rent by nearly $300, touting the area as "up and coming." It's insulting. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this place unless you're desperate for the OHSU proximity and can overlook constant headaches. The management needs a complete overhaul; they're dishonest and ineffective. You can't expect a chicken to be anything but a chicken, but renters deserve better for the price. I'd rate this 2/5 stars – saved from 1 star only by the maintenance crew and layout.

The entire apartment vibrates most of the day. There’s always some mechanical noise coming through the lights that hang in the kitchen.I don’t recommend renting apartment 623! The noise is constant and I have brought up the noise issues to the management company. I was told I could break my lease if I want to move to a different apartment!!

Our experience with Avenue5 has been nothing short of disappointing and frustrating. As a tenant under their management, I encountered numerous issues that reflect poorly on their professionalism and commitment to tenant satisfaction. First and foremost, communication with the property manager Kelsey is/was abysmal. Notoriously cold and combative, whether it was dealing with multiple instances of theft (bicycle stolen out of the access control bike storage in the basement or large package stolen from the package room by a tenant caught on camera), noise, garage gate, maintenance requests, etc. Theft & communication issues aside, the way they handled our termination after a negligent upstairs tenant flooded our unit was the most heinous slumlord act I've seen in modern day apartment living. The worst part of all this is the lack of accountability. Kelsey and eventually her boss's boss seemed to brush off concerns, blame others, and simply ignore the problem altogether. It's was incredibly frustrating to pay premium rent for a place that feels like the management company is obligated to your rent because you happen to work for the large hospital organization nearby. I'll include several pictures from the incident that caused us to move out the week before Christmas. But the summary of it is after the renovation company put large fans and dehumidifiers in our unit where the volume was over 80 decibels - Kelsey and Avenue 5 thought it was best to lie to us and our renter's insurance, offer us no comparable option in the building and essentially give us the middle finger and send us a bill for breaking the lease. Thanks but no thanks. In summary, if you're considering renting from Avenue5 or at the Ella, proceed with extreme caution. Their lack of responsiveness, poor attitude, and overall disregard for tenant satisfaction make them one of the worst property management companies I've ever dealt with. Save yourself the headache and look elsewhere for a more reputable and tenant-focused management company. I wish I had read some other reviews about Avenue5 Residential before we had signed a lease.