The Social Chico Dorms - Chico, California

BW

this place is honestly ok at the absolute best, be aware what they advertise is nothing like how it truly is. I feel like 2 stars is generous but maintenance and Starbucks is great i feel like they deserve recognition. The cleaning ladies are also the sweetest.

First off they advertise around $800 but you will actually end up paying $1200 because you are required to pay for a meal plan and the dining hall actually sucks. The food is extremely low quality and you have the same 5 options to pick from every day, like cheeseburger, nuggets or grilled cheese which you do not want to be eating every single day for $400 a month (and yes, you still have to pay for it even though it closes for weeks during winter break). Their “specials” taste like frozen microwave food, it’s so bad you’re gonna end up spending money on groceries or going out no matter what. You will also never end up using all your meal swipes anyways because the cafeterias only open during increments of a couple hours during the day and it’s when the majority of people have class. Some of the workers also act like they hate their lives and will take it out on everyone that comes in.

Rooms are moldy, inconsistent and outdated. They look nothing like advertised, you could get a room with plastic wood floors, carpet, no closet or bathroom storage, just know one way or another it’s going to be different. My roommate and I’s bathroom is also infested with mold all over the walls, and nothing gets done about it except us being told to just scrub it off every time it grows back.

They also advertise a community kitchen but I have yet to see anyone use them. They don’t even give you keys to access them.

I’d seriously consider different options before settling on this place. There are so many cheaper and nicer options that you can get instead.

Sandra M.

My renting experience at this property has been average. The staff has been kind n considerate. I like the location in Chico. The grounds are nice with the trees n green grass areas. The leasing office is accessible n each building is clearly shown as to what they are. The pool n pool area is clean n well kept. There's a mail room that's user friendly. I reside in E dorm n having a Cafe with Starbucks choices is a nice plus. I would prefer more n better security n the doors n ways into the buildings to be handled more safely. Leaving them unlocked wide open prompt open with chairs etc, allows ANYONE to enter the dorms during holidays n Winter break way too easily. There's only one security guard n there's too much territory with the apartments across the street n all dorms n buildings to cover for one guard. No one person can protect all that. All cameras should be in proper working order n the guard should have screens of each building n their accesses at all times from an security guard office. The dorms should be locked at all times n only accessible by staff, residents n emergency personnel that have a fab key or regular key. The ambulance n police officers should be given a pass key to enter each n every dwelling at any time due to life n death emergencies. If not, this leaves the property to be held liable for loss of life because they couldn't get to them. No place is perfect n without room for improvement so I'm expressing what I believe would improve the safety here at this property. That's important to me.

Maxwell M.

Few big issues with this place, first my academic lease turned into an annual lease. Don’t remember signing a lease ending in July when it should’ve been May. That is what I selected on my application. There is probably additional steps that they conveniently don’t tell you so they can extract more money out of you. Ending up paying ~1700 for an apartment I wasn’t staying in. Second, my security deposit was used completely for “Carpet cleaning” and “Paint chips”. Carpets should be cleaned regardless for the next tenant. Seems like they just vacuum the ground and call that carpet cleaning and charge you for that. Also the paint they use is paper. Putting anything that sticks to the wall including their closet hanger that they installed, just tears off the wall with the paint. They wouldn’t repair the paint chips till after my lease was over. These apartments are in disrepair, laundry machine has been broken for months with no repair. I’m sure this business only works on having a constant supply of freshmen victims to scalp. Pretty morally wrong to extract money like this out of students/their parents. Not happy at all with the experience. There are several property managers around Chico that offer much more for the same price and they won’t screw you.

Sophia R.

Nice place, I liked it and would’ve been fine if they hadn’t told me they were moving someone in my room a week before break, giving me no time to rearrange my room. I’m fine with having a roomate, but they should’ve let me know at least a month in advance. Not very professional.

Evangelina D.

RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN I HATE IT HERE AND ANYONE IV EVER TALKED TO HATES IT AS WELL. they lied about giving keys to the kitchen there’s mold in everyone’s bathrooms and me and my roommates room didn’t even come with the drawers, storage or side tables that others peoples did. They replaced my fridge and now it doesn't even fit a Brita filter. The rent is so much more expensive then if you leased anywhere else. You would be more comfy in jail.👎👎👎

Rachel B.

We rented a dorm room at Social Chico for our daughter who attends Chico state, and she loves it! There are so many amenities like a pool, gym, clubhouse and a dining hall. The food is actually good, I’m impressed! She has many friends there and the rooms are generous sizes, as well as clean!! And bonus- they have private bathrooms!

Kimberly P.

The Social has great activities to have an opportunity to meet other students. It’s kept clean and when there is a maintenance problem it gets fixed right away.

Lyndsey K.

Honestly, I would rate the Social as okay.
Pros:
Maintenance is great! They are typically really quick, helpful, and friendly.
The dorms are close to Chico State. Either a 5 min. drive or a 10 minute walk to Chico State. They also have a shuttle with a nice dude driving it. The night shuttle through the school was awful (always so late, thus making me miss dinner)
The lockers for the mailroom for packages was super helpful and I never had an issue. I felt safe receiving packages because of this feature.
Most of the staff in the dining room and cafe were friendly. I got along well with a few of them. Some had an attitude, but I know working a serving job for young college adults can be tiring lol.
Loved the cafe. It was a nice, chill place to study when I couldn't go to the library and had good snacks and coffee.
I liked that doors locked after a certain point in the day. Helped make the building feel secure.
Cons:
Having to pay a full months rent for the first month when move in was around the 15th/week before classes. This was off putting when I first moved in.
Having to pay for a meal plan. I got use out of mine because one has to eat, but they made it sound like it is an optional choice and then said it is mandatory.
Lack of proper communication. For example, I was not told doing the summer "storage" option (where you pay a smaller amount monthly to keep your room over the summer but not have the keys) would lose my parking pass that I was told I could keep. I had to drop another payment to have a valid parking pass for the next lease plan.
Out of date rooms. My room was pretty old looking and had old appliances. My microwave caught on fire and the maintenance man said it was due to my microwave in the room being old and never replaced to a newer one. The popcorn ceiling was unappealing and the carpet was always dirty no matter how much i vacuumed (which, i got charged a carpet cleaning fee after I moved out, but the carpet was dirty when I moved in)
Lack of food variety. They had daily specials, but overall everything was the same. Also the weekend especially lack variety/specials.
Dining Hall times: They changed three(?) times while I stayed there and it was SUCH an inconvenience, especially since I am a grad student and most my seminars ended close to 8pm. At one point they changed the dinner time two times. From 8pm to 7:30pm and then from 7:30pm to 7pm, all week. They also took away breakfast at one point for just a brunch time, which I know affected those with earlier class schedules.
Lack of security? I think I only ever saw who I presume was the security guard once. I've heard violent altercations on the floor below me and didn't know how to contact security about it. I also had my bike tire stolen at one point too lol.

Overall, my experience living here for two years was okay. It was a needed space with my then limited income and it did the bare necessities. I would recommend looking elsewhere first before settling here. Not everything was bad, as I stated in my long review, but I feel the cons outweigh any pros I have.