Alexandria, Va.-based AvalonBay Communities Inc. has begun construction of four new luxury apartment complexes, two of which will be in the San Jose, Calif., area. Another facility will be in Seattle and the fourth in New Haven, Conn. Each community will be completed in 2002. Total construction costs will be approximately $195.3 million.

Avalon Towers on the Peninsula in San Jose will have 211 units in two 11-story buildings. The average monthly rent at the community is expected to be approximately $3,115. The 218-unit Avalon at Westpark, also in San Jose, will have about 7,000 sq. ft. of retail space and will feature average monthly rents of $2,680. The 323-unit Avalon Harbor in New Haven will have an average rent of approximately $2,192 per month, while Avalon Belltown in Seattle, located just two blocks from the city's waterfront, will have an average rent of $1,939 per month.