Serious Maintenance Issues and Unprofessional Management
Pros
The only positive aspect of our experience was that we received our security deposit back (albeit, late). Unfortunately, I did not experience any positives that would outweigh the ongoing maintenance, safety, and management issues. The apartment and location had potential, but the overall living experience was negatively affected by the problems described below.
Cons
My experience living in this building was extremely disappointing due to serious maintenance problems, safety concerns, and unprofessional property management. Our apartment had no peephole, and the front door had poor locks and was essentially a bedroom-style door rather than a secure apartment entrance. We also dealt with ongoing issues involving the family downstairs, including cigarette smoking indoors and their dog defecating outside our front door multiple times a week. On several occasions, the family downstairs asked us to pay them by check instead of paying the property manager directly, which made us uncomfortable. The heating situation was unacceptable. The only thermostat was located on the first floor, leaving us with no control over our apartment’s temperature. For weeks during the winter, our apartment was over 80 degrees and reached 90 degrees at one point. Management’s suggested solution was to “open the front door” to release the heat into the hallway. The worst issue was the repeated water damage in our kitchen. A huge bubble of water formed in our ceiling, and management told us to pop it ourselves. Eventually, the kitchen ceiling broke open, leaving pieces of ceiling on the ground and the floor flooded. This happened multiple times. For approximately two months, management failed to properly address the problem, and we had to keep all of our kitchen belongings in our living room because the kitchen was unusable. We ultimately called 311, which resulted in multiple violations being issued to the building. Overall, this was a terrible place to live. The building is old, but the age of the building does not excuse management’s lack of empathy, dismissive attitude, or failure to address serious safety and habitability concerns. I would not recommend living here.