528 Flatbush Avenue,

Brooklyn, NY 11225

The neighbors were kind, the mail delivery more-or-less worked, and the building was located in a really awesome area. There was surprisingly little noise despite it being a really lively and fun neighborhood to live in.

The landlord and building management were truly, profoundly terrible. I've lived in a half dozen apartments over the ten years I've lived here and this situation is far and away the worst one that I've dealt with. The pest situation in and around the building is just horrifying. An army of rats greets you if you enter the building after dark, and a family of pigeons coos overhead if you enter in the morning. You're also stepping over a pile of pigeon poop, which seems to get cleaned off once every two weeks or so (I should add that someone seems to have put up a fake owl, but it doesn't seem to do anything). These problems appear to stem from the fact that garbage collection happens way less than it should. Garbage is often piled high in the trash area in front of the building, it stinks, and I've seen several "failure to remove garbage" notices on the front door from the department of sanitation. I've also had to deal with a bevy of maintenance problems in the unit itself. Hot water in the shower is 50/50, the heat in the apartment has been turned off on a number of cold days in the fall/spring, the gas hose for the stove was installed improperly so running the oven means smelling gas, the floors are extremely worn-down and were treated with some kind of plastic-y substance that peels off in flakes and sheets, and the window overlooking the fire escape doesn't lock and sometimes falls out of the socket (a full-blown habitability/security issue). Worst of all, the landlord has been extremely dismissive and unresponsive about all of this. I don't like to complain, and have basically never done so before living here, but trying to appeal to this guy (the landlord is Ali Azad FYI) has been a repetitive, disappointing exercise. He rarely answers his phone, texts or emails. The super is nice but shows up only rarely when I've requested maintenance. Trying to address the myriad issues has been a stressful nightmare.

If you aren't Ali Azad, fire him, and hire someone who's even vaguely capable or professional. This guy isn't cutting it. Not even close. If you are Ali Azad, quit your job. Find a profession that actually suits you. Sell the building to someone who will actually take care of it. Tenants shouldn't have to suffer because you can't be bothered to meet the bare minimum of your work.