Stay Far Away
Pros
Location is decent
Cons
Rats in the basement, management
Advice to the owners
Fire boost management (I have feeling the landlord and management are one) and treat your tenants with respect.
new design, bad maintainance & desolate area
Pros
New heating system, modern appliances, nice cleaning team, monthly pest control from a decent local company, close to Western Beef grocery store, nice view of the city, close to B57 bus stop, chill street parking, the closest laundromat has cheap wash-and-fold, near some popular nightlife venues (Knockdown Center, Elsewhere, etc.)
Cons
Buzzer always broken, maintenance guy slow to respond & often outsourced labor to unlicensed workers that did not speak English (had a catastrophic ceiling leak once and it took nearly 3 weeks to be fully addressed - management gave me $100 for the traumatic encounter which left many of my belongings damaged), emergency maintenance hotline was non-functional, disgusting basement where the washer + dryer were (which both malfunctioned often) that often flooded & had a gross flooding and rat issue, the hallway/staircase often had a strong mold-like smell except on the days when the cleaning family came, the management (Ben was our main contact most of the time) was difficult to reach & highly secretive. Roof access was promised during showing but a year into tenancy they locked it off - a shame with such a nice view. The kitchen was comically small & the unit was cut up into 4 rooms making the hallways very tight . The management seems to be largely white men & they often treated me and my roommates (all woman of color) in a condescending manner. Near the end of our lease they often showcased our apartment to groups of people identified as "the bank" often without notice & once randomly gave us a $25 gift card after such an occasion for, and I quote, "pizza & beer" - very tone-deaf. The building is quite a walk from any train stations & the walk to the L train is very desolate as Flushing avenue in that area is mostly wholesale warehouses that close at 6pm. No good delis nearby, the closest one was a 10-minute walk up a sharp hill - same for a laundromat. Horrible air-quality as there are few trees on the block & trucks run down the road out front - also it is next door to a sketchy mechanic operation - an air purifier & mask when walking is recommended for long-term health.
Advice to the owners
Make sure employees are conducting basic responsibilities? Actually respond to emails & phone calls, treat tenants respectfully, renovate apartments to be more spacious prioritizing livability over profit, finish the basement & add necessary safety measures to the roof, prioritize DEI in your communication & perhaps hiring practices, require tenants to have renter's insurance (& to provide proof), do not promise things in the lease or showings that you can not maintain or deliver upon, act on emergency situations competently.
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