Payson avenue apartment
Pros
Front sunroom and view of park. Washer/dryer in unit, lots of closets and large living spaces.
Cons
Main entrance door does not close, you have to lock it, otherwise the latch does not catch, it will swing open if not locked. Inevitably the door was open from time to time which is unsafe. When we asked if the door could be fixed, there was little to no concern and it was never fixed in the 3+ years we lived there. Common space is not cleaned or maintained, the front entryway has a broken marble threshold that is a tripping hazard, always askew and never fixed. The small entry foyer is never cleaned properly. The common entry staircase was rarely swept, and essentially not maintained. The garbage management is non existing, landlord does not regularly clean up the leftover trash that is strewn about from raccoons getting into trash bags, we as tenants often cleaned this sidewalk area where trash is collected ourselves as it was unsightly and gross. When it snowed, the stairs and sidewalk were NEVER shoveled in the morning, so we either had to shovel ourselves or deal with a slippery snowy staircase when leaving the house before the afternoon hours when maybe the landlord would finally get around to clearing a path on the staircase, this goes for ice and wet leaves too, not attended to in a timely or responsible fashion ever. The tenant is responsible for the heat/hot water utilities which in colder months energy bills would reach $400-500/mo. (thermostat was mostly kept between 68-72 degrees). Noise levels in the building can be quite loud, there is no sound proofing from the unit above. Noise levels outside are also often very loud,. The owners have a general lack of care or concern for basic property maintenance. We had a rat, mice, an ant infestation and roaches... which the owner will respond to and assist with extermination, however these pest issues could have been avoided if basic prevention care was considered. It took having a rat in our apartment for the owner to address the massive gaps in flooring/walls along the base board heating. To our knowledge there is still a large hole in the front room that needs attention, pests (large and small) can enter behind the radiator. Last but not least, the owners did not uphold renewal terms clearly stated in the lease which is inevitably why we moved. We were given a notice to renew 25 days from end of lease with a 12% increase to our rent which was unexpected and contrary to the $25 increase stated in our lease. Upon not agreeing to the 12% increase and making the owners aware of our rights as tenants, our offer to renew was rescinded and we were given the proper 90 days notice to vacate, but they still tried to raise the rent by $150 for the 90 days, which is illegal.
Advice to the owners
Show more consideration and care for your tenants and property, or hire someone else to do so. Follow the law when renewing leases and respect your tenants rights.
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