The Croydon Hall is a fully renovated apartment building in the heart of West Philly right at the edge of gentrified "University City" and the real West Philadelphia.
The building was move in ready in the summer of 2013 and they just finished all the little things that were left to be done this summer. All appliances are stainless steel, and the apartments are bright, no issues with bugs or rodents like in many other places in Philly. Maintenance is basically on site and therefore has been
...responsive in the cases I needed something fixed.
The building is beautiful with a nice lobby and sweet front desk people (most of them are sweet anyway). There is music in the lobby and elevators - fancy :). The building and the surrounding area on the block are secured by cameras. Electric is paid directly to them and for a 3 bedroom we range at about $35 during the summer - not using the built in ACs more than a handful of times during the night that is.
In terms of amenities there is a free gym, bike room, laundry room (each apartment gets a laundry cart that you charge with cash), lounge area with pool table, Foosball table and air hockey, some vending machines, couches and tables a small kitchen and toilets so you can have a get together in the lounge as opposed to having it in your apartment. There is also a meeting/study room you can reserve. And there are $10 self-storage units for rent in the basement.
There are two courtyards: one for the dogs to play in, one for "humans only". Now in the summer it is really nice to have a patch of green and some beach chairs to just hang out.
Thanks to the 24/7 front desk employees you will never again have to worry about a package getting lost. They have a dolly to help you with larger items that you can borrow, light bulbs in case yours die...it is just all around convenient in every aspect. The management really tries to make your life as convenient as possible.
This is a pet friendly, non-smoker building so if you have a problem with running into dogs in the elevator or the lobby or having some dogs bark every now and again, this building is not for you.
All the tenants seem very nice. Some are more chatty and warm than others but overall it is a good crowd. Young professionals and grad students as well as families with small babies. It is a super diverse crowd but that is what makes West Philly in general a great place to live.
In short: great place to live. I love it. Would not want to live anywhere else.
