Decent Rent Stabilized Studio w/ Elevator and Laundry in Basement
August 20, 2015 - Review from Apartments.com
This building is located in the heart of the Upper East Side on Second Avenue. There is no subway construction on the block, plenty of restaurants and bars, and it is a short walk from the 6 train.
The apartment is rent stabilized, so once that 2nd Ave subway is finished, your rent won't skyrocket like all the other market apartments in the area. However, this also means the landlord is loath to do anything other than the most basic maintenance. My wood floors are uneven with plenty of cracks ...
in them. The windows are single pane, so they apartment itself is about as insulated as a car. This means that in the summer it gets hot, and stays hot. Running built-in AC can cool the place down, but if you turn it off for more than 5 minutes, you'll be sweating again in no time. There are also no screens on the windows, so when spring and fall come around and it's cool enough to save on that AC bill by opening a window, you'll also be inviting all the mosquitoes in for a feast. For what it's worth, other units in the building have had new windows put in with screens and the floors redone. I've asked for the same double-pane windows and screens to be put in my unit, but the landlord refused.
Finally, the super does not live on premises and it can take months before he shows up to repair something like a leaky sink or radiator. If you do not constantly remind him and go over his head to management, your apartment will simply fall into disrepair.
Notwithstanding these problems, the apartment is actually quite lovely and reasonably priced. It has exposed brick, high ceilings, great natural lighting all day long, and the faux wood beams on the ceiling that really adds charm.
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