Terrible experience! 512 E 81st St

Do NOT rent here. The apartments may seem decent at first glance, but the building management is THE WORST. Gwen Brown, who manages the office, is possibly the most ill-tempered, rude and incompetent person I have ever known. She is incapable of having a normal conversation, and instead chooses to yell until she runs out of things to say and then hangs up the phone. You should hope nothing goes... [more]

Do NOT rent here. The apartments may seem decent at first glance, but the building management is THE WORST. Gwen Brown, who manages the office, is possibly the most ill-tempered, rude and incompetent person I have ever known. She is incapable of having a normal conversation, and instead chooses to yell until she runs out of things to say and then hangs up the phone. You should hope nothing goes wrong with your apartment, because Gwen will begin threatening you the minute you report a maintenance issue. There are cockroaches everywhere, broken windows (think: very cold winter months) and heating mechanisms that do not work properly. Don't be sold by the "laundry in the building." To access it, you have to go down a treacherous, outdoor, back-alley staircase that is not always shoveled in the winter. The front steps are very icey and slippery throughout the winter as well. The walls are also paper thin, so be prepared to hear every detail of your neighbors' lives. The office refuses to let delivery people into the building when you're not home during the day, so it is almost impossible to have packages delivered unless you plan to wait at home for them. The one redeeming quality about the apartment was the overhead lighting. If that is not your primary concern, you should rent elsewhere. [less]