Beautiful brick and mortar building circa 1927: large units with hardwood floors, 10 foot ceilings, saltillo tiles in kitchen, original hexagonal tiled floor in bathroom. Its a rent-controlled building, so currently rent goes up 4% a year. Thats the good part.

The rest is all bad: the owners are only in it for the money, and ownership and management have changed once a year since I moved in in 1999, going from bad to worse. They focus on questionably cosmetic upgrades, without addressing serious problems such as safety, faulty wiring and plumbing. They seem to be trying a decorating scheme on all vacated apartments, but unfortunately this includes ripping out some of the original details like the tiling. Management is rude and unresponsive unless you point out their legal obligations. The current resident manager is the personal assistant to the owner, so you have no recourse when she fails you. Managing the building is of secondary importance if not third or fourth. Fines of $35 are charged for locking yourself out, calling before 10a or after 6p unless its an emergency, &c. By the time you move out youll be well acquainted with the Los Angeles Department of Housing, the Rent Stabilization Ordinance, and how to file a complaint.

While Wilshire Centre is being Disneyfied, it is still a sketchy neighborhood. Im a single female whos never been assaulted, but Im vigilant and cautious. My $5000 car has been stolen twice, and more expensive ones get broken into all the time. And when the police asks what the heck you are doing living in that neighborhood anyway, you know its time to move out. The front and back doors of the building are either broken or propped open most of the time; anyone can walk in whenever they want. There are fewer drug dealers than there used to be, but you can still score on the corner if you want to.

Its a pet-friendly building, and the owners had the brilliant idea of installing lite carpeting in the hallways. The management doesnt invest in carpet shampoo, ever. The stains are bad; the smell is worse; the lice are worst.


The population of the building is young-rocker-from-Iowa-just-moved-to-LA-to-be-a-star, students and seniors on section 8. They move out as soon as the year lease is up, hopefully to better grounds. The management clearly doesnt care about the building, and the tenants follow suit.

The walls and floors/ceilings are paper-thin. When you sneeze, expect to hear a Gesundheit from your neighbor. You have beautiful hardwood floors, but so does your upstairs neighbor. Pray they are considerate, but my experience with my 5 different upstairs neighbors tells otherwise. My current nightmare gets up @ 6a to stomp around before she puts on her heels and stomps around some more. Polite requests, gifts, and finally threats made no difference. Also hope you dont have an aspiring guitarist next door: youll hear every note.

There is no parking, and if you come home after 6p any day of the week, expect to cruise around the block for three miles before finding a spot 2 blocks away. There is a public parking garage where you can park for a monthly fee of $50. New clubs are popping up daily, which also affects the parking situation. .On one side of the building is the crappy building mentioned by the other reviewers. On the other is an old-folks home, which really isnt that bad. Those that are deaf play their TVs loudly, but on the whole theyre more considerate than the people living in your own building.

If youre looking for a place to stumble back to after hitting the DTLA bars and nightclubs so you can pass out to the point of becoming deaf, this is the place for you as long as you can afford the now-hip-neighborhood rent. This place was worth it in 1999 when I moved in for $650. Knowing what I know now, I would never move there for the $1295 theyre charging for the same unit in 2006. A paint job in designer colors doesnt justify doubling the rent. Some units dont get hot water reliably. Others have gone for months with gaping holes in their bathroom ceilings not being repaired.

Bottom line: if you manage to find a parking space and make it into your sanctuary safely and without gagging in the hallway, you might get some peace and quiet if you live on the top floor, as long as you dont need anything from the manager, including a functional laundry room.

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 04/11/2008
I believe she is talking about a different building. First we are not even close to the Hollywood Bowl, 2nd- We have Valet Parking for $100 monthly, 3rd- We have THICK CONCRETE walls and you cannot hear a sound, and it is usually dead quiet, I think this person is mistaking our building for a different one. MAKE SURE YOU PAY ATTENTION. The Wilshire Royale is at 2619 Wilshire Blvd. I am not sure, but half of the things on her posting are not true.
From: kgkjo	Date: 04/21/2008
this building is a dump! And it's in the ghetto full of beaners
From: Anonymous	Date: 06/25/2008
Makes me nervous as a parent in Ohio - - my daughter who is attending school out there just moved into an apartment in that building. If I get there and the washers/dryers, electricity, plumbing, don't work, of course it will be disappointing to have to move her. However I'm sure there are several great attorney who will assist in obtaining the deposit, rent, etc. as I am very well versed in contract law - leases work both ways. Not sure why this person having all the problems didn't simply seek the assistance of legal counsel? Attorney fees may well have been assessed against the defendant, which in this case would be the apartment owner.

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