**UPDATE**
I got all of my security deposit back.


For what I pay, right on a perfect area of East Avenue, this really is the height of rental property. Across the street from this building is a high-rise for double what I'm paying. My apartment is spacious, and has great high ceilings. This building itself used to be a hotel.

Parking is nice. They have off-street. Sometimes people without a permit will take spots, and you can't find one. Also, there was a 10-car garage fire here (10 cars turned into scrap metal, including mine), but that was more of a freak accident. Needless to say, there is no longer any covered parking available.

This is a quiet building, with quiet tenants. I've never had an issue with noise.

The grounds, especially during the summer, are well kept. In the summer everything is trimmed and cut well. In the winter, the snow is removed early in the morning.

Safety and security is something I wish were better. All building doors have a common key, and all front doors have an electronic keypad. The keypads are shared codes that everyone knows (I've even seen pizza delivery people use them). But every apartment door is solid wood, with a deadbolt into a solid frame. However one mind boggling point of note is that the building key I was given does not have a "do not copy" mark on it. Kind of worrisome. Also, ever since the garage fire, the back of the parking lot has remained partially unlit. On a night that's cloudy or without a moon, part of the back parking lot is quite pitch black. I don't know why this still isn't fixed, even 4 months after that fire.

The staff has pretty much taken care of anything I've brought to their attention, and gone above and beyond. For example, my door had a significant gap between it and the floor. In the winter there was a cold draft always coming in. I told them this, and they installed a rubber door guard; no more draft. I'm sure they could have given me a hard time about this, but they didn't. They installed the door guard without further question, and simply fixed the issue. I was also seeing too many bugs for comfort, and they sent an excellent exterminator (Affordable Pest Control), without question. Overall there isn't anything I've brought to their attention, that hasn't been addressed.

Laundry is kind of an issue. The laundry room only has 2 washers and dryers for the entire building. It's usually in use, but luckily there's a huge laundromat within walking distance from here.

There are a few down sides. For example, several days during (more than 3) the winter, due to the communal radiator heating system's thermostat, my apartment was at 60 degrees when it was below 30 outside. My radiator was not turning on, and I vividly (and chillingly) recall this issue. This is one of the few issues that was not addressed. Unfortunately if a tiny studio is 80 degrees and my 1 bedroom is 60, then the average temperature is 70, and the radiator system for the building will not kick on. The heat and hot water are free.

Overall, this is a great building in a perfect location. You're within walking distance to Wegmans, McDonald's, Dunkin Donuts, liquor store, movie rental, laundry, and pretty much everything. I'm honestly surprised at the rent rates for this place. It's an absolute steal for what you're getting (heat, stove gas, and hot water), plus the excellent location. It can really save you on vehicle gas if you work downtown. It's far enough down east avenue that you avoid the traffic of things like the East End Festival, yet still quiet and safe.

Once I move out, I will post an update about how much of my security deposit I got back.

Overall, recommended.

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