I have been living at the John Alden Apartments with my partner and daughter for about 6 months now. It s come to my attention that this building and its management has received some rather bad reviews. Some complaints are legitimate, but most are just inane bitching. Having been both a landlord and a tenant, I believe I can bring some clarity to those complaints:

The management- I cannot, of course, speak for RP Management as a whole, but I can say that my experience with our building manager has been superb. I have found her to be attentive to our needs, understanding of our circumstances, and respectful of our privacy. She is usually in the building or available by phone. We actually love the manager so much that when we decided to move away from downtown, we choose a building she manages in Ballard so that we continue our tenant-manager relationship.

The High Prices- My understanding is that for quite a while, the folks that lived here paid really, really low rent. The rent got raised, and everyone got pissed. I understand that, and if I were in that position, I would be pissed too. The problem is a studio for $625 in a gorgeous, secure building so close to downtown is unheard of. $900 a month for a large studio with a small bedroom (Water, Sewer and Garbage is included), is comparable to any of the other buildings around here. Bottom line: I m sorry you lost the fantastic deal you had, but get over it. Move to central district if you want that kind of price. I m sure you will enjoy getting mugged!

The Building- This is a locked, clean, beautiful, pet friendly building.I actually read one review that claimed the building doesn t have washers and dryers. WTF' It has tons. Yes, this is an old building. Things here break, especially the elevator. But, you see, the elevator breaks because the people that live in this building abuse it and call it when it s in use. Also, it should be said that this place is very, very quiet. I never hear my neighbors, and even though we are right next to a hospital, I rarely hear the sirens.

The rest of it- The parking is bad on the street. That is my only complaint.

So, disregard the ------ reviews and come take a look at the place. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

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