Review History for anonymous

Royal York Apartments


Review Author Icon

anonymous

Resident 2007 - 2009

7/14/2009

I lived in the Royal York for two years in grad school (07-09). The experience was very good but there are a number of things to be aware of. *** The Neighborhood: Bigelow Blvd can be a bit noisy, especially noticeable in the summer when windows might be open. Centre Craig is a little seedy but I've never felt unsafe walking. Scout it out for yourself. The building is in walking distance to CMU and Pitt which was a major factor in my decision. Taking the bus to Giant Eagle would be reasonable, but Whole Foods is easier to drive to. Walking distance to the management office. *** Moving In: All move-ins have to come through the garage downstairs and up the freight elevator. Sunday move-ins are allowed. There was no walk-through the apartment when I came in, nor was I given any sort of 'general information' sheet with phone numbers or emergency information. No walk-through upon move-out either. Also be sure to take detailed photographs of the apartment before you move your things in. *** The Apartment Space: My apartment was fantastic: spacious, reasonably priced, everything in order. It was renovated right before I moved in, with the exception of the windows which were drafty. The building is now in the process of replacing most, if not all, of the windows. The appliances in the kitchen, while new, were definitely low-end. Sad, but functional. There are no bars on the first floor windows, nor are there any second or third locks on the doors inside. I've never been concerned about the apartment doors being relatively insecure since the building as a whole is pretty tight. The windows that are at ground level are vulnerable to the outside though with one attempted break-in at my place. *** The Building: The building is quite nice and steeped in history. The lobby area is always clean, but the same can't necessarily be said for the elevators or garage. One suggestion would be to have the elevator while idle, always open on the first floor. In terms of cleanliness, at times the elevator or doorways get littered with notices from management which are pretty obnoxious and stern. This information would be much better distributed either by email or at the mailboxes the clutter is unpleasant to look at. Additionally, the age of the building's wiring has caused false fire alarms, most notably when it's very cold out (happened twice in the two years I was there). Laundry facilities are good, as is mail delivery and package security. Maintenance is responsive and reliable; when I first moved in there were some small issues in the new kitchen installations and paint problems, all of which were very quickly resolved. Maintenance guys are great and sometimes assist with move-ins and move-outs. There are some plumbing issues with the kitchen sink backing up regularly and making very unpleasant noises. The people at the office basically brush it off as a much bigger issue that they don't seem to care to address. This is probably my biggest complaint about my stay at the Royal York. *** Garage Space: The garage space shows its age. It's managed by an outside company (Plaza Parking) and runs around $90 a month for a spot. Valet service is optional. The garage could use better ventilation to help keep it dry as well as improved doors with locks that don't break the keys in two. *** The People: Somebody is always on duty in the building, in the lobby or in the garage or both. The doormen are very courteous and I have greatly appreciated them over the last two years. The maintenance crews are nice as well, always saying hi. The crew that works in the garage, again, not employees of Sterling Land but an outside company, are mixed. The long-timers are helpful and friendly, but the shorter-term hires aren't necessarily the greatest. There's a high turnover in the garage which I think makes managing the place difficult. Self parking is always an option. *** The Lease: You'll quickly realize how onerous the lease is on the part of the tenant. While all leases are written to favor the landlord (obviously), this one is easily twice as oppressive as usual. I ran it by two other lawyers before signing and they actually asked to make copies for themselves as an example of confining and unreasonable terms. Terms to be aware of: 3. Rent: Landlord doesn't have to give the tenant a receipt of payment, so always pay with a check. 6. c) Landlord basically stays out of any problems you might have with your neighbors (noise issues, etc). You have to fight the fight. 8. a) No interest on security deposit 8. c) Landlord may decide to use all or part of the security deposit to pay for damages caused by tenant to the property DOES NOT have to give any notice. 8. d) 2) keep photographs of any damage that was in the apartment from when you moved in; ask for a walk-through upon your moving out. 10. Utilities, as you may have seen in some other posts, are questionable and unclear at best. Tenants are billed every couple months for electric, but it's very open ended. When pressed, they say that each apartment is on its own electric meter which I find hard to believe. During the months I was away on travel, my bill didn't change much at all. Furthermore, tenants must pay an additional fee for air conditioners. But if we're all on our own meter, wouldn't the surge in power consumption from an AC simply increase the individual monthly bills? Landlord does pay for gas, water, heat, sewer. 11. Appliances: Keep them clean, and absolutely make sure they work upon move-in. As soon as something breaks, tell them in writing. 12. b) Nothing is pro-rated 12. c) 1) You must write to say that you have received the landlord's notice of any delay. 12. e) You must give written notice to end the lease! 13. End of lease must be decided upon at least 30 days ahead of time or else they can charge DOUBLE month's rent. There is NO auto-renewal, there is NO month-to-month, there is NO wiggle room. 15. you CAN'T sublet 16. If you want to reject renewal terms (the rent will likely increase after a year), you have to take the steps of filing a written notice with them within 14 days of getting the renewal notice from them. 17. Landlord's entry onto the property: at any reasonable hour. Reasonable hour? This is not clear. The tenant also SHOULD be given reasonable notice before entry, though this is not stated. It was my experience that they would promise at least a day's notice, but it was more like a couple hours. 18. Can't add an extra lock to the door, not even a chain. 19. Lockout fees of $35 and they recently began to enforce them. 20. Get renter's insurance that covers pipe leaks. Landlord is not responsible for pipe leak damage! The pipes are old!!! 22. Get liability and property insurance. 28. Tenant must have written permission from landlord for any changes to property (painting, etc). 29. No dogs; other pets require written permission. Having a dog on the premises results in a BREACH of the lease. (i've heard dogs around). 33. Read this over to understand broken conditions of a lease. 41. b) bikes in basement garage, not in elevators, not in apartments. *** Payments: For a lease that is so tight, the management company is very slow to deposit my checks. They're also the only people I still wrote paper checks to and I would strongly suggest that they upgrade their system for online payments (and same with the parking company).

Review 11 out of 21

Share This Review

Check Availability

Royal York Apartments

March 2024

Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Beds

0

Baths

0

Share This Review