Apartment Review for Park Towne Place - Philadelphia, PA

I am, unfortunately, still living here. Here's the good, the bad and the ugly in my experience (remember, everyone's varies) - Good: no rodents or insects in my unit although I have seen roaches in the elevator and on the ground floor. The rent is relatively cheap considering the amenities and location. In theory there is 24 hour security and access to emergency maintenance. There's a pool, a gym, underground parking garage and a grocery store. Yoga and other fitness classes are offered here as well. The location is very nice. Bad & ugly: The utility fees are not individual - they are calculated by adding up everyone's use and divided based on amount of residents & square feet you occupy. Obviously this is totally unfair, does not promote environmentally friendly energy consumption and is expensive. The heating and cooling operates on mostly a predetermined schedule. Unless almost everyone complains, you're gonna have the heat on in 75 degree weather in October. If you're up on a high floor, as I am on the 18th, well that really sucks for you. The blinds barely keep the sun out, the windows open all of 3 inches, so the temperature here easily hits 80... when it's 60 outside. The fire alarms go off very frequently, usually at night and are always a joke. They just installed these "fire alarm blasters" in every apartment to make sure everyone hears the alarm. Trust me, unless you're completely drunk AND deaf, you can hear it in your sleep. I'm pretty sure the blasters combined with the noise of the fire alarms can drive most people to deafness. As for maintenance - well it's a pretty typical experience since they like to lag on their work. It takes several calls and complaints for things to get done, however they have shown some improvement. However, the emergency maintenance is some guy who doesn't necessarily know what he's talking about and is busy texting while doing the job. The appliances in the apartments are literally from the time they were built which is 1959. They look and function like they're that old. And let's not forget the rowdy college students who throw parties on the weekends, probably cause the fire alarms to go off and have their drunk friends yell in the hallways at 3am which wakes you up. Speaking of noise - I personally can hear my neighbor sneezing. I can also hear some of his phone conversations and TV, and not because it's up too high. Sound travels through the vents in the kitchen and bathroom, so if you like to talk to yourself in the shower, someone might be listening! Management tries to be as elusive as possible. I had a maintenance issue which (long story short) requires management/maintenance to reimburse me money. I'm having trouble chasing them down for 2 months. Oh and also, water gets shut off frequently without much explanation. There are leaks and floods time after time and yet nothing can be fixed correctly. Plus when you're taking a shower you may experience a burst of hot followed by a burst of cold. It's uncomfortable if you're an adult, but what if you have young children? Advice: If you have seen the place and decide to live here, that's your choice. The pool is nice during the summer and it's not always gloomy or depressing. Remember this - as the providers of your apartment they HAVE to provide you with maintenance services and safety. If your maintenance issues are not addressed in a timely manner, you can get them elsewhere and have PTP reimburse. Trust me, nothing talks as well as money. Know your resident rights and as long as you're polite, you'll always have the upper hand.