Apartment Review for Monaco

I moved in summer 2011 and am counting the days until my lease is up. While the location is nice, the views are stunning and the concierges are friendly and helpful, the rest of the experience is a disaster.

First, under no circumstances believe the advertised rent. It's bait and switch. The quoted rent does not include the fees that Roseland property will nickel and dime you with, many of which are unavoidable. If I can't opt out, it isn't an add-on, it's part of the rent and it should be quoted as such.

The rental office staff seems to take special pleasure in making life difficult for residents. All processes and policies are designed to make their jobs easier at the expense of residents. They lost some paperwork that I submitted to them, then blamed me for their lack of organization and demanded that I stop whatever I was doing and come down to the rental office during business hours to fill it out. I work during business morons. Don't even think about trying to get something bigger than a FreshDirect box delivered, the process to book the freight elevator is a nightmare.

The actual apartments were built to look nice on the surface, but were clearly built on the cheap. Just about every appliance in the apartment failed within the first few months of living there. The floors are creaky, the paint peels and the insulation is HORRIBLE. I feel cold air blowing into my apartment in the winter. You better buy good humidifiers, because the forced air heat will make you miserable if you're prone to dry skin.

We also routinely experience problems with the fire alarm system. Though it has improved recently, we had to evacuate the building via stairs multiple times for false alarms. Yes, better safe than sorry, but even better to invest in a more reliable fire alarm system morons.

While the building is advertised as a family-friendly, high-end luxury complex, they rent their surplus apartments to summer investment bank interns. These early-20s meatheads make the pool and gym a miserable experience. I want to relax at the pool, not relive spring break in Cancun.

In short, if you plan to use your apartment for anything more than an occasional crash pad, you do not want to live here. I'd go so far as to say don't rent from any buildings managed by Roseland property management.