521 St. Paul Apartments

and management does nothing to fix it. insanity...

Management is bad. Maintenance is REALLY bad. Almost all appliances are crappy. HVAC system is probably from the middle ages as it breaks almost everyday. save yourself the trouble and don't live here.

I love my apartment for the first part. It's a one bedroom one bath and it is spacious and affordable. Management here is awful. It is impossible to get in contact with anybody and when you do the response is always several days late. I had recurring issues with my mailbox that took months to fix. I also had packages go missing. The nearest parking lot is like a block and a half away and so though it is affordable in a decent area management has made me want to leave asap.

As other reviews and photos suggest, the apartments themselves are very nice. New appliances, granite countertops, in-unit laundry, and hardwood floors in most of the apartments. However, maintenance requests go largely ignored. It is impossible to reach the property company via phone or email. It takes several follow-ups to get a response and genuine emergency requests (like AC down during a heat wave, water leakage) seem to be of no concern for them. More transparency and prioritization of... these requests would have been much appreciated. A gym is present, but one of the two treadmills hasn't worked for over a year and no efforts have been made to fix/replace. The gym is also never cleaned by the property people, so the common floors/surfaces are just gross. Lastly, the property company has several separate utility bills that end up adding a hefty price to your monthly fees. Despite the property company insisting it is "based on individual usage," I see no fluctuations in my monthly fees when I am out for more than half the month. The water/sewage fees are incredibly suspicious when compared to my Baltimore and Mt. Vernon neighbors. Read More

My partner and I lived here a year. May have stayed longer had we not been burglarized. The layout of the two bed/two bath--lots of light in the main room and having in-unit laundry is great. The gym is suitable and outdoor patio was nice during good weather. Unit price is great, though utilities were a little high despite the "efficient" HVAC units.

Property management was distant, especially when our apartment had been broken into. The building layout is in an extended u-shape, and our unit... had was on its own at the far hallway around a bend and had access to a stairwell exiting the building. Obviously, a convenient apartment to burglarize as it is on its own and has an easy exit. There was no sign of forced entry, though it was definitely locked in the morning. I work from home sporadically, so it concerned me I could've been home when it happened. The building has a key FOB system, which is secure enough. When I called the property manager to make her away of a break-in her first instinct was to say "our staff would never" which was odd. I wasn't accusing anyone, just making her aware. I got a "we're so sorry" but nothing more. No e-mail to the community stating a burglary had occurred in a "secure building" and no offer to help the detective assigned to the case. It was a strategic break-in and one specific thing had been stolen during the workday. I would've given them 4-stars had the burglary been handled better by property management--I worked in property management myself and that is something I'd take personally if one of my properties was robbed. I get that it happens (especially in Baltimore) and could have been a variety of people or factors--it's the response that was a huge let down. Read More