center city high-rise rentals (York, Washington: real estate, apartments, condos)

[centercityrenter]

Hello all,

Moving to Philly due to job relocation. I love the vibe of Center City having split the last decade between New York (Manhattan) and downtown Boston. We're looking to rent for a few years and have no kids; if the job is permanent and kids come into the picture, we'll move to the 'burbs. Anyway, for now we like Rittenhouse Square or Washington Square West areas, I see many high-rise residential buildings but am having trouble deciphering the noise. Apartmentratings.com helped us weed out the worst pretenders (who knew mice infestations were this bad?), but the remainder have mixed ratings so I thought I'd ask here.

Time permitted me to stop by only a few units so far, in the Drake (1512 Spruce), Ben Franklin (834 Chestnut), and 1500 Locust. Both have the general set of amenities we've come to expect--parking garage option (we have a car, for weekend excursions plus occasional business trips), gym and high security, etc. We are willing to pay up to $2000/month for a large 1-br or small 2-br. Coming from Manhattan it's a steal.

Anyone know these buildings and care to opine? And are there other mid-end luxury high-rise apartments that we're overlooking in the area in our price point? We're worried about things you don't see in a 5-minute tour--construction quality, building management, rodent problems, how the immediate nabe looks at night, etc.

Thanks all. Excited about moving to Philly!

[Tone509]

Originally Posted by centercityrenter

Hello all,

Moving to Philly due to job relocation. I love the vibe of Center City having split the last decade between New York (Manhattan) and downtown Boston. We're looking to rent for a few years and have no kids; if the job is permanent and kids come into the picture, we'll move to the 'burbs. Anyway, for now we like Rittenhouse Square or Washington Square West areas, I see many high-rise residential buildings but am having trouble deciphering the noise. Apartmentratings.com helped us weed out the worst pretenders (who knew mice infestations were this bad?), but the remainder have mixed ratings so I thought I'd ask here.

Time permitted me to stop by only a few units so far, in the Drake (1512 Spruce), Ben Franklin (834 Chestnut), and 1500 Locust. Both have the general set of amenities we've come to expect--parking garage option (we have a car, for weekend excursions plus occasional business trips), gym and high security, etc. We are willing to pay up to $2000/month for a large 1-br or small 2-br. Coming from Manhattan it's a steal.

Anyone know these buildings and care to opine? And are there other mid-end luxury high-rise apartments that we're overlooking in the area in our price point? We're worried about things you don't see in a 5-minute tour--construction quality, building management, rodent problems, how the immediate nabe looks at night, etc.

Thanks all. Excited about moving to Philly!

While I've admittedly never lived in any of these buildings, and I'm a few years removed from being a Philly regular, I did live and work in Center City for a while and passed by these buildings all the time. So this will not exactly be an insider's opinion, but...

I've heard generally positive things about all of those buildings. As you could probably tell, the buildings themselves are not new so there are pluses and minuses that go with that. If you're used to Manhattan, you won't have much problems in Center City.

If I recall, Ben Franklin House is sort of near a relatively quiet "no-man's land" around Market St. after commuters leave for the evening, but you should be fine. Some aren't very fond of the urban ethnic-oriented shopping on Market and Chestnut Sts while others appreciate how the presence adds some socioeconomic flavor. It's not a bad neighborhood at all, but it does serve the city at large. You're essentially in Washington Square West aka "the Gayborhood".

Rittenhouse Square, where the Drake and 1500 Locust are is, arguably the most upscale Center City neighborhood. While street wisdom and common sense still apply, you should feel even more consistenly comfortable here.

Other buildings to consider might include the Versailles and the Metropolitan. If you can up your rent a bit, you may even be able to do the Phoenix.

[newmarlig]

My choice would be 1500 Locust. I live in a condo across the street and it's a safe, convenient area (of course using common sense). You may also want to contact Allan Domb (Allan Domb Real Estate). He handles the majority of the rentals in high rise center city condos.

One more thing - you may want to think about giving up your car and looking into

www.phillycarshare.com

[centercityrenter]

Thanks for the Allan Domb tip, I see he has some nice (exclusive?) listings within our price range on luxury rentals in the Rittenhouse Square/Washington Square areas.

I've thought about giving up the car, but I love driving in my own wheels too much. I managed to keep it around while in Manhattan, so I doubt lack of space and parking costs in Center City will faze me. (Try SoHo for a few years--compared to that mess, this town's a spacious steal!)