Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The buildings looked great! Floors and halls were clean. We did notice a strong smell of cigarette smoke in one hallway which was concerning. I assumed that Penn South was a no-smoking building but maybe not. The balcony apartments were 21H at 290 9th Ave, 20H at 280 9th Ave and 8D at 305 W 28. The non-balcony apartments were all E lines in various bldgs. The studios with balconies were all much larger than I imagined them to be by looking at the floor plans. I really hope she gets one of those!
No, there isn't a general roach problem in PS; certainly not a swarming problem.
I'm also surprised at the Bldg. 10 problem, considering purportedly the spring's annual HVAC cleaning is mandatory for everyone (i.e., you can't escape letting them into your apartment - "them" being the maintenance staff, and not the roaches, lol); and maintenance was supposedly "trained to recognize the impending signs of hoarding".
I can't do much about the front-door issue; but I will say that (a), hidden cockroaches always come out in times of long absence, i.e., you'll find them dead of starvation in the middle of the floor after you go on vacation; (b), they can't swarm where you don't let them.
The latter of which is to say: before you move in, spend some time with strips of caulk and putty laying on your back on the floors, patching any holes you see where floor meets cabinetry, in and around bathroom fixtures, so on and so forth. You will be glad you did.
I've moved about 13 spots so far on the studio list. Is this standard or is the list moving slowing with COVID?
It's moving slowly. For months they had a moratorium on any renovations being performed; which was great because we were all at home all day long, and having to listen to 6-8 hours of construction noises we couldn't escape from anywhere, what with everything closed (and even still mostly closed to sitters, with the exception of full-service restaurants), would have been grim in the extreme.
Last edited by misskittytalks; 10-30-2020 at 12:05 AM..
Can anyone who's upgraded to a bigger apartment take us through the financial process? Say for example, I don't want to get a mortgage, and want to pay off everything in cash. If a bigger apartment is $110K, and you paid $100K in cash for your current apartment, would you only need to have $10K on hand? Or does Penn South require you to purchase the new apartment, and then they give you back the $100K once someone else purchases your old apartment? Or will you be allowed to just pay off the difference between the apartments? I know that we have shares and don't really "own" the apartments, but I figured this is an easier way of thinking about it.
Thanks for any insight!
I believe you are "on the hook" until they flip it and get a new person paying for it; which means you could conceivably wind up paying on two apartments for a few months.
My source for this: when I was touring apartments in 2015, almost all of them had white envelopes pushed under the door.
I confess I was a little bad; and opened one.
There was a humongous, gasp-worthy bill of multiple months' worth of monthly charges; also indicating that these charges were overdue in the bargain.
I welcome anyone else weighing in on this; but that's what happened to me when I looked in 2015.
I have a general idea of what the Star program is; what I am not sure is if PS cooperators are considered owners of the apartment...
Yep, balcony is great! It makes the studio feels a lot bigger
MM
Old I know, but I'm catching up... I receive a check under basic STAR every year. It's not much, $275 I believe, or maybe $175... but better than a sharp stick in the eye, as my mother always says. HTH!
misskitty, thanks so much for taking the time to wade through the questions and answering them. It's so wonderful that current residents of Penn South like you care about the potential newcomers who are on this site. It says a lot about the community spirit there!
I admit I was pretty freaked out about the roach situation in No. 10, and, like you, I find it impossible to understand why management has not be able to intervene. I do know that many people refuse to let building workers into their apartments for various reasons, and I assume that's the case here. But it puts all residents at risk, when such conditions are allowed to continue. Such is the bane of communal living, I guess!
Also, you may be a "little bad," but I would have opened up that envelope also!
The buildings looked great! Floors and halls were clean. We did notice a strong smell of cigarette smoke in one hallway which was concerning. I assumed that Penn South was a no-smoking building but maybe not. The balcony apartments were 21H at 290 9th Ave, 20H at 280 9th Ave and 8D at 305 W 28. The non-balcony apartments were all E lines in various bldgs. The studios with balconies were all much larger than I imagined them to be by looking at the floor plans. I really hope she gets one of those!
Wow, I have to say I am pretty amazed that your daughter saw two studio apartments that have the large terraces (I believe they are terraces rather than balconies). Those top-floor apartments are very rare, and I figured they would be reserved for the insiders' list.
In fact, this is what the Penn South website says about them:
living room, kitchen, terrace
note: very limited availability; this apartment type almost always goes to internal transfer applicants
But good on her! I think that those people higher on the list than your daughter will probably take those, but you never know! Maybe she will be lucky! Personally, I would grab either one of those H apartments in a heartbeat. The heck with the extra $17,000. It's worth it! Just my opinion.
Last edited by macnyc2003; 10-30-2020 at 07:13 AM..
Today we saw 7 studios - 3 with balconies and 4 E line studios without balconies. All of the floors were re-finished and lovely - some parquet and some strip "wood". Bathrooms looked great too! All of the units had brand new heating/air conditioning units. My daughter could not be more excited. Prices of course have risen since we first looked at apartments before she left for school in 2016 but even so there is not a single apartment that she could not be happy living in - though the ones with balconies would be preferable (and $17K more $$). She's #9 in line for the 7 apartments so she may not be offered any of these but our fingers are crossed. The grounds were so wet and green and lush today!
That's great that you saw seven apartments. And you saw terraces on the higher floors, which from what I saw in someone else's apartment, are huge!
I would get your ducks in a row very soon. I have no crystal ball, but based on my own and others' experiences and this forum, you've got a great chance of being called for an apartment. Out of the eight waitlisters in front of you, I'm going to speculate that at least 2 will have never responded to the viewing letter, and at least 2 will not qualify for whatever reason. That means that you are higher in the queue. I looked at apartments in July and got called in October for the exact apartment that I wanted, and I was at the end of the list.
Yes, the grounds are very well maintained. The groundskeeping staff is always working on something. And in the spring and summer the hydrangeas and other flowers are amazing! There is so much green space, which is extra appreciated during social distancing. I never tire of my view.
The maintenance staff and supers are also very good. I don't know what happened in 10 with the roaches, but that is an anomaly in PS. I think it was probably an unfortunate situation with the resident. I'm sure it was resolved very shortly after that. PS has a Senior Center with resources to help older residents, and I hope if that is the case, then the person got the help they needed. Please don't look at one incident in one building as representative of PS as a whole. People here are very kind to one another.
Misskittytalks, you are awesome! Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
