Pests are unavoidable
Pros
Management responded to emails relatively quickly. The building was relatively quiet and neighbors were either friendly or not much interaction. Great location, nice looking renovated apartment unit.
Cons
Consistent roach issue, including dead bugs in building hallways. No amount of pest treatment has curbed the issue (multiple years), building is old and having roaches seems inevitable. Management prioritizes market rate tenant needs and service requests over rent stabilized tenants.
Advice to the owners
Improved cleanliness of shared building areas. Pest issue is the main con, recommend finding a way to more thoroughly address it building-wide (beyond optional monthly service)
Pests and careless management
Pros
Amazing location and some charming apartments; however this block of Saint Johns Pl may have one of the highest per block rat populations in NYC. Walking on the sidewalk at night you are guaranteed to see several per minute, especially on trash days. They got things fixed soon enough when contacted; however, some issues were never addressed, including radiators that never worked.
Cons
Building definitely has roaches and mice - was mostly manageable during my time there but the mice are especially persistent since they are always making new holes around the filled ones. Management was entirely unhelpful with that. An exterminator comes once a month, but just sprays roach poison on the floor around the kitchen and leaves within minutes. The management then acts like the pests are your responsibility. There are also serious leaks in this building (it probably needs a new roof). Also you aren't allowed on the roof, which has an alarmed door. I believe a majority of tenants have been there a long time in rent stabilized units, and the management will probably let the building fall apart until they leave.