26-02 4 Street,

Queens, NY 11102

The apartment itself is relatively new and looks nice. Big windows and my unit had a decent view of the RFK bridge. The unit itself comes with a fairly new fridge/freezer, dishwasher, gas oven and stove, microwave, a washer and dryer, and air conditioning/heat split units.

The kitchen had a decent amount of counter space thanks to the island and the kitchen sink was pretty spacious and and the faucet powerful. It also had a solid amount of cabinets/drawers and a pantry.

The bathroom was modern and pretty spacious by NYC standards. Never had any issues with running out of hot water.

The video intercom was convenient for deliveries and visitors.

As far as amenities outside of the unit itself, there was roof access with a decent view and there is a bike room. There's also a (paid) parking garage.

There is a grocery store very close by which I liked a good amount. It was very spacious by NYC standards and literally never busy.

Management allowed me to do a month to month lease after my initial year ended and even gave me a few free extra days when I was moving to my new place. They were also very prompt in sending me back my security deposit.

First off, the apartment was absolutely filthy when I moved in. For example, it literally took me a few weeks to realize my kitchen cabinets didn't match the marble counter pattern, they were just covered in dust and dirt.

The floors used some sort of cheap laminate panels. When I moved in I realized some of the panels were loose and damaged which I did not notice in my original tour. Management promised to fix but it never happened (although truthfully I didn't hound them too hard on this one).

A huge complaint is the lack of sound insulation anywhere in my unit. I could hear my neighbors constantly from literally everywhere in the apartment. And vice versa, I think my neighbors could hear me (especially when I was using the bathroom which was located right next to the door).

I also unfortunately had a neighbor that constantly allowed their kids to play and stomp up and down the hallway. A downstairs neighbor even came to my door and blamed me for the stomping at one point. I also constantly smelled weed smoke inside my apartment coming from one or more neighbors.

The amenities suck compared to pretty much every other new construction in the neighborhood. The agent who showed me the unit initially said a gym was in the works but later backtracked when I asked him about it. The "roof access" has a decent view BUT the HVAC units take up so much space and are so loud that it makes you not want to stay there at all.

There is essentially 1 elevator in the building (there's another elevator but it only goes to like 2 floors for some reason) and it's very slow and rickety. Honestly I sometimes worried getting in that thing. Also about halfway through the lease it started making a squealing noise which I could hear from inside my bedroom (which was adjacent to the elevator).

My washer and dryer broke halfway through the lease and it was like pulling teeth to get management to address the issue. Eventually they did replace them but it took 5 - 6 weeks with a long period of radio silence from management. One of the broken units was sitting in my living room after the first repair attempt. It was at this point that management ghosted me for several weeks. I literally thought they were never going to get back to me so I ended up pushing the broken unit into the hallway because it was taking up a big chunk of my living space.

The building had a huge package theft problem. Packages were stolen on countless occasions. Management's "fix" was to tell us to report it to the police and to pick up packages ASAP. This was one of the main reasons I left.

Also, probably related to the above item but this new, "up and coming" neighborhood of Hallet's Cove is pretty close to the hood/projects. While I lived there, a few shootings actually occurred right down the road. One night I walked out of the local convenience store and witnessed a street fight breaking out with a big contingent of the locals cheering it on. I felt like I was in a worldstar video. When coming and going to my apartment, I generally tried to avoid going down 8th street at all costs (especially at night) and mostly stuck to 27th ave. I didn't feel safe in the neighborhood and never lingered outside.

Outside of the proximity to sketchy areas, Hallet's Cove is still pretty empty and desolate. At the time of writing, it's got the grocery store, an urgent care center, and a tiny convenience store. And the area is still massively under construction with several high rise buildings going up, probably for at least the next few years.

If I'm being honest, the current state of the neighborhood was probably my biggest reason for wanting to leave this building. I think this neighborhood has a lot of potential (it could become a miniature LIC) but it's going to take probably another 5 - 10 years at least to get there.

Add a gym where that useless in the room in the basement is

Good apartment sizes and balconies. It's the only pro.

Apartment was dirty when moved in. I gave the management a list of items to address/clean before move in and almost none was done. I got tired of following up.

Management is slow to respond to issues within the apartment. I have to threaten with no paying rent so they can be responsive every time.

Security is non-existent in this building. Pretty much anybody can walk in at any time. Amazon packages get stolen every single day. Construction workers leave the garage door open all the time. The main door opens by itself for no reason at all. There's no security key card at the door leading to the building from the garage. There's no security key card at the elevator for the residents leaving any body who walk into the retail space on the 2nd floor free to access the residences.

The door with the accessible ramp doesn't work at all. It is very inconvenient when walking in with strollers

There's no amenities whatsoever even though they were promised when moved in. No rooftop, no gym, nothing.

Storage rooms are unattended and things get stolen every time.

Hire a competent property management company

New construction, first move in. Brooklyn Harvest Supermarket two blocks proximity. Q18, Q19, Q103, & Q102 bus terminals nearby. 10 minute walk to ferry.

Building is new but it has cracks everywhere. Bathroom fixtures are cheap. There is no response (zero, nada) from management if something needs fixing. Building is unfinished in common areas. Some items in the apartment are breaking down too soon. Area is still in development, no foot traffic and empty buildings. Gym and roof deck were advertised but are not finished. The noise between floors is very loud. You can hear your neighbors walking.

Update: After a year and a halve the building is still unfinished. A new business opened on the second floor that share the same entrance with the tenants, in which unknown people come in and out. Even when the building is nonsmoking, at least in my floor, you can smell weed coming into your apartment through the entrance door wind draft at all time. I have found the service door and garage door open late at night with no supervision.

Update 9/29/2023: The entrance of the building and some apartments get flooded when there is heavy rain.

Answer your tenants, fix the reports, and finish the building.

New construction
Modern amenities and feel
Spacious
W/D in unit
Location

False advertising, allowed tenants in without finishing construction
Cut corners, lacks modern community relations
Lack of payment portal
Controlled access is poor
No security. Packages stolen
Lacks advertised gym, rooftop
Unfinished work: tiles uninstalled, used wood pallets for temp divides and never finished, roof
Parcel boxes obsolete, dont work
No super in building
Maintenance does crappy jobs
Construction is settling, several cracks on walls

Finish the construction especially when you are building two new sites next door literally. Provide gym advertised NOT in a basement, extend security fix doors and parcel boxed and allow a live in super at minimum. The fact that there is still outstanding work to be finished years in is shameful

The neighbors are amazing. Area is very peaceful and the cleaning crew keeps the building clean.

-lack of parking
-thin walls, you can hear everything even the neighbors arguing 2 apartments away.
-with all the new developments on the block, this building looks old.
-no common recreational space.

Love my neighbors

The landlord could be more responsive and on time