Tenant Reviews for 941 W CARMEN AVE

I love living here. It's comfortable and close to everything. I miss having a consistent office person, but I can understand right now. I also wish the room that is supposed to be the gym was useable.

Other than the occasional elevator trouble my only complaints can be against the behavior of the other tenants or "visitors"(?). Such as lazt garbge room habits and leaving laundry in machines OVERNIGHT. It took a long time for the shower floor to be re-glazed but it was done. I NEVER had to wait long for any ceiling issue (top floor, heavy snow/rain). The rental increases are small, manageable and expected. The procedures available for emergencies are highly reliable and I have always received a quick response.

If you are looking for a sign not to sign a lease in this building, consider this it. I have never in all my years of renting and touring experienced such unprofessionalism. Deborah is the epitome of a slum lord. She will ask for your move-in fee before presenting a contract. You are better than this! All the best in your search for the perfect home, I can safely assure you this is not it. Bullet dodged.

My husband and I lived here for almost two years in a large studio apartment. The kitchen was really spacious for a typical studio and the we had a big bathroom as well as a HUGE walk-in closet. Our neighbors were super friendly and the walls were thick so we never heard any noise from them. I absolutely loved having a laundry room in the building. The Maintenance guy Alex was very friendly and was quick at getting things fixed. The office staff LayCey was very nice and had a wicked sense of humor. The Landlady Deb put a lot work into her building and worked hard to make sure we felt right at home.

My experience at Parc Paris was not good. The building has serious maintenance issues and the integrity and honesty the management (ownership) are poor. The building has very old pipes which leak on a regular basis. Many tenants report water issues. I had 3 water leaks, 2 serious. In all cases the landlord claimed that the leaks were due to the tenant who lived above me. I compared notes with a friend of mine in the building and she to had problems with leaking water from above. She to was told the problem was a negligent tenant living above her who had overflowed [something]. There is a credibility issue there. It is my understanding that the building management is pursuing legal action against the tenant who lived above me and from what I could see the water damage (in my unit) was bigger than what could plausibly be caused by a sink overflowing. I hope he is not getting railroaded. Here is what tends to happen: Something breaks/water leaks and maintenance is called and building management attempts to blame the tenant (victim) and recover "damages". This is why I moved out. Building management is aggressively litigious. This is fine (up to a point) if the building is in top condition but this one is not. If is filled with problems and rather than taking responsibility, the building management tries to blame the tenant(s). Building management is addicted to "fee income". Soon after I moved in, I was assessed a late fee even though I had dropped off the rent check on the first. The building owner (Deborah) actually said to my face that she had the right to deposit checks more or less at her leisure and that I "had been told to use direct pay" and that's why I got a late fee! That is the kind of person she is. I gave her a lecture on business law and she reversed the late fee. I think you can see the kind of people you will be dealing with here. Greedy, mercenary, tricky....and irresponsible. Stay away! I should add that Lacey (the building manager) is OK. Maybe fair. She is quick and responsive but also aggressive. The main maintenance guy is good also. The problem is not Lacey and the building maint guy, the problem is the owner. I would stay away from this place. Maybe the current owner should sell/retire.

Reading the bad reviews on this site make me believe they are coming from disgruntled or evicted tenants. I have lived here for 2 years and have had a pretty decent experience. Yes, the building is old but maintenance does fulfill all of my work orders in a timely manner. The area is great too. Most of the tenants living in the building are pretty quiet and have been living there for 10+ years. I will be renewing my lease again this year.

AVOID!! Terrible customer service. All about the money. I rented a parking space there and forced myself to ignore several instances of rude service. But once they towed my car out of spite, and refused to even acknowledge, that was it for me. Be warned.

In the seven months that I've lived in Parc Paris apartments the management has been extremely helpful and responsive. When I expressed concern about the humidity and potential mold in my apartment, all of the windows were promptly replaced. When the water pressure in my kitchen was low, it was gushing thirty minutes later. Management is on site six days a week and maintenance is here 24/7. I choose the apartment for the location and for the sunlight and city scape that radiates through my spacious one bedroom apartment every morning and night. As an artist, my living and work space is important to me. Did I mention there's also a Christmas party in the lobby every year? Parc Paris is part of a diverse and well rooted community in Uptown. It's a neighborhood ripe with history and caring people. The inhabitants here are warm and welcoming. The local watering hole, hosts a free burger and brat buffet every Sunday across the street. A few doors up is Shah, offering some the best Pakistani and Indian food in the city. The location--a block from the lake, two blocks to all the Asian faire on Argyle, less than a mile from Andersonville, and central to public transit--is fantastic. Come see.

I sublet a studio apartment at Parc Paris for just a little less than a year. For the amount I paid, I truly felt this was a great apartment. My dealings with the current property manager and landlord were all positive. They were both kind and honest. I had a great time at the holiday party, which was warm and welcoming and gave me a chance to meet my fellow residents. As far as upkeep, the exterminator sprayed in the apartment monthly and I never saw any bugs in my apartment, only dead ones in the room where we deposited trash and recycling. They truly seemed to be on top of this concern as well. A mouse got into my first floor apartment (no big deal, mice happen) and they came to find the hole it got in through and seal it the next day, with no issues after that. Other general maintenance requests were, in my opinion, responded to more slowly than I would have liked (+1 week if at all), but they've been repainting, putting new carpet in the hallways, and making the building a lot prettier in the time I lived there. You can tell there's a general attitude among management towards improving this old building. I leased an air conditioner from the building in summer months for only a small fee which they installed and took out in a timely fashion. The laundry room needs definite updating, but they're clearly working on it. I am not sure of the specific policy on dogs, as I do not have one, but I paid a small deposit for my cat and they were always respectful of keeping my door closed when they visited so she would not escape. I saw many dogs of all sizes in the building, so it seems very pet-friendly. I very rarely heard dogs, and for that matter rarely heard my fellow tenants, though I did live in a corner apartment with no immediate neighbors. We had an issue with door-to-door solicitors while I lived here and the management addressed it immediately, reminding us not to buzz in anyone we don't know. There are cameras on all common areas and the parking lot (I believe), and the management was swift to call the police in the case of the only other incident (not the fault of management) I was aware of in my time living here. I was impressed by their attention to detail and swift responses. The neighborhood is fantastic. Very close to so many vital buses and the red line, safe, walkable, close to Mariano's and the lake. I rented a parking space from the building and felt it was competitively priced. Overall, I'd recommend if you're looking for a small and affordable apartment in a great neighborhood. The management was always honest and open about any issues that arose, from community problems to mechanical snafus, and I had a positive experience living here. I moved because I needed more space, not because I was unhappy with the building.

Eww... please please please look into all other options before moving into this building. It's unfortunate because the building has the potential to be so cool but they have let it go to crap. 1. ------- the owner and manager of the apartment building is awful... no really she is awful. 2. Maintenance is terrible. Had to request things get fixed multiple times. I was told they needed to get into my apartment because of a leak. Came home and they had ripped up the carpet. Cool whatever get the leak fixed. Had to call / email once a day for almost 2 months before they came and fixed the floor. To fix the carpet they placed it back over the ground they ripped up and did not replace it. uh what... it was nasty and moldy. 3. Laundry room... I put a dollar in a washer broke... I put a dollar in a washer broke... I put a dollar in a washer broke... you get the gist but one night this literally happened to all 4 working washers at once. Had to laundry mat it for weeks. 4. They say they have a gym. Please everyone I showed that "gym" to laughed so hard. It looks like she brought some old crap she found on the street and threw it in a room. I did see someone working out in there once. Poor soul hope he made it out alive with the mold and dust in that room. 5. Parking - paid to park and almost daily I would have to go into the apartment and get a resident / maintenance / manager someone to move their car from my spot. Read a story in uptown update about how someone tried to run an apartment manager over for being in their spot from my building. I never went to those extremes but man... it was almost daily I had to go in and have someone move who said they were "approved" to park there. Im sorry i pay for that spot ya wackos. 6. JUST RUN please... I beg of you to look into all options. PS: ROACHES ROACHES ROACHES, a mouse and multiple centipedes. All things I had to kill in my apartment unit. Try going back to sleep after you see a roach or a mouse in your apartment. ------- just sell this building so someone can restore it. RUN MY FRIENDS RUN!