We have been renting from Alvin M. Levin and Sons for more than 2 years now. We have the most…read moredarling trinity Style home, tucked behind a very secure metal gate,which leads to a passageway that brings one to a large secured, and landscaped courtyard, shared with the two houses that are situated on the street in front of our home, on either said of the passageway. Ours is a single family, detached home, which is almost unheard of anywhere near Center City, so zero concerns about neighbor's noises, or security issues. We have 2BR, 2 BA and a den/office area, over 3 stories, and a small private patio off the kitchen. Some of the house has been renovated, but not all (which is reflected in the rent). The utilities/appliances are all serviceable, with new DW and gas stove, and fairly recently installed large, modern W/D in the basement, prior to move in (yes, we have a full basement, which provides lots of storage space). To the best of my knowledge, a lot of Levin's townhomes are older, and have usable fireplaces (often on the 1st and 3rd floors). We use ours throughout the winter, and it is so quaint and charming, ad warm, and Christmasy in December, (the homes I have owned have always had fireplaces, and I love them). We also have a 2nd fireplace on the third floor (a common feature in Levin's townhomes), which is one large area with bedroom, private bath, and sitting area covering the whole top floor, with a lovely slanted, high ceiling, and four large windows (better and bigger than the average NYC studio (often w/less than 500 SQ FT living area) that costs over a thousand , or two (alas, no private kitchen) . Our spoiled daughter lives up there.... Downside is, no bathroom on the first floor, which is pretty much the standard for trinity style homes.
As to maintenance.... We have had very few problems,and all have been attended to quickly. We had a leaking DW, which was replaced. We had two problems with the A/C, which I don't think is that old. The response from Levin's maintenance was great. Earlier this summer, it just stopped cooling over the 4th of July weekend. They came out and installed a window A/C, which did not work as well as the central air (due to the design of the house), but allowed me to sleep comfortably until the contractor could come out that Tuesday. The first time we had an A/C problem, they determined that the electrical panel needed to be upgraded. They did a Jury-rig that was designed to work until fall (so we would not have to do w/o Air for a day or two in the extreme summer heat while the installation was done). They followed up and replaced the panel once things got cooler.
When I contact the office, the people are very nice, and quite responsive. We have gotten to know some of the maintenance people a bit, since they come out to sweep the courtyard/passageway. We see them on the street, since Levin owns a number of properties in the area, and they are always so pleasant. Twice a year, they send people out to cut back the shrubs in the courtyard/patio areas, and do a general clean-up. We had our rent increased a bit this year, as have a large portion of tenants across the country in the last 1-2 years, but nothing like the 15-60% that many tenants have incurred. Yes, 60% is the amount of rental increase a friend received, who lives in Florida, after a major corporation purchased his complex, with no plans to improve his unit until he moved out. He was forced to move, at great expense. Levin has not pulled that type of BS on its tenants.
We wanted to put in body-spray shower heads, and a new kitchen faucet, and were willing to pay for them (once we realized we would probably be here for a minimum of 2 years). Levin was more than willing to pay for the installation of them. Made our enjoyment of the house much better. Yes, they will remain in the house when we move, but if we had needed to pay to have them installed, it would have been cost prohibitive for us.
I can highly recommend renting from Alvin M Levin & Son. Our neighbors in front of our house (also properties owned by Levin) have had some maintenance issues, and I only know from seeing workmen coming and going. I assume, since none of them complained, that the issues were taken care of quickly and properly. We feel very fortunate to have found our current home....
