My apartment in Dumont Terrace was a good fit for a first solo apartment...but it was not without…read moreits flaws.
NEIGHBORHOOD:
I enjoyed walks around the peaceful neighborhood, and being walking distance from Stop and Shop, Walgreens, Staples, Dollar Tree and Bottle King. Maybe the biggest highlight was that every neighbor I met was incredibly sweet and kind.
Was it quiet? Yes. But fairly often there were police and fire trucks, dogs barking, people yelling, cars blasting music or speeding down the street as a cut through.
PESTS:
In the summer I dealt with gnats and fruit flies. I keep clean and spray the door so I only ever had three roaches. However, in the spring I had a termite infestation in the rotting wood of my coat closet and management was unhelpful in resolving the issue, so I dealt with it on my own--spraying poison and caulking the closet.
A big on going issue was squirrels in the attic scampering around all day and night, often waking me up. Calls to management and the Super were ignored and ineffective in solving the issue.
MANAGEMENT:
I am so grateful that any time I had a leak or clog, the Super would come within the next day and fix it perfectly.
Management is based in the city, can be rude and unsympathetic and unhelpful about any problems.
PARKING:
Sometimes in the winter there were NO spots left to park in! Unfortunately, many tenants park on the line in these narrow spots, or double park, leaving even less spots. Dumont does not allow street parking during winter months, and there is either not enough parking spots for all tenants or there are unauthorized vehicles parking in the lot. This also made it impossible to host my friends and family from out of state!
FACILITY:
I loved my beautifully renovated kitchen and bathroom, however the doors were the original doors...they were so old that they did not have locks, and were very diffuse to open and close.
The heating system was a steam radiator with an incredibly intense heat, but would regularly shut off and not come back on for hours even when it was freezing out. When the heat would rush into the pipes they would bang alarmingly throughout the day and night at random intervals...often scaring me awake.
If the smell of smoke is an issue for you, just be aware that any fumes easily carry across apaetments and from outside in.
At the time that I lived there the grounds were wildly unkempt...trash, weeds, overgrown roots, no appealing landscaping, and disheveled buildings.
A few mornings I would wake up and without any notice there would be zero water running to the apartment for an hour or two. Often in the summer there was no cold water to cool down with, and in the winter there was no hot water to shower and do dishes.
SECURITY:
There were multiple rounds of building inspections that tenants had to be present for but took place during regular work hours. I was put in an awkward position not being able to get off work with such short notice but not wanting strangers to walk through my apartment unatended. Then, a week after these inspections, I came home one day, and without any warning, someone had come in my apartment and installed a chain lock on my door. It was incredibly unsettling that someone had been in my apartment without any permission or warning.
In conclusion, I do not regret my time there. But I now live in a nearby town in a beautiful apartment with a comparable price to how steep they were about to raise my rent in Dumont. Obviously every apartment has its own perks and flaws but I just want to be honest about my experience for considering renters.