The building staff is very rude! I went in to see a couple of apartments on Sunday that were supposedly having an open house.. the doorman had no clue what was going on and which apartments were being shown that day. After sitting down on the lobby couch for 2 seconds to make a quick call to the broker who was supposed to be showing the apartments the doorman tells me that the shareholders don't... [more]
The building staff is very rude! I went in to see a couple of apartments on Sunday that were supposedly having an open house.. the doorman had no clue what was going on and which apartments were being shown that day. After sitting down on the lobby couch for 2 seconds to make a quick call to the broker who was supposed to be showing the apartments the doorman tells me that the shareholders don't want anyone sitting in the lobby and further more asked me to leave the building! I told him that I'm just trying to figure out which apt is holding an open house and he still insisted that I wait out in the 20 degree weather.. What the F? what's wrong with this doorman and the shareholders?? So, if I buy an apartment here and I have a guest waiting for me in the lobby, will they kick him out? I WILL NEVER BUY AN APARTMENT HERE!! Stay away! [less]
I think you misread the situation and have misplaced your annoyance.
The fault you describe lies with the broker--not the building staff. It is not the doorman's job to host dozens of strangers in the lobby who have come to see apartments, nor is it his job to figure out who is running open houses. It is the broker who should be informing the front desk and leave clear instructions for the staff as to how to contact him/her and which apartment to ring.
On a day that two or three open houses are held, can you imagine the traffic in the lobby and inconvenience to the shareholders of the building? It's kind of tacky to have people streaming in and out and many coops seek to limit the spectacle and distraction to staff that open houses cause. In fact, some buildings bar open houses altogether and require brokers to make specific appointments. People who pay handsomely to live in many coop buildings to not like strangers trapsing around and kicking the tires.
nah, I agree with OP. The lack of hospitality is indicative of an a-hole board.
It was one doorman. You're ready to label a building because one person treated you rudely?
That building had many open houses yesterday. Maybe given the number of units for sale/rent and as kylewest suggested, the brokers had not been managing it well, there was some frustration on the part of the staff.
It's not right to take it out on you, but hardly condemnation worthy...
Somebody can't be bothered to follow instructions...
OPEN HOUSE SUNDAY 2:00 - 4:00 by appt you must call before arrival 917 363 1992
OPEN HOUSE Sunday 2-4:00 By appointment PLEASE CALL BEFORE ARRIVAL 917 363 1992
Same thing happened to me even when I had an appointment
i would not be upset at the staff, especially if i'm a shareholder. you don't want people hanging around in the lobby for X minutes/hours waiting for a broker to show. if the broker would have spoken to the doorman, i don't think this would have happened. bad broker, not staff.
definetly a bad broker but additionally very bad staff who was unhelpful, did not know what's going on, had extremely poor judgment or common sense and sent someone out at 20 degrees. all of you who are protecting the doorman have no information of how many people were actually waiting in the lobby. yesterday was a day that the city did not allow any homless person to sleep on the street but you all are protecting the behavior of the doorman? I would not touch this building regardless of your defense.
When a broker bad-mouths a building - or a listing, or another broker - on a public board, you have to wonder if there might be a hidden agenda or vendetta.
http://www.squareonenyc.com/index.cfm?page=agent_profile&id=2
Fern Hammond of Halstead seems to have quite a strong franchise in this building, and derives much of her income from sales there. It's possible that she is the real target of the OP's venom. The worse the building's image, the harder her job becomes.
I'm assuming the original poster actually is Mr. Davoudpour. If not, I apologize in advance to him and his firm.
Having done a deal in the building (with Fern actually, she was excellent), yes, they do have a policy that Brokers (and I guess buyers) cannot wait in the lobby. I'm sure that if you were a guest of someone in the building that would be fine.
I'll admit that it is a little odd to not be able to wait in a waiting area, but that is the building policy.
in past bldgs where ive owned, i have been pleased that boards have disallowed buyers and brokers from hanging around lobbies making cellphone calls, discussing deals, and otherwise polluting my place of residence--i have had no problem selling to reasonable buyers via decent brokers on by appointment basis as required by building regulations--crowds of stranger/"buyers" and brokers in a bldg unsupervised, as is often case with open houses, would be a deterrent to my buying
that there are enforced rules relating to this type of activity in a given bldg would, all else equal, make that bldg more appealling to me as i considered a purchase--a sign of a well-run bldg
mr d sounds just like the type of idiot i wouldnt would to encounter in the lobby of my building
The building policy is that there are no open houses allowed so they are done by appointment only. If customers do not read the listing properly and just go to the building they cannot be accomodated if their names are not on the list. If there is an appointment made then a fax of that apppointment must be sent two hours in advance. Also brokers and customers are not allowed to wait in the lobby. Shareholders and their guests are allowed to use the lobby. These are building rules. It would be alot easier for the broker, owner and customer if regular OHs were allowed perhaps limiting the number in a particular time frame. They have obviously had problems in the past with too many people in the lobby. DD
I was going to attend an open house in this building I had an appt. came to the building and then received an email from the broker saying "sorry seller is sick and open house cancled" this was an hour into the OH hours?? Seemed stragnge but I did not like the vibe and have decided not to look here anymore also I noticed a great deal of units for sale with prices varying greatly I am wondering if the building has any unknows issues?
We've lived here for a decade and am not aware of any building issues. There is definitely a building policy about no open houses and every showing done by appointment only, in order to reduce traffic in the lobby. I am sorry to hear about prospective buyers being asked to wait outside and am surprised to hear the doorman was rude. We find the doorman staff to be very courteous and helpful, the building to be well run. We've been very happy living here with our family. I think the hallways need renovation but this is slated to happen this year. In terms of why there are multiple listings in our building, there may be many factors, but I don't feel they are related to a problem in the building. This is in the Cornell hospital neighborhood, and we see a fair amount of moving on when health care faculty/personnel are done with their research or training. It's also a fact of living in NYC. Also the broker who handles many of the unit sales seems to prefer to wait until the right price comes along rather than reduce prices to sell more quickly. Every broker has their own style. We find living in this building and neighborhood very family friendly. York Ave is quiet for residential living and we have First Avenue for all the conveniences without the noise.
I rented an apartment in this building 4 years ago. I waited in the sofa area with my family with no problem the first time, then was told to wait in the area between the lobby and the front door the second time. It wasn't a big deal for me. The OP said the doormen didn't know there was a showing, so obviously they can't just let anyone off the street go inside claiming they are expected when no one can collaborate. It is the agent's fault. Doormen did a great job.