Grandin House - Cincinnati, Ohio

MATTHEW WOLF

Keep in mind the following: Recently they started charging electric for the common areas (gym, hallways, leasing office) to all the residents. It is only ~$30 a month but the electric is already extremely high in this old building. I live on the 9th floor in a three bedroom and the electric is outrageous. We average in the summer and winter months around $500 in electric in one month. It has been as high as $572. The funny part is the A/C unit can't even cool the apartment. So not only do you pay north of $500 some months but the apartment doesn't cool past 76-78 degrees during the day. In the evening hours when the sun it hitting the site of the building our apartment is normally 78 or 79 degrees when the thermostat is set at 75. It just cant keep up. This is most likely due to the ancient windows. If you stand next to the windows you can actually feel the air coming in from outside. I taped a piece of paper to my window and with it completely closed you can see the paper blow from the air coming though.

The best thing about the building is the maintenance staff. Anthony is amazing and works with what he has. It is a very old building and as such comes with the issues but it has gotten a little crazy lately.

When they show you two elevators on a tour don't actually think they will both be operational. Very seldom are both working and when they are one is normally blocked off for people moving or maintenance. I understand people need them to move in and out (like I did) but there is no schedule and no warning. If there is an email that is sent out its after the fact normally.

One time there was maintenance on the garage door for the parking garage and im not kidding they emailed saying there would be work on the door in 20 minutes that will take an hour and if you need to leave, you needed to move your car now. So there was a 20 minute warning to move the car or you are stuck until they are done. The email was sent at 9:14am with a 20min warning on a Monday. I laughed when I saw that. There is no way that there was not prior warning given to the complex about when the work would be taking place. On a Monday when most people have to go to work.

Overall I've enjoyed the last several years but personally think the cost of living here isn't matching up with the amenities and quality of the building. Important to note I've lived here for 3+ years but with the maintenance issues and cost of electric it will be hard to stay for longer.

James Singler

Stay away from the Grandin House! There's a lot of deferred maintenance at this property. The elevators are constantly broken. The garage doors are constantly broken. The HVAC has major problems. Our apartment is constantly between 75 and 80 degrees. The HVAC also registers at 80 decibels, which is the equivalent to a handsaw running in your bedroom. Constant exposure to decibels at 70 and above can lead to hearing damage. We've informed the landlord of all of these issues numerous times and they don't care at all.

Candace Briggs

Everything in the common areas is always clean and we have a very helpful staff.

carrie cramer

Air conditioning has been broken for over 3 weeks, currently 80 degrees in my apartment. Contacted maintenance to come fix it, they have been to my apartment over 4 times to “fix it” but yet it has not been fixed yet. From their parts breaking to not having the right parts, it has come to the point I can’t sleep in my own apartment because it is so hot. All management has done was being 2 fans to my 3 bedroom apartment.
There is frequent complete water shut offs for “scheduled maintenance” that occurs for several hours during the day.
Other than these issues, the apartment complex is clean and in a safe neighborhood which is why I’m giving it 2 stars. I have been thoroughly disappointed with my experience.

Nancy Henry

I have lived in the Grandin House for ten years, and I love it here. Not only is the location perfect in terms of access to downtown, Oakley, Hyde Park, and hospitals; the area is also wonderful for walking among nice shops or quiet residential streets.

Management has been excellent over ten years - everyone who has worked in the office has been responsive and friendly. Anthony, however, is truly a reason I stay here. He will attend to your needs quickly and work hard to solve any problem, big or small. Plus, he is always cheerful and friendly when we pass in the halls or elevators.

I love living among the residents here because we are of all ages and ethnicities. Retired folks, young families, health professionals, and many others of various backgrounds. Many young adults come and go, many folks have been here far longer than I.

And, of course, there are the dogs who are friendly, too, even if my dog is still a bit shy and restrained.

I highly recommend the Grandin House.

Brandon Kunkel

When you move in you will probably like the room size and some of the amenities the apartment offers but over time the feeling wears off.

The AC units in the apartment sound like roaring engines when they turn on and run. It's hard to watch TV and sometimes even interrupts your sleep when they turn on.

You will be paying a premium that you will pay at most "luxury apartments" but the interiors are very dated and the amenities are just okay. You will pay a shocking amount of money for water every month that is flat and not based on usage ($31 a month!!!!)

The rooms never lose the paint and carpet smell that you notice on your first day, you just get used to it. You get a billiards table in the club room but with only one decent cue. I'll say the fitness center is pretty good, but the cable machines could use some long overdue maintenance.

Note this is a pet friendly community and that means you will run into a lot of lovely pets, but I was lucky enough to have a person move in the room next to mine that brought a dog that would bark constantly at almost every moment of the day and night. 3 months of complaints to the leasing office led to no improvements in the situation. This situation is ridiculous and the dog is currently barking and whining at 10PM as I write this review.

A lot of units don't use in-unit laundry. So you have to use these cards to pay for your laundry. Which is okay when it works, but when your card doesn't work, you may find yourself stuck where you have half of your laundry done and wet and you can't get a new card when the leasing office is closed. So then you have to travel to a laundromat to finish your still wet laundry. This is a situation I found myself in where my laundry card would not work on any machine even though there was a balance on it.

Honestly most people can get past these issues to make this apartment their home and they get lucky with who they live near, but I am very happy to be moving out and will not look back.

Daniel Etherton

I recently moved from the Grandin House Apartments in Cincinnati to St. Petersburg, Florida. I'll really miss my time there. Now this is going to be a pretty long review, so I'll try and sum it up for anyone only reading the first paragraph. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE HOW IMPORTANT GOOD MANAGEMENT IS!

Now: to my long review!

I didn't know anyone in Cincinnati (relocating for work) when I began looking at apartments. I had roughly 3 weeks to find a place, move-in, and get furniture before starting my new job. I had called and emailed a bunch of complexes in the Hyde Park area. Grandin (namely Trisha Horn) was the only one who got back to me prior to my visit and just so happened to be the first place I stopped into. She was helpful, friendly, and before I left gave me the "standard" sales pitch of, "it might not be here after today".

I laughed, I'm not an idiot, I've purchased many things after that "deadline" the salesperson gives you. But ultimately, I came back 30 minutes later after visiting another apartment that just didn't compare (in more ways than 1). I handed her a deposit check, signed some paperwork, and waited to hear if I was approved. I moved in 3 weeks later and Trisha called me on a Sunday afternoon to let me know how to get into the apartment and where my keys were. I'll never forget that!

But let's talk about the apartment:

I felt safe in the apartment, it was close to a bunch of restaurants I liked, and although I didn't have a ton of friends in the building...I never felt alone. It just felt like a professional/fun atmosphere. Forcing exploration into the surrounding area of Hyde Park and downtown to the heart of Cincinnati.

Appliances were new and apartment was spotless when I moved in. I could tell this apartment had been taken care of. I didn't have any problems in the 2 years I lived there besides the one time I turned off the power to the dishwasher and claimed it was broken....until Anthony came and flipped the switch in front of me (demoralizing to say the least).

Now to Anthony (the building maintenance manager, among other things) was not only helpful when I had a problem, but always had nice things to say when I passed him in the hallways. I worked from home 90% of the time and he was always very flexible on when to perform maintenance on the apartment depending on any work calls that might have conflicted.

I will admit that I was a little spoiled with the hospitality that Trisha, Whitney, and Anthony showed me. For when I visited the current complex I live in, I half expected/hoped that I would receive the same friendly interactions. Nonetheless, I would recommend the Grandin House Apartments to anyone who asks, and potentially may look to live there again if Cincinnati is in my path.

Joey LaPorta

I had a great experience during the 3 years I lived at Grandin House. The facilities are clean and well maintained, the location is great and close to a majority of Cincinnati, and the staff were always very responsive and flexible. I would recommend Grandin House to anyone looking for a good living experience.