Spacious, renovated apartments in West Philly

Overall, my wife, dog, and I have had a very good time living in this apartment. The location is in a more residential area of West Philly, allowing us to have a quieter neighborhood feel and free street parking. I get to work daily by taking the bus or using ride-sharing apps with no issues. Our building itself has 24/7 front desk, on-site laundry (not in-unit), on-site gym, a coffee shop, and a fenced-in dog run. The building is extremely pet friendly, which was a major factor for us. Our main criticism is that the building itself is a renovated old building - there are often issues with the elevators, and there are frequent small repairs that need to be done. There are newly renovated units with new finishings at a higher price.

I've been a West Philly resident for about 4 years bouncing around from place to place. I've been at Garden Court Plaza for about two years and really love it here. They have a 24/7 front desk concierge and just redid the lobby and more amenities are coming soon including a fitness center and renovated dog park/outside area. The building has a mix of classic and trendy features that fits the neighborhood vibe. Reanimator Coffee just opened up next door.

My experience at Garden Court Plaza has been very nice so far. The apartment is in a building with 13 floors and is pet friendly (for a small monthly fee). There is a dog park in the back as well. The apartment itself is old-appearing but well maintained. I have found that the maintenance workers respond within a day or so and do a good job of fixing any problems that arise. The water pressure is always good and I have never had an issue with hot water. There is an air conditioner in each room. Also, there is ample closet space- I even have my bike in a closet! The laundry room is shared by the whole building and just got redone, so we do not have to pay to use the machines anymore. The first floor also has a lounge area with WiFi and a grand piano that anyone can play. They are building a gym, but I am disappointed with the amount of progress that has been made so far. I feel very safe in the apartment and the receptionists who sit in the lobby are very friendly and receive all of my packages. I don’t have a car in Philadelphia, but there is a parking lot for use at the cost of $100 per month. There are not a lot of bugs in the apartment, which is also a plus. One occasional problem is that the elevators are slow and tend to break down often, but they are usually fixed within a few days. The location in West Philly is around a 25 minute walk to school and a 12 minute bike ride. The nearest grocery store is around a 15 minute walk. I like that the location is more residential with wide streets, but it does not have as many stores and restaurants as center city or graduate hospital, although there are a few nearby. Overall I have had a good experience!

My roommate and I have had a great experience in this building. It is an older building, but it is reasonably well maintained, and the management is very responsive to complaints. Our apartment is extremely spacious. You might be able to find something smaller and a little cheaper in the area, but we think the apartment is a good value for what it offers.

Highlights include a van service that goes to Penn's campus every half hour in the morning and returns to the apartment building every half hour in the afternoon/evening (Mon-Fri, excluding summer).

The building has someone at the front desk 24/7, and they can always accept packages that are delivered to you.

The building allows pets for no extra fee, and there is a dog run on the grounds.

The neighborhood immediately surrounding the building is residential and safe. It becomes a little less gentrified if you venture much farther North or West. Within a 10-12 minute walk, there is a grocery store, a CVS, and a few places to eat including Honest Tom's Taco Shop and the bar Local 44.

The apartments are relatively large, and the walls are nice and thick to block sound from all but the most obnoxious neighbors. The pet policy is generous and does not discriminate by breed. The dog run in the backyard is awesome if you have a friendly dog! Management is frustrating to work with, but everything has eventually always been resolved with persistence from me. I have remained in this building because it is secure. There is keycode entry in addition to a security guard at the front desk. It feels much more secure than neighboring buildings. I like the neighborhood. It's far enough west that it's mostly families and young adults rather than students. As a graduate student, I love the peace & quiet instead of the undergrad party scene.

The staff are incredibly friendly! There is a huge and recently updated laundry room in the lobby. They keep the building super clean and really this apartment is a steal. My apartment is huge and has beautiful wood floor and a view from the 11th floor of all of south Philly. When I ask for any sort of maintenance in my apartment they are very receptive and incredibly helpful. Overall my apartment is so worth it and I love living here! They are pet friendly and there are lots of neighbors in the building with young children but the walls are thick so my apartment is very quiet. Also, there is a huge community garden and a parking garage (the garden is the entire roof of the garage). There are public tennis courts right next to the building, a dog park attached to the backyard, benches and even a community grill!! It's older and in west Philly but is still safe and the penn bus takes you right to 48th and pine so you can see the door from where they drop you off. I honestly wouldn't such a raving review if I wasn't trying to emphasize that relative to past experiences with off campus housing near Boston, this apartment building (though quirky and is a 20 minute walk from campus- they do have a free shuttle though!) is such a fabulous deal. The landlord and his wife are very friendly and work all day in the building. five stars!!!

A lot of grad students live in my building, especially those at the veterinary school so there are always lots of adorable dogs around. In fact, there is even a dog park behind the building along with a nice area with a grill and tables and garden. The front desk staff are great and friendly. Someone is always on duty there. The maintenance crew is also prompt and nice. A complimentary shuttle runs to and from the UPenn campus Monday through Friday in the morning and evenings which is nice when I don't feel like riding my bike. It's also near a bunch of bus lines. It'd be nice if it were closer to campus (1.5 miles away) and a grocery store but I haven't had much trouble riding my bike everywhere. It's near other things like restaurants and shops on Baltimore Ave.