Piazza Alta — Local services in Philadelphia

TL;DR: As an actual Alta resident, it's an incredibly beautiful building but overall value for money is poor given that all other (cheaper) Piazza building residents pay substantially less in rent and have the exact same access as you to all of the "exclusive" Alta amenities. Good stuff first: Gym is awesome and well-maintained, you can definitely find off-peak times where you have it practically to yourself. Only gripe is placement of 3D body scanner (which requires you to stand in the middle of the hallway in your underwear). Apartments are generally very nice and very spacious, though some small issues with quality in this new building (i.e. uneven floors in parts of my apartment). The concierge staff is pretty good, especially Jasmine and Aneesa!

Where this building goes off the rails for me is the amenities; mainly the pool. As an Alta resident, paying at least ~$1K more in rent than the other Piazza buildings, you are only officially permitted 2 PAYING guests ($25 each) per leaseholder, which is the same as all the other buildings. That's right, you pay a lot to live here, and you can't even bring in 1 person for free. This begs the question: Why am I paying so much more in rent to have the exact same privileges and access as those paying much less AND don't even live in this building? What is the advantage of living here?

The pool gets crowded very quickly as ALL of the non-Alta residents from other buildings seem to exclusively use, and bring all of their friends to, the Alta pool (Aqua Foro). If you stand and look at the wristbands at Aqua Foro on any given weekend, it seems at least 60% of people do not actually live in Piazza Alta. If you go to the non-Alta pool any day, any time, it is completely empty, but Aqua Foro on a popular day (i.e. July 4th) or even some normal weekends can be almost unusable due to the sheer amount of people.

The system they use to register and charge guests is also questionable - instead of charging people $25 on the spot, you are asked to write an apartment number in a book for the fee to be added into your rent later; however, other residents (or non-residents!) could just say / write a random Alta apartment number to charge and there is no way to validate this!

The pool is also open 24 hours, so if your apartment faces the pool, you will need to block out the pool lights and will often hear people screaming, music, etc through the entire night / early morning on weekdays, weekends, etc.

Pool problems aside, I wish management made more of an effort to build community. In a building with such a large amount of studios and 1 beds & so much amenity space, you would think there would be frequent Alta-only events for people to meet each other, similar to many high-end Center City buildings. But events here - when they happen at all - are often 1) advertised at the last minute and 2) again, somehow mainly attended by people who don't even live in the building! Communication from building management is also very infrequent.

One other small issue: I always hear the leasing agents talk about the "fully stocked coffee bar" on tours in the coworking space - 80% of the time there are either no cups, no sugar, no milk, or any combination of the 3! I always secretly hope that someone on that tour will actually try to get coffee and realize there are not even cups! Also, the golf simulator, while cool, should not be in the same place where people are trying to work / study.

All in all, this is a nice place with bomb amenities (friends are always impressed when they come here). If management were more engaged, proactive, and showed real concern for the resident experience, this would be THE ONLY place to live in Philly. Absent that, I will likely seriously consider non-renewal of my lease unless I start to see...

Overall, I was very disappointed with my experience at Piazza Alta — especially considering the extremely high price point.

Overpriced and lacking value: The base rent of $2,595 (not including parking or utilities) is excessive for a 600 sq ft unit that overlooks an Acme parking lot less than 100 feet from the living room window. The apartment had virtually no counter or dining space, and overall, it felt like I had no privacy in my own home.

Disturbing maintenance incident: Maintenance entered my apartment to change air filters even though I did not answer the door after they knocked. I work night shifts and was sleeping at the time. I woke up startled and afraid, especially as I live alone. Despite my protests, the worker insisted on coming in and even laughed it off. I was also concerned that my cat could have gotten out. When I brought this up with management, they dismissed it, stating that notice had been given through RentCafe — not through personal email — essentially excusing the behavior. The maintenance worker showed no concern for how his actions affected me.

Dirty amenities: The chairs by the pool are consistently dirty, which is unacceptable for a building charging this much in rent.

Unhelpful and rude staff: I was once told I couldn’t move my pool chair into the shade because they “had issues with people moving chairs.” I later found out this wasn’t an actual rule. It felt more like a power trip than a legitimate policy.

Inconsistent enforcement of pool rules: During crowded days, staff rarely check for wristbands. Yet, on a cool, cloudy day when I was the only person at the pool, I was told I needed a new wristband — despite the season almost being over. The selective enforcement was frustrating.

Unresponsive management: It often took multiple attempts to get in touch with management when issues actually needed attention. This lack of responsiveness added to the overall feeling of being dismissed as a resident.

Poor apartment design: There’s no exhaust fan in the bathroom — a basic feature that should be standard, especially at this price point.

Unreasonable parking costs: Parking costs $295/month in a lot that isn’t even attached to the building. If you want to park in the building itself, it’s $395/month — an outrageous fee for something that should be a convenience, not a luxury.

Unmotivated concierge: The concierge staff often seemed unwilling to help, particularly with packages. They frequently wouldn’t get up to assist unless repeatedly asked and showed visible annoyance when asked to open the package room. One even seemed indifferent when I mentioned a potentially important package...

Disappointed by declining management and ongoing unresolved issues.

When I first moved into my apartment nearly two years ago, I was genuinely impressed. The unit was beautiful, maintenance was responsive—issues were resolved the same day—and the experience felt worth the cost. Unfortunately, that level of service hasn’t lasted.

After a flood in the building, I was relocated and had to replace nearly all my furniture. While management did help cover some costs, the return to my unit felt rushed and disorganized. I wasn’t even notified when they moved my belongings back in. Furniture was dropped haphazardly without my input, causing scratches and damage I had to ask to be addressed after the fact. The paint job was sloppy (with visible spots), wallpaper in the bathroom is peeling, the kitchen floor has a dent, and both the island and countertops are chipped and scratched.

I documented all of this immediately and communicated it with photos to management—over the course of a year and through four different contacts. Each time I was told someone would follow up, but no one ever did. I continued to check in and most recently even visited the office, where I was told to send another email. I did. Again, no action.

Before renewing, I asked for a conversation to resolve these issues. Not only did I receive no response, but my lease was auto-renewed without any acknowledgment of my concerns.

It’s frustrating to feel ignored—especially when paying premium rent. I’ve also heard similar complaints from residents in other Post Brothers properties, which raises further concern.

Lastly, recently I left my keys to my apartment at my parents house a half hour away and the only person that had access to the keys at the front desk “had to renew his password” and hadn’t so couldn’t get the master keys. I was instructed to call an emergency line and he said I would be charged $100+ to be let into my apartment. Seems like an important asset to have access to.

With so many new apartments opening in Philadelphia, service and responsiveness should be a priority. Sadly, it no longer seems to be here. I hope this review prompts the management team to take these issues seriously and make meaningful improvements—for current and future...