Monarch

Honest review as a real guest of Monarch. Unsafe, dirty, unsafe, smokers and failed promises. A section 8 housing disguised as a luxury apartment. I have lived here for the past 3 years and I cannot recommend despite trying incredibly to like this place. The staff are lovely people but I’m afraid they can’t fulfill their promises to the residents. And here’s why. This is not a smoke free building despite what they advertise, they do not enforce the policies as I regularly smell weed outside and even my NEW apartment had cigarette stains on the walls when I moved in that they could not clean (see in pictures). Everyday when I walk into my apartment I smell old cigarettes that flairs my asthma. YOU and your property are not safe here. They claim to be an “luxury” apartment but people are living here on VOUCHERS. Meanwhile I’m paying $3000/month. And it shows. Multiple break ins from criminals who never get caught. There is ZERO SECURITY in or around the building. When I get home I see cars with shattered windows and peoples cars whose tires got stolen. (See in pictures) Packages are stolen frequently. When the staff are here, they are great to make sure it is safe from theft and I can’t thank them enough for that. However, if your package arrives when they leave, it will be left out in the front entrance and it will be stolen by other tenants. And to top it off, for the past 4 days my kitchen sink is completely broken despite putting in a service request. (See in pictures). All of this for $3000 a month. For a “luxury” apartment you expect it to operate with certain expectations and not have your residents clean up prior tenants old cigarettes stains from the walls of where you live. If you are looking for a safe, reliable and decently clean apartment building, this isn’t it. It’s good if you’re fresh out of college but even then you’re paying a premium for less. It wasn’t this bad when I got here but it seems to be going downhill after each year. This apartment grants you the same experience you get when you’re a student in your college dorms.

I’ve lived at The Monarch since 2022 and have enjoyed it. My area is peaceful, aside from occasionally hearing kids in the hallway. I’ve rarely smelled marijuana near the back entrance, but never inside my apartment. Sometimes there’s litter near the elevator, but that’s mostly from residents or their children not cleaning up after themselves. The cleaning staff does their job. I’ve seen reviews about car vandalism, but haven’t experienced it. I do think adding night security would help. As for traffic; traffic is everywhere, not just here. Overall, I love living at The Monarch. It’s been quiet and comfortable. Resident Appreciation Day, free coffee, food trucks, and nearby restaurants are great perks. This is an honest review; if you’re looking for a new place to live, I recommend giving The Monarch a try!

We lived at Monarch for 3+ years and, for a while, I enjoyed being part of the community. The front office staff was always pleasant during my time there, which I appreciated. However, my experience moving out left a lot to be desired. I was extremely disappointed by the lack of communication during the move-out process. Despite several attempts to follow up, I received little to no guidance—only to be hit with a $1,000 charge for carpet replacement, even though the apartment reeked of cigarette smoke when I moved in (despite being labeled a non-smoking community) and the carpet was already in less than desired condition. Another major issue was safety. Over time, the community began to feel less secure. Cars were broken into, tires stolen, and windows smashed. People were going through residents’ personal belongings looking for valuables. There are no functioning security cameras, and the on-site security presence is ineffective at best. Even after multiple complaints, nothing was done to address these concerns. It also didn’t sit right with me that residents paying top market rent were living in the same units as others using vouchers—without any transparency or fairness around the pricing. While I appreciated my time at Monarch in the earlier years, the decline in safety, communication, and consistency ultimately drove my decision to leave.

Living at Monarch for the last two months have been amazing. The community of people are respectful, kind and friendly. There is always someone new to meet and have great conversation with whether it's on the elevator or at a community event. The staff is extremely helpful and kind. They're always happy to see you, make you feel seen and not just another resident in the building. If there's ever a concern that I may have they tend to it right away. The maintenance is friendly and timely. They show up within one to two days of the request. They clean up after themselves which is great! Monarch is close to everything you ever need and want, but yet set off to the side where it's quiet and cozy. There's ample parking at the complex even when you come home late. Overall, my experience living at Monarch has been great and I would recommend living here! It may feel like a "luxury hotel lifestyle", but it's so much more than that... it's truly a beautiful community!

Yesterday was our resident appreciation day here at monarch and it was wonderful. We had breakfast and then snores and camping bags and then we had delicious koana ice. Then next was our Hawaiian feast and festive music. We had a blast and the whole day was so great with my friends and family here at monarch.

I wanted to share my honest opinion of Monarch and make it very simple. 1.Staff excellent 2. Cleanliness excellent 3. Community resident interactions great 4. Community events within property Excellent 5. Security and safety of property ie (Cars) Vehicles are often vandilized and tires stolen from your car. There are zero cameras that cover the parking lot and there a not an active visual security patrol to help deter vandalism to your car. My issue is that management is aware of this problem however I am not sure of why getting an actual security patrol company that will ensure the safety of your car has been put in place. This morning three vehicles windows were broken into and there is absolutely no nothing that will be captured on CCTV that could assist law enforcement officers with this matter. Additionally the off duty Arundel officer marked police car is not a deterrent because all this crime keeps happening within the property. I am very aware that all crime can not be stopped but for what residents are charged to live here can not compare to the disappointment in coming outside and seeking your vehicle vandalized and the property that you entrust to give some sort of security can do nothing but say we are trying tk do something. So if you don’t mind every so often having your car vandalized then Monarch is the community for you.

I recently went on a tour of the facilities and viewed a unit. It was decent but the price of rent seemed a bit high. On top of that I heard from the current residents that cars are constantly getting broken into on the property and reading reviews from past residents all making the same complaint is extremely alarming. If I’m constantly having to replace my car windows that’s basically another bill on top of the amount I’d be paying just to live there. For these reasons I will be looking elsewhere and I suggest anyone else looking to find their next home to do the same!

I lived here at Monarch from Mar 2023-Mar 2024, I have listed out everything at Monarch and rated all accordingly from my PERSONAL experience. For those who do not want to subject themselves to a whole bunch of reading, I give ‘Monarch’ a 5/5 stars; never had any major issues, staff is immaculate, and my apartment was perfect. Staff 5/5 The staff seemed very honest and helpful, I never felt like they were trying to be deceptive or had any malicious intent, this always made me feel welcomed and safe. The staff also memorized me and my roommates name and apartment number after about only two weeks of living there, this made us feel even more welcomed and cared for. They also give back to tenants a lot with free pie raffles in the fall, Hawaiian dancers on renter’s appreciation day, and much more. Community 5/5 I have zero complaints regarding the community, I have never but heads with anyone, nor have they ever given me issues. It wasn’t until jan 2024 that I noticed some tenants not picking up dog poop by the cars, but it wasn’t a huge issue that would make me alter my rating. Apartment 5/5 Expect the typical apartment maintenance such as maybe a cabinet screw coming loose, or calling in for small stuff around the apartment. Really no issues here, I enjoyed everything. Cleanliness 5/5 I run into the cleaners everyday from around 7-9ish, they ensure to clean up the property as much as possible and vacuum and mop. I’ve never heard the vacuum from my apartment, but I assume they vacuum since I’ve seen vacuums. The pool is always clean in the summer, the only thing that typically gets dirty are the hammocks. Trash 4/5 Some people are nasty, and it sucks but it's true. Some people are fine with leaving their trash in the trash chute area and allowing the trash people to pick it up when they do trash collection. Just expect there to be trash sitting in the trash chute area every now and then, never has been a huge issue as it is always collected, but it does happen. Parking 5/5 First come first serve, fair enough lol. No issues like car break ins or scratching or anything personally. Area 4.6/5 You see everything that’s close by when you tour, SUPER convenient area, just expect heavy traffic on crain hwy from 0700-1000 and 1500-1830 (on average). There is also a bus stop right in front of the street exit from the building, stop sign to evergreen rd, which comes everyday at about 0700ish. Smells? I saw a review about weed, I have personally never smelled weed on my floor, but maybe in a stairwell from people coming in. People respect the policy of not smoking anywhere on the premises, but I have seen people smoke in their cars, and then go into the building, so it may linger when they enter the stairwell/entrances. Other than that, I have never personally seen or suspected someone smoking in or by the building. And let's be honest, cigarettes stink just as bad as weed, so maybe that individual had a personal vendetta with weed smokers. Noise 2/5 This is the only thing I could potentially complain about, depending on where you are in the building, the noise level may vary depending on how much traffic there is in the halls. You can practically hear everything in the halls, but it’s weird because you can’t typically hear anything come from apartments. You can also typically hear when the person above you is walking heavy, opening cabinets hard, or playing the tv really loud, the noise definitely travels. It isn’t the worst though, unless you're used to complete silence when sleeping. Lastly, I am not sure if there is an empty parking lot or something nearby, but every now and then you will hear cars (sounds like sports cars, or fast cars) doing what sounds to be like they’re doing donuts for HOURS. I remember hearing this my first night here from about 2am-5am which is crazy, but it definitely happens every so often and you can hear EVERYTHING. With that being said, you can also hear the water from the pool pretty much all the time. It never bothered me because I enjoy the ambiance, but simply be mindful.