525 Hawthorne Apts

Todd K, Brian F & Felix are spot on.
Overall, we were really looking forward to living in this building. The apartment layouts are nice and spacious, the location is pretty cool (although, a bit further north than we really realized), the gym is adequate, and the pool seemed like a huge plus for the summer.
However, to be honest, this building has a huge stick up its ass. The board, management and door people (Mike, specifically) seem to be on some sort of a power trip — they ALL care more about making inconvenient rules than the actual well-​being of the residents. Simply, they’re just plain rude.
Since the units are all privately owned, renters rent from a private tenant rather than the building. There are definitely some perks to this and overall, our experience with our landlord was pretty positive. However, this building absolutely HATES renters, so that’s definitely not a perk and unfortunately, it’s pretty apparent.
For starters, there is a $ 500 non-​refundable move-​in fee, as well as a $ 500 non-​refundable move-​out fee. Pretty hefty.
There is ONLY ONE move-​in OR move-​out allowed to be scheduled per day (Monday-​Friday only), so make sure you schedule as far in advance as possible. We tried to schedule a move-​out almost 2 months prior to our desired move-​out date of June 30^th, and because there were other moves scheduled already, we ended up stuck here, paying rent, until July 7^th. As you can imagine, this caused a big issue not only for us, but for the next set of people moving into our unit as well. We were literally trapped there for an extra week, paying rent, and Nancy, the property manager, refused to make any exceptions for anyone. Do I need to remind you that July 1 is one of the busiest moving dates of the year in Chicago?
Since we received the keys to our new places on 7/​1, we thought it would be smart to take a Friday to take some stuff over to our new places — 2 carts of items. Next thing we know, we’re being threatened with $ 1000 in fines and screamed at by Mike. Nobody, other than our landlord, was understanding, and we had to write up a personal letter describing the situation for the board to review. THEY EVEN LOOKED AT SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE TO PROVE A POINT. RIDICULOUS. Luckily (I guess) they only ended up hitting us with a $ 100 fine for «trying to move out without a scheduled move out»
The pipes are old and we had several months of water issues. Ridiculous ones. Halfway through a shower, the water would just shut off or trickle out. There was even a point when we had to use the public bathroom on the 2^nd floor because our toilet simply wouldn’t flush. You can hear the pipes working behind the walls and it can be pretty loud.
Tons of very large spiders.
Honestly, if you’re a renter and you’re looking for a reasonably priced high-​rise, I would NOT look here unless you’re wanting extremely rude door people (Mike is literally a miserable human being), to be hit with tons and tons of fines, treated poorly, pay a lot of useless money, and abide by ridiculous and inconvenient rules.
We are so happy to NOT live here anymore.

I can only echo Francesca’s positive comments about this building. My wife and I have lived here for over 2 years and it’s an excellent building, with great tenants, and outstanding management. Yes, the building has strict rules (as does almost any nice condo building), but that’s because most of the owners are couples, families, and people in their 30s or older. And, the rules are set by and therefore cater to that crowd. The owners want a quiet, clean, and orderly place to live — it’s just that simple.
Although the building is by no means «out to get you» or «scam you», I would just say that if you’re in your early-​mid 20s, single, only plan on living here a short time, and/​or plan on having lots of friends over for parties (or anything along those lines), then 525 is just not a good fit.
If you had a bad experience renting, it’s also highly possible that you rented from a certain party who owns a large block of units in the building that were acquired in a somewhat dubious manner. These are not regular condo units, and it has created a long-​standing problem where there are far more renters (particularly young renters) in the building than there should be. In addition, this party (unlike individual owners) does not cover move-​in fees and other costs which are normally covered by the owner. So, it creates a bad situation for owners and renters alike, and it forces the building to create and enforce stricter rules as a way of managing this problem. All the more reason why I would suggest renting elsewhere.

I have 5 words to say: Be ready to get FINED. This is honestly how this apartment functions and makes money. Even the security personnel agree and I am happy to know that other (ex)-tenants who feel the same way.
While yes this is a condo and there are rules, does this building not know the concept of WARNINGS? Petty things such as ‘noise violation’ will result a $ 200 fine. I am a respectful tenant and when someone complains, I always turn down the volume, but for this building warning do not exist and an instant fine will be imposed.
Some of the other fines that were imposed on my unit were COMPLETELY unjustified. We told Nancy (current building manager) that we were going to have an in-​bound delivery as we were buying our friend’s furniture and belongings and apparently she considered this as a ‘move-​in’ and tacked on a $ 500 fine. We made it clear and even quoted off the bylaws that that a 15 minute delivery is allowed AS LONG as management is notified, which we did…
Let’s see, my unit was also blamed for letting in a trespasser come in the building when I thought he was just another tenant BECAUSE I obviously know each person’s face in this 300 units building.
My unit also was falsely threatened by a lawsuit, that I believe is actually one of the board members.
OVERALL:
Cons:
+Be ready to cough up some $$ for fines. I do not recommend living here if you are in your early 20s (and even mid-​upper 20s) and still like to have fun. Management is not understanding at all and will just mercilessly fine you for the smallest things.
Pros:
+There are NONE!
Stayed here for a year and am fed-​up of it

I would have to agree with Todd K below. The condo association here makes it difficult on purpose for renters. They say they allow dogs but then tenants are constantly bickering about them. I myself have been fined HUNDREDS of dollars for not complying with some of their endless rules. This money then goes into the association’s pocket. Like any condo association, this condo association has way too much time on their hands. I honestly feel like all the cameras that have been recently installed all over the building are less for the security of the tenants and more for catching renters «breaking rules.» When I was fined, they referenced the video to make their claim.
Also, the majority of the tenants are friendly but some are very grumpy. Speaking of grumpy, most of the doormen are super unpleasant. I understand why though. Their «boss» is the property manager who has an office right in the building. I would not want to have her as a boss. So, these doormen are constantly quitting and they are replacing them. The property manager enforces all the association rules and there are constant postings in the elevators and common areas talking about their rules. The building offers a dry cleaning service but this is outrageously over priced.
I only lived here for one year because I could not tolerate this building any longer.

Are you someone that thrives on militant rules and so many of them that you can’t keep them straight? Then look no further than 525 prison place! The association is ruled by miserable geriatrics that get off on creating even more rules all enforced with unrealistic fines. They roam the public spaces in hopes of finding things to complain about and get others in trouble for. Every week will be some form of negative email that comes from the property management company to scold and remind tenants of the over-​the-​top rules.
Security: paid for mall cops that make your life a living hell. Mike, the head mall cop will never greet you as you arrive, do whatever the hell he wants and instructs his other mall cops to treat the tenants as he does. The turn over is so bad because of mike yet no one does anything because to the old miserable people of the building, mike is like a Viagra pill and they can finally get off on his miserable demeanor as well.
Bottom line: avoid this concentration camp at all costs. You don’t want to be like us and be miserable counting the days until we could finally get out of that building.

As a real estate agent, I have dealt with many condo associations, and 525 Hawthorne stands out heads and shoulders above the rest. It is has a new property manager, Dan Ortiz of Sudler Management, who is one of the hardest working, service-​oriented professionals I have ever met. He juggled the simultaneous and sometimes opposing needs, of many parties with fairness and politeness — not an easy job! Everyone I have met in this building loves, loves, loves, living here! The building has won awards, and the staff — Mike, Tiffany and Greg are amazing people. For those tenants who left negative reviews, I don’t think they understand that this is a condo association, not a rental building, and as such, they signed on and agreed to live under the condo rules — if living in a condo building with high standards doesn’t work for them, then they should make their choice elsewhere. The management company is there to serve the needs of the owners who pay assessments. As a condo building, I think this is really a hidden gem with one of the best staffs around.

This building and condo association is a total scam, talk about sleezy!
Multiply your total rent by 2 in order to calculate how much you will actually be paying to live in this building. The actual total cost we put down for our 2 bedroom apartment in moving was 5,750!!! As a renter expect to pay a $ 100 application fee, one months rent security deposit, PLUS $ 500 moving security deposit, PLUS $ 500 NONREFUNDABLE move-​in deposit, AND 1^st months rent all when you sign the lease. There will additionally be a $ 500 NONREFUNDABLE move-​OUT deposit (yes half of an entire months rent just in NONREFUNDABLE MOVING FEES). Ridiculous right? THis is not even taking into account that there are no weekends moves allowed, scheduling moving is impossible, and if the 1^st of the month falls on the weekend and so you have to move on let’s say the Wednesday before since there is no weekend moving allowed (which the chances of that moving time being open are slim to none) you are actually expected to pay the three or four extra days rent (when it is their fault they cannot accomodate you)!!! That is not even taking into account the hundreds of dollars in absurd and excessive fines you will likely receive during your time living in the building. WE WERE CHARGED $ 650 IN MOVE IN FINES FOR MOVING IN AN HOUR PAST OUR MOVE IN TIME! There are over 70 pages of «building rules» but the bottom line is it really doesn’t matter if you are following them or not, they will charge you when they want whatever they want. BEWARE of the lease you sign at this place, which states you must follow all rules and regulations and the rules and regs can change at any time (so literally they can legally decide on day to charge you a million dollars everytime you step out in the hallway and I wouldn’t put it past them).
The type of business being conducted by both the condo association of this building and the management companies associated with this building (ahem…SUDLER) are just plain skeezy and greedy. Expect little to no response or help with any matters not relevant to collecting your money or picking you up as a renter (concerns in regards to questions about the lease, repairs etc, will all be ignored).
Don’t support sketchy and greedy management companies and condo associations abusing and using renters to pay for building repairs! Don’t live in this building it’s so not worth it!
The location kind of sucks too. An entire mile from the red line and not that close to grocery shopping. Elevator is very slow, takes 8 to 10 minutes just to get out of the building. Parking is awful, parking in building is $ 250 a month and not currently available.

I lived here my sophomore year of college. The place is an older building that has been remodeled so it is pretty nice, however the «board of directors» are terrible. They are pretty much old bitter folks who hate young people and renters. They will find the smallest reasons to fine you and drive you out if you are either under young or renting. $ 200 fine for having the tv too high at 7pm during the playoffs! $ 100 fine for bringing glass olive oil bottle to the patio when grilling! They use the revenue from the fines from renters to pay for upgrades to the building to keep owners association fees down. 2 stars only because I have great memories here.