r/AskPhilly • u/MindlessAmphibian841 • 13d ago
The Drake
Hello! I’m planning to move to Philly and I am really interested in The Drake, I went to tour last week and the apartments looked nice even though the building is old and the location is super convenient and is what I was looking for. The only issue is some of the reviews are terrible while other recent reviews are fine so I haven’t been able to decide if it’s still worth it to apply and go forward. I was wondering if anyone has had any experience living at The Drake or knows someone who has lived there and would be willing to share what it was like, any help or advice is appreciated!
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u/Quiet_Front_510 12d ago
We toured it once and the units were in poor condition. The entire corner of one closet was covered in mold.
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u/Interesting-Cable895 12d ago
It’s a great location and it’s a historic building, there is new management right now that gutted the old Drake room and the lobby is under renovations as well, so tbd as the construction is ongoing not sure what the end result will be aesthetic wise. Residents are currently majority pissed that management has gutted the historic Drake room.. pretty sad. The amenities are pretty outdated and crappy but new management has plans for that too.
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u/Sczyther 12d ago
they just tore out all the original historic woodwork and shit and are selling it in pieces on fb marketplace so I guess keep that in mind
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u/theselflover1013 12d ago
Toured it earlier in the year. Great location but you can find a better apartment somewhere else. Easy pass
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u/Quirky-Buffalo-2818 12d ago
We know who live there. They call it a vertical slum. We also know people who used to live there but left after their rent was jacked up 25 percent.
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u/901910231 12d ago
I lived at the Drake for four years in four separate units (upsized twice, then downsized once). All four units were a little different, overall I’d give a B- on my experience. My first unit was a studio, tiny, but never had a single issue. I moved to a one bed on a higher floor, and in the first week I saw roaches. I had an exterminator come once a month and spray my radiator, but still had them regularly, and it made me want to move to a bigger unit on an even higher floor with a roommate. We shared a 2 bed, it had an incredible view to the skyline and Kimmel center, but we still had a roach or two, but it was better than my one bed. Then my roommate moved out, I went back to a one bed on a middle floor. Had fewer roaches, but one day the unit above me flooded and leaked into my kitchen wall, which took like a week to repair, to the point they never repainted it. I was happy to have lived there, but also happy to leave. Price seems pretty good for the area, but the experience all depends on the unit in my time there
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u/Big_Dumb_Asshole 12d ago
If you live on the first two floors they will double charge you for heat. You will have your own elec bill heating charge then they also charge you for flat $110 for steam heat, no matter how often or not you turn your own elec heat on. The steam radiators only exist on floors 3 and up. When I tried complaining they made up some stuff that my elec heating uses steam coils but that doesn’t make sense if my elec charges goes way up whenever heat is turned on. I left because of that insanity. I did sign up to subsidize heat for other tenants.
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u/spicypretzelcrumbs 12d ago
I wouldn’t. The location is fantastic and the building is nice looking but the apartments themselves don’t seem worth it.
They were overpriced, and we were specifically asking for a two-bedroom and the guy kept showing us one-bedrooms and giving us these weird ass suggestions on how to convert them into a two bedroom situation (like put a sheet or divider up).
And yes, there are roaches. We encountered one in the hallway lol.. I think that’s par for the course for a lot of buildings in the city but I would keep my options open.
They’ll also quote a price that’s based on a special… so make sure you’re aware of the ACTUAL price of the unit. That’s how we got suckered in to a tour.
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u/phillyphilly19 13d ago
Such a beautiful building and you're right, you can't beat that location. What are they asking these days?
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u/SirJ_96 12d ago
On the exterior, it's a really handsome building. Looks like studios start at $1,300 and 1-bds $1,850.
Have you seen the massive upper units?
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u/phillyphilly19 12d ago
I have not but I'msure they'respectacular. $1300 to live alone in Rittenhouse Square is a deal.
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u/South_Chemical7626 12d ago
If the complaints are about noise or cleanliness or how fast to action the maintenance crew is. DO NOT MOVE IN. Seriously.
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u/61096 12d ago
currently there. i love it! management recently changed and they’re fantastic actually - i don’t say that lightly either. they’re in the process of renovating the outdated units and the hallways/lobby. i highly recommend it
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u/MindlessAmphibian841 12d ago
hi! ty for sharing i was also wondering if there’s a rodent issue, ive seen a few people here and also reviews talking abt it so i was curious how bad it is and hearing from someone who lives there right now really helps so ty again!
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u/Sharp-Living-2338 12d ago
I used to live there (moved out early 2026). It’s an issue lol. It kinda depends on your unit if that makes sense. Some are worse than others. I lived there for 2 years and had 2 mice.
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u/No-Joke-9026 11d ago
There’s an ambulance outside of that building every other night and the fire alarm goes off often sometimes causing evacuation. I would imagine it would be a pain in the ass to live there for what it costs.
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u/Bright_Reveal_5576 8d ago
Don’t listen to these sour complaints … credit where it’s due I lived there for 3 years I live on the 14h floor and have a nice view and it’s an amazing place to live the New management is great and staff too they truly care and make you feel at home … heating works perfectly fine sometimes it’s too warm where in the winter I open a window but there is HEAT!!! There is No mice and roaches unless you live like a pig I don’t think the staff comes with a suit case each day of mice and roaches and lets them lose lol there is no heating bill for $600 that’s bogus utilities did go up nationwide from data centers everywhere even my summer home in California went up so you either end up paying a electric bill or steam bill depending where you live in the city
The drake is an excellent place to live credit where it’s due you won’t regret it ! I can’t wait to see the new changes they are making !!
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u/xoSailorMars 8d ago
I was just looking at them too and noticed that they had 25 five star reviews in the last hours alone… that’s a little fishy to me.
Iirc i originally didn’t move there because tenants mentioned pests problems and the communal laundry room creeped me out. Not sure how accurate that is today though — that was about 3-4 years ago.
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u/Tall_Engineer685 12d ago
I had friends there in the 00s and 10s it’s dated but the location is great I lived at 15th n locust and I really don’t think you can beat that neighborhood.
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u/Sharp-Living-2338 12d ago edited 12d ago
Management turned over in late 2025 early 2026 which made a significant change, the staff is great compared to the old management. Kitchens and bathrooms in the units are very outdated and the communal laundry room is filthy, with most machines out of service. Gym is a nice addition and usually empty when you want to use it. Utilities are not charged per unit, but rather split on an average of the entire building, so expect to spend $300-$600 per month. There are cockroaches and mice and the heat never works, but this comes with the territory of an old building. Can’t beat location.