The Munsey

I really wanted to love this place but goodness gracious Munsey, you made it hard. No heat for over 30 days, elevators constantly breaking down, sporadic concierge hours and less than ideal parking. Argosy Café, Concierge (Vincent), Sales (Kristine) and Maintenance (John & James) were the best things about the building.
If you want to live downtown, look at other options!

I lived at The Munsey for 3 years and really enjoyed my time there. If not for relocating I would still be living there. The location is great to the Inner Harbor. If you are a runner or work out enthusiast then this is the spot for you. Merritt Fitness has two locations that are within running distance of The Munsey. The staff is friendly and accommodating to most reasonable requests. Building is quiet and the people are nice. The newly added restaurant and bar is a nice touch for when you want to grab a quick bite to eat or have a night cap. I highly recommend The Munsey as a place to live in Baltimore City.

Where the location is convenient to the inner Harbor it seems to be extremely noisy The construction with road traffic and the nearby nightclub wake you up each and every night. Hope you don’t have a noisy neighbor as it seems management does little to address issues. As most apartment management companies would address your problems they seem to be more concerned about driving occupancy while letting better tenants suffer. The units are updated and appointed well but a few maintenance issues took multiple calls and months to get corrected. This is probably because of the revolving door of staff. I don’t know if the grass is greener on the other side of the fence but we will give it a try as the area is being flooded with brand-​new renovated units at a more competitive price.

I moved into the Munsey under old mgmt (Buzzuto), which was great! However, the last year has been unpleasant to say the least. New mgmt (Village Green) front office staff is ghetto and unprofessional. Over the last yr, there have been lots of issues with the building. During the summer I went 3 wks with no air conditioning and the elevators stopped working. No letter or compensation. In the last 2 wks there has been water leaks everywhere. Today, there is no heat in my apartment (it’s 30 degrees outside). Not to mention, there are huge rats in the garage, and they have the nerve to charge «luxury apt» prices. There are only 2 maintenance guys. One is helpful, but doesn’t live on the premises. What does that tell you? The other lives in the building but is no help at all. You can always catch the worthless one sitting outside people watching and smoking a cigarette. Also, they got rid of our security, so I dont feel safe. I requested to get out of my lease early, but was refused.

My husband and I loved living in the Munsey. The location was fantastic (just blocks to Inner Harbor, as well as close to Charles St and all the restaurants that go with it), the apartments were extremely spacious (my 1 bed, 1.5 bath had as much square footage as my old 2 bed, 2 bath), and the price was right. All perfectly good apartment qualities. But what really made it for me was MICHELE AND JASON. I would live an infested cardboard box to have them as my apartment managers. They answer any email within the hour and always have a smiling face. My husband and I recently moved out after buying our first place, and we still get emails from Jason asking how the new place is, just checking in. They’re just really great people.
Now, the critical eye comes out: Yes, parking is strange, but you’ll get used to it. It does tend to annoy while they’re training new people, which they seemed to be doing a lot right before we left. The kitchens could be redone to either become the gourmet kitchens they tout on their website or moved more toward the vintage feel of the building (like the bathrooms – beautiful penny tile and pedestal sinks) – as it is, they’re just cheap 1980’s jobs. Also, wood or marble floors would go a lot farther to maintain the elegant feel of the building. I understand carpet is cheaper, but you get what you pay for.
Overall, I would recommend to anyone that wants the city experience. The location can’t be beat (aside from The Block being RIGHT THERE), and the price was great.

I have lived at Munsey since June 2011. After over 1 year, I am moving secondary to job placement. I will say I am sad to leave the great building, but I am also very sad to leave the amazing staff. I live in a 1 bedroom 1.5 bath. The rent is competitive and the building offered great incentives for leasing. New renovations in the hallways, including carpeting, makes for a great looking building and out.
Jason and Michelle in the management office are amazing. They are available by email at off hours and always work to remedy any concerns. For example, my a/​c broke in the summer (as is often the case in any Baltimore apt) and they ensured quick repair. I can’t stress how great Jason and Michelle are. I recently viewed apartments for my move (again, because of my job), and realize how important it is to have staff who care about the tenants. They are committed to ensuring that residents are happy– and this really shows. They are very conscientious, friendly, hardworking, and personable. I really will be sad to move.
The building is secure with guards at night. Emilio, one of the night guards, is very dedicated android his job. He hand delivers packages to tenants and walks all 18 floors (2 separate stairwells) multiple times per night. And so friendly!
I have cats; but cats and dogs alike, the building is pet friendly. Staff even offered to check on and feed my 2 cats while I was gone. Parking offered at a cost, but for downtown parking the price is a good deal. Visitors can easily find street parking on weekends and evening hours.
Located a few streets from the inner harbor, this apartment was a 5 min walk to restaurants, bars, and shopping. Perfect location for me to walk to my work building downtown.
Definitely recommend this apartment. No questions.

My experience at the Munsey had been great until Bozzuto took over in Dec 2010. I had been living there since Summer of 2009; my lease was a 1 year lease and when it was up, I wanted to resign it for a 6 month lease or go on month to month lease (as my employment in Md was temporary). They were going to raise the rent by $ 200 and charge me a month to fee for $ 200!!! So my rent was going to increase by $ 400 per month. Even though I had been living in the building and paying rent, the Management did not help me. (that apt is now vacant and there is no rent coming in). Before Bozzuto took over, the rent was low, included utilities and parking. For someone in a transitional position, it was a bargain. All new leases now have to pay for utilities and parking separately.
Now about the building; the building has great bones. It is architecturally very beautiful however, the gym is awful. There is no air conditioning in the gym, the equipment is old and doesn’t work. The lobby always smells like food from the two restaurants on site. The restaurants are only open during business hours and closed on weekends. The building is a few blocks from the ‘Strip’. Lot’s of suspicious activity/​people in the area. You can always hear loud sirens and if you are closer to the ground floor, you can hear people on the street waiting for the bus (there are two bus stops on site). What’s worse is that the parking, although on site, is horrendous. The parking attendants are awful. There is NO self parking and a parking attendant will park your car. Although this sounds fabulous (Ohh valet parking!), it takes the attendants FOREVER to get your ready. Sometimes you wait for 20 minutes even though you have called in adance to keep the car ready. Plus the attendants really scratched up my car and they are always high on pot or drinking!
The apartments are not bad. The carpeting is old anf filthy. The AC units are adequately sized so if its 90 degrees outsude, you will feel it. I don’t know how the building passed code as non of the windows open. They are bolted shut or if they open, they do not have springs and cannot stay open without being propped up by a can or bottle. Plus they have no screens so all the bugs fly right into the apt. Some of the apartments have great layouts with good storage however, if you get stuck at a corner apt (like mine) there are two small closets for the entire apt! This barely fit my clothes, let alone storage items (like suitcases and books etc). There is very little cabinet space in the kitchens and the fixtures are old and dated.
My overall ending note would be, DO NOT RENT HERE. You pay average of $ 2000 on rent for a 2 bedroom and get nothing but headache for your money.

The one thing the Munsey has best going for them is their location. Honestly, I can leave the front door and walk to the Inner Harbor in less than 5 minutes. That makes things pretty sweet. Of course being downtown has its drawbacks as well. Baltimore street is to the back of the building… if you’re not familiar with the area, let’s just acquaint you: Baltimore street– home of strip clubs and prostitutes. ‘Nuff said. I worked nights at one of the hospitals, and walked to work every evening. I didn’t feel unsafe, but definitely needed to keep a watchful eye out. (Don’t talk to strangers, and keep your wallet close!)
I’ve entertained friends, and they all LOVE my apartment. They can’t get over how great it is, and the view is pretty sweet, too. But living here everyday is a little different.
People here are pretty quiet — I almost never see or hear my neighbors, but the other sounds can overwhelm you. The heater is LOUD. I mean jet engine loud. I have to turn it off sometimes just to take phone calls or give my ears a rest. As for AC, I couldn’t tell you– I haven’t been here during the warm months– but trust me, you’ll have to use AC, because the windows are bolted shut. This corner is also the path of the paramedics heading towards Mercy & other hospitals — so you’ll hear a lot of sirens. (Thanks Baltimore Medic #2– you are heavy on your horn, whoever you are!!) I don’t know how windows that are double paned and bolted shut leak so much air and sound, but they do. I laid a towel around the window in my bedroom because I found it was so drafty there.
The building is old, and has great architecture. The fixtures aren’t cheapie like you see sometimes in apartments, and the layouts are really great– spacious & room in closets. Staying on one of the higher floors, I’d gotten used to the elevators, but I discovered how beautiful their marble stairwells are. (They could use a refinish, but they really ooze old lavish beauty!) Yeah, marble– real marble, with solid wood railings. If you’re into old treasures rather than new shiny things you’ll appreciate the details here.
Parking is strange. They contract their parking to a 3^rd party company and it’s all valet. The valet guys are pretty nice, but I still can’t get used to the whole call-​ahead to have your car ready thing… that’s just me. Many people love it. Just know that’s how it works around here.
But the Munsey is going through some weird changes right now and I’d be a tad hesitant to sign a lease until you ask a lot of questions… a LOT. They’ve just changed their management, & I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt that they’re planning on fixing this place– otherwise they’d get 2 stars. ~ For example, they had a «business center» when I first moved in here– like 3 computers, a printer & a fax machine. The internet was «out» when I first moved in, so I had no access to check my email until my cable modem was hooked up. Not only has the internet never been fixed, but they’ve since removed all the computers & machines from there. Yeah, it’s now must an empty room. And their common area had couches and a widescreen TV. The TV is gone. It’s an empty room with a couch now. The fitness center has 2 treadmills– only one of which has worked for as long as I have known… There’s a water cooler in the fitness center, and I’ve honestly never seen any water in it.
The Munsey has a lot of potential, and I think they know that — but right this second I’d hold off on signing a lease — it’s pretty expensive here, and if you’re going to pay that high of rent, you really want some of the amenities they claim to have!