Truly enjoyed my time at Karen Arms apartments up until the new management took over. I lived there for 4 years and never had any issues, loved the apartment, location, and neighbors. Unfortunately when the new management took over and rebranded to Royal Arms, things took a turn for the worse. We started having issues with hot water and occasionally had water turned off without any notice. Previously when an emergency caused water to be shut off we'd get instant notice either in person or over... the phone. Once the new management took over, I had to call the office about coming home to no water and the response I got was "oh yea it will be back on within the hour". It's unacceptable to not notify tenants that the water was to be shut off even in an emergency. This happened many times, and only one of those times was due to the road construction. Even though they did get slightly better at notifying us about water shut offs, there were still times when it was shut off without a word from management. We also started having trouble with water pressure and water temp, leading to our showers occasionally going super cold, super hot, or reducing water flow so much that it wasn't enough to even rinse off the soap we just lathered on. Not to mention the multiple times the hot water was just non-existent. With new management also came constant construction, often even on weekends early in the morning. The construction happening in apartments in our hall often meant the hall was filled with dust which is unsafe to breathe and often nails were left scattered on the floor in common hall space. The few times they would give warning about an upgrade that would be happening to or around our apartment, they didn't even show up when they said they would. The new management was extremely flakey, and often hard to get ahold of. Our deposit got lost in the mail and though we were told they'd follow up promptly via email after they spoke with accounting, we didn't get any response to follow up emails and had to go in person twice to finally get our deposit back. Be weary of the flakey management and greedy owner. Read More

The remodelled unit in these pictures is not representative of most of the units, which don’t have dishwashers! The buildings needs maintenance on gutters, doors & frames, windows, electrical wiring, etc which IMO should take priority over the cosmetic improvements like new countertops. Management seems understaffed for the number of residents & underequipped for even routine maintenance requests, and on top of all that my 2 bedroom unit had a 20% rent increase in this year (some of my... neighbors saw a 40% increase), with additional fees added on for things like parking and heat that had previously been included. Not worth your money . Read More

I've lived at Royal Arms (previously Karen Arms) for several years, and it's been downhill since Orosz Properties took over. These buildings were built in the 1960s and are not in great shape. Orosz is making a bunch of aesthetic changes to make it look nice on the outside, but they neglect serious maintenance concerns. Not only that, but the price of rent shot up so much it literally made the news (look up “West-side Madison tenants fight back” on Isthmus, for example).

The buildings are... poorly insulated, have corroded pipes (leading to frequent clogging and occasional brown water), and have sunken sections of floor. Several balcony railings are rusted through. The heat in several buildings is malfunctioning so that it is either always weak or is completely on/off when people adjust the thermostat. The lights in several hallways have gone out, making it hard to see, especially for the older tenants, but Orosz hasn't cared to replace the bulbs even though it's been weeks or months.

The previous landlord had decent management and great maintenance. Nowadays, management and maintenance are extremely poor. The front office staff is not very responsive or helpful, and management has shown up to people's units without giving the legally required 12-hour notice. My maintenance requests take several weeks to complete, they are marked as complete on the online portal before they actually are (meaning I had to submit additional requests for the same things), and when maintenance finally comes they do a poor job and show up at their leisure with no notice. A few times, maintenance had to come and go several times to try and fix some issues, but even after they were "done" the issues weren't fixed. They even left my door open one time, which was a risk to my cats. They also shut the water off in my building with no notice to tenants.

In the new leases being offered by Orosz, they pass the costs of light bulbs, batteries, and laundry machine repairs off to tenants. Speaking of laundry, Orosz raised the price from $1.75 per load to $4 per load. To my knowledge, this is the most expensive laundry in Madison.

Orosz seems single-mindedly focused on making money and they do not care about the well-being of tenants. I would seriously NOT recommend moving here. You can find other places in the area and in Madison with similar amenities for cheaper, or places with much better amenities for a similar price.
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Royal Arms was a fantastic place to live for many people for many decades until Orosz Properties bought the property in August 2023. They immediately increased rent for all current residents by 20-40% and only gave residents 2 weeks to respond to lease renewals. They've taken several weeks to respond to maintenance requests and often do not give tenants notice when workers will be coming in when they finally get to your maintenance request. They have also more than doubled the cost of laundry to... $4 per load. All of these price increases do not match the quality of the property because there are 0 amenities and heat and water is not included. You will be paying for heat in the summer months and even if you do not use it. Do not give these people your money. Read More

THE GOOD: They respond quickly to needed repairs. The grounds are lovely, with lots of old, big trees despite the loss of some to disease. Lots of birds. Garage space (in addition to the off-street lot space included with the rent) for a reasonable added fee. For those whose taste leans that way, units still have the Mid-Century "retro" feel. Lots of closet and pantry space. Although new listings are priced to reflect high rates in the area, the owner is reasonable and restrained, with... respect to annual increases for existing tenants, and didn't gouge us to make up for Covid losses. I also received 100% of my deposit back.

THE BAD: When they get around to it, staff does a pretty good job of clearing snow and ice after a storm; however, they're often very slow to get started. Management has been very slow to replace the nearly-invisible apartment-number labels on the doorbells outside each building, so you may have people randomly ringing your bell at night. Despite Postal Service directives to ensure all mailboxes clearly show each unit number, you may find yourself scolded by management if you dare to put your own clear label on your box. If you opt for an upper (second floor) unit, so as to not have any noise above you, note: Unlike the second floor, first floor units are NOT carpeted at all. Beware idiot neighbors whose hobby is dragging heavy furniture noisily across the bare floors.

THE UGLY: Drafty in winter. The builders probably installed your thermostat in the living room (where the heat enters the apartment) - instead of near the center of the apartment, where it should have been placed. As a result, you may find the bedrooms too cold, and the living room too hot (and living room windows may not be opened during cold weather, lest the heating pipes in that room freeze and burst - at great expense to you). Management treats the building water for hardness, but hasn't learned how to do it correctly. Water that is too SOFT will leave slippery soap scum all over your body after every shower (and on your towels). You may also have a bizarre ceiling exhaust fan in the bathroom which, inexplicably, blows more air DOWN than is sucked out. Management will claim that this is normal.

Soundproofing does a pretty good job of blocking music and TV noise, but not the sound of cupboards, doors and drawers when your neighbors slam them. You will find the sound of all of your neighbors' PLUMBING to be astonishingly, and annoyingly, loud. Read More