Puri Kemayoran is an aging, budget apartment complex featuring 2 towers of 27 floors. It was one of the worst residences I visited in Jakarta and I really don’t recommend staying or buying there. It is dirty, in a terrible condition and probably unsafe.

Still, here is a short review about it. You can add your own comment and rating at the end of the article.

Location

Note that the following section is partly copied from my review of Springhill Terrace Residences which is about 1,000 meters away from Puri Kemayoran.

Neighborhood

In which neighborhood of Jakarta is the complex located?
Puri Kemayoran, as its name suggests, is is in Kemayoran, a subdistrict of North Jakarta. The Jakarta airport used to be there until 1985, after which it was transferred to Halim Perdanakusuma (and then Cengkareng).

On the empty land of the airport, several projects have been built: A golf course, the Jakarta International Expo Convention Center (JIExpo), some hotels, and several apartment towers.

Generally speaking, the area surrounding the golf course is rather luxurious (with The Mansion and Springhill), while the rest is middle-class. There is also a rusunami (low-class, subsidized housing) next to Mediterania.

How does it look like around the apartments?
When you exit Puri Kemayoran, you have a large road with some street sellers and not too many cars. There isn’t much to do except going to the supermarket in Mediterania (across the street) or to buy some food. The cleanliness is an issue.

Something I liked was that at night, you have many vendors outside (food, clothes, etc) and it becomes very lively.

By car, with normal traffic conditions, how far is the complex from:
– Jakarta Airport: 50 minutes
– Grand Indonesia Mall: 40 minutes
– Kota Tua: 30 minutes
– Kemang: 70 minutes

What are the important landmarks nearby?

Nearby, there are several landmarks you can go to:

Malls:
The main issue with Kemayoran at the moment is that there isn’t a proper mall nearby. One is under construction about 4 kilometers away in the Menara Jakarta complex (built by Agung Sedayu Group), but it will only open after 2020.

In the meantime, you will have to go to Mall of Indonesia or Mall Artha Gading, more than 7 kilometers away.

Supermarkets:
The nearest supermarket is a Giant Supermarket in Mediterania Kemayoran Apartments. There is also a Hypermart in Mega Glodok Kemayoran (MGK). For better products, I recommend going to Daily Foodhall in the basement of The Mansion at Kemayoran (8 minutes away by car).

Restaurants:
There aren’t any nice restaurants nearby, but you can find some street food easily. The hygiene of some stalls is not good, though. At night, you have a lot more choice for eating.

If you want clean restaurants, you should go to Food Centrum, a food mall with approximately 20 restaurants (about IDR50,000 to IDR100,000 per person, serving mostly Asian food) which is about 2.5 kilometers away.

Bars and Nightlife:
None at the moment. The closest “normal” bars would be in Kelapa Gading or Pantai Indah Kapuk. In JIExpo, there are often important concerts or festivals as well (for instance, the Djakarta Warehouse Festival).

Universities:
There are no major universities nearby.

Schools and Preschools:
Gandhi International School (Indian International School) is only 900 meters away. A bit further, there are also Universal School and Jubilee School, both popular with Indonesian Chinese families.

A preschool, SunnyVille, is located in the basement of Springhill Terrace Residences.

Hospitals:
The closest one is Rumah Sakit Mitra Kemayoran.

Parks:
Ancol is 15-20 minutes from the apartment. There, you have an artificial beach and several amusement parks.

Offices:
There are not many office buildings nearby. The Central Business District of Jakarta is at least 40 minutes away.

Transportation

What are the main roads or highways nearby?
Puri Kemayoran is next to Jalan Benyamin Sueb, a road connecting Kemayoran and Ancol. It is not a toll road, but it looks like it as it is really wide. It doesn’t have much traffic on it, generally. Another important road is Jalan Danau Sunter, which goes to Kelapa Gading.

What is the traffic situation near the apartment?
For now, the traffic is reasonable on the main roads around Kemayoran. However, there are some long U-turns that you need to make to make, causing you to waste precious time even if you just want to go somewhere close.

Is it easy for taxis/GrabCar to find the location?
It is fairly easy.

Is there a Transjakarta bus stop nearby?
Two halts are potentially interesting, but they are both about 10 minutes walking distance from the apartments:
– Halte JIExpo is the last stop of the line 2C that starts in Monas.
– Kemayoran Landas Pacu Timur is a stop on line 12 going from Penjaringan to Tanjung Priok.

Both the lines 2C and 12 have a dedicated corridor.

Is there a train station nearby?
Kemayoran Station is 4 kilometers away. It is a stop on the yellow line going from Bogor to Jatinegara.

How about the MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) or LRT (Light Rapid Transit)?
There is no project of having an MRT or LRT station near Kemayoran for now.

Are there sidewalks? Is it possible to walk around?
There are decent sidewalks around Puri Kemayoran but it is quite dirty and not too pleasant to walk.

Building Quality

Building and Architecture

What is the reputation of the developer?
The developer of Puri Kemayoran seems to be PT Gunung Geulis Elok Abadi, an opaque company that is probably linked to Suharto’s cronies. The same company is also behind Royal Sentul Highlands.

I always advise avoiding this kind of groups as the management is often not professional.

Who is the architect?
The architect may have been PT Tunas Jaya Sanur, a company based in Bali that built several luxury hotels and villas.

Who is the contractor?
The contractor was probably PT Tunas Jaya Sanur as well.

What is the situation with the land certificate?
An important thing to know before buying an apartment in Kemayoran is that most of the land is owned by the Government (including the land on which Puri Kemayoran is built). This means the developer only has a land certificate called HGB di atas HPL. It is not full ownership (Hak Milik).

This certificate is valid for 50 years, but then it is not sure what will happen. The developer might extend the permit, or he might give the property back to the Government. What is almost certain is that the owners of apartments will have to pay something, or worse, lose their apartment.

Design and Appearance

How does the building look like?

From Outside (Facade)

Puri Kemayoran Towers

Puri Kemayoran Facade

The design of Puri Kemayoran is fine, but the maintenance is so bad that it really doesn’t look attractive. It would need serious repainting to be ok.

Entrance:
The entrance looks average:

Entrance Puri Kemayoran

Exit Puri Kemayoran

Entrance Lobby Puri Kemayoran

Reception:
The reception is a bit old and messy, but I enjoyed the fact that the floor is made of marble tiles. I guess that a long time ago, it was decent but not anymore.

Lobby Puri Kemayoran

Reception Puri Kemayoran

Landscaping:
The garden and public areas are not well-maintained.

Parking Puri Kemayoran

Landscaping Puri Kemayoran

Corridors:
Surprisingly, in an acceptable condition, apart from a terrible sewer smell.

Corridors Puri Kemayoran

Doors Puri Kemayoran

How spacious are the apartments?
The apartments size corresponds to the standards of a midrange property:

– 1-bedroom units = 36m2 up to 68m2 (1 bathroom)
– 2-bedroom units = 78m2  and 86m2 (2 bathrooms)
– 3-bedroom units = 98m2 (3 bathrooms)

Materials, Equipment, and Finishes

What is the quality of the materials, furniture, and equipment used in the construction?
This is an evaluation of the quality I observed (ranked from 1 – worst – to 10 – best):

Tiles Lobby: 6
Tiles Corridors: 4
Tiles Apartment: 4
Painting: 3
Lighting: 4
Doors: 4
Ceiling: 4
Elevator: 4
Gym equipment: 2
Pool equipment: 2
Furniture: 3
Artwork: 3

Overall Quality: 4/10

What is the quality of the finishes?
The building is too old for me to evaluate the quality of the finishes.

Comfort

Facilities and Services

What are the facilities provided in the property?

– Swimming pool: The surroundings are not appealing, but the water is clean. A small kids pool is attached.

Swimming Pool Puri Kemayoran

– Gym: It is old, with semi-amateur machines:

Gym Fitness Puri Kemayoran

– Kids’ Playground:

Garden Kids Playground Puri Kemayoran

– A games room:

Game Room Puri Kemayoran

Game Room Ping Pong Puri Kemayoran

– A football court:

Football Court Puri Kemayoran

What are the services available within the property?
A few services are available: A convenient minimarket in the ground floor, a laundry, and an ATM.

Are there issues with the electricity supply?
I don’t have any information about this.

Are their issues with parking?
There seemed to be enough parking space as I noticed that an old jeep was abandoned there for several years (see the second picture):

Old Jeep in Parking Puri Kemayoran

How many lifts are there in each tower?
There are 3 lifts per tower. The condition is ok.

Lifts Puri Kemayoran

Does the apartment have centralized hot water?
No, you will need an electric water heater.

What is the air-conditioning system used?
There is no central air-cooling system so each unit has its own individual electric AC.

Atmosphere

Is the property busy?
It is normal.

Is it noisy?
I didn’t have any issues with noise.

What is the background (ethnicity, social status) and attitude of residents?
Residents are mixed, Indonesian pribumi with Indonesian Chinese. I didn’t see any expat.

Management

Maintenance

How old is the property?
I don’t have this information.

Are there visible damages?
Yes, plenty. The maintenance of the property is terrible. Here are a few pictures to help you realize:

Bad Maintenance Puri Kemayoran

Bad Maintenance Garden Puri Kemayoran

Pergola Puri Kemayoran

Cleanliness

Some areas are ok, but overall it is not a clean property. For instance, I saw cockroaches several times in the corridors.

Gardening

The garden is not well-maintained.

Security

– Guards on duty at the gates and reception: 24/7
– CCTV cameras: No.
– Access card: Yes, you need an access card to enter the lift area. 

Safety

There is potentially a fire risk as the property once received a red flag from the local government for non-compliance to fire regulations.

Hospitality

The staff was friendly and professional.

Rooms and Prices

Prices at Puri Kemayoran may vary depending on many factors such as the floor, the unit type, the room condition and the furnishings.

Be aware that you may also need to pay for additional fees: Service charge, parking fee, electricity and water bills, etc. Here are a few examples of prices and ratios for this property:

2+1-Bedroom Type (72m2) – Well-furnished:

• Rental 1 Year: IDR 60 million (or 5 million per month)
• Buy: IDR 750,000,000
• Break Even Point (Buying Price/Gross Annual Rental): 12.5 years
• Average buying price/m2: IDR 10.4 million/m2

Investment Potential

Is there a potential for a price increase in the future?

No, unless the developer invests some serious money to refurbish the whole property.

Overall evaluation of the price: Would I buy here?
No, unless there is a clear plan to renovate the apartments.