Menara Latumenten

by | Feb 6, 2020

Menara Latumenten is a subsidized residential complex that consists of one 18-floor tower which is itself divided into 5 blocks: A, B, C, D and E. Completed in 2010 by the group Margahayuland Development, it has a total of 1,050 units ranging from studios (23m2) to 2-bedroom apartments (35m2).

I slept in this property for one night in 2019 and here is my review of it:

Location

Note: This section is partly copied from my review of Seasons City Apartments which is just 200 meters from Menara Latumenten.

Neighborhood and Transportation

In which neighborhood of Jakarta is Menara Latumenten located?

Location of Menara Latumenten in Jakarta

Menara Latumenten is located in the district of Grogol Petamburan, in West Jakarta. It is a rather flat and middle-income area, with mostly low-rise traditional houses and shops. It is crossed by the Jakarta Inner Ring Road highway, along which several high rise buildings (hotels, apartments, offices) and malls (Ciputra, Seasons City, Central Park, etc) are constructed. It can be a strategic location if you work in West or North Jakarta, or if you often need to go to the airport.

Historically, it is also one of the areas of Jakarta with the largest Indonesian Chinese community.

How does it look like around the apartment?
The surroundings of Menara Latumenten are not very interesting. The entrance faces the highway, which is convenient but also ugly and noisy. On the other sides, you just have a kampung (local neighborhood) and a ruko complex (small shops and offices).

Surroundings of Menara Latumenten

Surroundings of Menara Latumenten – Entrance gate

The neighborhood behind Menara Latumenten – View from my apartment

By car, with normal traffic conditions, how far is it from:
– Jakarta Airport (CGK): 35 minutes
– Grand Indonesia Mall: 35 minutes
– Sudirman Business District: 30 minutes (Jalan Gatot Subroto area)
– Kota Tua: 20 minutes
– Kemang: 60 minutes

Public transportation and access to highways:
– Nearest bus halt: Jembatan Baru (100 meters)
– Nearest TransJakarta halt: Jembatan Besi (900 meters) to catch line 9 (Pluit – Pinang Ranti)
– Nearest MRT station: None nearby
– Nearest train station: Duri (1.7 kilometers) to catch the Yellow line. You can also take the train to the airport from there.
– Nearest toll road: Jakarta Inner Ring Road. While it passes just in front of the complex, you’ll need to do about 3 kilometers to enter or exit it. Beware also that if you come from the airport, you need to do a long U-turn just before arriving.

Landmarks Nearby

What are the important landmarks nearby?
Nearby, there are a few landmarks you can go to:

Malls:
Seasons City is about 800 meters away. It is a middle-class mall with mostly unbranded shops (fashion, accessories, electronics). They also have a Carrefour supermarket, an XXI cinema, and a Ramayana. On the top floor, there are many games for kids too.

Ciputra Mall/Citraland is another option, a bit more upmarket, just 2.5 kilometers away.

Finally, for more sophisticated shopping, you should go to Central Park/Taman Anggrek (both mid-to-upscale malls, about 3 kilometers away).

Supermarkets:
Carrefour in Seasons City (midrange) or Hero in Ciputra Mall (more expensive).

Restaurants and Nightlife:
On the ground floor of Menara Latumenten, there are several canteens selling cheap Indonesian food. If you walk near the residence, you can also reach a few warungs and “kaki limas”. Seasons City and Ciputra Mall have more options, mostly chain and fast food restaurants like Pizza Hut, KFC, A&W, HokBen, Dunkin’ Donuts, Yoshinoya, Solaria, D’Cost, Mujigae, Burger King, Imperial Kitchen, etc.

Finally, if you want to eat better cuisine, head to Taman Anggrek or Central Park. In the latter, you also have a few bars and cafés selling alcohol.

Education:
The area around Menara Latumenten has quite many schools and universities, many of which cater to Indonesian-Chinese students. Most of them are private and Christian.

– Universities: There are a few within 10-20 minutes, such as Universitas Tarumanegara, Trisakti, UKRIDA, Podomoro University, Atma Jaya University Kampus 2 (Medicine), Bunda Mulia University

– Schools and preschools: Sekolah Bunda Hati Kudus, Mutiara Bangsa 3, High Scope Pluit, Westin School, Bahkti Utama, Kristen Yusuf, PELITA, Bunda Mulia School, Bina Tunas Bangsa, IPEKA, Pelita Harapan (until Grade 8).

Hospitals:
Royal Taruma, Atma Jaya Hospital, Pluit Hospital, RS Duta Indah, RS Sumber Waras

There are also some specialized hospitals nearby, such as Dharmais Hospital (Cancer), Harapan Kita (Heart Disease) or Grogol Hospital (Mental Illness).

Parks:
Kalijodo Park (10-15 minutes): It was built by Ahok (the previous governor of Jakarta) after he demolished a huge red light district.
Penjaringan Forest City Park (10 minutes)

Building Quality

Building and Architecture

Who is the developer?
Menara Latumenten was developed by Margahayuland Development, a relatively unknown group that has built mostly in the Bandung area. There was another developer involved, PT Anggana, which specializes in subsidized housing.

Who is the architect/contractor?
It was done by PT Djasa Ubersakti. This is not a very famous company though it has built several high-rise buildings (Lagoon Resort Apartment Bekasi, Kemayoran Tower, etc).

What is the situation with the land certificate?
The developer has a Hak Guna Bangunan Murni, which means the property was built on its own land. As an apartment owner, you get a “Strata Title di atas HGB Murni”.

Design and Appearance

How does the building look like?

From Outside (Facade):

Lalumenten is made of one single tower, with an H shape, but there are actually 5 blocks: A, B, C, D, E. The building looks simple and cheap, with the facade made from prefabricated panels. There are no balconies, and the windows are very tiny.

Menara Latumenten

Architecture of Menara Latumenten Apartments

Facade of Menara Latumenten

Landscaping and garden:

There isn’t really a garden, but you have a pleasant public area near the pool:

Landscaping of Menara Latumenten Apartments

Reception/Lobby:

There isn’t a real lobby, only a security desk in front of the lift area:

Lift area in the lobby of Menara Latumenten Apartments

Corridors:

Lift area in Menara Latumenten Apartments

Lift area in Menara Latumenten Apartments

Corridors and lift in Menara Latumenten

Corridors in Menara Latumenten

Corridors in Menara Latumenten

Tiles in the corridors of Menara Latumenten Apartments

Entrance door to an apartment in Menara Latumenten

Materials and Equipment

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):

In common areas:
Tiles lobby: 3.5
Tiles corridors: 3.5
Painting (wall, ceiling): 4
Lighting fixtures: 3.5
Doors/windows: 3
Ceiling: 3.5
Elevator: 4.5
Gym equipment: /
Pool equipment: 4
Furniture: /
Artwork: /

In the apartments:
Tiles/Parquet: 3.5
Bathroom equipment: 3
Kitchen equipment: 3

Overall Quality: 3.5/10

Comfort

Facilities and Services

What are the facilities provided in the property?

– Swimming pool: It is quite small, especially considering you have close to 2,000 residents who live in Menara Latumenten.

Pool and garden area in Menara Latumenten

Pool in Menara Latumenten Apartments 

– Kids’ playground:

Pool in Menara Latumenten

– There is a gym and aerobic room that costs extra to use, but I didn’t see it. The other gyms nearby are Osbond in Seasons City and Gold Gym in Mall Ciputra.

– Other facilities not pictured here:

Community space, musholla.

Available services:

There are some convenient services available on the ground floor: Canteens, laundry, ATM, salon, minimarket, vegetable and meat shop.

Quality of living

Is the property busy?
Yes, there are people everywhere: At the pool, on the ground floor, in the lift, etc.

Is it noisy?
Yes, it can be quite noisy with the highway and a few mosques around the property.

Other issues?
Maybe because of the nearby canal and river, I noticed there are many mosquitoes around.

What is the background of the residents?
Residents are mostly Indonesians from the middle class. I didn’t see any foreigner.

Are there issues with the electricity supply?
Most units are limited to 1300 VA. That’s enough for normal usage (including AC).

Are there issues with parking?
Yes, parking is very difficult as there aren’t enough spaces per residents. As often with subsidized apartments, this is due to the fact that even though they were originally reserved for poor people with no cars, the ones living there are actually middle-class Indonesians.

Parking area in Menara Latumenten

Parking in Menara Latumenten

Are there enough lifts?
During peak hours, you may have to wait for more than 5 minutes to go to your unit.

Management

Maintenance

Are there visible damages?
There are some damages, such as scratched paint, cracks in walls, broken tiles, etc. However, nothing is too serious and the overall condition is acceptable.

Overall maintenance rating: 6.5/10

Cleanliness

I thought it was fine except for a few areas.

Overall cleanliness rating: 6.5/10

Security

Guards: On duty at the entrance gate and in front of the lift 24/7
Access: A card is needed to reach the lift area.

Since there are so many residents, it is quite easy for anyone to enter the building without an access card, though.

Overall security rating: 7/10

Hospitality

The staff is friendly.

Overall hospitality rating: 8/10

Sizes and Prices of Units

The prices of the apartments 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.

Below is an estimation of the prices in Menara Latumenten:

Studio units (furnished)
22.5m2 with 1 bathroom
Average renting price: IDR 1.5M/month or IDR 18M/year
Average buying price: IDR 200,000,000

2-bedroom units (furnished)
35m2 with 1 bathroom
Average renting price: IDR 2M/month or IDR 24M/year
Average buying price: IDR 350,000,000

Address

Apartemen Menara Latumenten
Jalan Prof. Dr. Latumeten,
Jelambar Baru, Grogol Petamburan,
West Jakarta 11460

More Photos

My Ratings

I do my best to write honest and detailed reviews of the apartments I visit. If you disagree with my rating, please let me know why and leave your own rating at the end of this page.

Menara Latumenten
2.3 / 5 My Rating
{{ reviewsOverall }} / 5 Readers' Rating (2 votes)
What I Liked
- Very affordable price, almost similar to a kos.
- Convenient services like canteens, laundry, ATM, minimarket.
- Pleasant public area with a tiny pool. Good for kids.
- Located near the highway and not too far from public transportation.
What I Didn't Like
- Not enough parking space.
- Tiny units.
- Very crowded, slow lifts, busy pool.
- Traffic jams in front of the building.
- Pool is too small, gym costs extra.
- Overall, low quality construction.
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Comments

1 Comment

  1. Gan

    Hi Julien,
    Great review, I stumbled on your page when searching for apartment review in Jakarta area, and immediately love it!
    Quick question :
    1. Do you think flood is an issue around `Menara Latumenten` ?
    2. I assume you know one or two reputable property agent. Could you recommend me one in case I want to buy a studio unit here in `Menara Latumenten` ?

    Thanks & please keep on updating this page!

    Reply

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