Park Connecticut

My wife and I were there for a year. It was a nice apartment and a nice view. But the apartment had multiple requests go unresolved (namely the toilet broke and almost flooded the entire apartment, because the shut off valve didn't have a knob, luckily I had some pliers to shut it off. But even after that they didn't give us a knob after repeatedly asking for one. Our blinds were broken that they never fixed, etc.) And for an entire year the fire alarm system was broken, and went off at least twice a month, we had a neighbor with a newborn, and they were not happy about it. Our cat shared those feelings. Then our lease came up and we decided we would stay even if they raised it a few hundred, even with the problems, the sinking economy and the construction project out back. But they tried to raise it over $500 a month. So we said screw it, we're leaving. And then when our move out date came, our same apartment was list for a mere $50 more than our current lease was. Maybe they won't do that to you, but maybe they will, take it as a cautionary tale.

I'd give five stars if this was just about the concierge staff. They are all really nice and attentive, and make you feel like family. The location on the park (back units facing Rock Creek) is very nice as well. The reason I give 3 starts is because 1) after multiple requests to have my dish washer and dryer fixed, neither ever worked properly. The dryer squeaked very loudly and the dishwasher did not get the dishes even remotely clean. I finally gave up and was able to finally get them clean in my new apartment. 2) although the apartments are on the larger side I think they are overpriced for the area. It's a bit far out of the city and for the area, the rent is high. 3) when time came to renew my lease they jacked up the rent. After negotiation they finally came down a bit but not enough so I moved to a new apartment for significantly lower rent. As of the date of this review, my unit is still available for rent and now at a price below what I was paying. They should have let me renew at my current rent and they might have kept me.

Pros-- Proximity to metro, the concierges are friendly and helpful, in-unit washer and dryers, and attached parking Cons-- Hidden fees, unresponsive of property management team, and subpar amenities. At first glance, the price seems reasonable for the neighborhood in DC. However, unlike most apartments in this range, no utilities are included and were significantly higher than represented by the leasing agent. When I moved in, my apartment was not clean and had a broken microwave. Despite notifying the leasing agent immediately, this was not settled for about a month after multiple service calls and being told repeatedly the issues were fixed when they were clearly not. While this put a damper on moving in, it was not a major issue until the dishonest actions of the management team became a pattern during the two years I lived in the apartment. Any time an issue would arise (which was relatively infrequent) my emails to the management team were very rarely returned and if they were it took multiple days to weeks. Overall, the property managers are untrustworthy and unhelpful. Whenever, I finally got in contact with them (which usually required physically tracking them down) they deflected blame and failed to address situations which generally required only a simple fix. Just one example was when I had multiple packages go missing and the property manager brushed it off. I am frustrated by the indifference of the property management team. Issues are bound to arise over the course of apartment living, but to be consistently ignored, lied to, and taken advantage of is unacceptable. Additionally, the amenity fees were exorbitant. The office has a couple semi-functioning computers and a broken printer. The gym has very little equipment and much of it is damaged and broken. These amenities are not necessary to apartment living, but it is frustrating to be "paying for them" when clearly none of the money is going to them. Also, I paid monthly for an assigned parking spot which in theory would be a convenience. But, other cars were consistently parked in my spot meaning that I was forced to park in the visitor section which only has compact spots and is often filled. No surprise, this was never addressed either despite many requests. It is a shame that a building with such great potential is being run this way. There are too many other comparable apartments in this neighborhood to warrant this lack of service. I strongly suggest looking elsewhere!

The building is quite new (late 80's) and in a really nice area. Close to Van Ness metro station, a supermarket and a caouple of pharmacies. The services are getting worse in the last months although the price of the apartments rises every year. A few different managers in the last 2 years, probably burnt because of their budget cuts.