Avalon At Arlington Square

I love everything about this place save the fact that they let A-​1 Towing troll the parking garages for illegal packers and tow them w no warning. So if you are a resident and accidentally misplace your tag your vehicle is towed with no warning. Then you have to pay $ 135 minimum to get your car back, plus the fact they don’t notify you your car was towed!
*** Update ***
We moved apartments this past winter and love the new place. Joseph and Henri were very helpful with the process and spent some time showing us different options.
The new gym is nice, I do miss the basketball court but the renovations are very well done. Very pet friendly except for the crazy dog lady who yells at children.
We really enjoy living here :)

Been living at the Avalon for a while now. Moved from a town home to a newly renovated apartment and it’s great. The new leasing office and fitness center is amazinggggg. The people working are always willing to help and know us by name now. It’s a great place to live and they have a free bus to take you to the metro.

UPDATED review! After being so pleased with Avalon for the last 6 months I am VERY displeased to be informed that they will be renovating our apartment WHILE we are living it it! With no discount on rent and no offer to put us up in a hotel!!! They will be in our apartment between 8am and 6pm meaning we will have to share our morning routine and dinner with their workers. This is a huge lack of privacy. Not to mention we have to spend our time boxing and moving our things for them during a work week. Also we have a dog and a cat which we will have to make arrangements for outside of our apartment (and I’m sure we won’t be reimbursed for that either). I am speechless at this complete disregard of their tenants. We don’t want a renovation since we chose the apartment because we like how it looks now. Thoroughly disappointed.

The pros:
–The townhome apartment is spacious and has modern appliances.
–It’s a good commute to DC and the Pentagon.
–For parents, it feeds into a nice elementary school.
–Really nice gym in the clubhouse.
–Maintenance has been very responsive
The cons:
–It is not really walkable to any shopping or restaurants.

I lived here for 3 years and overall enjoyed it, and would recommend to friends– pricey but that is to be expected, as the amenities and location are great. They renovated a lot, like the clubhouse and mailroom. They have a newly renovated gym which is REALLY nice, and more than one pool. I have had pleasant experiences with the staff as well, so I can’t complain about that. There is a Giant within walking distance, and there are good trails for walking/​biking nearby. Management communication to residents was great too, as they always sent emails updating us on incidents. Shuttle bus available to commuters going to the Pentagon
A few drawbacks: the garage door was broke often, street parking is left for guests and on weekends that can be hard to find a good spot. I had a few issues with maintenance claiming they fixed leaks, but it ended up not being fixed– this happened numerous times.

I have been living here for several months and since day 2 the apartment started showing how disorganized and misleading they are.
— misleading about amenities: I asked prior to signing the lease if the A/​C was regulated. I was told it is regulated by me. What I was not told was that it is only regulated by me if the temperature is above 68 degrees. I called maintenance multiple times because it was consistently 75 – 78 degrees in my apartment from November-​Mach, even though I did not have the heat on. I was told that my A/​C was working properly but that most apartments have units in which the A/​C feature cannot be turned on if it is 68 degrees or colder, no matter how hot it is in my apartment. I was then told I should just open windows to cool the apartment. On days when it is around 60 outside it would still be 75 – 79 inside. Then when the weather turned colder at night I would wake up to the apartment being 45– 50 degrees. I have never lived in an apartment where I was not able to regulate my own temperature. If they had told me when I asked how the units work I would have never moved in. If they did not know the answer they should have asked someone who did instead of misleading me.
— disrespectful neighbors: a kid is constantly stomping and running around in the apartment above mine. When confronted after months of dealing with it I was told that the apartment complex knows her kid is hard of hearing and therefore is allowed to stomp around at all hours. Now the neighbors are stomping purposely to the point where a painting fell off my wall. I can understand a kid being a kid, but when adults act like children is unacceptable. Now the neighbor calls me profanities like «b****» and «crack!wh*r*» even when her kid is with her. The apartment complex does not seem to care.
I have written a similar Unilocal review before but things have only gotten worse and I can’t even find my previous review now.
I was told the only way out was to get evicted and pay for the whole year and have the eviction on my record or give 2 months notice and pay 2 months extra rent. Maybe they have the neighbors do this on purpose to make extra money, I don’t know.

This place started off ok until we decided to move-​out! They sent a bill to my MOTHER’S HOME which I have no idea how they got her address! She was NOWHERE ON THE APPLICATION! (Mind you we STILL LIVE IN THE APARTMENT and don’t move out until April 15, 2016) Then they are trying to charge us for ALL OF APRIL and on top of that they are saying our market rent is over $ 3000 which I have documentation stating that it is more than a $ 1000 less than that! This management is appalling and inconsistent. I have dealt with several people at this property and the ONLY competent person in that office is Joe! I am so glad we are moving out. Do not stay here unless you want to deal with a terrible property management!!! Negative stars should be an option!

Convenient location, great staff, excellent upkeep and maintenance! Dog loving community for young professionals.

Apartment complex seems nice. BUT Due to my family relocation to another state we had to cancel the reservation at last minute. So I called and let them know about our situation and Joseph, manager told me that we had to pay $ 730 for reservation fee (I even haven’t signed the lease yet!!!) and that unit is still under contract with another family until March. What kind of policy is that??? Did anybody experience that??? So disappointed!

UPDATED REVIEW!!!
Once again just to show how awesome this place is!!! Look at the hard work of the maintenance crew!!! It’s an actual blizzard outside 24+” of snow and they are hard at work making sure our walkways are clear!!! I wish I could shuttle down some hot coco for them! I know it’s cold! We are greatly appreciative! Thanks!!! And please keep up the awesome work!!! Way to go Avalon! Amazing employees great work ethic! I know my behind is not going down there to shovel lol #blizzard2016 #ilovemyhome #thanks

My husband and I lived in the Avalon for almost four years and just moved out after buying a house. After living in multiple communities throughout NoVA I can say without a doubt that the Avalon is one of the best. They have a top notch leasing staff, with low turnover, who actually know the residents by name. It was nice to know that I could walk into the office and they would greet me by name and help address any issues I was having. The staff in the package office were always friendly and the maintenance men were quick to address our issues to include multiple after hour’s emergencies.
We lived in one of the older renovated apartments and I’ll be the first to admit it was outdated. However, for the price I can’t complain. Our rent barely increased, our neighbors were friendly and considerate, and the community grounds were always well kept. I never had to worry about getting a parking space and the upgraded amenities were totally worth the annual fee. They have a fantastic gym, two pools, and an awesome package concierge so you can get your packages ²⁴⁄₇. The staff has also been throwing great events to include trivia (with great prizes like rent credit) and a pup swim.
Overall, we really enjoyed our time at the Avalon and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a new place to call home in Arlington!

Avalon at Arrington Square will have you believing this is a perfect community but I would look beyond the pretty upgrades. When it comes to fairness and customer service, they fall short. After signing a lease, we were informed our apartments would be extensively renovated WHILE living there. We would be unable to use our bathroom and kitchens from 8am-​5pm for 5 days. They were replacing the flooring and door fixtures so even our bedrooms and common areas were overrun with workers and therefore unable to be used during construction. We were only given notice that items had to be moved the night before they needed to be moved. When asked if we would be compensated for being not just inconvenienced but literally displaced from our place, we were given a firm no.
Furthmore, we paid a $ 400 amenity fee. From May to October all our amenities were unavailable to us due to construction. Again, when asked if we would receive a refund, or even partial one, we were told not only were we not getting a refund, but that the price was going up to $ 600 for new residents. The argued their provided passes to a gym. So instead of a short walk to the club house, working out required a longer walk to a public gym with 100s of clients.
How can you argue that a public gym is worth the same price as a smalk community gym? Or removing access to amenities requires you still pay for them?
And thirdly, when my rent was accidently paid twice, I was told the process to get my money back would take at least 14 days. This would not be a big deal if it was only a small amount but I am essentially owed back $ 766! In order to even start the process of sending a check, they would need permission from each tenant and their bank. This needed to happen despite each roommate transaction is separate and they can determine who paid what. And then once thats all done, they will send a physical check that will have me and my roommates name on it which means they’d also have to go to the bank with me to even cash it.
Sure the upgrades look nice but when it comes down to money matters, Avalon could care less. As long as they can collect more money from you, they are happy.

I lived at the Avalon for 2 years. The first year was fine. It was a good deal for the size and location. The second year things went completely downhill. We faced constant water leak problems, including a huge puddle, easily 8 feet across and 6 inches deep right outside our front door (which appeared every time it rained for about two months), water damage on the inside wall (which was dealt with by being painted over), and a mildew smell coming from the wall. I believed there was very likely mold, and I left several email/​phone messages to that effect which were never addressed.
The move out process, which is still going on, has been a nightmare. After claiming cleaning needed to be done, which apparently ate up the security deposit, Avalon insisted that the counter tops needed to be replaced requiring an additional $ 170. The pictures they provided of the counter tops show no damage whatsoever, a fact which every individual I speak to on the phone agrees with me on, but I still get emails insisting the charges are valid.
I have lived in several apartments in the DC/​VA area and I have always received my security deposit back. If you move here, do so knowing that you’ll never see your security deposit again, no matter what the condition of your apartment is.

Baffled by the (few) positive reviews below. We lived at The Avalon for 2 years and referred 2 new tenants — including my sister — prior to seeing such a decline in service. If we had known how the last few months of our lease would go, we would have never elected this community to begin with. Be prepared to be nickel and dimed for everything, to repeatedly not receive follow up and an office full of «contract» or temp workers. Sure, renovations may look GREAT but what about having displaced current tenants within their own units for days at a time, losing the items they were forced to pack up in order for the renovation to happen and not a single penny in compensation.

UPDATED REVIEW:
I must give a huge shout out to Elizabeth Bair of AvalonBay Customer Care Center for reaching out to me the very next day after I posted this review and working tirelessly with me for three weeks to resolve my issue. I did a happy dance in the office today (in front of 50 people) when she called to tell me the damage charges of $ 1,508 had been removed from my account. I am extremely satisfied with the resolution and Elizabeth’s commitment to excellent customer care. She was very polite, patient and most diligent in reviewing the countless emails I had exchanged with other Avalon staff over the past 6 months regarding the carpet. Avalon is very lucky to have her onboard — she should be training the other customer care and management staff. For those of you that run into a similar carpet damage problem, ask to see the written policy about carpet replacement that details full or partial replacement. From now on, I will only rent carpetless units. :-)
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We lived here for two years and vacated June 9^th since the rent was jacked up $ 250. I cannot begin to tell you how horrible the move out process has been. 5 months later I am still dealing with them over a serious difference in opinion over whether an entire 3 level townhouse needed the carpet replaced. First, we signed up for Clean Sweep which is supposed to include cleaning and carpet steaming. Second, we had the walk-​through two weeks before move out and NOT ONE stain or damage was noted on the form. Then after move out I was giving a damage receipt for over $ 1,800!!! I asked for proof and was emailed pictures that clearly showed the carpet hadn’t even been cleaned yet. So explain the logic to me that Avalon decided to rip out the carpet before attempting to clean it and it was necessary to replace every piece of carpet?!?
I have gone round and round on this issue and I keep getting that they determined it was damaged and I need to pay up. They were incredibly rude in each phone and email communication. I finally got connected with someone at corporate customer service we completely agreed that the damages are bogus and had put in two letters of protest. Both times my attempts to settle the matter were denied by the local management office. I refuse to pay for illegitimate damages and even conferred with a lawyer on options.
It’s really a shame that the local management office is so unprofessional and deceitful. Like others, I was made verbal promises before move out and now this carpet issue may affect my credit. I will file explanations with each credit bureau in the next week.
I could get past the broken garage doors, constant maintenance issues, and poor communication, but this carpet scam has sent me over the edge. I will never live in another Avalon property and will continue to post negative reviews on various review sites.

While I haven’t moved in yet, I have been looking at apartments, and the leasing office is, by FAR, the best of all the (many!) communities I’ve looked at. Between my schedule changes and constantly changing my mind on what I want, Joe has been immensely helpful and kind, giving me as many options as possible when I keep being indecisive. While I can’t write about what it’s like to live there, I can say that I will be moving there because of the great service I’ve gotten from the leasing office.

Wrote this a week ago and still no response from Avalon Management! They never respond to your emails or calls… Absolute worst place I’ve ever lived!!! …
Good Morning Avalon Management,
We are writing you to express our frustration and dissatisfaction with the lack of resolution on the maintenance request we submitted on Wed. June 24, 2015 Reference ID 7 640 849. The request is regarding a leak in our kitchen ceiling.
On June 24^th one of your maintenance workers entered our unit to investigate the leak and indicated that he believed it was a result of recent pressure washing conducted by Avalon on the exterior of our home. He pointed out that there was a vent above the porch that the water may have entered through and told us that it was almost dry. He also stated that since it was so close to the weekend, he would not be able to have the contractors do the cosmetic repairs until Monday June 29, 2015 and promised that it would be repaired by then. It is now July 10^th and we have not heard back from anyone regarding the repairs. Additionally, the leak has resumed intermittently and we have had to place a bucket in our kitchen to catch the water which leads us to believe that the leak is coming from another source. It typically resumes in the evening without warning and my wife has already slipped and fell due to the unexpected water on the floor. Each time the leak resumes, it compromises the morning room carpet attached to the vinyl floors with stains and odor.
Since we moved into this unit Sep. of 2014, we have continued to experience issues with water leaks all over our home. The first was from a poorly installed dishwasher that led to water coming out on our kitchen floor and penetrating the flooring going into the garage. Although Avalon has indicated that this was repaired, it left behind warped uneven flooring in the kitchen. The 2^nd leak was above our stairway leading into the living room. It was determined that the leak stemmed from a poor caulking job in the master bath tub. This leak also led to wet stained carpet on our stairs. Now we have a 3^rd leak which we reported 3 weeks ago and it still has not been repaired.
Last month, when the contractors came to replace the sprinklers, they could not complete the job because they did not have a high enough ladder to access the sprinkler in the living room ceiling over the loft. They left that sprinkler unchanged and replaced the others. As they went up and down the stairs with ladders and tools in hand they left scratches on our walls.
In addition to the many leaks we have had, we have continued to have issues with our dryer not drying our clothes. Although the previous dryer was eventually replaced, our clothing still would not dry within a reasonable expected time frame even with a new dryer. For a small loads of light clothing (t-​shirts, shorts, undergarments etc) it takes 2 – 3 full drying cycles to become completely dry. Since we have complained about this issue many times already, we decided it wasn’t worth continuing to complain about it. The problem obviously isn’t the dryer but instead a problem with the circulation of air coming in to the dryer. This item has added additional utility expenses to our household during our stay at Avalon and for the sake of the next tenant who will unfortunately rent this unit unknowingly of all the underlying issues, I hope your team can figure out the issue and fix it. In addition we had to deal with the wet carpet and wall damage that was left behind when the the old dryer was removed.
At this point, We would like to speak to your corporate office or a regional manager responsible for this property. The lack of follow through and resolution regarding our current maintenance issue is unacceptable. I trust that you will provide us with this information as requested ASAP.

Extremely unprofessional leasing staff, community lacks communication with tenants. Unreasonable charges added to your account.
Garage is always filthy, tenants don’t follow garage rules and reserved parking is a joke, and your car will most likely be towed during your lease here. Prices have increased dramatically.
I am very unhappy living here with these conditions! If you’re considering moving here consider many frustrations with the leasing office, management, maintenance coming into your home & leaving a mess after a work request is complete.
I am very unsatisfied with this community & I wish I could cancel my lease!

A nice community. There are 2 swimming pools, many events, a good gym,… I saw some dogs poops on a street.
I checked their town house. The kitchen is nice. The space for 2 cars is great. It is clean but it is not big enough for me. I need more storage spaces.
Many people were jogging, walking, and playing catch in a park. Nice healthy area!

I lived in Avalon for the past 5 years. Having lived in a number of apartments from college to adulthood, I can say that Avalon is good-​average.
Pros– The apartments have in-​unit W/​D in a separate laundry room. It’s nice to have your laundry out of the way.
Parking– garages are connected to your building on your floor (which makes carrying groceries from the car much easier), street parking is available, guest parking is also an option. Be warned that your car will get dinged and people drive way too fast in the tight garages.
Community features– There are gas grills available in every courtyard, two pools (one more adult oriented and quiet), a concierge/​package room that can assist with receiving packages when you’re not home and that is open at great hours if you come home later in the day.
Very pet and kid friendly community. Grounds are kept nicely and as a single woman, I felt more than safe walking around the community.
Bus lines are accessible within the community, with free transport on the 87 (Shirlington — The Pentagon) bus line. Gym is adequate, some equipment was recently replaced.
Maintenance was always responsive and nice. In most cases they would leave the space clean/​undisturbed. While my issues sometimes required multiple calls or not resolved as promptly as I would have liked, they were always resolved. Jose was always the most diligent and helpful in my experience.
The property management team has improved in recent months. Nicholas Rice has been a good addition to the community. He’s responsive and generally communicates with residents more since his arrival. Tip: Do everything online and your interaction with staff is limited.
Options– Comcast, Fios and DirecTV available. Not having to be stuck with a provider that I absolutely hate was a plus.
Cons–
Dated appliances/​construction grade cabinetry (there is currently an effort to makeover/​upgrade units which is much needed. My refrigerator died and was replaced with another refrigerator on its last leg THREE times.)
Dust — this was by far the dustiest apartment I’ve ever had. Was constantly dusting and I didn’t truly appreciate how bad it was until I moved out. The dust that had caked up in crevices normally unseen was appalling. (Who knew my allergies would get better if I just moved). The ventilation system is poorly maintained. The air filters may get changed by Avalon once or twice a year. Vents/​air ducts are not cleaned at all, with the exception of the dryer vent. Additionally, expect to smell your neighbors’ cooking through the vent.
It’s not a smoke free property — I had a chain smoking neighbor below my unit who made it impossible to use my balcony for the latter 3 years of my stay.
Building construction is poor. Getting the right unit, in the right location, with the right set of neighbors is a game of Russian Roulette. I was located next to the stairs so I could hear when folks walked up the stairs in my bedroom (the adjacent wall). My upstairs neighbors walked or jumped all the time. The pictures on my wall would move. If they placed their cellphone on vibrate, I heard it on my wall too. You can hear everything. TVs, radios/​music, loud conversations… Kids running/​playing in the breezeway, dogs barking. The property grounds are well maintained but you will hear the mowers and outside equipment in your unit. Usually this happens during the workday when most aren’t home, but if you ever have designs to just sleep in, that may not be possible. As mentioned before, you will smell your neighbors’ cooking, BUT maybe not if you win the neighbor lottery.
There isn’t a dedicated community shuttle. The 87/​87A schedule can be screwy at times. Sometimes buses run on top of each other arriving within minutes if not at the same time of each other, but then there will be another 20 – 30 minutes to pass before the next bus arrives. Taking the 84 is now an option but not part of the «free» service.
Yearly rent increases — my rent increases have always been a minimum of $ 50. When I moved in 2010, I was paying $ 1560 for a one bedroom. With the most recent rent increase in 2015, my rent was $ 1863. It was no longer practical to stay with more metro-​accessible or walkable-​shopping communities in Pentagon City/​Crystal City, Shirlington, and King St./Leesburg Pike communities offering the same if not more for a better price. I never got the sense that tenant retention was ever a goal during my time here. Most folks come and go quickly. And despite my best efforts to ward off an increase they were never more flexible than mitigating an almost $ 90 increase by $ 20/​$ 30.
Overall, I would recommend Avalon because it’s just a matter of «picking your poisons» so to speak. Having an in-​unit full sized washer and dryer and the ease of just driving into downtown negated some of my cons. Ultimately the noise, combined with not being able to «use» my apartment because of neighbors combined with steep increases signaled my time to move on.