Awful. Awful. Awful. If you move here, you will receive emails every 5 hours apologizing for "demolishing hallway, entrance, etc". Elevators go out so often during rush mornings and evenings. The staff is not helpful besides Mo at the front desk. Every single amenity is being updated now and the current status of the amenities that are "available" are basically unusable besides the pool. The entire apartment feels like you are in isle 7 of Home Depot. Including the pool. Save your money and sanity and go somewhere else besides the Avalon. Also, failed to mention there is NO sense of community. Last but not least- whoever is in charge of responding this reviews, try to be a little more sincere and stop copying and pasting. Ridiculous. read more

I really liked living in this building but the nightmare I have dealt with for my final bill has not been worth living in the apartment overall. I called two time to discuss my final bill which was incorrect. Both times the people I talked to confirmed they had fixed the error in the system. In addition I sent multiple emails that were never answered. I never received the new corrected bill and within a month it had been sent to a bill collector. The bill collector disputed the bill two time and all avalon did was send back a copy of my lease not addressing the problem. Today I got a call from a different bill collect insisting I pay by credit card over the phone as my only option( which is incredibly sketchy and probably a scam). read more

Immediately, I would advise anyone considering this building to LOOK ELSEWHERE. Having spent a year with Archstone, I can say that it is not worth the hassle, that the building is overpriced, that the quality of the rooms are sub-par, and that the management team purposefully trick you into paying completely unnecessary fees. Let me explain, as the leasing and management team is the most common complaint of this building. I lived there for 12 months, always being current with payments, never once late on a payment, never having any complaints raised against me, and keeping my room and hallway area clean and organized. I was a great tenant. 2 months prior to moveout, I went to speak with the leasing consultants as to when I needed to inform them I was moving out. They explicitly told me 30+ days, and no charges would be applied. Perfect I thought. So 42 days in advance, I gave my notice. The reason I asked is I was unsure of their policy. It was written in the lease, 20+ pages of text that as a reasonable human being I had no way of memorizing. They knew the lease backwards and forewords, so asking them should have given me the right information. Turns out, its a 60 day notice for moveout (which, if you look around, is one of the highest in the DC area). So, they essentially lied to me, and now forced me to pay 18 days of "pro-rated" rent. They admitted they told me the 30 days. They admitted that its 60 days for everyone. So why did they tell me the wrong information? To force me to pay fees. This is not an isolated incident. I chose this building as it seemed decent, but more importantly, I had a number of friends who lived there. They have had similar incidents brought upon them, and it is just completely foul of a company such as Archstone to use this practice to trick its tenants into paying large fees. Please, do NOT give Archstone your business! They are tricksters who do not practice fair housing standards. They continuously say they are unwilling to work with you on matters such as these, no matter who you are or how clean your record might be. I am in a much better building in the city where the management takes an active role in solving problems with its tenants! read more

Lived in the building for 5 years. Paid rent on time. Avalon, decided to charge me a cleaning fee for an apartment I cleaned and they (hopefully renovated or at least changed the carpet) because they just didn't have enough money. Absolutely no loyalty. Lack of customer appreciation. Would never rent from them again. read more

This building was great 2 years ago. It absolutely sucks living here, now. Management screwed over all the residents with construction, as all the recent reviews note. The owners will get a huge equity boost, management is probably getting a bonus to quell the valid concerns of residents, and in 5 years, they will hope all is forgotten as they pull in massive rents. read more

I lived here for a year and I really liked it. The apartments are spacious and the location is perfect with the metro right around the corner. I would've loved to stay but my rent was going to increase too much. Also I had to take my parents' dog for a while and they don't allow dogs in the building. Pros: NOT noisy, I never heard my neighbors & was able to have friends over & play music w/o any complaints. Pool for the summer months. HUGE balconies. 24 hour gym. 24 hour concierge. Mobile App to pay rent. Water, gas, sewer & trash all done through them & charged with rent. Friendly staff Renovations being made on the building (painting, resealing the garage, fixing & replacing old pipes) & emails sent with any construction updates. 24 hour maintenance guarantee. Walk-in closets. Washer/dryer in every apartment. Cons: Appliances could be upgraded to something nicer & energy efficient. Only 1 guest allowed per resident at the pool. It is an older building so I had some issues with my thermostat that, after 3 months of trying to solve it probably would've been better handled by replacing it all together. Water was shut off several times for repairs. No guest parking. Rent went up significantly when my lease was up. No dogs read more

Location, Location, Location. You really can't beat this property at 1 block from Ballston Metro Station, walking distance to the "mall", lots of restaurants, a 24 hour Harris Teeter and much more. The Concierge Staff is uber-friendly and helpful. Maintenance staff responsive and friendly as well. The property has been undergoing extensive renovations including the parking garage (sealant, motion sensing lighting) and some of the units. The pool is nice and is lively weekends and even during the summer weeks. Decent gym with the usual treadmills, ellipticals, free weights and a few circuit machines. If looking for a new apartment, units facing 9th Street should be advised of excessive noise late at night. Yes, Arlington is an urban area, but it often feels like Fraternity Row with other Ballston residents enjoying lots of adult beverage and shouting/screaming in the streets after the bars let out. Very strange and disruptive at times. Although an older building, some units have been totally remodeled with darker wood cabinets, beige/tan walls and brushed metal fixtures. If not remodeled, the appliances should at least be updated! read more

We lived at Ballston Square for just under two years. The apartments were reasonably priced for the area and our one bedroom was spacious. The maintenance staff and leasing staff were always very helpful and friendly! A word of caution: we ended our lease after more than one scary run in with drivers of the tow company they use after hours. They tow resident's cars and prowl the lot late at night. You know the company - the one where a driver stabbed someone. We no longer felt safe being in the garage at night and ended our lease. I would recommend ending their business deal with that company and find a more reputable solution. read more

Honestly, the only thing nice about this place is the main level.... everything else is outdated, they send emails about parking properly in the spaces in the garage but the layout of the garage itself is completely outdated and basically made for extremely small vehicles. For paying so many fees at the beginning of the leasing process, half the equipment in the gym doesn't even work, when you email them about it they just reply with "we're working on it" and it never gets resolved. The workspaces they have literally stink, you'll want to throw up going in there. Not to mention that during the leasing process they neglected to mention that there was a construction plan in place that will literally take till 2023, so we aren't able to use our balconies, the noise... if you have kids or work from home just look for somewhere else its impossible to work from home due to the construction noise. They stated that they were going to send weekly updates regarding the progress of the construction, but their "progress" emails state the same thing each week which isn't much of an update. No one from the leasing office is ever at the front desk, when you email them they take forever to reply to your emails and you have to follow up with them constantly, they don't even answer the phone, don't believe their bs about "trying to be better" because they honestly do not care. Can't wait to leave this place! read more

I have been a resident of Avalon communities for about 3 years now. I chose to stay within this company because I was so happy with how friendly and attentive the property management was. That being said, when I transferred to Avalon Ballston Square, my view of the company has changed completely. Upon transferring my lease, I was charged a $600 amenity fee for this building. I am not sure what this amenity fee is actually for because there is never coffee available, the hallways and elevators are often soiled with pet urine/feces going overlooked all day. The elevators are constantly broken which causes you to have to wait with groups of people trying to use the same two elevators. Our water gets shut off frequently and on short notice, and when the water does work it either takes 30 minutes to heat up, or goes immediately to scolding hot no matter what you turn the nob to. A year into my lease and this is still an issue, making the utility bills high. Renovations are definitely necessary for this old, run down building. However, I was completely floored at the audacity they have to not only charge us an amenity fee of $600 to RENEW, but also incurring this fee as a yearly charge for residents. For half of my current lease, there has not been access to amenities as promised. The business center is shut down, the coffee station is completely removed, the entrance is completely blocked off making transportation by uber a huge headache as well as any food delivery service. The summer months are the time where amenities are most enjoyable, and we were told that the pool would be opening on memorial day weekend despite the construction. THAT IS A JOKE. The pool is literally surrounded by a construction wall. I don't know how that is safe with construction particles flying around everywhere not to mention it feels like you're in your bathing suit in the middle of a Home Depot. We were told the gym would be relocated during construction and available for use as well. The gym was relocated to the other building and it wasn't all of the equipment. They finally relocated the cable machine, but it seems they lost a pin in the move, so you can workout only one arm at a time. If you can even find your way through the construction maze that connects the two buildings to get there, you'll find this sad excuse for a gym. Our favorite concierge, Mohammed, felt so bad and is honestly the only person who seems like he has a heart around here. He offered us an amenity card that allows residents from our building to use the amenities of a sister property down the street. We wanted to go use the pool today and walked to the other property. When we showed them the amenity card and asked for directions to the gym, we were told that the amenity card would only be valid for use in the business and club rooms as we did have a functioning pool and we were sent on our way. I just opened my renewal letter and of course there was going to be an increase in rent prices, but this "amenity fee" is absurd. It seems like they just want all of their residents to move out so that they can increase the rental prices even higher and tack on those yearly amenity fees and make as much money as possible without any regard to the residents who have been living here for years. That one star rating was generous. read more

The other 1-star reviews are totally on point. I used to love living here, and the amenities were fantastic. The concierge staff (especially Mo) and the maintenance staff are fantastic, and the leasing staff always say hello. Unfortunately I've watched the manager be snippy and unpleasant to staff and residents alike literally every time I've had the misfortune to bump into her. The amenity fee is exorbitant considering there are no amenities anymore. They jack up the rent at every opportunity, even as the construction has rendered the entire building smelly, noisy, and nearly impossible to enter or exit. The "updated units" have old appliances, new floors, and interior doors with a 2 inch gap that once accommodated carpet. The balconies are covered in peeling paint and old caulk, and have no outlets available. The temporary package room isn't secure at all, allowing residents to take whichever packages they please from any shelf using the honor system and a paper pad to sign. There's simply no way that either tower is compliant with The Americans With Disabilities Act seeing as I've had to exit via the loading dock on numerous occasions, and am presently stuck on the 12th floor due to a "scheduled elevator outage" that has gone at least 2 hours past the projected time-frame. Thankfully my young child can take the stairs under his own power, or I would have to carry him up and down 12 flights of stairs today. There's no way to get food delivered anymore (once again, the construction has made this place nearly unlivable) because the delivery drivers can't even figure out how to get into the building. I look forward to the meaningless, consoling response to this review. read more

Very grateful for Diego and the rest of the AVA Ballston Square staff for helping me with my move out. They helped me physically and also let me go back and double check things. It was such a hectic day I couldn't have done it without there help or there patients! I get very stressed in times like this and they were there to ease my stress. read more

The staff here is incredibly helpful! In particular, Mo from the concierge, and Diego from leasing were both very helpful. Unfortunately, we realized that this does not apply to the corporate team. Be prepared to get hit with some pretty outrageous charges following moveout!! My roommate and I were charged for existing damages (for which we had photo evidence). The amount was added to our account and we were told there was nothing we could do about it following moveout. They offer a pre moveout inspection at which we were told there were no damages and charges. But following moveout the Avalon team charged my roommate and I a sizeable amount regarding alleged damages and said we should have disputed prior to moveout. Shocked and disappointed that this would happen at Avalon apartments. read more

The WORSTTTTTTTTTTT place I've ever lived in my entire life. Rent is too expensive for low level amenities. Construction wakes people up bright and early at 7am with drilling that sounds like they're drilling your wall.The construction is super loud and I've tried to speak with management who basically claimed that my accusation of a 7am construction crew isn't coming from them. First of all, you don't live in the apartment I am in. It is directly overlooking the construction. Second of all, just because YOU haven't heard it doesn't mean it's untrue. It's a rude awakening to wake up to what feels like a pounding headache every morning. Why pay this much in rent just to not be able to sleep???? Let me not get started on the rat situation. I keep my place super clean and when they were prepping for construction to occur, the rats started to show up through holes. Management didn't handle the situation well other than just putting in mouse traps. When asked to remove the traps, they took 24 hours to come and do so. Isn't this an emergency situation? It should be addressed immediately. Maintenance is terrible. All they do is place a "band aid" on the situation. It'll work for a couple of days and then break down. I've had a ton of issues with the AC/heat unit. Where I have to literally reset the breaker at least twice a week at odd times such as 3am because I'm sweating profusely. I've asked them to fix it but all they do is reset the breaker and consider it done. I find it so wack how they care more about community amenity renovation instead of the actual apartments themselves. The apartments are so old looking and outdated. The common places outside smell like pee all the time and it's just terrible. It's sad that we have to pay $2K just to get a place that has a value of $800. No lie The only 2 good things about this community is Mohammed from the concierge desk and the close proximity to the Ballston metro. That's all. All the rest of the people and things having to do with Avalon suckssssssssssssssss terribly. Just terrible. read more

I lived in this apartment complex for two lease terms. Although the location is good, there are far more adequate places surrounding this building. The maintenance guys here are extremely nice, but hesitate to contact subject matter experts in their fields. They attempt to repair things with a quick fix me up as oppose to fixing it correctly. Like the elevators. I recently found myself trapped in an elevator with 3 other residents. I called down to the concierge using the elevator phone and they told me everything would be ok. I called back 15, 30, 45 minutes later. They informed me that the mechanic came and fixed the problem...... I was still in the elevator. After an hour, I parted the elevator doors, and squeezed my arm through in order to gain cell phone reception to call 911. The firefighters came to let me out WITHOUT THE HELP of anybody working in this building. 2 weeks pass and I GET STUCK IN THE SAME ELEVATOR. The management is horrible and informed me that they were sorry for the inconvenience and it won't happen again...... Heard that before. The management did not even offer me compensation. Please reconsider living under these conditions. read more

Stay as far away as possible from this place, the staff is constantly gaslighting you with useless information and esoteric descriptions of never ending construction work, and it's never ending. I've been woken up by jackhammers destroying concrete at 8:15 am or regular hammers tearing apart the inside of an apartment basically non stop for the past two years. As other reviewers have said, it's gotten much worse with the balcony restoration project, but seemingly random other projects have made quiet enjoyment of your apartment impossible for years, and just today, after multiple emails estimating a few more weeks of having to suffer through demolition noise, they surprised everyone with 5 more weeks of noise, due to facade drops being moved up. The possibility of this was never mentioned as they sent out weekly emails counting down the time remaining on the demolition noise. If you are never home during the week and leave for work before 8 am each day you could maybe consider it, but otherwise stay far away, quiet enjoyment is impossible in this place. read more

The staff is great here, always pleasant, polite and helpful. One standout among the staff is Al, of the maintenance staff. He was great in fixing our washer after a long wait and getting it done quickly and neatly. He also went out of his way on another occasion to change out and install a shower head for us when we were having a disabled guest. He is always completely professional and a bonus on your staff! Thanks Al for your great service! read more

I've been here almost 6 months now, and I have little complaints. Pros: Dogs & Cats Patio with Grills, chairs, tables & a pool Clubcenter & Gym Huge Balcony Maintenance is quick and responsive The proximity to Ballston metro (VA Square too, if you wanna go on a little walk) 24 Front Desk person Gated Online for everything Quiet, I barely here my neighbors or my roommate for that matter Washer & Dryer in unit Vending Machines & ATM on site Little Market built into the building Massive closet (!) Cons: Utilities are reasonable, but a little pricey Parking is expensive On the weekends, the elevators can be slow Not a ton of storage in the apartment I am very happy with here. I have heard the rent goes up when it comes time to renew, but I am locked in for the next 2 years, so I'm not super concerned about it. read more

I'm moving out after living here for two years, this building is okay. The management has always been fairly responsive and the maintenance team does great work. Lots of friendly people and cute animals. It's in a good location and walkable to things, but be aware of your surroundings when you're out on the street. Additionally, there was a homicide tragically committed in the building while I was living here and the building is not great on security (people coming in and out without authorization, single locks on the doors with no deadbolt) which has not made me feel safe. I was recently confronted in the parking garage and followed around by a man who repeatedly got out of his car to bang on my windows for being in his way on a tight curve. There are no cameras in the garage and the building does not take responsibility for what happens in there. Often the garage door is left open meaning anyone can come in and out. The parking spots are very small and hard to come by for what you pay and my car has gotten numerous dents/scratches from other vehicles. Visitor parking is not offered to guests unless you want to pay $20 a day because the garage is so crowded... ouch. My guests have to park at the mall down the block. This is a 22 floor building with 2 towers and the elevator outages are ridiculous. Sometimes we are reduced from 4 to 2 elevators, I have waited for up to 20 minutes for an elevator for multiple days in a row with no response from management to my emails. There are way too many residents for the volume of mail and small number of package lockers, and we have had packages go missing for days. The Amazon locker system will also go down for days at a time so if your package is in there, you cannot access your mail. A lot of the amenities have been restricted/unavailable due to the pandemic, but we are still charged an amenity fee. The appliances and flooring in my unit are extremely outdated, but to get a renovated unit you pay an arm and a leg. Also, this is the DUSTIEST apartment I have ever lived in. The HVAC is in my closet ceiling behind ceiling tiles, and all the dust escapes them and travels everywhere. I haven't had a horrible experience by any means, but I'm not sad to go. read more

NOISE Problem at AVA Ballston Square: I have become aware that the construction NOISE on Wilson Street is still on-goIng as of 17 Jan 2020-to include noise on weekends. Also, there is daily traffic NOISE (backup alarms, horns, sirens, etc.) on Wilson & Randolph Streets-to include a major city bus stop next to units on Randolph Street (e.g. sounds of roaring bus engines outside your windows morning to night). Lastly, it's come to my attention that management will try and downplay this noise with talk of double pane windows and solid construction which DOES NOT eliminate this noise problem affecting specific sides of this complex. read more

Do you value your sanity? Is liking the place you live important to you? Do you find happiness in peaceful mornings and evenings in your home? If so, DO NOT MOVE HERE. This is quite easily the WORST BUILDING TO LIVE IN. To start, i'll list out a few of the MANY reasons I wouldn't recommend this place to my worst enemy: 1. THREE months after I moved into this building, and paid a $600 amenity fee, they decided to gut the entire place, remove ALL public spaces (they did create a makeshift gym in a dirty, dusty corner with no more than 4 machines - for a dual tower highrise building, so there's that) and say they were doing a "minor" renovation (i wouldn't really call gutting ALL public spaces, blocking off 90% of the first floor and having 10 hours of loud and dusty construction for 1.5 yers minor, but to each his own i guess??). It's now 1.5 years later and there's been no progress, no end in sight (they don't even know when it's going to be over) and no public spaces or amenities available for resident use. Due to this, I have to walk around an entire block to: get to a front desk, get my packages, pickup guests, and pickup any food delivery. While this may not seem like a big deal, when you have to do it mutliple times a day for basic amenities which were promised to you during the lease signing process, it's hugely frustrating. 2. As stated in point 1, there's major renovations in progress. Due to this, the water is turned off AT LEAST once a month, more often more frequently - which means if you work / study from home, you have no drinking water, can't use the toilets, and can't shower. I've had to go to the Gold's gym across the street multiple times to take a shower for work, and spend money on water bottles. 3. Less than a year into living here, my laundry machine broke and flooded my entire apartment. I called their "24 hour maintenance team" around 9p at night. No one came for over 2.5 hours - and my apt is all floor, so the entire floor was flooded. The maintenance guy then proceeded to laugh at me and joke around about the situation, then took ALL MY TOWELS and used them to mop up the mess and threw them in my sink. He then said no one can come fix it for 3 day - when i told him i had a work trip the next day and needed clean clothes for it, he laughed again, shrugged his shoulders and said it sucks for me and left. When they were installing the new washing machine, they broke the handle on my door and scratched up the walls. The new machine also stopped working a week later. 4. Don't expect to get any sleep or peace and quiet here. Like clockwork, by 6a weekdays and 8a weekends the construction starts and is loud AF. I guess on the brightside it forces me to change my sleep schedule and get to work earlier? 5. Don't expect to ever receive your packages. The first month I lived here, when there was a normal concierge desk, they "lost" a very large package (it was a 48" standing fan - difficult to "lose" something like that in my opinion - esp since it was signed for by the front desk). Since the front desk has shut down, I lose packages on a regular basis - just last week, they lost my 5th package within my 1.5 years here. And of course, just shrug their shoulders and pretend like it isn't their problem. I could honestly go on and on and on about all the issues here. They're so bad, that the building is allowing me to break my lease 6 mons early and move out without a fee. The crazy part is, I looked up my unit on their website, and they've priced it $135 more/month than I'm paying!! So not only is it an unlivable environment, but they're jacking up the price for incoming residents!!!! The ONLY good part about this building is Mo, at the concierge desk. He's the only kind, respectful, and helpful person on staff. Literally everything else about this place is horrible. Unless you want to hate your home, live in a dirty, dusty and noisy building, and pay for amenities you don't have access to, DO NOT MOVE HERE. read more

We've lived here for over 2 years. Great location-near the metro and across the street from the mall being renovated. The staff is very professional and very nice. Clarence, the customer service supervisor, is the best and remembers everyone's names. So does Mo at the front desk. Maintenance calls are taken care of in a timely manner, and the staff, is again, friendly and professional. My only complaint is that in the warmer months the hallways smell like spoiled milk/hot trash, the gym is super small for 2 buildings, and there are only 2 outdoor grills. When the weather is nice, they have to service people in 2 buildings. However, I did receive an email today that said they were working on upgrades. Looking forward to that. Great place to rent. Would be 5 stars were it not for the hallway stench! read more

Our AC and flush wasn't working at our new apartment, and a maintenance guy named Kortez immediately came to help and did a great job. Super friendly and helpful guy! read more

I wanted to make another review specially dedicated to Marcial Cruz. He is usually one of the maintenance technicians who help us fixing stuff in the apartment. But he always goes way above and beyond doing his regular duties. Today for example. Today is Saturday, he showed up in the morning, with his usual greeting and smile, to fix a leaking. We did not expect anyone to come on Saturday, to be honest. Marcial took gently all our belongings to be able to access the faucet. Not only that, he actually put everything back in the same order before he said the job was done! Every time he fix something he is extremelly clean, very gentle and very polite. I know him from the first days we moved in. If we see him in the hallway he always greet, we are very pleased with his job. The maintenance crew in Avalon Ballston Square is amazing and they are one of the main reasons we are renewing the lease every year. I would like to again congratulate the amazing job Marcial, all maintenance crew and all Avalon Ballston Square team is doing, good job guys!! read more

The staff here is great. Our freezer broke and the concierge staff held everything in their freezer. When this happened in our old apt we were just out all that food/$. Mo and Sylvona are extremely friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. They always have time for whatever we need. read more

There is a ton of construction around the apartment and inside the apartment. The noise is constant. Upon move out they charged us ridiculous fees and service charges. a pipe burst on our apartment floor flooding our apartment and no one ever came to clean it. Then we were charged to replace the carpet when we left. Would not recommend living here. read more

Great location right on the ballston metro, all the typical amenities in the area for the price point. What makes this place stand out is the staff, especially Mo! No matter how busy the desk is, Mo has a kind word, a greeting, and time to assist everyone. We couldn't ask for a better concierge/front desk/emergency maintenance coordinator. read more

I lived here for 3 months while my place was being fixed from a flood. I was happy to move out for several reasons. Most residents are in their 20s, and weekends at the pool seemed like quite a scene (with lots of eye candy). The "bro" scene seemed to be in full effect as well. Numerous times upon entering the building and veering to the hallway on the right, it smelled foul (throughout the whole hallway), almost definitely because the trash room is there. That's not something I want to experience upon walking into my building. I told the concierge several times. It definitely got better over the past month, but don't be entirely surprised if there's some stank as you walk through the hallway. The garage situation could certainly use improvement. Almost all the spaces along the wall are very narrow. If you care about your car getting dinged, then definitely do not park in those spaces. I'm not sure what the hell the designer was thinking when they drew those spaces out. Additionally, there seem to be several residents who are unable to park their cars properly and end up taking up multiple spaces. The gym is decent, nothing amazing. There is a general store (that plays horrific foreign and pop music) - convenient, but their markup is high. Some asshole on the lower floors can't (or refuses) to shut his dog up. Everyone who had a unit facing the courtyard could hear this dog. Multiple times early in the morning, the thing was barking up a storm. I seriously considered getting a bb gun with a scope. That's inconsiderate. Great for a first place out of college. If you can afford it, I'd look to move to a nicer place (and Ballston definitely has a few shady folks hanging around). Overall, the place served its purpose. Petite girl in the leasing office is cute. read more

This place is terrible. Maintenance is good and nice, but management is a huge problem. For example, - when your doors will be painted (so you paint yourself on the way out because you don't know) and when the hallway and gym will be inaccessible. The construction process has been a mess from the start - so much noise and inaccurate information about what will happen when. Also the building is not at all secure - anyone can walk in. Most recently a delivery person walked in with zero ID and asked for a room and the concierge pointed him in the direction without any verification of ID. I'm not sure why we have key fobs to get into the building at all. read more

I enjoyed the beginning of my lease, and love some of the employees like Mo at the front desk, but have had a horrible living experience ever since. When we signed our lease, we were promised several amenities which are no longer available: -library within the building -computer lounge within the building -party room within the building -sauna in the gym -mail room within the building -large presentable pool area -outdoor courtyard -lobby About halfway through our lease, Avalon Ballston Square began construction on the building and took these amenities away from its residents. We have endured unbearably loud construction noises that you can hear from your living area that begin around 8am. Many building entrances are not available, which is especially unfortunate when it is raining. The elevators are constantly under construction which has been very frustrating. The entrances and elevators that are available often smell like dog urine. Many hallways are not available on the main floor. I have to walk outside and around the block to access my mailbox. There is an overall messy appearance (exposed wires on ceilings, etc.) from constant construction and our water has been cut off several times in the morning which has prevented us from taking showers in the apartment before work in the morning. None of these issues were brought to our attention when we originally toured the building and agreed to sign our lease. Avalon made no effort to be transparent about the potential renovations when we signed our lease - they have acted deceitful and unethical. The property management team has not been helpful in resolving any of our issues. Overall, it has been a horrible living experience and I will certainly not be renting with Avalon again. read more

This apartment is horrible. They offer no discounts to any of the residents during the construction period, and even tried to raise my rent by over $100 for the following year, while the construction would still be going on. Not a hard decision to not renew the lease. Before moving out, we had our apartment inspected and they said as long as I got the apartment/carpet cleaned, I should expect no extra charges. Then a month after we moved out, they called to inform me that I was being charged for the carpet cleaning AND they ended up replacing the carpet and were charging me an additional $900 for that. Maybe it's just me, but I found it absolutely ridiculous that they would fully clean a carpet only to throw it out. It's very clear that this place takes advantage of its residents and will milk every last penny out of you that they can. read more

I lived here for two years and found it to be okay...fair at best. I'll start with the good: The staff here are AMAZING. Seriously, I don't think there's one person in this building who I wasn't a fan of. They're all kind, personable and care about you as a person. The LOCATION. This building is in the center of Ballston, across from a movie theater, restaurants, grocery stores, metro...it's convenient to say the least and that's why I decided to stay an additional year. The tenants. Some of them, at least, are fantastic. Lots of pet owners, and as a pet owner myself, I always found myself around kind, friendly neighbors. The parking garage is in decent condition. No leaks, it's dim but you can see everything and it's clean for the most part. No bugs, No noise. The bad: Carpet. It's gross, and they upcharge out the ass for renovated-hard-floor units which run $2k+--Once a tenant barfed all over the lobby's carpeted hallway and the stench stayed for about two months...because...carpet (which they did not replace, mind you). Electric Appliances. Again, for as much as you pay to live here, cooking on an electric stove is a huge let down. As someone who loves to look, this is a negative. If I'm paying as much as they charge for rent, I want GAS appliances and to live in the District. The elevators. I'm not sure how they work on the 9th street tower, but the Randolph St. tower elevators SUCK. There's a bank of 4 but I'm pretty sure that only 2 of them work. During busy times you might wait a couple minutes for an elevator and stop on EVERY FLOOR on the way to your destination. The halls smell like garbage. Yes, garbage. On the first floor, the putrid stench of garbage greets you almost every day when you pass the freight entrance. I don't know what they're doing wrong, but it's gross. At one point the trash shoot was out of service for a couple of weeks which was annoying. The doors inside the apartments. They're cheap, and don't close all the way. The "maintenance" people are nice, but sort of suck at their jobs. They basically only patch things up which is annoying at best. They will increase your rent, and no, it's not worth it. I also advise getting the cleaning package when you move out, because if you don't? They'll probably find something even more expensive to charge you for. The reason I moved out is: 1. I wanted hardwood floors. 2. I didn't want to pay $2k+ for hardwood floors and electric appliances. 3. I'm tired of smelling garbage everyday. Living here sort of turned me off to Avalon buildings honestly. They're a big company who doesn't seem to care about small things that slip through the cracks. read more

Very dishonest company and use price gouging every year. they will lure you in with initial lease price, but them it jumps dramatically every year and you will end up paying much more than same apt's for newcomers..I pay almost the same for a one bedroom that they are offering now for two bedrooms twice the size..how does that work? building is mediocre with regards to updates, cleanliness, etc. Lobby hallways always smell like rotting trash. For same price you can find MUCH nicer buildings in this neighborhood. Only very good part of this property is the maintenance crew..they always respond quickly and get things done well. read more

Summary: Simply love here. Wonderful location, just 30 seconds away from the metro station. Amazing people, friendly staff and neighbors. Nice society, tons of restaurants and stores within walking distance. Great amenities, printer, GYM, pools, concierge, and etc. Affordable price, honestly not that expensive in this area. ---- Detail: 1. Location: It is right off the I-66. You can easily go west to 495 or east to DC. About 25 minutes from fairfax, and 15 minutes from DC. Within walking distance, you can find supermarket, movie theater, restaurants, dry clean, and pretty much everything you need. Yes I really mean within walking distance, less than 5 minutes. You are literally about 30 seconds away from ballston metro station, which can takes you to a lot of places. There are couple hotels nearby (again, less than 5 minutes walking distance), which is very convenient for the guest when they are visiting us. 2. Parking: There are spaces on P1 that are small. It only fits compact cars. If you own a large car like lincoln town car or SUV, you might have to look for spaces on P2 or P3. I'm sure there are a few large spaces on P1, but they are limited. Finding a space is never a problem, even you come home very late. 3. Amenities: The printing center runs pretty well. They always re-fill inks and papers quickly. The printer is fast, it can prints hundreds pages in a few minutes. The pool only opens in the summer, which is regulated by law in this whole Northern Virginia area (I think). I never tried it personally. But you will see a lot people out there. The GYM is really just standard. It's not a huge GYM, but it has pretty much everything you need. 4. Pet: I have a dog. There are many places I can take him for a dog walk. I usually just walk around in the neighbor. From my experience, dog owners in this building are very good. They do look after their dogs in the public. 5. People: They are just wonderful. I'm sorry I couldn't remember all their names, but let's start with concierge. I deal with them a lot since we have a lot packages from Amazon. They are nice and able to help you resolve any kinds of problems. The maintenance guy, they come to repair either on the same day or the next day. They are very efficiently and dependable. During snow days in the winter, the snow got shoved very quickly. Finally the people in the office, they are professional and friendly. The people who lives and works here, is the reason why I really like here. It feels safe and warm. No retards or you know, strange people. They are just good to live with. 6. Price: First, It is more expensive than most places in Fairfax and Loudoun, it is cheaper than most places in DC. If you just compare within the Arlington or the Ballston area, I think the price is average. Because the location, I personally save a lot money on transportation, so overall not bad for me. ---- Overall, this place definitely deserves a 5 stars in my opinion. read more

Great, great, great staff here. The leasing agent (Tatiana) has been more than helpful and accommodating, even when we needed to change things on our lease over and over. They are also really responsive and get back to you quickly. I love the concierge service (as packages at my old place got stolen several times). They are always friendly and helpful, which I appreciate at the end of my workday. I also love the: proximity to the metro, cafe/market downstairs where I can get virtually anything I need for the apartment/food-wise and I don't even have to go outside, having a trash chute instead of going to a gross dumpster or trashroom, being close to so many restaurants and amenities. Oh, and our HUGE balcony! We had a really smooth move-in and no complaints. The parking is also super cheap considering rates in the DC metro area. Highly recommend living here! read more

I'm giving this 2 stars only because the onsite staff is friendly and courteous (side from the leasing agents who are very rude once you live there). The building is cheap for what you pay for and the general corporate management is horrible and not tenant focused or friendly. They nickel and fine s much as they can for parking, pets, party room reservations, and almost everything else you can think of. The cleaning staff, maintenance team and front desk are very friendly and help as much as they can but are limited based on corporate rules. read more

Solid space. Staff is great, always enjoy chatting with Ebony and Mo! Very clean, quiet, and great location.

There are much nicer places for around the same price or cheaper. Check out Richmond Square (directly accross the street) or the Quincy Plaza (2 blocks down) on Quincy and Fairfax. I have been a resident in the Randolph Tower of Archstone Ballston Square since June 2011 having moved to Arlington from Pittsburgh, PA. I was shocked at the abismal treatment I have received from Sandy and Katrina (the General Manager and Accounts Manager for Ballston Square). They are short with you and seem to even gloat at the fact that they have somehow tricked you into signing a lease at their slum-with-a-pool. Douglas is the only resident-minded back-office employee but seems to be overruled by Sandy more often than not. Speaking of slum with a pool: My dishwasher is falling out of its hole My disposal breaks about twice a month My doors don't actually close and lock Many light fixtures are loose and unsightly The blinds are something out of a cheap motel and bend and break every time you try to open and close them. The door to the patio has the structural integrity of a Lincoln Logs building I made when I was three, stand next to the closed door in the Winter for 60 seconds and you'll see just how poorly constructed it is. Sure, they have a 24-hour service guarantee but they just come in and Band-Aid whatever problem you are having, hoping that it lasts till the end of the lease so the next resident will have to deal with it. They have record-keeping software that seems to have been created around the time Columbus sailed the ocean-blue that leads to mistakes in billing that would confuse Bernie Madoff. When I called regarding these mistakes (on three separate occasions) they attempted to tell me that I was the one making the mistake (even when I had paperwork to prove otherwise). The last incident resulted in them charging me a $257 late fee on my rent despite having paid it through their (horrible) online service center on-time. Do yourself a favor and find somewhere else to live. Sure, the lobby looks nice and the concierge is friendly but at the end of the day its an elaborate facade for a poorly run, poorly maintained, deteriorating apartment complex. read more

I had no problems with Archstone until they showed their true colors. With the current economy, we had inquired about average rent increases upon move-in. At that time we were told by a leasing agent 3-5% had been the average increase after the first year. Worst case scenario we had expected 8%. Imagine our surprise when they slid the letter under the door stating a whopping 15% increase in our rent after the first year. I went and talked to management. Rent increases normally don't soar much higher than current inflation rates. The average rent increase for Arlington in 2010 is 6.3% yet our increase is more than double. I also explained we had been great tenants and very understanding of multiple problems in the building (including a flood), yet this is how we are being repaid. We were even going to sign a new full-year lease. Management's response was that everyone up for renewal in September is looking at a 13+ % increase, and "their hands are tied." What a joke. I WILL NOT BE RECOMMENDING ARCHSTONE BALLSTON SQUARE, or any Archstone property for that matter, to anyone in the future. DO NOT RENT HERE UNLESS YOU ARE PREPARED TO BE PRICE GAUGED! read more

Watch out, they charge hidden fees for everything. Don't sign anything unless you're prepared to be ripped off any chance they get. Verbal confirmation over the phone doesn't mean anything, if they promise you something, get it in writing. read more