We lived in a property in Alexandria for more than 5 years and always paid our rent early. We never caused any problems and were always polite despite constant inspections and intrusions by "routine" maintenance. Despite this, we were evicted without cause. Best guess is they intend to raise the rent here, but did not give us the courtesy of offering us the place for the new price. We were simply sent away without cause, along with several neighboring units but not everyone. No one even gave us a phone call. I find this incredibly disrespectful and heartless, especially in the middle of a school year. read more

Pathetic property management. There's some good, here, low rent, decent locations, but sadly a company run by inept, inconsiderate children. Yes, had a bad situation while moving (absolutely not evicted) out so I'll admit, I've been left with a bad taste in my mouth but I lived in a Johnson building for 10 years and if you have the funds seek elsewhere. Bugs, bandaids on everything, terrible neighbors, PASS!! read more

I've lived in Wakefield Manor for the past 8.5 years and I can't imagine a better place to live! I've lived in three different apartments and with each move, management was gracious and easy to work with. They work hard to ensure the property is kept beautifully and have some of the kindest and most thorough staff that upkeep the gorgeous flowers and trees. The maintenance team always responds quickly and can take care of any issue at the convenience of the resident. A perfect location on top of the wonderful staff and spacious apartments, it really can't be beat. read more

I lived at JAProperties over the last 7 years, at two of their properties, Courthouse and Radnor Heights. Over the last several years, I have rented multiple units with JAProperties, coming and going from the immediate area. The rent is amazing for the location, hands down. I had a very positive experience with leasing and property staff, easy communication via email and phone. Maintenance staff responds promptly to all requests, which you can enter through their portal. You can also pay rent on the portal or set up autopay, super simple/user friendly And there are a few gems, such as Grace, who has shown me multiple units on different occasions, and been available to open my unit when I locked myself out. The apartments are SOLID, literally brick buildings, so there is no neighbor noise, unlike the newly built studio apartment in the area I rented for $1,800 where I could hear my neighbor peeing in his bathroom. I came right back over to JAProperties after this. Cleaning crew comes through weekly and all the units I stayed in never once had a bug problem. Laundry rooms are always clean and card operated, and I can never say I had any issue with residents and the laundry units. If you have stumbled across this post in the hunt for affordable housing in the Arlington area, this is a fantastic choice. Thanks to JAProperties, I was able to live where I worked which positively impacted my life in so many ways; shorter commute and more time with my family, use of the metro, and walkability to all the trails, stores, restaurants and gyms. read more

This reports is both about Johnson Associates in general, and about the Glendale Apartments in particular. Basic living. Might be reasonable if not for the following: (1) Scummed/calcified bathroom and kitchen fixtures. Basic fixtures would be expected in a place this inexpensive. But this is ridiculous. (2) Cheapest, most-uncomfortable kitchen hardware possible. Sharp edges that feel like they cut you when you open your cabinets, which invariable require a lot of force to open because of the thick layers of sticky paint on them (see below). (2) Thick layer of paint on everything. They must paint each of these units in no time flat after they turn over, spraying everything. They have basically destroyed the units this way. (3) Floors creak even when walking super-lightly. Your downstairs neighbors will hate you, and there's nothing you can do about it. (4) Johnson management will leave condescending letters scolding their tenants for things like broken dryers (apparently that's our fault), tenants seen washing their cars (which is apparently forbidden), etc. They tape the letters up in the lobby, making it look (to any visitors you might have) like you are 19 years old and your dorm room RA left a note for you. Very classy. They will also give you a condescending letter when you move in, pre-scolding you for paying your rent late (even if you are paying within the legally defined grace-period they wrote into their own lease). (4a) They also insist on continuously posting the extermination schedule in the lobby. This is a small lobby, btw, not some big thing with a special area for mail and postings. So it ends up that the first thing that any visitors see when they come over is the paperwork about your apartment's roach problem. Very classy. Why not just put that on your webpage, Johnson? Or post it in the laundry room? Or slip one under everyone's door every now and then? (5) Johnson lists an email address, but doesn't ever respond to anything via email. Wouldn't want to be too easy to contact, I suppose. (6) Very old laundry facilities. They charge $3 a load. Often find my clothes in the washer completely twisted up and mangled. Often find roaches running around on the top of the washbasin when I open the washer lids. Washers and dryers often do not work, costing you time and money. No way to add time to dryer without buying a whole new cycle. Some washers fill up at a snail's pace. (7) Very old refrigerators. It boggles the mind why they keep these junk heaps, since they are super inefficient. Buy some new refrigerators, Johnson. You'll pay for them in no time, and you can probably get a nice tax credit (and write-off). (8) The screens on the windows don't keep out insects. There's gaping 1/4 inch gaps in between window/screen components. If you want your windows open in the summer at all, you had better not plan on keeping any lights on in your apartment, or you'll end up with a swarm of insects in there. (9) Water pressure is horrible. Will go from scalding to freezing in a moment. Still interested? (Johnson... Fix some of these things and I'll take them down.) read more

I have lived in the Glendale Apts for while now and I had a friend that lived here before as well. The apartments are small and affordable and near a metro. However, there are many negative issues that you will have to be able to deal with. The kitchen is tiny, the appliances are all old, the cheap floor in the kitchen is coming up, and the floors creak. I live on the second floor and can hear the other neighbor on the second floor walking around. I can hear my neighbor below me talking. I can hear any talking going on in the bathroom. I also hear everything in the hallways. I try and leave the air and a fan on at all times to block out all these noises. My apt door does not go all the way to the floor, which doesn't help with the noise. The other negative that could cause me and others in the Glendale apartments to move out are the cockroaches. There are two tenants that have found them between their mattress and box spring, another found one on the bed skirt, another lady killed 7 in one night, and another lady is keeping a bag of all the dead ones she finds because the landlord is not helping. I have seen them in my kitchen as well and I'm a very clean person. The landlords say they spray once a month, but I have never seen any evidence of this. At my previous residence we were always left a note that they came in and sprayed. I will live here until I save enough to buy a place or the roaches take over. read more

I've rented from Johnson Associates for four years and fortunately, I haven't had the same experience as the previous reviewer. Overall, I've been happy with the quality of my apartments and maintenance services. Here is a list of pros & cons from a tenant who's lived in two properties (Washington Blvd, Taft St) and seen two others (Wakefield Manor and Courthouse Manor). Cons: Old buildings, layers of paint, worn floors, basic wear and tear. Old, poor performing washers and dryers in some buildings (Courthouse Manor & Washington Blvd). Grungy common areas (Courthouse Manor). Some pests at the Washington Blvd apt (but I was able to take care of it with some caulk & traps, never saw another) Pros: Fresh paint (it may be layer upon layer, but it's fresh~), waxed floors, and basic repairs done before you move in. I asked for and had my stove and toilet replaced (and the toilet is one of those great high efficiency ones). Both apartments where I've lived had appliances that were fairly new. Cool vintage details like moldings, wood floors, tiled bathrooms, and original cabinetry and light fixtures. Prompt maintenance within a day for minor issues (like a broken drawer). You can paint the walls! New laundry at Wakefield Manor. Very quiet at both the Washington Blvd and Taft St apartments (but could be more a reflection of quiet neighbors) Affordable. In Arlington, these apartments are even more affordable than rent-controlled places. For me, these apartments are perfect because they match my two most important criteria - they're affordable, close to a metro, and from what I've seen, fairly well maintained. Make sure you look before you lease though, because some apartments are nicer than others (Taft St property is awesome, probably their best). read more

I have lived in Boulevard Courts at 2300 Washington Blvd for 2.5 years. So my review is somewhat limited. PROS: -$950 w/all utilities included for a ~500 sq foot apartment -neighbors were all super friendly and we had a small sense of community by using the building foyer as our donation center (I gave away my oreck & some workout equipment to neighbors before attempting to sell it, I also received bookshelves and end tables for free from others) -Jim, the landlord, is EXCEPTIONALLY understanding. I was a scared grad student moving to a new city all alone and he let me move in a week early and live for free. Once I didn't sign my check and he sent it back- with ZERO complaints- and cashed it late with zero late fees -Building is verizon and comcast compatible so you can choose the cheaper option (verizon) -Maintenance is fast and super friendly- but if it's not an emergency call them more than once. My fiance and I don't like "bothering" others so we fixed our broken towel rack (that rotted out of the wall) ourselves, a blown fuse ourselves, and once our doorknob broke and we got locked into our apartment- no one came until the next morning (so we took the door off it's hinges so we could go to work) If this happens to you- prepare to use a razor on the door hinge's 7 layered latex paint for 3 hours to get yourself out. -free extermination services once a month -there are several bus stops right at your front door! -The orange line is a 15 minute walk away or a short us ride away -located super close to trader joe's! -they installed a bike rail outback and there's extra space in the laundry room to store your bike out of your apartment! -free parking in the backlot which is steps from your apartment door (but it is super limited) this made putting away groceries really efficient -There are zero cockroaches and rodents living here. I didn't see any cockroaches or mice (and none of the residents did either). CONS: -Latex paint covers everything, and I mean everything -The building is super old, and there appears to be a lot of water damage in my apartment -the linoleum "wooden" floor is hard to clean, and the kitchen floor is peeling and turns yellow within 2 days of a professional steam cleaning (i've never had so much trouble keeping a floor clean!) -the fridge is extremely old and heated the whole wall that separates the kitchen and living space which heated my entire bed -no control over the heat- sometimes it was so hot we had all our windows open -the loud road outside -the coin laundry that got broken into twice in the 2.5 years I lived here- made me feel a little unsafe -I would spend $4.50 per load IN QUARTERS (1 wash, 2 dryer cycles- and no they do not have quarter machines) since the dryers did not work so well. Also many residents did not know how to operate the washers and would overstuff them leading to a flooded laundry at least once a season -the back door is "always locked" but i've had guests tell me they used a piece of mulch to open it to get inside from the cold!!! It shouldn't be that easy to "break in" to a building! -Some of the windows didn't seem sealed- and after living here with my cats I started to get bugs in their wet cat food. Johnson Associates has free extermination services once a month but this consisted of small sticky traps. My fiance and I ended up going to the store and taking care of the problem ourselves -snow removal does not exist, my fiance and I spent 8 hours shoveling everyone out of the backlot on day 3 of snowzilla 2016 -packages, since the front door is locked ups will not leave anything without a signature. 90% of the time I used the Amazon Locker free service down at 7-11 in Ballston but for larger packages I would have to drive to UPS myself to pick up the packages. I am moving because I have officially outgrown the space. Also, as a professional it is a little embarrassing having company over with the latex covered paint everything- glasses and plates act like suction cups in the kitchen and leave dirt rings all over. Also, one of our neighbors is unfortunately slipping into a dissociative state and has been making violent threats to many residents. I have called the police several times and spoken with the landlord. After 4 months of constant harassment we have decided to move out for our safety. The landlord reported he attempted to contact the neighbor's "next of kin" but nothing has been resolved since November (granted we did not call the landlord to complain until early January so there is not much he can do). He apologized that we were moving out because of the neighbor and was extremely accommodating to let us move out as soon as possible. If you want the world's friendliest landlord, a cheap place to stay, and you don't plan on "entertaining" others then this is the place for you. We have decided to move into the Wellington for $300 more/month and 450+ square feet more with several amenities (and hopefully no delusional neighbors). read more

I LOVE Johnson Associates. I used to rent from them 5 years ago at Bedford Gardens in Arlington, VA. When my husband and I got married we moved into a town house across the street managed by Long & Foster. That was a 5 year nightmare! I am so very very very very happy to be back with Johnson Associates at the Westover Apartments in Arlington. Jim and Jim are the absolute BEST! read more

Johnson Associates is the perfect landlord. Perfect service on everything that matters; anything I would change is basically peripheral. I lived in 1513 N. Rhodes St., which was an awesome vintage apartment at a really reasonable price, close to 2 metro stops. I now live in Florida and am missing Johnson Associates! They respond extremely quickly to maintenance requests. They gave back 100% of my security deposit with absolutely no trouble, no false accusations or sleaze whatsoever. They were completely honest and up front about everything about the building -- parking, laundry, etc., and very helpful in getting to know the neighborhood at the outset. If I had to complain about anything, I would say that they are not always quick to respond to non-maintenance or non-emergency emails. But since only maintenance and/or emergencies require immediate contact, I am absolutely fine with that. Likely the explanation is that they are lean-staffed so they can keep the rents low. To me, that's absolutely a trade-off worth making, because nothing important is sacrificed. You're not going to find a better landlord, ever. read more

I've rented from Johnson Associates for over 15 years. Most of their people have been there the whole time. They are very nice, knowledgeable, helpful and responsive. They are committed to the neighborhood(s). read more

As a former real estate agent, I am surprised that Johnson Associates have not had their real estate license revoked. I lived at Wakefield at Courthouse and can honestly say, as a person who been affiliated with a workforce that required frequent moving, that this has been one of the worst experiences I have ever had. The unit that I lived in (including the entire building) is roach and mice infested. So much so, I found roaches in my clothes, in my bed, in my pantry running over my dishes, flatware, pots and pan (living their droppings in them all). They left their droppings over my kitchen counters. My work space on my kitchen counter was about the size of a large cutting board, and I experienced while preparing meals having roaches running over the counter, which left me no work space roach free. One day during the winter months I quickly grab my coat to run to the bookstore. Once getting into the bookstore I looked down and there was one of the those large roaches at the hem of my coat. On three different occasions, while working at my kitchen sink I felt something funny on my leg. I looked down and it was a roach running up my leg. Another time, I quickly grab a t-shirt. Again I felt something funny on my arm. Yes, again it was a roach running up my arm. When I first moved in, having no knowledge of the condition of the unit prior to moving in, I was quickly confronted with the truth. In response, I made a special trip over to the management office to request something to be done to correct the problem. After they got through laughing at my request, the building maintenance person very sarcastically, that NO he had no intentions of doing anything about the problem. At that point, and because I did not have the financial means of moving out, I went Home Depot, bought the necessary materials and did all the repairs that I could do to correct the problem. You might wonder if they agreed to reimburse me for the materials. The answer is NO. Sometime later, out of the blue, they sent one of the painters over to look at the unit. The painter did confirm that I had done a very good job with the repairs. But despite that, the roaches did not stop. As for the mice, I could hear them in the walls, but I never saw one. One last thing, the roaches coming out the drains in the sinks, bathtub, and kitchen sink became very troublesome at times. After talking with the neighbors, I came to realize that I was not the only one with the problems. In fact, one couple spent three days on their lease; one evening to move in, stayed a day and fought the roaches, and moved out the following early morning. The father of the woman told me that they had so many roaches they could not bear another day. Another tenant recently moved in and she shared with me that she had bought some new leather shoes and the mice and eaten into the leather. Additionally, I learned shortly after moving into the unit, that the previous renter that lived in the unit had to move because the ceiling fell in due to water damage and that he had lost many personal items. As I mentioned before, having been in the real estate business, I am quite surprised that they still have their real estate license. Not only because of their inability to maintain the properties, but also the way they do business. I found that once I had made an agreement with the man that oversees the rental department, it in fact did not constitute an agreement. He would emphatically deny previous discussions, and did go to the extent of stooping low enough to create a situation which made it appear that others where to blame; meaning having sent my rent to him, only for him to return my bank checks/postal money orders and then charge me a late fee. Additionally, myself and at least another person experienced having him to raise our rent without notification and multiple times with a couple of month apart. He did other things that could be classified as "a strong case of selective memory" or just being "least than honest". Any way you look at it, he purposely manipulated things that took the spotlight off of him. If you are looking at this property to rent BEWARE! Read the other reviews. The rent might look tempting, but in the long run, your frustration and anxiety of the living conditions might far out weight a few rent dollars. But if you don't mind having your garments eaten into by silverfish, mice and roaches, and you have a lot of time on your hands to stay in a constant cleaning mode (because roaches carry diseases not only in their body but on their legs as well - this is from living in sews, water pipes and in the ground) then go for it. You will regret it. I regret for having to give them a one star. read more