The Ridgeleigh at Van Dorn

I have lived here for over two years now. This property is a little older, but most of the units are remodeled and very modern. The units have nice walk-in closets, but my unit has very limited kitchen space. I also like that every unit has a large covered balcony. The location is also great- walking distance to the metro (they also have a shuttle), minutes from Old Town and Kingstowne, and right next to the 95 and the 495. The grounds are kept very nice and pretty. I can sometimes hear my… neighbors, but that is apartment life; it not bad because the management is great about noise control. I am happy here. Read More

I wanted to like living here. However, after 2 weeks short of a year we are so happy to be leaving.

We gave our 60 day notice a week later than intended which caused our last month's rent to be slightly more. That would have been fine except our payment for only 24 days was over $200 more than the normal monthly rate because of the extra time after lease end. And now there was an error on the part of someone in the rent payment process: the payment processor (who claims insufficient funds… despite the money being there for weeks with no movement) or my bank (with whom I spoke already and has no request for money from my account). So now we owe hundreds more, and they are unwilling to compromise.

A big selling point for us was the pool and hot tub, but two weeks into the season, the chemicals were off which gave me an allergic reaction and rash for two days. We also wrote a note to let them know the hot tub was broken shortly thereafter. And it is still broken now, at the end of the season months later.

They also have really sketchy visitor parking rules so DO NOT have visitors on weekends if there isn't time to get a pass. They tow every night for stupid reasons like an expired sticker or no visitor pass. There is parking they don't tow from, but they don't tell you that until after your visitor's car has been towed, as if that makes the apology more meaningful. They towed me the first week before I had a chance to get a sticker and refused to reimburse the money.

The repair team is also a little lazy. Very prompt, especially since our air conditioner was broken and fixed within a day, as was an issue with our outlets, and the fan in the bedroom. However there were a lot of issues for the short duration of our residency, and we always cleaned up smudges. Once we had a mandatory inspection and came home to a bent curtain rod for our blinds. We also have a nick in a doorframe that I'm sure we will be charged for. And our toilet runs and runs and runs and they "fixed it" and when we said it wasn't fixed they said it would be fine.

Overall it is the management that has made us want to leave. Nikki was wonderful every time we interacted and is the main reason this is not a one star review. Sadly one genuinely great employee is not enough to make us stay. I hope they improve because the location, safety, and aesthetics are great, but if honesty and trust in the staff or knowing your payments are safe and correct is important, go anywhere else. Read More

Other than the overflowing garbage and recycling bins that are an eye sore, and the thin walls, the property itself is what you would expect when comparing it to all of the other properties like it available in NoVa today. The problem and what prompted me to move is the new leasing company and management that took over last year. They made several errors in their transition and passed those errors on to the tenants. I’ve been gone for 3 weeks and they are still trying to swindle me out of money… related to their bookkeeping errors. If I treated my customers like this company treated me I would be out of business. Read More

Lived here for around 2 years and there is a lot to be desired. Some of the things that bothered me regarding the property and the apartment included:
- how thin the walls were. Luckily my neighbors were on a similar schedule to us, so the noise didn't bother us much, but you could definitely hear them walking around and occasionally talking.
-parking around the complex can be very difficult at times, especially later at night.
-the office likes to send out many emails threatening to charge… over people not picking up after their pets, not taking the trash out, or other things, but never seems to actually act on it. I have never lived somewhere that so many people did not pick up after their own dogs.
- On weekend, the trash compactor was often overflowing over the top with no where for you to put your own trash. There was one or two weekends where the trash compactor was not just overflowing, but there was trash that was filling the entire staircase leading to it and stacked all around the area. Often the recycle bins are overflowing as well, leaving little or no space for you to put your recyclables.
- if you are trying to call the office, you will only get them about 25% of the time. It is easier to actually go in and talk to them and thankfully since the new company, they have extended their hours 2 days a week.
-It is close driving distance to the grocery, restaurants and the metro, but walking to any of these is a bit far. While the metro is close, there is not really a good path to walk. Also, it is a walk uphill, so unless you can catch a shuttle of bus, you are left either walking or ubering. I would recommend you make the walk at least once before you move in and start taking the metro regularly, as the hill is a bit steep.
-Snow removal was kind of a joke when we were there. It usually would take a few days to remove the snow and then deal with the ice.
-Overall, it was bearable, but I would not recommend it.
On a positive not, the maintenance staff has always been great. Whenever you put in a ticket, they responded pretty quickly and tried to resolve the issue quickly. The property is also nice, with some great outdoor space. Read More