The Reserve at Eisenhower Apartments

They’ve cancelled our apartment viewing twice… mind you they didn’t tell us. We had to call to confirm and that’s how we found out they couldn’t do the appointment. I was really excited to view this place but now I don’t know if it’s all worth it. They need more of a staff to help with the leasing.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my stay at The Reserve at Eisenhower. Granted I’ve only been here for 4 months I have had great follow through with the maintenance team when service items arose in my apartment. The office team is also very friendly and welcoming. If you are looking for a great apartment with affordable rent and walkable to a metro line definitely put this on your list.

Don’t waste your money, the place is a lip stick on a pig. maintenance is terrible. Office staff will help you if they feel like it… mold in the bldg and they know about it. bldg floods when it rains. gym is small and equipment is manily old and broken, pool is very small… poor air circulation in the hallways. donot get tricked by proximity to metro, other near by places have free shuttle and cheaper… community gate works half of the time… parking fees for first and second car… parking spots are very small so look for scratches on your door by other cars opening their doors… Tennis court is a joke… welcome to the Reserve.

Terrible service throughout the lease. Buildings are poorly managed and the amenities are lacking. Don’t waste your money.

Well I’m back to give my Spring update for these Apartments. After having a rough winter with my previous review. I’m here to say that these apartments are turning out to be better then my expectations. My first 5 star review complimented how nice and helpful the rental staff was. My second review was only the concerns of a few not so good issues. I have had a couple of service calls since I’ve been here and the maintenance team was on time and took care of the issues very promptly! The grounds are turning out to be very well maintained, trimming of scrubs, mulching and really keeping the appearance nicely. The one person who really stands out in all this work is the property manager (Don Fens). I’ve have never met the gentlemen but only exchanged a few emails back and forth. Mr. Fens seems to be all top of all concerns on this property!!! I’m very impressed on how he takes control to get things done!!! The main office for Equity Reserve should know how well of a fantastic job he’s doing at this location and all the other staff members here!
After having a rough winter with a cold unit, I will have to say that I really like it here. I think that I can bare the cold unit for a very well maintained property and friendly staff!!!
BTW, The pool is open and looks beautiful!!!
Until next time…

I lived here for about a year and a half and honestly have mixed feelings about the place.
The good:
— Prices are reasonable for the general area.
— Apartments are clean and pretty modern — new appliances.
— Walk in closet!
— There were no bugs in my unit. None. Seriously.
— HVAC was very effective.
— Walkable to the Van Dorn metro and very close to both 495 and 395.
— The building is reasonably quiet. I rarely heard my neighbors (and I had neighbors above, below, and next to me).
— The people working in the leasing office are very nice people.
— There is parking.
— There is also a free gym.
— Breaking your lease is remarkably easy. (I broke mine because I bought a house and timing that to the end of my lease ended up not actually happening.)
The bad:
— Despite being nice, the people in the leasing office are not very helpful. It took weeks for them to start fixing my failing water heater, and over a week of me having zero heat (in January) to fix the heat.
— Despite the fact that they commented (multiple times) as to how clean my apartment was in my move out, I was still charged $ 200 for cleaning fees.
— There was a water leak somewhere in my apartment that skyrocketed my water bill that they never bothered to address.
— The immediate (walkable) neighborhood really has nothing (except the Metro, that is). No coffee shops, convenience stores, etc.
— Tiny parking spots and no reserved parking.
— The machines in the gym are lacking — both in variety (though that’s a space issue) and maintenance. (At least one cardio machine was broken at any given time. One specific machine was broken for over a year.)
Summary:
It was an OK place to live short term. I would not do it again, however.
UPDATES:
Re: comments below.
1. I did not have heat for 3 days because of the broken water heater. 3 days is longer than 24 hours.
2. The water bill issue was not resolved. I was never refunded for the overpayment and I never heard a peep from the office about the testing after I moved out. Yes, I demanded the testing be done after I moved because I was *moving*. No one related the results of the test after my move, therefore the only conclusion I can make was that it was never done.
3. The elliptical in the gym was broken for well over a year and was not actually fixed until early this year (2014).

This apartment complex looks nice from the outside, but looks can be deceiving! The «gym» doesn’t always have equipment that works and the so called tennis/​basketball court looks like a place for parties and other adult activities. The apartments themselves are very cheap! I have only lived here for several months and I can’t wait until my lease ends as I won’t be renewing. They neglect to explain that there isn’t any insulation in any of the walls, so I recommend living on the top floor! If you live on any other floor you will hear everything and I mean everything that your neighbors do, your items against the wall that’s connected to the steps will vibrate as you feel and hear everyone going up and going down, and your electric bill will be high because the windows aren’t insulated yet maintenance will say it’s warmer than what the thermostat is set at. Lastly, don’t ask for any assistance from the office staff unless you want to wait especially if the lady is working. She will help you when she feels like it or is done complaining about residents to you first. The next few months can’t go by quick enough so I can get out of here, until then I guess I’ll buy some earplugs so I can have some peace and quit from the surrounding neighbors.

Bad customer service! While searching for apartments I looked into the Reserve at Eisenhower. I liked the apartment I viewed, it looked clean, and met my requirements, although, I did notice residents stopping the leasing agent with maintenance requests. After viewing the apartment I immediately put down a deposit, and was ready to move in. I put down a deposit for a 6-​month lease, however, the next day decided to switch to the 12-​month lease. As a result of my 24-​hour delayed indecisiveness, my monthly rent jumped almost $ 200. I reached out to the leasing agent, who pretty much explained that prices change daily. I understood that rent prices changes from day to day, however, my issue is with his customer service. When I mentioned to the leasing agent that I wasn’t getting much value at that price, for the same price I could get more square footage some place else. He didn’t even seem interested in presenting different options, or even discussing alternatives where maybe I could pay the same price but get more space. I walked in, told him I have to cancel and he was like OK, and looked back at his computer. I can get that kind of service from an ATM, the point of dealing with a person is being able discuss options, alternatives, or at the very least just saying «Hey, I’m sorry it didn’t workout, can I reach out to you if something comes up that meets your requirements.» I’ve never lived at the Reserve, however, if that’s how they treat a potential renter I can only imagine how they treat their residents.

we lived at the reserve for two years. the only upside to this place is its proximity to the metro. you can walk there in under ten minutes. however, the property is NOT well maintained. around the office and front area grounds are tended to, but take a walk thru the halls, stairways, and rest of the grounds and you will see unemptied trash cans filled with pet waste bags, filthy concrete stairs that are stained and unswept. never once did i see staff sweeping the public areas. several of us would count the weeks the same trash sat unswept. they charge $ 50/​month for parking spots that are SO tight it is basically impossible not to hit the car next to you when opening the doors. they are cheap with fixing items. our dishwasher broke and we had to have three service calls, none of which worked, until they finally replaced it. they raise the rent each year by a lot, and if you want to go month to month, you will pay big time. there is a $ 500 move in fee, which is nonrefundable, yet when we moved out, they sent us a bill to PAINT the walls and clean the carpets. they did NOT replace the carpet when we moved in, so we had stains already there. and who charges to paint when its standard to repaint and recarpet between tenants? well it isnt for these folks. STAY AWAY. there are plenty of apartments in NOVA close to metros. paying $ 2300/​month and getting what we got was horrible. they take advantage of the location, plain and simple.

If I could rate the maintenance staff separately, I would give them 5 stars. However, if just rating my year of experience in this complex, it is a 1. I agree with everything that David E. said. They did a bait and switch on us as well. They are raising our rent around $ 150 a month, and parking is now $ 50. When I asked the reason, they said we were actually getting a break in the rental price that newcomers would have to pay, to the tune of $ 70. Well, it was pretty crazy when I saw a larger apartment similar in layout on craigslist, listed by the leasing consultants, at the same rental rate I was quoted. At least they gave David E. free parking! We did not get the same deal. They refused to even work with us. The reason they gave for the price similarity was that I had a courtyard view. The view was not high on my priority list.
What is high on my priority list is responsive staff, a functioning air conditioner, a functioning water heater, metro shuttle, and secure parking. All of those are not priorities of the Reserve at Eisenhower staff.
*The messages put into the main number to talk to a property manager fall into a black hole. The original leasing consultant who leased our apartment never returned one call or email.
*They have an inadequate air conditioning unit to serve the size of my apartment. (As I write this, it is 88 degrees in my apartment.)
*The hot water heater went out at any sign of wind due to a leak over the winter. Even the maintenance staff said that the water heater needed to be replaced but he wasn’t authorized to do so.
*They canceled the shuttle 6 months after we moved in.
*And, the secure parking gate is always broken.
Even if it takes them a month to clean, paint, and re-​rent, it doesn’t even make financial sense to lose 1 month of our rent and fees at $ 1640 to try and make $ 140 more a month.

I have lived here for two years and have to say that the biggest selling point of the property is it’s location. It’s right near the metro and has great access to the beltway. The apartments are nice, I live in a 1 BR with loft which I prefer to the more standard 1 BR + den. The staff has always been friendly.
The biggest issue with this complex is that they do a bait and switch on the rent. When my fiancé and I first moved in we signed a 1-​year lease at $ 1440 a month with $ 45 a month for parking. When we neared the expiration of our lease we were told that our rent was going up to $ 1526 a month. When we asked why, we were told changing market conditions. Given that we had been great tenants (1 service call in a year of living there and no complaints) they agreed to give us complimentary parking to help offset the increase in the rent. I really appreciated this and found this to be a fair arrangement.
Now that we are looking at signing up for a third year they sent us a notice saying that if we wanted to extend our lease for another year the rent would be $ 1670 a month. I know the economy is better then it was 2 years ago but that’s a very steep increase.
We have an appointment to go talk to the leasing consultant on Sunday and I will update this post to reflect what comes out of that meeting but as it currently stands I cannot give this complex more then a single star. The complex itself is great, the apartments are great, but the inflating rent is a big red flag. If you have a loyal tenant who pays their rent on time every month and does not create any problems you would think that it would make sense to keep them around. Instead, by increasing the rent at every opportunity you send the message that the customer isn’t important or valued and all that matters is the bottom line and how much money you can make. It seems extremely disingenuous when the notice accompanying the new lease offer says that they hope we continue to live with them and then a line later they increase the rent over $ 100 without any explanation.

I lived here for a year and I enjoyed my stay. It was convenient to the metro (8 minute walk and they have a shuttle) and it also had easy access to the beltway.
I would have to say that my only pet peeve is that if you live at the top of the Garden Style buildings then there are no elevators. Other than that, I loved how quiet it was and enjoyed all the resident functions they provide.