Background Info: I'm a 24 year old young male professional living with two others in a 3 bedroom 2 bath apartment. I have the master bedroom with my own 3/4 bath. We moved in late september so we've lived there almost three months. Before this I lived out in the suburbs of Fairfax/Centreville in apartment complex's and rented townhomes, and I'm pretty familiar with the area living in NOVA for the last 7 years.

Pros:
*From day 1 everyone in the apartment building has been friendly and welcoming. We met an older lady moving in and she invited us over for shots of whiskey. The first weekend there was a private Birthday party in the Basement lounge area and we were welcomed in like we were on the guest list. Tanya, Carolyn, and Jamel that work at the front office are very friendly and understanding. If you're a social person you're garaunteed to make friends in this place.
*Newly Remodeled. We are the first people to live in our newly remodeled place and I think it's great. I would say on the line between nice place and luxury, coming from a guy who lived in a real luxurious townhome in Centreville. The lounge downstairs is great with a pool table and foosball table, which is fun to do while having some drinks before going out.
*Parking is not a problem so far. We moved in when the building was emptier. It's beginning to fill up now and parking is noticibly different but in the way were you have to park away from the door, never worrying about whether there will be a spot.
*Traffic in the area isn't any worse than other places inside the beltway. It can get frustrating with the buses and no left hand turning lane on Columbia Pike, but it moves alright even during evening rush hour. It's about a five minute drive to 395 and a 10 minute drive to 66, which aren't that great IMO, but also aren't that bad.
*No Bugs (Pro'). Despite what was written in previous reviews I have never seen a rat or bug in my apartment. I say that knowing that bugs and rats rarely venture up to the fifth floor (where I am), but this place does not seem like the type of place that would have them. I'm not saying that they aren't there, but I've never seen them nor have I heard anyone complain about them.
*24 Hour DOOR MAN. I say doorman because they are not a conceirge in the sense that they will call you a cab or tell you about the new events in town. They are basically there as security and to hold packages. They are mostly friendly and fun to chat with.

Cons:
*Pro-rated gas bill. We just received our utilities bill yesterday which was 280$ for gas, electric, and water. The con being that last month our bill was 160$ and the major increase was 100$ more in gas, which is pro-rated throughout the entire building based off of your square footage. Us being in the large 3bdr pay a lot more because other people suddenly feel like cooking. It's not outrageous, but it's a little unfair that we pay for other people's use.
*Noise. It's hard for me to complain about noise because I'm used to being the one people complain about in the suburbs. I have not filed any formal complaint as I'm doing my best to be understanding but last friday night there was a party on another floor (must have been directly above or below) and it was a very loud one. The inaudible noise was like filling our living through the kitchen air vents. That was the only time such an event occured, but you can still hear people moving furniture or hear the sporadic bang, screech, or clank, against the wall or ceiling. It also took some time to get used to living next to a busy street as the busstop right out front would wake me up to screeching brakes. Keep in mind it may be me not used to living in the city but I also have a high tolerance of noise which maybe you dont.
*Under Renovation. This is a con, but hopefully will turn into a Pro in a few months. When I moved in I was told the lobby would be finished by christmas but it hasn't even been started on. The front of the building looks very poor as it's dugg up for landscaping and the front driveway is blocked off for repaving. The few bottom floors are still needing carpet and light covers and are unsightly to walk throguh on your way to the lounge in the basement (which I'll note is finished and nice).

All in all I am enjoying this apartment building. I have not lived in one like this before though so it is hard to compare to Complex's and Townhouses in the burbs. The location is good for night life as it's about 10 minutes from Ballston and 15 from Old Town Alexandria and a 20$ cab ride to DC. The closest grociery store is a safeway at Bailey's Crossroads which is about 5-10 minutes away. There is one place called Food Star which my roommates have scared me from going to, and a pitiful Giant down near Glebe Rd.

I hope this helps you make up your mind in deciding to live here. Keep in mind I also may be partial towards this place as it's 10 minutes from work for me. So coming from a 1 hour commute to this would make any place seem like heaven.


***UPDATE***
I am the original author and I stand by most of what I wrote as it still holds true six months later even with the name change to "The Whitmore".

The lobby is finally finished and looks great... but I didn't really see a problem with it in the first place so if it were up to me I would have left it as is. The new driveway is nice and it's great to finally be able to use the front door again.

We DID find a mouse in our apartment. After doubting the claims about a month later we found a mouse in our apartment. One of my roommates first noticed it under his bed and then my other roommate saw it in his AC/Heating unit. We enjoyed trying to create homemade mousetraps out of peanut butter, shoe boxes, and beer bottles. After a week we bought a trap and that was then end of the poor guy. That was the only pest problem we had and didn't really bother us, but I imagine it could be a deal breaker for some female tenants.

The pool is open and is a lot of fun. There are copious amounts of young attractive women and the pool is a great place to meet them. Only problem is its only open from 4-8 during the week and 12-8 on weekends. The grill cooks great but the tenants let it get a little dirty. It's hit and miss on whether or not you'll need to clean it before grilling.

We got a price break moving in and pay $2028/mo for a 3bdr/2ba. I would definitely recommend it at or close to this price. The only reason I moved out early was to buy a house otherwise I would have stayed as long as they didn't jack up the rent too much (which remains to be seen).

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 12/18/2008
I agree with most of this well-written post, although I have to disagree about the office staff. They are friendly on the surface while they work to make the sale, but they completely ignore many service requests. I have called multiple times about several issues with my apartment (some major, some minor), and each time the staff is always very polite and they say they will get right on it but then do nothing. Several of my neighbors have the same problem, including one neighbor who has been waiting for her dishwasher to be fixed for weeks. I haven't seen any roaches in my apartment, but the other day I overheard contractors in the hallways discussing a significant roach problem in the walls of the building.
From: Anonymous	Date: 07/28/2009
"We moved in late september so we've lived there almost three months" You moved here in late September, and "lived there almost three months"???!!! Ummmmm dude!! This is LATE JULY 2009. If you moved in "late spetember" THAT WOULD BE TEN MONTHS. This guy is a fraud, or someone posting from the office!!!
From: Anonymous	Date: 07/28/2009
nice try! If you read thru many other comments and posts you'd see all of the problems with this place (and yes even after the construction). There are too many people with bad experiences..... and then you come along with your pool party stories and liquor shoots in an old lady's apartment stories PHULEEZE!!!.....do you think all those negative posts and comments (which by far out number the positive ones) are some conspiracy?? I did have a good laugh though, haha
From: griffindj	Date: 07/28/2009
@the last poster The original post was made in December... look at the first comment's date (not the post's date). I just updated the review today, which is why it showed posted on the June 28th. It's the website's bug/issue, but I assure you I lived in Taylor place from Sept 08 to June 09. Read the update and my *honest* praise and critism and tell me if you seriously think I work for the building.
From: Anonymous	Date: 07/29/2009
I'm sorry, not trying to be rude, but you are 24 years old. I'm not much older than you, but the things that I looked for, and many of the issues I was concerned about didn't bother me like they do now. EXCEPT FOR THE MICE. FEMALE OR MALE, it should never be a "fun" activity to catch mice in your home. If I'm paying over $500 a month in rent, I expect not to live with rodents. I could give less of a $hit if my neighbors wanted to have shots..GREAT!!! THEY'RE FRIENDLY. I personally am more concerned with the RODENT and ROACH issue. You clearly said that you were the one they complained about in your previous residence..are you that annoying guy who sings on his balcony late at night with his guitar. B/C HE SUCKS. STOP SINGING ----- SPIRITUALS, WHITE MAN!

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