Ellicott House

I have lived in Ellicot House for 3 years now and I love everything about it. As an avid biker being this close to one of the Top 3 urban parks in the country just can’t be beat. Love having the utilities included in the rent as I blast the AC all summer long. Also the office manager is super attentive as I had a window seal issue and she had it resolved in less than 4 hours on a Saturday. Ellicot house can’t be beat for these and all the Perks.

The back gate has been damaged for nearly two weeks and as a result we’re back to having random people lounging in the back area. Today there was what appeared to be a heroin user nodding off — nodding, scratching, waking up and then nodding off again nearly suspended in motion. Please maintain the back gate so we don’t experience the same as was true 8 months ago when the backyard area became a hangout for passersby.

I have been at Ellicott House a year now, and I love it.
Pros: Modern, open layouts. Lots of natural light. Gorgeous views. Very quiet. Nice patio and tennis courts. Laundry on every floor. Friendly, professional staff. Maintenance staff very responsive (I once got a new fridge late at night on a holiday weekend). All utilities included. Rent controlled with very reasonable increases. Cat-​friendly. The people are clean and professional, mostly. Almost pest-​free (no apartment building is 100% pest-​free). The kitchens in the studios are full-​sized.
Cons: I wanted a cats-​only building, but there are a lot of dogs here, and there was a yappy one on my floor for a while. It’s 0.8 miles from the metro. The thermostats aren’t very reliable, so you have to learn their quirks. You have to take your recycling down to the basement; I wish we had bins on our floors. Other reviewers are probably correct about the square footage exaggerations. That said, I find the «650 sq ft» alcove studio to be very livable.

Pros: Decent staff, fairly updated apts.
Cons: Windows leak during a bigger storm (our carpets had to be replaced). Super noisy, especially with the fire station nearby. Old heating /​AC, so hard to find proper temp in both winter & summer. Random ppl come to use the patio and tennis courts, the back door is always open. Neighborhood is mostly old ppl.
Overall ok, but way overpriced.

I lived in Ellicott House from 2005 until my departure in November 2011. It was a great place to live for most of that time. Then it was sold to a new Group that decided they would make the place «tony.» They certainly did a number of attractive upgrades to the building, slightly improved the fitness room and resurfaced the indoor swimming pool. My apartment was an older one so I saw no improvement but those who got into a new unit saw maple cabinets in the kitchen and granite counters, stainless steel appliances and hardwood floors in the living room areas. These units came at a premium though. Today Ellicott House is offering a 500 sq foot studio alcove like the one I vacated for $ 1,600.
Let’s do a reality check folks. Ellicott House is six blocks from the Metro, in a quiet neighborhood that I loved, but which offers very little by way of night life or nice neighborhood restaurants (there are a couple of exceptions and the proximity of Politics and Prose cannot be overstated as a great benefit). Oh, and let me add that Ellicott House advertises this alcove as being 650 sq. feet. That is a false measurement and always has been. Borger Management has been called out on it by tenants when there was a tenant association but refuses to correct the record. I measured my place back when they were considering doing a condo conversion and a GENEROUS measurement that included closet spaces put the apartment at 505 sq. feet, that is INCLUDING closets.
Another thing you should know is that after one year of living there Borger will increase your rent by $ 50-​$ 90 a month. They do so legally, using DC Rent Control Formulas, and they call these increases slight. Maybe they are slight for the Diplomatic Staff living in the building who get housing paid for, or for the rich girls who attend AU whose parents pay their rents, but if you are living and working in this city at a middle class level, well I don’t know about you, but another $ 50-​$ 90 rent increase YEAR AFTER YEAR, applied EVERY SINGLE MONTH, is not slight. Oh, but they will tell you how reasonable it is and how slight it is, but you do the math. Legal or not, it is not slight and you will find many managed buildings in this town that will value keeping good tenants over gouging they every year with rent hikes.
One more thing you should know: it has a horrible record with the fire Marshall. Call DC Fire Marshall and ask, don’t take my word for it. I’ve seen the Marshall in the building more than once yelling about the failure of smoke detectors and alarm warning systems. And there is a false alarm in the building from smoke seemingly every month. Not three years ago there was a Christmas fire that gutted one apartment, severely damaged another and charred a whole wing. You can look that one up too, don’t take my word for it. This building as serious issues with its smoke and fire detection systems.
Too expensive, over-​hyped, too concerned with profits for shareholders over service to tenants (though the maintenance crew is hand of fist much better than the office staff), if you need to find a place to live, and you like this nice, quiet tree-​lined neighborhood near Rock Creek Park, there are many more apartment buildings on these blocks.

Have lived here for 10 years. The location is the only weakness for me, I would prefer a spot downtown. But the rest is great, and I stay for the indoor pool and balcony. The utilities are included and the staff are fabulous. I do feel spoiled sometimes living here.

I have lived in different apartments in DC and have never had a better experience than i have had in the Ellicott House. All utilities paid for which is great!
Great Rooms, reasonable rent and helpful staff
what more can you ask for?

Your typical new, doorman building. I lived here from 2004 – 2005. It was a good building to live in as a newcomer to DC. Slightly far from the Van Ness metro (about a 10 min walk, uphill if you’re walking from the metro) and not really close to any fun bars or restaurants. There was however a CVS a block away — very handy for last minute items or beer if we ran out during a party. Street parking was very plentiful but they also have a garage if you’re willing to pay. Indoor pool and gym were kind of small and dingy so we didn’t use them much. Our balcony was nice for days we wanted to step outside but we didn’t use that much either. Laundry room was on each floor but only a handful of machines in each and a couple of times they broke down so we had to go to another floor (no big deal). Carpeting and appliances were all pretty new and everything worked well. Front desk and management office were pretty receptive if we needed them. Aside from some noisy neighbors, I had no complaints about Ellicott House.