Sarbin Towers Apartments

Sarbin Towers is awful! The people who manage the building are not good managers at all. They have turned this building into a mecca for people who lie about their residency, living situations, and a place for drug dealers. I have complained about my neighbors, who I am sure are dealers because there apartment is like grand central station — people in and out at all hours of the night, several times for many months, and yet, these people still live here! The building is a locked building. but there is no security — people let other people in all the time. The building is old. the building needs new paint, new locks on the doors, security cameras at all entrances and in the hallways and stairwells, and the standards need to be raised. However, management just wants people in the building for the almighty dollar…
There are people who live here who have kids and families, yet people are in and out of the building at all hours and it is very noisy.
The only pros: on 16^th Street with access to many bus lines and three blocks to Columbia Heights metro, close to WSC and Giant.

If you are thinking of moving into Sarbin Towers Apartment make sure to read this review fully. I will start off by saying I moved here 2 years ago because I was able to get an apartment that just came off of Rent Control for about $ 300 less per month than market. If you are able to get a cheap unit it might be worth it, if you are paying market price AVOID at all costs.
The building is now run by Van Metre Apartments, based out of Virginia, and this building is one of 8 that they control in DC. It was bought from Borger Management along with 2 others about 1 year ago. When they pitched the residents they had said they would be making capital improvements in the building right away to improve the quality of the building. At this point they have cut down a fence along the front walk (Leaving exposed jagged metal poles sticking 2″ out of the ground) and added lettering to the front façade. They have done nothing else, and the building is in worse condition than when it was being run by Borger. I am sure this is because they want the rent controlled units to move out, as about 40% of the building is paying WAY below market for the area. That should always be a red flag because they are not going to invest the time/​money on a building that is not making them a good profit.
Pros:
1) The potential to pay under $ 1,500 for a 1-​bedroom in Columbia Heights. (However it looks like my unit is now listed for $ 1,815 the maximum rent raise allowed under DC Law for a rent controlled unit)
2) A 3 block walk from the Columbia Heights metro
3)Rent Controlled so your rent can only increase 2% plus CPI for the year (normally 4.5%)
Cons:
1) Building in total disrepair after years of neglect. The surfaces are dirty and dingy, walls probably haven’t been painted in years. The floors are mismatched laminate tile with tiles missing. The ceilings are never cleaned and nothing matches, when something was replaced no effort was made to find a match (door knobs, peep holes, numbers on doors, even door color sometimes)
2) The elevators are so old you can walk up the stairs faster than the elevators move. Sometimes the inner door will open but not the outer door and you just have to go back to the lobby and try again. Inside the walls are laminate held together with metal stripping, and the ceiling is a mesh cage with a fan assembly that is so dirty I feel like I must be doing damage to my lung just by stepping inside. I never take the elevator unless I have luggage or lots of bags.
3) The stairwells have no cameras and people regularly smoke in the stairwells to avoid having to go outside. I have also seen people sleeping in the stairwells on weekends. I was told by management that they are «bidding out a camera system» this has been happening for 6 months. So that is a great example of the speed at which things occur in the building.
4) Inside the units themselves are VERY LOW BUDGET. The windows are so old they don’t open all the way and are crooked when open. The carpet is a very cheap industrial burber that is not comfortable to walk on. None of the doors close properly.
5) The kitchen is literally 2.5 cabinets and 2 draws. There is no Disposal, no dishwasher, and no ice maker. The stove doesn’t have a thermometer or window so you have to guess when the oven is preheated. There is no big burner so boiling water is painfully slow. The refrigerator is the cheapest possible model you can have and the plastic draws fall when any weight is put on them. This is in a 1-​bedroom unit, I cannot imagine in a studio.
6) The bathrooms were never updated with the rest of the unit, they were simply refinished. The title and tub were sprayed with some white sealer to make it look new, but it peals off. You cannot regulate the water temperature, in the winter you have to turn the hot water on maximum and use a touch of cold and the opposite in the summer.
7) There is a major construction project happening right next door, so if you are in a unit that is north facing (*05, *06, *07) then every single morning Monday-​Saturday you will be woken up at 7am (many days they start early) to the sounds of construction. Even with the windows closed you will hear it loud and clear, I don’t even need to set an alarm.
Let me also say here that this is what they consider a newly remolded unit. In fact I was the first person to live in this apartment after it was «fully remolded». So make sure you look carefully before deciding to pay full market price in this building and whatever you do, DO NOT sign without touring the EXACT unit you will be renting.