The Blairs

Current Resident 65032

Resident • 2018 - 2019

We live in the Blairs Towns in apartment 2-224. I am being very specific because this particular apartment has had a bed bug problem. We didn't know those black spots were from bed bugs. They leave little blood splattering. I thought they were paint splattering. We get bed bugs. We call management. They want to send someone out 10 days from the day we find out. In the meantime, we have to hire someone for a heat treatment to get rid of all the bugs. This cost us $2000 in total. We had to throw out our couch and two beds and EVERYTHING from my daughter's closet. We found bugs inside books, notebooks, and the bathrooms/kitchen. After the first heat treatment was when we realized the bugs were here when we moved in. You would think that an apartment with a KNOWN bed bug problem would have been tended to quickly, but it wasn't. We are STILL waiting for their bug people to come out. It has been 14 days. The first heat treatment did NOT get rid of the bugs. That is how infested this unit is. They know that we did a heat treatment and we still have bugs. You would think they would care that their unit had an infestation, but they don't care. We had to have someone come out yesterday to spray for pesticides (again). The inspection pest control told me that he had NEVER seen bed bugs in a kitchen or bathroom and we were the first. I don't know how they are going to permanently get rid of the bugs. There are 2 mechanical closets, which we can't open, but have bed bug spots all over the lock and door. This is most likely affecting apartment 2-226. They residents just moved out. We are moving out as quickly as possible, so remember that apartment 2-224 is infested with bed bugs and probably 2-226 as well. Look for circular purplish, black spots that look like paint splatter. This isn't paint, but blood from the bugs. Bed bugs suck your blood at night. We are assuming that the bugs have spread to other units. They bury themselves in the walls, which is why you have to have a $2000 heat treatment. The heat penetrates the walls. We are pretty sure there are bugs in that closet that we can't get into. I can't believe they didn't change the lock on the closet door, but left it with droplets of blood. In total, we had to wait 20 days for the Blairs to do a second heat treatment. We paid for the first heat treatment. Right after the treatment that night, we saw bugs. After two weeks, we have another infestation. If the bed bugs weren't worse enough, the building hires very rude people. In a "luxury" building the customer service should be top notch, but it isn't because this isn't a luxury building. The people who work here treat you like you are wrong and they are always right. One time I was locked out of my apartment building and the concierge refused to give me to key fob because she didn't like me. She just stood their screaming, "go, go, go." This was because I "interrupted" her social call with a friend. Our apartment was also broken into twice. Once management comes in unannounced and scared my daughter so much, she ran to get a knife from the kitchen. Another time late at night a bunch of strange men were going around and checking doors to see if any of them were unlocked. I've had several nervous breakdowns living here because of the way I have been treated from the beginning. I did explain to them that I lost my husband and son and was extremely depressed, but this seemed to only exasperate the problem. Sometimes I act overly nervous and anxious due to this loss. This whole ordeal has ruined my faith in human compassion. Especially when this is your home and you want to feel safe. The walls are paper thin. If you have neighbors who are noisy, you will hear everything they do. There were 5 people and a dog living next door and they were so loud. I felt like I was living in a room/boarding house. I couldn't even sit on the toilet without hearing my neighbors. Bottom line is these apartments are way, way, way overpriced. We shouldn't have had any problems. We were paying close to 3,000 a month.

Current Resident 655030

Verified Resident • 2017 - 2019

The elevators are a complete nightmare. I've had to climb 15 flights, sometimes with my dog, far too many times for what I'm paying to live here. I smell marijuana in my apartment quite often as well, despite notices being sent out reminding residents that it is against the lease agreement. On the plus side, I've never had a pest problem in my apartment, and the concierge staff is always friendly and helpful.

Current Resident 650756

Verified Resident • 2017 - 2020

I have really enjoyed living at the Blair's nice size apt., Laundry facilities, great amenities , pleasant staff on site, and conveniences to the surrounding community of downtown Silver Spring. Would recommend living here!

Current Resident 649731

Verified Resident • 2015 - 2019

I love the location next to grocery store and the Metro, the apartments are spacious and clean, I love how they are always updating the lobby. They seem to be focusing on updating and adapting the Blairs in preparation for the Purple Line, which I appreciate. Too bad most of it will likely be worthless, because they can not shake the ongoing incompetence of their own Business Office.

Current Resident 649704

Verified Resident • 2017 - 2020

it has been a pleasurable experience living here. I live in an eco friendly apartment and when i have visitors, they love the open format of the apartment and hard wood floors. most importantly i love the size of my apartment in comparison to the newer luxury apartment buildings where the apartment size is much smaller and I would be paying almost $1000 more per month in rent

Current Resident 648437

Verified Resident • 2019

The space is good but when some is wrong or not working correctly it takes forever and they don't communicate back to the residents. Our laundry machine break. It took 5 weeks to replace. No one in office ever call to give us an update. We had to call to get answers. If we didn't called they would not have order it.

Current Resident 588393

Verified Resident • 2016 - 2019

This is a safe clean and professionally run complex. The Blalirs have great access to Silver spring attractions and restaurants as well as easy access to public transportation. It is a diverse community and the management caters to the various needs of a diverse population when planning programming options.

Current Resident 644866

Verified Resident • 2017 - 2019

We have had a good experience at the Blairs. The maintenance team is courteous and responsive. The complex is well maintained. Of late, the management team seems to be making efforts to further improve service to residents.

Current Resident 642310

Verified Resident • 2019

I've been living here for five days. Though the staff had been very friendly and most of the experience has been good, it looks to me like there's not a good communication with the people living here. The chillers for the air conditioner are not working and I didn't know until I went to the concierge to notify about the issue. In spite of that, the place is good.

Current Resident 640564

Verified Resident • 2017 - 2019

My experience with this apartment has been mixed. I find the staff terribly polite and courteous, but terribly uninforming. That is, sometimes it's very hard to get information out of them and when you do, sometimes it doesn't ring true. Nice people who lack (or withhold -- I can't tell which) information. Example: We rented the guest apartment for a few days for a family stay. Prior to the arrival of our family, we inspected the apartment, which was filthy. We compained. They sent a cleaning crew which did not do a very good job. We complained again, they sent the cleaners in again and this time I stayed with them until they finished so I could inspect the work. Bed linens had not been changed. I was told the don't clean that. I had to wash the bed linens myself. Later the staff apologized for the "miscommunication." Routine maintenance requests they seem to handle reasonably promptly and well. But some requests drive you nuts: A request to replace a burned out ceiling light with a bulb with a softer tone (instead of institutional white light) was simply denied with, "we don't do that." Why not? "We just don't." You get the picture. The building has a new property manager who seems to be more responsible and responsive. I'm hopeful. But they are going to have to "show me," as they say in Missouri.

Current Resident 637100

Verified Resident • 2019

What drew me to the Blairs were the good reviews from friends of mine who have been living there a long time (over 4 years) and the social/community events. Everyone is so incredibly friendly, you really feel like you're living in a neighborhood within a building.

Current Resident 635600

Verified Resident • 2018 - 2019

Maintenance staff is great. The community is super welcoming and I love having the dog park around. My puppy loves playing there and making new friends. Also three different workout rooms for me to choose from is awesome

Current Resident 635544

Verified Resident • 2017 - 2019

Its a great place to live. The only suggestion I have is that the policies for moving out are to strict and make everything dificult for a person that has lived in the building for quite some time. Being more flexible would help in having more people interested

Brian_J917

Resident • 2019

First, the positive: The location is good - very close to the Metro, the beltway, Rock Creek Park, Whole Foods, Giant (if you shop there), and a playground. The negative: The building has some serious maintenance issues. In the last three months we have been here, the elevators have been either partially or totally down. It is not an issue that the management seems to take seriously based on discussions I have had with other residents who tell me that the management has gone downhill in the last few years. It is really unacceptable to expect someone with a four year old to walk nine flights of stairs to their apartment. We have also had issues with the heating and cooling system which have been ignored (I submitted online work orders and they get closed without addressing). We have also had issues with people parking in our assigned and paid for space. I would not recommend this place. There are plenty of properties in the area with the same if not better amenities.

Current Resident 632315

Verified Resident • 2016 - 2019

I love the Blairs community! It's close to DC, close to shopping, close to public transportation! The Blairs are very culturally diverse and cosmopolitan! There is no other apartment development quite as wonderful as the Blairs!

Current Resident 632252

Verified Resident • 2018 - 2019

Solid first place to get started. Location is a winner, being close to the metro, pharmacy, and grocery store. It's dense, but if you're a city person you'll enjoy it. The custodians are very helpful. G1 garage entrance always smells of dog urine. Apartment is nice and a decent price.

Current Resident 629781

Verified Resident • 2019

Great sustainable community! Recycling, composting, dog friendly and a large number of social events. I highly recommend this complex to those individuals looking for a supportive community with a great vibe.

Current Resident 629777

Verified Resident • 2018 - 2019

Great lifestyle program, no need to pay for a gym. Some apartments are a bit old but good Overall. Love the holidays events and monthly bagel breakfast. walking distance from the metro, grocery store and restaurants.

Current Resident 628085

Verified Resident • 2019

I just moved to the Blairs less than a month ago. The only complaint I have so far is that the area around the building is loud in the early mornings from delivery trucks (there's a Giant next to building) and construction. If you are a light sleeper, that might be a problem.

Current Resident 627388

Verified Resident • 2018 - 2019

Love everything about it!! When I first moved into the Blairs, I was skeptical that I belong here because of the large population of retirement residence. I soon grew to know and love this building and the motivation that the owners had when designing and building it!

Current Resident 626347

Verified Resident • 2019

Having moved in just over a month ago, we're quite pleased so far with The Blairs. The staff who work on site are great and the community itself is pleasant. To date, we haven't taken advantage of many of the community events, but it's nice to know that if we were inclined to participate that there are options.

Current Resident 625425

Verified Resident • 2018 - 2019

Overall The Blairs are a less than satisfactory place to live for a number of reasons including: - Security staff insufficient for a complex of this size - For security reasons I would be very hesitant about recommending The Blairs to my single female friends and associates - Parking problems (paid reserved parking spaces are frequently used by non-residents) - Frequent fire alarms that turn out to be FALSE ALARMS - Fire Safety (No water sprinkler systems in apartment units) - Elevators slow frequently out of service (high rise building) - This place frequently advertises their numerous amenities. However, so many basic issues are lacking.

Current Resident 624728

Verified Resident • 2019

We loved that the Blairs were convenient, the apartments were a great price for the size of the space and they provided great activities/resources to the community members! Plus everyone was so nice and knowledgeable throughout the entire process!

Current Resident 624489

Verified Resident • 2017 - 2019

The price is decent for what is. An older building with some good amentities. They do attempt to update things even through the inconvenience of their residents. The one bedrooms do not have fans inside the bathroom so prepare yourself for that. Maintenance not as timely as they should be for emergency calls

Current Resident 624448

Verified Resident • 2019

love the amenities and love the location. silver spring station is right outside my house literally. the best is the giant right next to me and the blairs shopping center. i love the kitchen and granite too