West Half

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I had an exceptional experience touring and ultimately signing my lease at West Half Apartments! From start to finish, the entire process was seamless, professional, and genuinely welcoming. A special shoutout to Mej in leasing — her professionalism, attentiveness, and warmth made all the difference. She was incredibly helpful, answered every question thoroughly, and made sure I felt supported throughout the entire process. Nothing felt rushed or transactional — it truly felt like I was being guided home. The facilities are amazing, and the apartments are spacious, modern, and beautiful. What surprised me most is how quiet the building is. Despite being in the heart of Navy Yard, once you step inside, it becomes a peaceful safe haven away from the hustle and bustle. That balance is priceless. The gym is HUGE, well-equipped, and one of the best residential gyms I’ve seen. The amenities truly give you a bang for your buck — everything feels thoughtfully designed and elevated. If you’re considering moving here, definitely take a tour — and ask for Mej! You’ll be glad you did. So excited to call West Half home!

If you get Johnny as your maintenance technician, you’ll be very happy! JD Smith is lucky to have someone like him on their team. Johnny is always responsive, professional, and goes above and beyond to make sure things are taken care of quickly. What really stands out is that he doesn’t just handle emergencies , he pays attention to the smaller details that keep everything running smoothly. Whether it’s after hours or during the workday, he shows up ready to help and makes sure the job is done right. We’ve always had a great experience with his work. Thanks for everything, Johnny! 💫

From my very first tour with David to working with Ty throughout the application and move-in process, my experience has been nothing short of amazing. Both were incredibly helpful, professional, and patient, and they made securing my unit feel seamless. The team has also been extremely responsive to my emails, which I truly appreciate. The building feels safe and well-maintained so far. I’ve only been here for a little under a month, but everything has been great thus far, looking forward to seeing how things continue.... Will keep you posted.

Big shoutout to Mej! She’s been an absolutely wonderful professional at the leasing office. She has been very proactive, thorough and helpful in my apartment unit search at West Half. I highly recommend this apartment building for the great service overall! Also, Kwasi is a great guy for maintenance! Absolutely quick and prompt service. Highly recommend!!

Think twice before moving into West Half — here’s why. My daughter and I had one of the most frustrating rental experiences we’ve ever encountered, and I feel obligated to warn anyone considering this building. When her lease was ending, West Half advertised promotions and offered her a larger apartment within the building. But when she attempted to move forward, management suddenly refused to honor their own publicly posted offers. Instead, they claimed her credit “was not good enough” — despite the fact that she had already lived there responsibly for the entire lease term without a single issue (and her credit is good) They then tried to pressure me, the co-signer, to apply as the main leaseholder, which would have forced us to pay additional tenant fees and new application fees. It felt manipulative, and completely contradictory to what was advertised. It didn’t stop there. We gave proper 60-day notice, moved out on time, cleaned the apartment thoroughly, and returned the keys after leaving the unit in immaculate condition. Instead of receiving the promised $500 deposit refund, West Half: • Failed to return the deposit within the legal window • Did not provide the documentation required under D.C. law • Locked my daughter out of the apartment while her belongings were still inside • Issued surprise “cleaning” charges totaling more than $436, with no evidence to justify them • Became even less cooperative after we inquired about the interest legally owed on the deposit The experience was extremely unprofessional, lacked transparency, and left us feeling misled and taken advantage of. We are now prepared to take legal action. Fortunately, we moved to Urby, where the staff treated us with honesty, respect, and genuine professionalism. The difference in customer service was night and day. At Urby, we felt valued — not manipulated. If you value ethical practices, transparent communication, and respect as a tenant, please think twice before choosing West Half. There are much better-managed buildings in D.C. especially in the Navy Yard area, that won’t put you through this.

Want to give a big thank you to Mej for all of her help and guidance during the tour and application process at West Half. Her professionalism and ability to answer questions and concerns has made the process a lot easier and more assuring for me! She gave a wonderful tour of several different and beautiful apartment units across West Half and 1205 Collection, and has made me excited to live here! Thank you Mej for all of your expertise and time!

Best rooftop view of Nationals Park in DC. Incredible views of the city from an indoor/outdoor rooftop with pool. Large gym with every option you can think of. Large apartments and approachable/easy to work with staff. West Half far surpasses any luxury building in the Wharf and gives top tier apartment buildings in Navy Yard a run for their money. You’re half a block to navy yard metro. 100 feet from the entrance of nationals park, and within minutes walk of the major bars and restaurants in navy yard. Spend the extra couple hundred of dollars per month on rent and go with West Half. Make sure you ask for Ty or Tanisha in the leasing office and if Erica’s at the front desk, you’ll never have an issue. Something wrong with your apartment? Ask for Johnny B, he’ll take care of it.

*1/5 Stars* I'm giving West Half 1205 one stars, and it's a generous rating considering the major complaints I have. As a resident and former employee, I've seen the inner workings of the building, and it's a mixed bag. The amenities are top-notch, and the view of Nationals Stadium is unparalleled - it feels like the entire building has box seats! However, the pool is ridiculously small and doesn't make sense for a building of this caliber. The pool furniture is also original to the build and desperately needs to be replaced. My major complaints lie with the service and management. The building is constantly behind on service tickets, often taking weeks or even months to address issues. The trash shoots are filthy, and while the trash shoots themselves work, Property Manager Tanisha Rowe has failed to communicate improvements, leading people to leave trash on the floor. I've also had personal issues with Tanisha, who claims she never throws anyone under the bus but did exactly that to me at the first opportunity. Despite these issues, I do think the building is on an upswing TY, Titi, Tariq, JP are dedicated hard workers. Patrice is also a very competent property manager. The pest issue is finally under control, and I've seen some efforts to address the service issues. However, West Half 1205 needs a dedicated service manager and team to truly shine. As the crown jewel of JBG Smith's Navy Yard properties, it's disappointing to see it constantly supporting other buildings, like 1221 across the street.

I've been a West Half resident for over two years. I love the physical building and my apartment, but this will be the last JBG Smith Building I live in. The reception staff is mostly great and I greatly appreciate a number of the staff up front -- they are kind, helpful, and so welcoming. The leasing and management staff however are terrible. They are difficult to get a hold of, disorganized, dishonest, and disrespectful. They are constantly masking violent crimes that occur on and around the property and refuse to actually take action unless residents organize. To provide some context, my car was one of nearly 40 vehicles vandalized in our residential garage this summer. Not only was I made to feel like the break in was my fault, but the building refused to address the lack of security in the "secure garage" that resident pay $300/month to park in. It took a group of 60 residents to form a union and collectively make demands before they even appropriately responded to the issues. Even now, they are trying to restrict our right to share information with fellow community members. I know that these things will happen, as car break ins and violent crimes are an issue city-wide issue, but my problem is with the way JBG Smith "handles" the recurring issues and treats residents who are impacted. So, if you're thinking about a JBG property, I'd say look elsewhere. Crime is up everywhere, but find yourself a property manager that is going to be transparent regarding violent crimes on your property and take appropriate steps to insure your safety.

Avoid at all costs. Going on two weeks of trying to obtain a key after being signed onto a lease. Avoid this management group. Not kind and not helpful.

First of all, do not expect to speak to an actual human being to set up a tour. I had a tour set up yesterday by "Leo" at 3 pm. I took off work for this tour. I waited for 40 minutes in the lobby, and no one came to give me a tour. This was very unprofessional. I have heard in the past that the leasing office is absolutely horrible in this complex, and I should have listened. I am no longer interested in touring or living at this establishment.

West Half has been my home for the last two years and I love living there. The area is modern, safe, and growing up. The amenities are good, I use them a lot to have people over, the swimming pool and the fitness center. It is a great spot to enjoy the baseball season and watch the concerts. The staff is amicable. Felicia, in particular, is always willing to help and find solutions. The maintenance staff is always responsive.

Overall, a decent place. I want to give a huge shoutout to Felicia! Seriously, she is waaaay overqualified for her position. How she remembers everyones name I will never understand. She handles all issues with ease. Overall top notch. The rest of the concierge are nice as well. I do wish that management didn't plant a "babysitter" on the pool room/deck in the summer months. I don't appreciate the monitoring in my place of residence. There is a camera on the roof, why not have someone keep tabs that way? We pay a lot of money to live in West Half and relax at home. It is hard to do with someone sitting there watching you. I seriously hate that JBG Smith treats its residents like children. If not for Felicia and the concierge team, I'd give this place 2.5 stars.

UPDATE: in response to their feedback, the building took ZERO actions from February to September until the residents in the building ended up having to meet together to get any responses or actions from the building itself. Again, the Management responded with "this is the new norm" and "if I were you I would break your lease and leave" as their reaction for 8 months. The residents put up fliers in the building to gather a group of over 60 residents effected, while the building actively took down the fliers off people's personal doors and the public elevator to try and stop people from meeting together. The residents then proceeded to gather videos and pictures of the locks in the building not working properly to access the garage, and the building just responded that everything is working properly (but now to cover themselves on this review, they say they upgraded them). The security team that they hired was one person who was "active" when our car was stolen, and he told us "there are a lot of white cars coming in and out, so we can't tell if they are being stolen". Also, since the improvements they have mentioned implementing (which they didn't announce to the people effected because they lack transparency), a car had all 4 of its tires stolen while the security was in place. I am not sure how people can lift a car and take off 4 tires while we have any of the actions they have claimed to implement. ORIGINAL: I have lived in West Half/1205 Collection for 4 years now and the consistent problems with management has left me leaving a negative review. I do need to start with the reasons I have lived here: the apartments themselves are very nice and big, the people at the front desk are very helpful, the amenities are great, and the location is perfect. Unfortunately, the management has made every other aspect living here extremely difficult. Firstly, the positive reviews left below are clearly written by the building themselves to cover up bad ratings. Second, once you live in the building, management (Patrice and Tyler currently) refuse to answer any emails, whether it is about resigning a lease, looking to move into a new apartment within the building, or any issues you may have. The most important reason I am leaving this review is because of the recent car break-ins and stolen cars from the garage (which the police have confirmed started in February 2023). While this has been happening all over DC, we pay $300/mo for private parking, and over 50 people in the building have had their car either broken into or stolen from February to September, and the building absolutely refused to do anything until September (where they have taken limited action). The building actively didn't alert the residents when these events took place, refused to answer emails, and whenever they did answer phone calls refused to answer questions directly. The managers in the building responded to this by saying "this is the new norm". Because of this, we contacted corporate and spoke to Gary Kulash, the Senior Regional Manager of JBG, who responded with "If I were in your shoes and unhappy about how the building is handling the situation, I would just not park in the garage and break the lease", instead of trying to fix the problem. They also refuse to answer any questions about the break ins, after the residents provided evidence of multiple doors malfunctioning and ways to get behind the private gates, and suggested to talk to MPD. The police detectives said the building has every right to share the information we are asking for but also the right to not share, so they are choosing to not be transparent with their residents. Really a shame that such a nice apartment is being managed by managers who actively hide transparency and don't want to help their residents.

West Half is a great place to consider for living. The amenities are great and the location is perfect if you are looking for a city feel without all the traffic. The staff is also very friendly. Felicia, in particular, is great. She is very personable and takes personal interest in the residents.

Do not live here. Intolerable noise level at all hours almost every day of the week from the Bullpen, Half Street drummers, etc. The rent is far too high for the inconveniences you experience almost daily and the noise levels that truly create an unlivable environment. Would recommend looking elsewhere.

This place started off as a nice place to live, but as time went on the luxury aspect of the building went downhill. Luxury is expected as that aligns with the amount paid for rent. The walls, floors and exterior doors in the apartments are thin, allowing you to hear conversations your neighbors are having. Within my two year lease the floor to ceiling windows were cleaned once. The management team address concerns in a round about way. For example, concerns about being charge utility adjustments ranging over $100 per month, due to a mistake on their part. Overall, the concierge team made the experience a little better; but I would not recommend choosing this apartment building if you want to live in a luxury building.

Our heating system has been broken for a month during winter and management has been doing nothing about it. They have failed to fix it, failed to respond to requests for information and failed to assist us in any way. Our unit has no heating, as it was turned off in the unit. This building is terrible and management is appalling. Don't move here.