As a law student, my apartment is the place where I go to unwind after a long day and do my readings for class. Columbia Plaza is a quiet community that allows me to live and study undisturbed. The fact that that have communal heating and air conditioning is a little annoying, but apart from that it is an excellent place in which to live as a student.

I have lived in my unit for 6 weeks, and I have been dealing with a cockroach infestation since the first night. Over the past 6 weeks, I have deal with cockroaches crawling in my fridge and bathtub, on the walls, and on my kitchen counter. I have seen at least 10 cockroaches a week, mostly alive, and that’s only when I am home. I reported every incident to the leasing office. They’ve scheduled me for 5 weekly treatments with their general exterminator as well as an extensive actisol treatment with a professional exterminator, and they resealed the baseboards. Thus far, it has not made any different.

I spend more than most at Columbia plaza because I upgraded to a larger, upgraded one bedroom. I have a very large walk in closet and plenty of space for my partner and I to both work from home. The building is older without the newer amenities (pool) but it’s worth the price for the square footage, proximity to GW Law, and utilities included. I also pay extra to park my car in the garage parking (another $200/month). It is in Foggy Bottom so there is not much night life or trendy restaurants nearby

Spacious and close to school

Great living experience

Close to GWU SMHS but not much going on in Foggy Bottom. Hands off management but they are still responsive to maintenance requests.

Great location in terms of being close to school. Very safe. Has a gym. Many apartments have balconies. Good management, clean. Some pest problems (roaches).

Columbia Plaza

Beautiful apartments- very spacious and many big windows for natural light. Location is also excellent for being close to GWU SMHS as well as the National Mall and other nearby locations.
Parking is an additional fee (under 200 if you get a tandem space w your roommate).
Staff/maintenance is very responsive and there is a mailroom for letters + front desk handles packages.
1 bad thing is that I do not always feel safe (recently had to get locks changed).
(Great for pets if you have an ESA - otherwise not allowed)

Apartment is a very short walk to campus and is very reasonable for the area. The building has mostly young professionals in it and several classmates are here. The gym is nice because you don't have to walk all the way to campus just to workout. Management responds well and I like that packages are at a secure location. Apartments are clean, get good heating/cooling that you can control by each room, and has a dishwasher.