Knightsbridge Apartments, Wesley Property Management
Affordable Community of the Year

Wesley Housing has owned and operated Knightsbridge Apartments (“Knightsbridge”) since 1981.The Buckingham neighborhood, where Knightsbridge is located, has historically provided much needed federally subsidized housing in a County that has lost affordable housing at a tremendous rate. The three-story garden-style complex is comprised of six masonry structures that are joined together to form two buildings (210 and 212 N. Glebe Road) around a rectangular-shaped courtyard with connecting walkways.

In fall 2020, the community began substantial renovation of its existing 37 units. Wesley Housing received a reservation of Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) and State and Federal Historic Credits to facilitate the rehabilitation. Listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and National Register of Historic Places, the property was carefully and thoughtfully renovated to protect historic elements while modernizing and improving the community. At the exterior, windows were replaced and masonry was cleaned or updated. All units received updated kitchen and bathroom furnishings/fixtures. HVAC systems were replaced to modern standards, and electrical and plumbing systems were updated. To ensure compatibility with Section 504 for disabled access, six (6) existing units were modified to meet current accessible/barrier-free living requirements. In addition, there were significant improvements to energy and water efficiency directly benefitting the residents through reduced energy costs. The renovation was conducted in order to achieve a minimum of the National Green Building Standard Silver award. These new components were projected to improve the Home Energy Rating System Index, the national industry standard by which a home's energy efficiency is measured, by up to 45% in some units. Finally, to help bridge the digital divide, the property was also wired for free in-unit and common area managed WiFi service at speeds of 100 Mpbs.

The community features one and two bedroom units which are home to 83 residents, 90% of which are Black, Inidigenous, and/or People of Color (BIPOC). Eighty-nine percent (89%) of units are restricted for households earning at or below 50% of the area median income (AMI) and 11% are restricted at 40% AMI. The average Knightsbridge household earns $24,045 for an average household size of two.

Regardless of property size or residents served, every Wesley Property Management community, including Knightsbridge, is a respectful and inclusive space where each individual is empowered and supported with a variety of opportunities and services. The Wesley Property Management team prides itself on managing the community as if they lived there themselves, and are continually improving the services and support provided.
Our staff is unmatched in experience and knowledge in the affordable housing space and is relentlessly dedicated to providing an exceptional level of service and care for our residents. For the past seven years, Wesley Property Management has received the SatisFacts' Resident Superior Award because of our residents' exceptional rating of quality of life in our communities.

The Knightsbridge property management team includes a community manager, assistant community manager, maintenance supervisor and janitorial technician who oversee the community on a daily basis. Our property management team works diligently to ensure resident health and safety. To do this Knightsbridge offers a 24 hour on-call emergency line should residents need anything outside of office hours. Each week an on-call maintenance technician is assigned to the property, switching on-call roles between a neighboring Wesley community team member.

The community is also supported by a Resident Service Coordinator who is responsible for all aspects of Wesley Housing’s delivery of programs to residents such as intake and referral of residents to appropriate service providers. This includes housing stability services, eviction prevention, food assistance, transportation, financial literacy, counseling, employment assistance, and other services. Residents also have access to Wesley Housing’s full-time Employment Specialist who assists residents in their searches for first-time or better employment. The Employment Specialist coordinates with organizations that provide employment opportunities to our residents, as well as works with residents to enhance their employable skills through mock interviews, resume assistance, application help, and more.

The community is conveniently located near Ballston Quarter in Arlington, with easy access to the Ballston and Virginia Square Metro Stations, and public bus system. Arlington Transit (ART) provides fixed-route and paratransit bus service to residents of Arlington County. The nearest bus stop is located 0.1 miles from Knightsbridge on North Glebe Road. Further, the apartments are also located less than two miles from I-66, providing easy transit access for employment opportunities.

The apartment complex has a Walk Score® of 85, and is located in close proximity to services including area retail (CVS Pharmacy - 0.3 miles; Harris Teeter- 0.6 miles; Liberty Gas Center - 0.9 miles), emergency and medical facilities (Arlington County Fire Station - 0.6 miles; Arlington County Police Department - 2.4 miles; Virginia Hospital Center - 2.4 miles), and schools (Barrett Elementary School - 0.7 miles; Swanson Middle School – 2.7 miles).

Knightsbridge is a financially strong property with income that increases year after year, has manageable debt and a healthy cash flow. Historically boasting a vacancy rate year-over-year of less than two percent, it is no surprise that 97% of all community residents pre-renovation returned to Knightsbridge in June 2021. Following rehabilitation, the community was awarded “Exemplary Family Development,” by the National Affordable Housing Management Association’s (NAHMA) national awards program for providing quality housing and supplying essential programs and services for residents.

It is important to note that with any historic revitalization of affordable housing, the utmost caution and care must be taken to preserve elements important to the community. With Arlington County’s categorization of the property as being central to the County’s history, Wesley Housing worked closely with its partners to ensure conditions and preservation features were maintained to meet the U.S. Secretary of Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties during the rehabilitation process.

The property exemplifies the garden apartment-style of multi-residential living that developed in Arlington County during the years immediately following World War II. It incorporates a mixing of architectural styles and the modest expression of modern design influences. Naturally, the preservation of these quality historic features not only helped to preserve the building’s authentic finishes/features, but it also assisted in curbing the production of unnecessary materials waste (through preservation).

Additionally, one of the County’s goals as outlined in the Affordable Housing Master Plan states, “Arlington County shall have an adequate supply of housing available to meet community needs.” This can only be accomplished by both producing and preserving a sufficient supply of affordable rental housing.

Further, Knightsbridge is located within one of the largest metropolitan statistical areas (i.e. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV MSA) in the country. A thriving local economy, densely populated footprint and high demand for real estate (in virtually all asset classes) has an effect of putting significant upward pressure on the demand and pricing for construction services. Finding comparable, buildable land at a basis that would allow for a similar project would be extremely challenging in Arlington, which makes the preservation of properties like Knightsbridge vital to sustaining affordability in Arlington County.

Upon joining the Knightsbridge community, households have access to our award-winning Housing Stability Initiative (HSI), the basis of our resident services programming which addresses risk and resilience factors of our residents by teaching them the skills and behaviors they need to become self-sufficient and ultimately break the cycle of poverty.

The HSI works by stabilizing residents’ housing and then building on that foundation by teaching new skills and behaviors to advance residents’ station in life.

Wesley Housing's HSI provides supportive services to Knightsbridge’s 83 low-income residents in the areas of eviction prevention, linkage and referral, career enhancement, and material assistance/in-kind support.
In addition, a variety of free programming and services are available to residents of all ages in the areas of education, health and wellness, and community engagement. Programs and services take place year-round on varying daily schedules at a neighboring Wesley Housing community, removing barriers to access such as cost and transportation. The Community Resource Center (CRC) at Whitefield Commons has served as an amenity for Knightsbridge residents, is currently being replaced by a state-of-the art community center at The Cadence, a new construction apartment building in Buckingham also under development by Wesley Housing, which will be available to the residents of all three properties in a campus-like setting in Summer 2022.

Activities include:
Housing Stability: To assist with rent payments, the Resident Services Coordinator connects residents to community resources (i.e. social services, local organizations, faith groups) to help bridge any financial gaps.

Job Stability: Our Employment Specialist (ES) works with residents to reenter the workforce or attain more gainful employment. The ES helps identify new prospects, fill out applications, practice interview techniques, secure appropriate attire, obtain Metro fare, and more.

Material Assistance/Health and Wellness: To relieve financial pressure and mitigate food insecurity, we work with partners to provide groceries, hygiene items, and grocery store gift cards at no cost. Fitness and nutrition classes, vaccine clinics, preventative health screenings, and more are also hosted at the Community Resource Center.
Each year, we use our annual resident survey to shape the programming we offer at Knightsbridge. By incorporating resident feedback, we can continue providing relevant and tailored programs that build up lives.

Also, as previously mentioned, as part of the preservation scope, each of the property’s 37 units and the common areas were wired for WiFi access at speeds of 100 Mpbs. In addition to absorbing the capital expense associated with this feature, Wesley Property Management will be incurring the monthly service cost for each household out of its annual operating budget.