Avalon House on Gerard Court

I think it's an excellent option for people who want a small, group home environment where their loved one is going to get more individual attention, as opposed to a large facility where they're not going to get the same attention and care. There are 11 Avalon Houses in the area, and each house has two live-in staff people. One is the house manger, and that person seems to stay consistent and doesn't get moved around. The second person changes sometimes, and some are better than others. The house manager at my loved one's house is excellent. One area for improvement would be when they bring in new staff, I think they need a little more training. From what I've seen, all of the help are Jamaican, and I think a lot of them have not had a lot of training in the healthcare field, although the managers all definitely have.

Avalon House on Gerard Court was an older house and not in the best condition. The bathroom was a little scary. And the kitchen looked kind of run down. Their response to the kitchen was "Well your mother would never be in the kitchen." But the food still gets cooked in there. And that was concerning to me.

This community was okay but it did not compare with another community that we were looking at.

Avalon House is much less expensive than any other place else we looked at. We chose this facility because the houses are smaller and more homey and the staff turnover here is also much lower. We thought he would feel more at home here and that has turned out to be true. They emphasize above all safety and hat was my biggest concern. I would recommend to others looking.

Avalon house on Gerard Court is a great place for my mother, who has severe dementia and needs help with all aspects of daily living functions. The personnel there are very caring and kind and they take very good care of my mother.

The staff are very nice. It's clean but there are only 2 bathrooms/toilet for 8 residents.

I think they are doing well. It's immaculate, even though the home itself is older, but they keep it very clean. The food is good. The staff is really good, they are pretty attentive. It's pretty amazing how far they go to keep the residents occupied. I think they are a pretty good value. The only concern I have had was with another resident, and they handled that very well, providing one on one care, and redirecting in a respectful, upbeat way. As it turns out there was no need for concern.

I toured this house, and another Avalon House residence recently, as part of a "multi-sibling" effort to find the best place for our mom. The two Avalon houses I toured were the only places where I felt very comfortable and confident that they would be a good choice for my mom. They are homey and affordable, but very clean and well maintained. There is an aura of peace and calm. I was at one of the Avalon houses in McLean during lunch time and the food was home cooked and healthy, and the residents sat together around a family-style dining room table. I particularly appreciated the personality of Sandy, the manager who showed me around the two facilities. She has a matter of fact demeanor, but is warm and personable. I never felt like she was doing a sales job. A big selling point for me is that these places are happy to accompany your loved one on a walk around the neighborhood. I advocated for placement for my mom in an Avalon facility, but we ultimately opted for placement in the town where she was already living, and where a brother is located. I advise visiting one of the Avalon houses if you are trying to get a feel for what is available in the D.C metro region, as they are different in a good way and more affordable than many other options.

I toured this home recently and though it was clean, well-run and lovely, I opted to place my 91-year old mother in another Avalon House nearby on High Street. The Avalon Homes owner, Georgia Weiss, offers thorough and honest answers to prospective client's questions and is sensitive to special requests. [ex: My mom likes the color yellow, so her room was painted yellow ] Caregivers are compassionate and professional. Everyone has years of experience, and it shows.

This home was wonderful! There was little they could have done better (well, lunch could have been a little more inspired at times, but that is a minor consideration given everything else the staff does so well). They took great care of the residents, and of the facility itself--everyone and everything was clean, neat, tidy, in order, even polished! I visited at all times of the day and evening and always found the same situation--everything in order and everyone in good spirits and in fine condition. This is a loving, experienced staff, and I always felt like it was a family and that my family was a big part of it. I think of them often and am reminded how lucky we were that our family member was in #1 Avalon House. They ARE #1 in our book.

We had used another Avalon House community in the past that we were very pleased with, and selected Avalon House on Gerard Court for another loved hoping the quality of care would be similar. Unfortunately they didn't do quite as good a job at this location, the staff didn't seem quite as involved with the residents. Also, the care at this community seemed geared towards Alzheimer's residents, so the care was not as good a match. All that being said, the care here was acceptable, not bad by any means, just not up to the high standards set by the other Avalon House facility we used.

I think they're doing an excellent job. They've got nine houses and my mom is in just one, they all seem to be very well managed and maintained, very clean. They're very helpful, very accomodating, they take phone calls at anytime. The care is very good, they call often, my mother is almost everyday getting worse and worse, she still knows who the kids are but nobody else, so they call me often and the staff is very good. I've called many times and they've never said "we can't talk now," they always answer my questions. Now she's confined to a home with a smaller amount of people and physically it's taken a toll on her but by far financially and everything else it's a better choice for her.

As someone that has previously had to do the whole retirement home to nursing home with my grandmother, it was incredibly refreshing to get out of the super expense big box "homes" and place my mom in a house, in a neighborhood, with only eight other residents. The quality of care and commitment of the staff is unparalleled. You get all of this and the cost is nearly 50% less than the "big box" homes.

$150/day or $165 if with bathroom attached, all inclusive All private rooms. Residential setting...8 or so residents. Rooms are variable in size with no price differential. McLean one toured---definite wear and tear, somewhat dark. Staff seemed friendly. Alarms on door, but staff admitted some residents learn codes and 'escape' anyway. Baths given daily, incontinence support many times a day. Nutritionist used if necessary. Residents weighed regularly to make sure weight is properly maintained/achieved. Staffed 24/7 with night time staff too. 9 homes in McLean/Falls Church area..no current vacancies. No funny odors noted. Back yard access only with supervision. Staff noted taking some residents for walks in neighborhood. Opportunity for personalized care.