diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index cbd344b80f..6f8c350398 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -113,7 +113,7 @@ public class Person : Identifiable<int>
 #### Relationships
 
 In order for navigation properties to be identified in the model, 
-they should be labeled as virtual.
+they should be labeled with the appropriate attribute (either `HasOne` or `HasMany`).
 
 ```csharp
 public class Person : Identifiable<int>
@@ -121,6 +121,7 @@ public class Person : Identifiable<int>
     [Attr("first-name")]
     public string FirstName { get; set; }
 
+    [HasMany("todo-items")]
     public virtual List<TodoItem> TodoItems { get; set; }
 }
 ```
@@ -135,6 +136,8 @@ public class TodoItem : Identifiable<int>
     public string Description { get; set; }
 
     public int OwnerId { get; set; }
+
+    [HasOne("owner")]
     public virtual Person Owner { get; set; }
 }
 ```
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Builders/DocumentBuilder.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Builders/DocumentBuilder.cs
index 9dc64e06b4..284b2184c5 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Builders/DocumentBuilder.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Builders/DocumentBuilder.cs
@@ -124,25 +124,25 @@ private void _addRelationships(DocumentData data, ContextEntity contextEntity, I
                 {
                     Links = new Links
                     {
-                        Self = linkBuilder.GetSelfRelationLink(contextEntity.EntityName, entity.Id.ToString(), r.RelationshipName),
-                        Related = linkBuilder.GetRelatedRelationLink(contextEntity.EntityName, entity.Id.ToString(), r.RelationshipName)
+                        Self = linkBuilder.GetSelfRelationLink(contextEntity.EntityName, entity.Id.ToString(), r.InternalRelationshipName),
+                        Related = linkBuilder.GetRelatedRelationLink(contextEntity.EntityName, entity.Id.ToString(), r.InternalRelationshipName)
                     }
                 };
 
-                if (_relationshipIsIncluded(r.RelationshipName))
+                if (_relationshipIsIncluded(r.InternalRelationshipName))
                 {
                     var navigationEntity = _jsonApiContext.ContextGraph
-                        .GetRelationship(entity, r.RelationshipName);
+                        .GetRelationship(entity, r.InternalRelationshipName);
 
                     if(navigationEntity == null)
                         relationshipData.SingleData = null;
                     else if (navigationEntity is IEnumerable)
-                        relationshipData.ManyData = _getRelationships((IEnumerable<object>)navigationEntity, r.RelationshipName);
+                        relationshipData.ManyData = _getRelationships((IEnumerable<object>)navigationEntity, r.InternalRelationshipName);
                     else
-                        relationshipData.SingleData = _getRelationship(navigationEntity, r.RelationshipName);
+                        relationshipData.SingleData = _getRelationship(navigationEntity, r.InternalRelationshipName);
                 }
 
-                data.Relationships.Add(r.RelationshipName.Dasherize(), relationshipData);
+                data.Relationships.Add(r.InternalRelationshipName.Dasherize(), relationshipData);
             });
         }
 
@@ -152,9 +152,9 @@ private List<DocumentData> _getIncludedEntities(ContextEntity contextEntity, IId
 
             contextEntity.Relationships.ForEach(r =>
             {
-                if (!_relationshipIsIncluded(r.RelationshipName)) return;
+                if (!_relationshipIsIncluded(r.InternalRelationshipName)) return;
 
-                var navigationEntity = _jsonApiContext.ContextGraph.GetRelationship(entity, r.RelationshipName);
+                var navigationEntity = _jsonApiContext.ContextGraph.GetRelationship(entity, r.InternalRelationshipName);
 
                 if (navigationEntity is IEnumerable)
                     foreach (var includedEntity in (IEnumerable)navigationEntity)
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Controllers/JsonApiController.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Controllers/JsonApiController.cs
index 6a4723e77a..ab6eedbf9d 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Controllers/JsonApiController.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Controllers/JsonApiController.cs
@@ -183,7 +183,7 @@ public virtual async Task<IActionResult> PatchRelationshipsAsync(TId id, string
             var relationship = _jsonApiContext.ContextGraph
                 .GetContextEntity(typeof(T))
                 .Relationships
-                .FirstOrDefault(r => r.RelationshipName == relationshipName);
+                .FirstOrDefault(r => r.InternalRelationshipName == relationshipName);
 
             var relationshipIds = relationships.Select(r=>r.Id);
             
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Data/DefaultEntityRepository.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Data/DefaultEntityRepository.cs
index 95d8c1a0b2..5a44bb076c 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Data/DefaultEntityRepository.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Data/DefaultEntityRepository.cs
@@ -108,9 +108,9 @@ public virtual async Task<TEntity> UpdateAsync(TId id, TEntity entity)
         return oldEntity;
         }
 
-        public async Task UpdateRelationshipsAsync(object parent, Relationship relationship, IEnumerable<string> relationshipIds)
+        public async Task UpdateRelationshipsAsync(object parent, RelationshipAttribute relationship, IEnumerable<string> relationshipIds)
         {
-            var genericProcessor = GenericProcessorFactory.GetProcessor(relationship.BaseType, _context);
+            var genericProcessor = GenericProcessorFactory.GetProcessor(relationship.Type, _context);
             await genericProcessor.UpdateRelationshipsAsync(parent, relationship, relationshipIds);
         }
 
@@ -131,7 +131,7 @@ public virtual async Task<bool> DeleteAsync(TId id)
         public virtual IQueryable<TEntity> Include(IQueryable<TEntity> entities, string relationshipName)
         {
             var entity = _jsonApiContext.RequestEntity;
-            if(entity.Relationships.Any(r => r.RelationshipName == relationshipName))
+            if(entity.Relationships.Any(r => r.InternalRelationshipName == relationshipName))
                 return entities.Include(relationshipName);
             
             throw new JsonApiException("400", "Invalid relationship",
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Data/IEntityRepository.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Data/IEntityRepository.cs
index 3eb449c8cf..8df7019f13 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Data/IEntityRepository.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Data/IEntityRepository.cs
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ public interface IEntityRepository<TEntity, in TId>
 
         Task<TEntity> UpdateAsync(TId id, TEntity entity);
 
-        Task UpdateRelationshipsAsync(object parent, Relationship relationship, IEnumerable<string> relationshipIds);
+        Task UpdateRelationshipsAsync(object parent, RelationshipAttribute relationship, IEnumerable<string> relationshipIds);
 
         Task<bool> DeleteAsync(TId id);
     }
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextEntity.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextEntity.cs
index a1afeeefed..e43d85ab0f 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextEntity.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextEntity.cs
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 using System;
 using System.Collections.Generic;
+using JsonApiDotNetCore.Models;
 
 namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Internal
 {
@@ -8,6 +9,6 @@ public class ContextEntity
         public string EntityName { get; set; }
         public Type EntityType { get; set; }
         public List<AttrAttribute> Attributes { get; set; }
-        public List<Relationship> Relationships { get; set; }
+        public List<RelationshipAttribute> Relationships { get; set; }
     }
 }
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextGraph.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextGraph.cs
index 7d1493f2c1..f59ce6f497 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextGraph.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextGraph.cs
@@ -46,8 +46,8 @@ public string GetRelationshipName<TParent>(string relationshipName)
                     e.EntityType == entityType)
                 .Relationships
                 .FirstOrDefault(r => 
-                    r.RelationshipName.ToLower() == relationshipName.ToLower())
-                ?.RelationshipName;
+                    r.InternalRelationshipName.ToLower() == relationshipName.ToLower())
+                ?.InternalRelationshipName;
         }
     }
 }
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextGraphBuilder.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextGraphBuilder.cs
index db01fabc6c..e856714b40 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextGraphBuilder.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/ContextGraphBuilder.cs
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 using System.Linq;
 using System.Reflection;
 using Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore;
+using JsonApiDotNetCore.Models;
 
 namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Internal
 {
@@ -14,7 +15,6 @@ public class ContextGraphBuilder<T> where T : DbContext
         public ContextGraph<T> Build()
         {
             _getFirstLevelEntities();
-            _loadRelationships();
 
             var graph = new ContextGraph<T>
             {
@@ -41,7 +41,8 @@ private void _getFirstLevelEntities()
                     entities.Add(new ContextEntity {
                         EntityName = property.Name,
                         EntityType = entityType,
-                        Attributes = _getAttributes(entityType)
+                        Attributes = _getAttributes(entityType),
+                        Relationships = _getRelationships(entityType)
                     });
                 }                    
             }
@@ -65,38 +66,29 @@ private List<AttrAttribute> _getAttributes(Type entityType)
             return attributes;
         }
 
-        private void _loadRelationships()
-        {          
-            _entities.ForEach(entity => {
-
-                var relationships = new List<Relationship>();
-                var properties = entity.EntityType.GetProperties();
-                
-                foreach(var entityProperty in properties)
-                {
-                    var propertyType = entityProperty.PropertyType;
-                    
-                    if(_isValidEntity(propertyType) 
-                        || (propertyType.GetTypeInfo().IsGenericType && _isValidEntity(propertyType.GetGenericArguments()[0])))
-                        relationships.Add(_getRelationshipFromPropertyInfo(entityProperty));
-                }
-
-                entity.Relationships = relationships;
-            });
-        }
-
-        private bool _isValidEntity(Type type)
+        private List<RelationshipAttribute> _getRelationships(Type entityType)
         {
-            var validEntityRelationshipTypes = _entities.Select(e => e.EntityType);
-            return validEntityRelationshipTypes.Contains(type);
+            var attributes = new List<RelationshipAttribute>();
+            
+            var properties = entityType.GetProperties();
+
+            foreach(var prop in properties)
+            {
+                var attribute = (RelationshipAttribute)prop.GetCustomAttribute(typeof(RelationshipAttribute));
+                if(attribute == null) continue;
+                attribute.InternalRelationshipName = prop.Name;
+                attribute.Type = _getRelationshipType(attribute, prop);
+                attributes.Add(attribute);
+            }
+            return attributes;
         }
 
-        private Relationship _getRelationshipFromPropertyInfo(PropertyInfo propertyInfo)
+        private Type _getRelationshipType(RelationshipAttribute relation, PropertyInfo prop)
         {
-            return new Relationship {
-                Type = propertyInfo.PropertyType,
-                RelationshipName = propertyInfo.Name
-            };
+            if(relation.IsHasMany)
+                return prop.PropertyType.GetGenericArguments()[0];
+            else
+                return prop.PropertyType;
         }
     }
 }
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Generics/GenericProcessor.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Generics/GenericProcessor.cs
index 669e931006..5fa1857b94 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Generics/GenericProcessor.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Generics/GenericProcessor.cs
@@ -17,12 +17,11 @@ public GenericProcessor(DbContext context)
             _context = context;
         }
 
-        public async Task UpdateRelationshipsAsync(object parent, Relationship relationship, IEnumerable<string> relationshipIds)
+        public async Task UpdateRelationshipsAsync(object parent, RelationshipAttribute relationship, IEnumerable<string> relationshipIds)
         {
-            var relationshipType = relationship.BaseType;
+            var relationshipType = relationship.Type;
 
-            // TODO: replace with relationship.IsMany
-            if(relationship.Type.GetInterfaces().Contains(typeof(IEnumerable)))
+            if(relationship.IsHasMany)
             {
                 var entities = _context.GetDbSet<T>().Where(x => relationshipIds.Contains(x.Id.ToString())).ToList();
                 relationship.SetValue(parent, entities);
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Generics/IGenericProcessor.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Generics/IGenericProcessor.cs
index 5b60dc0738..313db15dc1 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Generics/IGenericProcessor.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Generics/IGenericProcessor.cs
@@ -1,10 +1,11 @@
 using System.Collections.Generic;
 using System.Threading.Tasks;
+using JsonApiDotNetCore.Models;
 
 namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Internal
 {
     public interface IGenericProcessor
     {
-        Task UpdateRelationshipsAsync(object parent, Relationship relationship, IEnumerable<string> relationshipIds);
+        Task UpdateRelationshipsAsync(object parent, RelationshipAttribute relationship, IEnumerable<string> relationshipIds);
     }
 }
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/FilterQuery.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/FilterQuery.cs
index 45811e88bd..364d0342c6 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/FilterQuery.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/FilterQuery.cs
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+using JsonApiDotNetCore.Models;
+
 namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Internal.Query
 {
     public class FilterQuery
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/QuerySet.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/QuerySet.cs
index 2dd9e56b97..ed31fd7969 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/QuerySet.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/QuerySet.cs
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 using JsonApiDotNetCore.Extensions;
 using JsonApiDotNetCore.Services;
 using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Http;
+using JsonApiDotNetCore.Models;
 
 namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Internal.Query
 {
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/SortQuery.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/SortQuery.cs
index 827ac3523b..7ef6682cc6 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/SortQuery.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Query/SortQuery.cs
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+using JsonApiDotNetCore.Models;
+
 namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Internal.Query
 {
     public class SortQuery
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Relationship.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Relationship.cs
deleted file mode 100644
index c477c2a248..0000000000
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/Relationship.cs
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,30 +0,0 @@
-using System;
-using System.Collections;
-using System.Collections.Generic;
-using System.Linq;
-using System.Reflection;
-using JsonApiDotNetCore.Extensions;
-
-namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Internal
-{
-    public class Relationship
-    {
-        public Type Type { get; set; }
-        public Type BaseType { get {
-            return (Type.GetInterfaces().Contains(typeof(IEnumerable))) ?
-                 Type.GenericTypeArguments[0] :
-                 Type;            
-        } }
-
-        public string RelationshipName { get; set; }
-
-        public void SetValue(object entity, object newValue)
-        {
-            var propertyInfo = entity
-                .GetType()
-                .GetProperty(RelationshipName);
-            
-            propertyInfo.SetValue(entity, newValue);        
-        }
-    }
-}
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/AttrAttribute.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/AttrAttribute.cs
similarity index 96%
rename from src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/AttrAttribute.cs
rename to src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/AttrAttribute.cs
index 743412e3f2..3ce9a2196a 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Internal/AttrAttribute.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/AttrAttribute.cs
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 using System;
 using System.Reflection;
 
-namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Internal
+namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Models
 {
     public class AttrAttribute : Attribute
     {
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/HasManyAttribute.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/HasManyAttribute.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..13e4a9efad
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/HasManyAttribute.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+using System;
+
+namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Models
+{
+    public class HasManyAttribute : RelationshipAttribute
+    {
+        public HasManyAttribute(string publicName)
+        : base(publicName)
+        {
+            PublicRelationshipName = publicName;
+        }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/HasOneAttribute.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/HasOneAttribute.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e5670eae29
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/HasOneAttribute.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Models
+{
+    public class HasOneAttribute : RelationshipAttribute
+    {
+        public HasOneAttribute(string publicName)
+        : base(publicName)
+        {
+            PublicRelationshipName = publicName;
+        }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/RelationshipAttribute.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/RelationshipAttribute.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..45b3565592
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Models/RelationshipAttribute.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+using System;
+using System.Reflection;
+
+namespace JsonApiDotNetCore.Models
+{
+    public class RelationshipAttribute : Attribute
+    {
+        protected RelationshipAttribute(string publicName)
+        {
+            PublicRelationshipName = publicName;
+        }
+
+        public string PublicRelationshipName { get; set; }
+        public string InternalRelationshipName { get; set; }
+        public Type Type { get; set; }
+        public bool IsHasMany { get { return this.GetType() == typeof(HasManyAttribute); } }
+        public bool IsHasOne { get { return this.GetType() == typeof(HasOneAttribute); } }
+
+        public void SetValue(object entity, object newValue)
+        {
+            var propertyInfo = entity
+                .GetType()
+                .GetProperty(InternalRelationshipName);
+            
+            propertyInfo.SetValue(entity, newValue);        
+        }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Serialization/JsonApiDeSerializer.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Serialization/JsonApiDeSerializer.cs
index edb895a5db..ad7e7cba18 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Serialization/JsonApiDeSerializer.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/Serialization/JsonApiDeSerializer.cs
@@ -98,12 +98,12 @@ private static object _setRelationships(
 
             foreach (var attr in contextEntity.Relationships)
             {
-                var entityProperty = entityProperties.FirstOrDefault(p => p.Name == $"{attr.RelationshipName}Id");
+                var entityProperty = entityProperties.FirstOrDefault(p => p.Name == $"{attr.InternalRelationshipName}Id");
 
                 if (entityProperty == null)
-                    throw new JsonApiException("400", $"{contextEntity.EntityType.Name} does not contain an relationsip named {attr.RelationshipName}");
+                    throw new JsonApiException("400", $"{contextEntity.EntityType.Name} does not contain an relationsip named {attr.InternalRelationshipName}");
 
-                var relationshipName = attr.RelationshipName.Dasherize();
+                var relationshipName = attr.InternalRelationshipName.Dasherize();
                 RelationshipData relationshipData;
                 if (relationships.TryGetValue(relationshipName, out relationshipData))
                 {
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/project.json b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/project.json
index 8785c130a7..86cf04693f 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/project.json
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCore/project.json
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 {
-  "version": "1.0.0-beta1-*",
+  "version": "1.0.0-beta2-*",
 
   "dependencies": {
     "Microsoft.NETCore.App": {
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/Person.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/Person.cs
index 900971951d..3689f39537 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/Person.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/Person.cs
@@ -13,7 +13,10 @@ public class Person : Identifiable, IHasMeta
         [Attr("last-name")]
         public string LastName { get; set; }
 
+        [HasMany("todo-items")]
         public virtual List<TodoItem> TodoItems { get; set; }
+        
+        [HasMany("todo-item-collections")]
         public virtual List<TodoItemCollection> TodoItemCollections { get; set; }
 
         public Dictionary<string, object> GetMeta(IJsonApiContext context)
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/TodoItem.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/TodoItem.cs
index fbf4fe8ba6..5d706da5db 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/TodoItem.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/TodoItem.cs
@@ -12,9 +12,12 @@ public class TodoItem : Identifiable
         public long Ordinal { get; set; }
         
         public int? OwnerId { get; set; }
+        public int? CollectionId { get; set; }
+
+        [HasOne("owner")]
         public virtual Person Owner { get; set; }
 
-        public int? CollectionId { get; set; }
+        [HasOne("collection")]
         public virtual TodoItemCollection Collection { get; set; }
     }
 }
diff --git a/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/TodoItemCollection.cs b/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/TodoItemCollection.cs
index 2c4e42c3f0..c5b1dda453 100644
--- a/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/TodoItemCollection.cs
+++ b/src/JsonApiDotNetCoreExample/Models/TodoItemCollection.cs
@@ -5,9 +5,14 @@ namespace JsonApiDotNetCoreExample.Models
 {
     public class TodoItemCollection : Identifiable
     {
+        [Attr("name")]
         public string Name { get; set; }
-        public virtual List<TodoItem> TodoItems { get; set; }
         public int OwnerId { get; set; }
+
+        [HasMany("todo-items")]
+        public virtual List<TodoItem> TodoItems { get; set; }
+
+        [HasOne("owner")]
         public virtual Person Owner { get; set; }
     }
 }
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test/JsonApiDotNetCoreExampleTests/Acceptance/Spec/DocumentTests/Meta.cs b/test/JsonApiDotNetCoreExampleTests/Acceptance/Spec/DocumentTests/Meta.cs
index 0be777a4f7..e024786252 100644
--- a/test/JsonApiDotNetCoreExampleTests/Acceptance/Spec/DocumentTests/Meta.cs
+++ b/test/JsonApiDotNetCoreExampleTests/Acceptance/Spec/DocumentTests/Meta.cs
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@
 using JsonApiDotNetCoreExampleTests.Startups;
 using JsonApiDotNetCoreExample.Models;
 using System.Collections;
+using System;
 
 namespace JsonApiDotNetCoreExampleTests.Acceptance.Spec.DocumentTests
 {
@@ -32,7 +33,10 @@ public Meta(DocsFixture<Startup, JsonDocWriter> fixture)
         public async Task Total_Record_Count_Included()
         {
             // arrange
-            var expectedCount = _context.TodoItems.Count();
+            _context.TodoItems.RemoveRange(_context.TodoItems);
+            _context.TodoItems.Add(new TodoItem());
+            _context.SaveChanges();
+            var expectedCount = 1;
             var builder = new WebHostBuilder()
                 .UseStartup<MetaStartup>();
 
@@ -45,7 +49,8 @@ public async Task Total_Record_Count_Included()
 
             // act
             var response = await client.SendAsync(request);
-            var documents = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<Documents>(await response.Content.ReadAsStringAsync());
+            var responseBody = await response.Content.ReadAsStringAsync();
+            var documents = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<Documents>(responseBody);
             
             // assert
             Assert.Equal(HttpStatusCode.OK, response.StatusCode);