“I would like to strongly warn any landlords against using ......”
1 Star Review
Nov 03,2017
By:
'Landlords,'
Nov 03,2017
Branch: London, 4 - 8 Westow Street
Services: Lettings (as a Landlord)
Would you recommend?: No
Postcode: SE20
Branch: London, 4 - 8 Westow Street
Lettings (as a Landlord)
Postcode: SE20
7
people found
this helpful
I would like to strongly warn any landlords against using this agency when letting your property.
Every aspect of their service has been full of errors and delays. The day before the tenants moved in, we had not received any references or a tenancy agreement, even though we had been chasing them for over a month. When we finally received the references they were insufficient/poor and there were no prior landlord references for one of the tenants, something we specifically requested, which they confirmed we would receive. The details on the references/credit checks were also incorrect. The tenancy ageement had an incorrect lease term (and was full of irrelevant clauses as they use an identical, unedited template for every tenancy) so we were unable to sign it before the tenants moved in. Therefore we now have tenants in our flat with insufficient references and no signed tenancy agreement.
They were also dishonest with us about the fees charged to the tenants. They told us the fees would be split 50/50, but they have charged the tenants extortionate and unnecessary fees. The tenants also handed over their deposit, requesting proof it was being retained in a safety deposit scheme, but nobody would respond to them for weeks, until we intervened. Again, they received this the day before they were due to move in. The tenants also informed us of numerous other mistakes Streets Ahead had made on their side of things.
When raising these issues staff can become argumentative or laugh off concerns, advising you 'not to worry so much' (when tenants are due to move in the next day and you still haven't received references or a signed contract). Nick in particular is very skilled in deflecting incompetence through argument or drawing on irrelevant information. Amy is very pleasant but unfortunately made many errors (including calling me a few days before the tenancy start date, worried that she'd given us all the wrong dates) and did not follow-up effectively. She also did not understand the importance of references and credit checks to landlords, however nice prospective tenants seem to appear.
It seems the lettings department's focus is on aggressively pushing tenants and landlords to agree to a tenancy asap. Follow up admin is then completely neglected and hastily scrambled together at the very last minute, resulting in multiple errors.
There are plenty of other estate agents in Crystal Palace and we particularly recommend Foxtons, whose service is expensive, but flawless. We are severely regretting not using them this time around.
Comment on agent fees
Landlord’s fees would have been reasonable if the service had been provided effectively. Tenants fees are unfair, even if the service had been provided competently.
7
people found
this helpful
Was this helpful?
Yes