100% sales valuation accuracy
100% sales fee satisfaction
Oct 30,2018
Oct 30,2018
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We (three young professionals) rented a house in Lockleaze, Bristol through CJ Hole from September 2017- September 2018, and I would honestly recommend people to avoid using this agency.
From the beginning of our tenancy, we had issues getting the agency to push for things to be fixed at the newly "refurbished" house. As stated in our inventory on the day of move in, there were noticeable issues with the property, such as cupboards broken, dirty kitchen all which the agency said would be sorted. Weeks would go past and these issues we raised had failed to get anywhere. Furthermore, the poor and cheap refurb under taken by our somewhat lazy, ignorant and difficult landlord were apparent from the get go. There was no extractor fan put into the bathroom, this caused mould, the cheaply fitted shower door was leaking just to name a few.
Wanting to live in a clean, tidy and functioning house, we reported these issues to CJ Hole to forward to the landlord. Water was leaking from the shower, something we explained unless was tackled quickly the bill at the end of it would be much worse. This was something that was being sorted as we viewed the property, something I can only think of happening due to the issue previously being ignored.
Weeks would go past with no response and several attempts at phone calls being made. Each time a different member of staff would pick up the phone or email back and inform us they were waiting for the landlord to respond and âapprove worksâ or they were organising quotes. Months had now passed without any work being carried out and both and landlord and lettings agency reluctant to resolve the issue.
We therefore threatened to withhold our rent until the at times, quite dreadful conditions being a flooded bathroom, a broken sink tap for the kitchen and plugs that did not work were fixed. After CJ Hole responded to us, informing us a clause in the contract stated that we would have to pay £90 per day in fees to withhold our rent. This threat of withholding our rent still had no impact on CJ Hole speeding up the process and their understanding our frustration as rent paying tenants. We felt we had no rights so contacted Environmental Health at Bristol City Council.
Just to give you some indication of the time line of getting a response and things sorted, an original email was sent to CJ Hole in early October 2017, and on the 24th of February 2018 we were still explaining to CJ Hole the issues with the property. They were not happy we had gone to the council and told us they were âunawareâ of the issues. Once again a different member of staff came back to us on this.
At this point it was the middle of winter and a considerable amount of mould had built in the bathroom to add to the problems. There was no extractor fan in place and one of us suffered some severe asthma. After inspecting the property (and sending us the report) the council contracted the parties to inform them they had visited and reported this. (please see letter from council confirming contact attached).
Only now did CJ Hold decide to contact us. To their discontent at contact from the council did we begin to hear back of some progress being made. We felt neglected and as if we were dirty, loud annoying tenants who did not care for the property. We all worked full time and had to come back to a house that did not function. We felt if this had been a family living here, more notice would be been given.
Each time a issue was reported, a new member of staff would pick up the thread of emails and have no idea to our frustration what was going on!
Towards the end of our tenancy, we ensured the house was left in a tidy and reasonable state. The house was cleaned head to toe, and left in a better condition to when we moved in. The day after we moved out the landlord went round to look at the property. We were then told by a Gareth Murphy that a check out would occur and a list of things doing to the house would need to be paid for out of our deposit. There was a list of 12 items the landlord wanted to charge us for.
We firstly had proof that from the inventory, many of these things had been ignored from original requests such as the kitchen needing a professional clean, but we were trying to be charged for. Other items were just completely made up, and when challenged we had our question ignored and the item removed from the list. Other items being a lampshade that never existed, the entire carpets needing a professional clean (which we already paid for a sent the receipt in) and the wardrobes needing a clean (whatever that is!) were on the list. After much deliberating with CJ Hole we felt again let down, and that the landlord, who knew nothing of the original state of the property had gone in and putting this quite frankly, put a list of lies together to charge us for.
CJ Hole here ignored our questions as to why the same person who undertook the inventory on move in day, did not do this on move out day. Their response was âIn terms of your query, I should point out that the inventory is not carried out by CJ Hole, we outsource this. However we do carry out the check in, and accompanying report.â This in our eyes is a system that fails to help its tenants and puts the power in the landlord's hands, when they know nothing of the previous state of the property.
After relentless battling with CJ Hole and the landlord we were still being charged £65 for gardening at the end because of some overgrown grass and weeds. Again which were there when we moved in. We eventually had enough and gave in to the Landlord for this unwarranted claim. The withholding of our deposit was costing us money every day for unwarranted and false claims made by them. Where we had a door handle that had broken, we provided a new handle at our own expense for someone to come and fit it on. The fee for this was £75 to fit a door handle!! Again we questioned this as it amounted to a half day rate for a contractor in the city (4-5 hours work!). Knowing this was a greedy amount to take we had reduced on our appeal.
Long and short of this review I would not recommend CJ Hole. They choose lying landlords who do not care for the state of houses their rent paying tenants are living in, nor for customer service.
My main bit of advice would be to take as many photo's as possible on move in day, this along with inventory evidence being as specific as possible, keeping it all saved us a huge amount of made up fees. Our unwillingness to be stood all over ensured the unwarranted claims could not go ahead. Be sure to get environmental health involved where necessary.
This is an honest review, where we have the evidence to back these claims up. I hope this helps future students/professionals in our situation.
My main points summarised below.
- Do not consistently respond to issues
- Lack of communication
- Do not back up their tenants
- No urgency
- Different member of staff each response (no clue of what's going on)
- Rude
- Put you into a position with no leg to stand on
- Had to contact environmental health
From the beginning of our tenancy, we had issues getting the agency to push for things to be fixed at the newly "refurbished" house. As stated in our inventory on the day of move in, there were noticeable issues with the property, such as cupboards broken, dirty kitchen all which the agency said would be sorted. Weeks would go past and these issues we raised had failed to get anywhere. Furthermore, the poor and cheap refurb under taken by our somewhat lazy, ignorant and difficult landlord were apparent from the get go. There was no extractor fan put into the bathroom, this caused mould, the cheaply fitted shower door was leaking just to name a few.
Wanting to live in a clean, tidy and functioning house, we reported these issues to CJ Hole to forward to the landlord. Water was leaking from the shower, something we explained unless was tackled quickly the bill at the end of it would be much worse. This was something that was being sorted as we viewed the property, something I can only think of happening due to the issue previously being ignored.
Weeks would go past with no response and several attempts at phone calls being made. Each time a different member of staff would pick up the phone or email back and inform us they were waiting for the landlord to respond and âapprove worksâ or they were organising quotes. Months had now passed without any work being carried out and both and landlord and lettings agency reluctant to resolve the issue.
We therefore threatened to withhold our rent until the at times, quite dreadful conditions being a flooded bathroom, a broken sink tap for the kitchen and plugs that did not work were fixed. After CJ Hole responded to us, informing us a clause in the contract stated that we would have to pay £90 per day in fees to withhold our rent. This threat of withholding our rent still had no impact on CJ Hole speeding up the process and their understanding our frustration as rent paying tenants. We felt we had no rights so contacted Environmental Health at Bristol City Council.
Just to give you some indication of the time line of getting a response and things sorted, an original email was sent to CJ Hole in early October 2017, and on the 24th of February 2018 we were still explaining to CJ Hole the issues with the property. They were not happy we had gone to the council and told us they were âunawareâ of the issues. Once again a different member of staff came back to us on this.
At this point it was the middle of winter and a considerable amount of mould had built in the bathroom to add to the problems. There was no extractor fan in place and one of us suffered some severe asthma. After inspecting the property (and sending us the report) the council contracted the parties to inform them they had visited and reported this. (please see letter from council confirming contact attached).
Only now did CJ Hold decide to contact us. To their discontent at contact from the council did we begin to hear back of some progress being made. We felt neglected and as if we were dirty, loud annoying tenants who did not care for the property. We all worked full time and had to come back to a house that did not function. We felt if this had been a family living here, more notice would be been given.
Each time a issue was reported, a new member of staff would pick up the thread of emails and have no idea to our frustration what was going on!
Towards the end of our tenancy, we ensured the house was left in a tidy and reasonable state. The house was cleaned head to toe, and left in a better condition to when we moved in. The day after we moved out the landlord went round to look at the property. We were then told by a Gareth Murphy that a check out would occur and a list of things doing to the house would need to be paid for out of our deposit. There was a list of 12 items the landlord wanted to charge us for.
We firstly had proof that from the inventory, many of these things had been ignored from original requests such as the kitchen needing a professional clean, but we were trying to be charged for. Other items were just completely made up, and when challenged we had our question ignored and the item removed from the list. Other items being a lampshade that never existed, the entire carpets needing a professional clean (which we already paid for a sent the receipt in) and the wardrobes needing a clean (whatever that is!) were on the list. After much deliberating with CJ Hole we felt again let down, and that the landlord, who knew nothing of the original state of the property had gone in and putting this quite frankly, put a list of lies together to charge us for.
CJ Hole here ignored our questions as to why the same person who undertook the inventory on move in day, did not do this on move out day. Their response was âIn terms of your query, I should point out that the inventory is not carried out by CJ Hole, we outsource this. However we do carry out the check in, and accompanying report.â This in our eyes is a system that fails to help its tenants and puts the power in the landlord's hands, when they know nothing of the previous state of the property.
After relentless battling with CJ Hole and the landlord we were still being charged £65 for gardening at the end because of some overgrown grass and weeds. Again which were there when we moved in. We eventually had enough and gave in to the Landlord for this unwarranted claim. The withholding of our deposit was costing us money every day for unwarranted and false claims made by them. Where we had a door handle that had broken, we provided a new handle at our own expense for someone to come and fit it on. The fee for this was £75 to fit a door handle!! Again we questioned this as it amounted to a half day rate for a contractor in the city (4-5 hours work!). Knowing this was a greedy amount to take we had reduced on our appeal.
Long and short of this review I would not recommend CJ Hole. They choose lying landlords who do not care for the state of houses their rent paying tenants are living in, nor for customer service.
My main bit of advice would be to take as many photo's as possible on move in day, this along with inventory evidence being as specific as possible, keeping it all saved us a huge amount of made up fees. Our unwillingness to be stood all over ensured the unwarranted claims could not go ahead. Be sure to get environmental health involved where necessary.
This is an honest review, where we have the evidence to back these claims up. I hope this helps future students/professionals in our situation.
My main points summarised below.
- Do not consistently respond to issues
- Lack of communication
- Do not back up their tenants
- No urgency
- Different member of staff each response (no clue of what's going on)
- Rude
- Put you into a position with no leg to stand on
- Had to contact environmental health
Comment on agent fees
Bad for the service given to us throughout the tenancy.
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29th Sep 2021
reviewed by 'Anca'
9th Nov 2020
reviewed by 'A'
18th Aug 2020
reviewed by 'Hannah'
22nd May 2020
reviewed by 'Andrew'
6th Dec 2019
reviewed by 'Gareth'
Opening Hours
Address
CJ Hole
92-94 Gloucester Road
Bishopston,Bristol
City of Bristol
BS7 8BN
0117 9232 888
Performance statistics
| Services | Valuation Accuracy | Fees Satisfaction | Min Price of property reviewed | Max Price of property reviewed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales | 100% | 100% | £105,000 | £440,000 |
Review statistics
| From Landlords | From Tenants | From Vendors | From Buyers | Other | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33 | 1 | 29 | 4 | 64 | 1 | 33 | 0 | 8 | 3 |
Areas covered
- BS7
- Filton Park
- Bishopston
- Lockleaze
- St Andrews
- Eastville, Greenbank
- Montpelier
- St Werburghs
- St Pauls
- Stokes Croft
- Horfield
- Ashley Down
- Filton
Services offered
- Sales
- Lettings
- Block Management
- Surveys
- Conveyancing
- Mortgage Advice
- Home Builder
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Sep 29,2021
Sep 29,2021
1
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To begin with, we had no issues. We put our offer forward for renting a house and we got accepted. The referencing process was lengthy but everything came back clean.
Then, one week before moving in, and just before receiving the contract to sign, the ...
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Nov 09,2020
Nov 09,2020
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As a buyer I was made to feel stupid and patronized when making my offer with agent even a saying “I know what they will say to that” when I offered 2,500 less than he had been pushing me for. I know as someone who is ...
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Dec 03, 2020
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Hi Joe, we’re really disappointed to hear that you were not satisfied with your experience at CJ Hole. We appreciate customer feedback (good or bad) as it gives us an opportunity to review and improve our services if and where it is needed. In order for us to further understand your dissatisfaction we would be keen to hear from you directly to learn more about your experience and address your concerns. If you would like to call or email us on (0117 9232 888 / [email protected]), we woul ...
Aug 18,2020
Aug 18,2020
0
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I would like to thank Sam Jeffreys for his time ensuring our deposits were returned fairly. Sam was able to turn what we thought would be a stressful process into something very quick and easy. Sam listened to our concerns and we were able to ...
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May 22,2020
May 22,2020
0
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CJ Hole have been managing my student properties for almost a year. I am very pleased with the property management offered by them; all of my houses were let very quickly and my designated property manager Shiz has been excellent in dealing with the on ...
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May 20,2020
May 20,2020
0
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Having instructed CJ Hole to manage my property portfolio which consists of student and professional tenants ( mainly students ) almost one year ago I am so pleased with the service they have provided I felt I should post a review this will be the first review ...
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Dec 06,2019
Dec 06,2019
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Great service from Sam in terms of the maintenance and refurb to get ready for re letting. Really helpful and quick in responding and get value for money. Thanks again for all the support from the letting team really goes give me great peace of ...
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Dec 03,2019
Dec 03,2019
0
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Big thanks to Mili, Izzy, Emily and the whole Lettings team at CJ Hole for being so supportive and professional! I am a first time Landlord and these guys helped me get everything in order and even went out of their way to help when ...
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Nov 12,2019
Nov 12,2019
0
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We have been experiencing issues with damp in our flat due to issues with the roofing next door. I have been dealing with Dee who has been brilliant through out the process. She has been responding to my communications very efficiently and always with satisfactory ...
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Oct 08,2019
Oct 08,2019
0
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In their defence, they were always polite and responded quickly when contacted.
However, it is undeniable that they rip off students to maximise their profits at every opportunity...
Viewed the property and then they cut off half our garden when we moved in for 'maintenance' ...
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Jun 18,2019
Jun 18,2019
0
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Gareth was extremely friendly and informative on this viewing. I felt like as if I left having seen and been told everything possible about the property as well as been treated in a lovely, kind and professional manner. Having a viewing with such a pleasant ...
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Nov 05,2018
Nov 05,2018
0
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We were very disappointed with the service we received from CJ Hole. After requests for maintenance in our house, emails were ignored, and phone calls left us with false hope. On one occasion (when maintenance work was finally carried out) we were blamed for causing ...
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Comment on agent fees
Overpriced
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Oct 30,2018
Oct 30,2018
0
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We (three young professionals) rented a house in Lockleaze, Bristol through CJ Hole from September 2017- September 2018, and I would honestly recommend people to avoid using this agency.
From the beginning of our tenancy, we had issues getting the agency to push for things to ...
read full review
read full review
Comment on agent fees
Bad for the service given to us throughout the tenancy.
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Jul 30,2018
Jul 30,2018
0
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The sale of our family home by C.J.Hole Bishopston was a completely stress free experience. From Sean's initial valuation & explanation of marketing strategy, to Emma's post sale attention to detail, you just knew you were dealing with true professionals. The whole team viewed ...
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Comment on agent fees
Very good fee structure
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Feb 07,2018
Feb 07,2018
0
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I found Milli and her colleague were very friendly, informative and made me feel comfortable at a stressful time. We got a answer back from the tenant within a hour...
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Comment on agent fees
Average
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Feb 07,2018
Feb 07,2018
0
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Milli,
Thank you very much for yesterday, you and your colleague were very helpful and got us an answer quicker than we could have hoped for and we appreciated it every much.
Many thanks,
Nathan Bennett...
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Comment on agent fees
Average
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Dec 22,2017
Dec 22,2017
0
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I did not expect ever to leave a review for an estate agent, generally a service that is meant to be endured not enjoyed! But we had a truly amazing service from cjhole. Andy was sensitive and professional, and his enthusiasm and support always felt ...
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Comment on agent fees
Very reasonable,
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May 15,2017
May 15,2017
0
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I would like to thank all the staff at Bishopston branch at CJ hole in Bristol for all the hard work went into selling off my property i'm so grateful to all for their attentive professional conduct which went into the sale of the property ...
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Comment on agent fees
Good
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Mar 28,2017
Mar 28,2017
0
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I recently sold my house with CJ Hole Bishopston and am pleased to say that the process from beginning to end was a very positive one. Sean came to value the house and helped me to get the full asking price very quickly with a ...
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Comment on agent fees
Fees were fair
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Mar 24,2017
Mar 24,2017
0
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A seamless service from the team at CJ Hole, Bishopston. From our initial contact with Andy, then with Joe once the offer had been accepted, to Amy who cheerfully and professionally redirected and helped out when the other team members weren't immediately available (and the ...
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Comment on agent fees
Good - very competitive without having to haggle
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Mar 07,2017
Mar 07,2017
0
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I have been more than happy with the service received from C.J. Hole and particularly Joe during the process of selling my property. I was kept well informed at all stages and Joe was a very good go-between with the solicitors and myself....
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Comment on agent fees
Good value for work undertaken.
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Jan 09,2017
Jan 09,2017
0
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We bought our first home with CJ Hole. As buyers we found them helpful and accessible. Joe the progresso was especially helpful - thanks Joe....
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Dec 20,2016
Dec 20,2016
0
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We bought and subsequently sold our house with cj hole and the experience was very good. They know the local area very well and sold our house within a week, good photos, good advert, well organised viewings etc. During the sales process Joe was very ...
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Comment on agent fees
Good, worth the money.
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Dec 20,2016
Dec 20,2016
0
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Bishopston Branch have been amazing, chasing the Buyers and Solicitors for me. Andy has gone above and beyond, a first class service. Thank you....
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Comment on agent fees
For the work they done, worth every penny.
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Dec 18,2016
Dec 18,2016
0
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I am Rosa Ross and for the first time for selling my flats contacted C.J Hole . Met 2 members of their sale team and from the first moment i had enough confidence to sign the contract with C.J Hole .
Finally after few months waiting ...
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Comment on agent fees
The fee was very reasonable
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Dec 17,2016
Dec 17,2016
1
people found
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Excellent service, faultless. Andy Musker and his team gave a service that could only be described as above. From start to finish I was kept informed of any progress. I plan to move in a couple of years and Cj hole Bishopston will be my ...
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Comment on agent fees
n/a
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Dec 15,2016
Dec 15,2016
0
people found
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The marketing and sale was carried out professionally with maximum and courteous feedback. Advice and guidance on pricing and local market conditions was spot on. Office internal communication and backup was totally reliable....
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Comment on agent fees
Acceptable
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Nov 18,2016
Nov 18,2016
0
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We hired CJ Hole based on recommendations from friends in the Bristol area and were allocated Andy Musker as our key contact. From start to finish Andy was absolutely fantastic, professional and worked phenomenally hard to get our house move completed, even when our move ...
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Comment on agent fees
Agent fees were competitive and in line with what I would of expected to pay.
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Sep 24,2016
Sep 24,2016
0
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We've just bought our first house and the team at CJ Hole Bishopston, particularly Joe Demmery, have been patient, friendly, positive and helpful throughout. Joe has been very understanding of any questions we had as first time buyers, always available to speak to, and empathetic ...
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Sep 20,2016
Sep 20,2016
0
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The team in Gloucester Road Branch is fantastic. I would like to thank Andy, Joe, Sean and Steve for their excellent service.
I like their professionalism and proactive approach. Sean and Steve helped me to save so much time from Day 1 and the property was ...
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Jul 05,2016
Jul 05,2016
2
people found
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this helpful
My greatfull thanks for all your efforts following completion of the sale of my property at Gloucester rd.
It was a long and sometimes difficult journey but you stuck to your task until we finally got there...
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Comment on agent fees
As agreed beforehand
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Sean
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Isabella
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Joe
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Andy
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Emily
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Chris
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Steve
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Milli
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Gareth
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Emma
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Shiz
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Sam
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Amy
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Dee
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No fees information available
Kindly note that legally, letting agents need to publish information about their tenancy fees, government-approved redress schemes and client money protection schemes on their website and on third party websites (on which agents are listed). For properties to lease/rent in England, agents need to keep this information up to date and precise on allAgents or specify within the property description.
Complaints Procedure
Our commitment to you.
At CJ Hole, our customers are important to us, and we believe you have the right to a fair, swift and courteous service at all times.
If you have a complaint about the service that you have received from the CJ Hole local office you should put your concerns in writing to them directly. The correspondence will be acknowledged within 3 working days. The matter will then be investigated and a full response sent to you within 15 working days.
If you feel the matter remains unresolved you need to address your complaint to the Proprietor at the office, who will conduct an investigation and respond with a final viewpoint.
In the unlikely event that you remain dissatisfied then you may refer the matter to The Property Ombudsman (TPO) at the following address:
The Property Ombudsman
Milford House
43-55 Milford Street
Salisbury
Wiltshire
SP1 2BP
Please contact your CJ Hole local office for further information.
Best Letting Agent in BS7 
