100% sales valuation accuracy
100% sales fee satisfaction
100% lettings valuation accuracy
75% lettings fee satisfaction
Jun 04,2014
Jun 04,2014
3
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I would strongly discourage prospective tenants from using this lettings agent. We have been renting a property through Leaders (Forest Hill Branch) for over a year and almost without exception their response to issues we have raised has been sluggish, parsimonious and disorganised, and the fees they charge for the most trivial tasks are extortionate.
When originally viewing the property we noticed a patch of mould spores on the bedroom wall directly above the bed which we were assured would be painted over before we moved in. This work was not completed until five months after we moved in, and then only after we complained a number of times. They appeared to have no system in place to manage ongoing cases like this as on a number of occasions they replied stating that they believed it had already been fixed.
Following a break-in one Friday afternoon, Leaders' contracted carpenter assured us that a new door would be installed by the following Monday but it took them over two weeks. They refused our request to have a burglar alarm installed.
Upon renewing our tenancy, Leaders informed us that we would be charged a £72 fee to cover their administration costs. While a fee was mentioned in the tenancy contract, this seemed extremely high for such a simple transaction. When I why it was so high I was simply told ¢â‚¬Å“there is quite a lot of administration work regarding a renewal.¢â‚¬Â We contacted our landlord independently who was shocked to hear we were being charged such a high fee for what should be a completely straightforward piece of admin (i.e. photocopy a document, change the dates, send these off to get signatures), as she was also being charged £75 for the same service. When I asked for a breakdown of exactly what administrative tasks were involved to justify this fee they constantly avoided my question by defensively repeating ¢â‚¬Ëœit's in your contract,' as clearly they could think of no moral justification. Eventually we managed to get an answer out of them, and they said the admin involved ¢â‚¬Å“the time it took to prepare the document, negotiations between two parties, the production of the document and the completion of it,¢â‚¬Â i.e. email the landlord and tenants, make some small changes to a pre-existing document and print it out, nothing particularly arduous. When it came to actually renewing our tenancy it was an online form, so they were not even paying for paper and postage. The one positive outcome of this was that completely by accident they realised they had overcharged us (we only owed them £60 in the end), which is completely consistent with their disorganised approach.
More recently we have been trying to get them to fix a broken fan in our bathroom and the extractor above our oven, which is a major cause of the mould in our flat. They have been typically slow and uncommunicative about this. When an engineer was eventually sent round to get a quote for replacing these and reported back to them, Leaders seemed to have completely forgotten about this request and stated that there was never a fan in the bathroom (there is, and it is broken) and that the condensation problem in the flat was our responsibility, and nothing to do with the two broken extractor fans. The problem is ongoing. In addition we complained about our front door knob having broken several months ago during a second attempted break-in, and they have still not fixed this.
Leaders are only interested in conserving their own resources and extracting as much money from tenants as possible while providing as little service as they can get away with. Save yourself a lot of hassle and void them at all costs.
When originally viewing the property we noticed a patch of mould spores on the bedroom wall directly above the bed which we were assured would be painted over before we moved in. This work was not completed until five months after we moved in, and then only after we complained a number of times. They appeared to have no system in place to manage ongoing cases like this as on a number of occasions they replied stating that they believed it had already been fixed.
Following a break-in one Friday afternoon, Leaders' contracted carpenter assured us that a new door would be installed by the following Monday but it took them over two weeks. They refused our request to have a burglar alarm installed.
Upon renewing our tenancy, Leaders informed us that we would be charged a £72 fee to cover their administration costs. While a fee was mentioned in the tenancy contract, this seemed extremely high for such a simple transaction. When I why it was so high I was simply told ¢â‚¬Å“there is quite a lot of administration work regarding a renewal.¢â‚¬Â We contacted our landlord independently who was shocked to hear we were being charged such a high fee for what should be a completely straightforward piece of admin (i.e. photocopy a document, change the dates, send these off to get signatures), as she was also being charged £75 for the same service. When I asked for a breakdown of exactly what administrative tasks were involved to justify this fee they constantly avoided my question by defensively repeating ¢â‚¬Ëœit's in your contract,' as clearly they could think of no moral justification. Eventually we managed to get an answer out of them, and they said the admin involved ¢â‚¬Å“the time it took to prepare the document, negotiations between two parties, the production of the document and the completion of it,¢â‚¬Â i.e. email the landlord and tenants, make some small changes to a pre-existing document and print it out, nothing particularly arduous. When it came to actually renewing our tenancy it was an online form, so they were not even paying for paper and postage. The one positive outcome of this was that completely by accident they realised they had overcharged us (we only owed them £60 in the end), which is completely consistent with their disorganised approach.
More recently we have been trying to get them to fix a broken fan in our bathroom and the extractor above our oven, which is a major cause of the mould in our flat. They have been typically slow and uncommunicative about this. When an engineer was eventually sent round to get a quote for replacing these and reported back to them, Leaders seemed to have completely forgotten about this request and stated that there was never a fan in the bathroom (there is, and it is broken) and that the condensation problem in the flat was our responsibility, and nothing to do with the two broken extractor fans. The problem is ongoing. In addition we complained about our front door knob having broken several months ago during a second attempted break-in, and they have still not fixed this.
Leaders are only interested in conserving their own resources and extracting as much money from tenants as possible while providing as little service as they can get away with. Save yourself a lot of hassle and void them at all costs.
What agent could do to change your mind?
Improve internal communications, follow-up on ongoing cases in a more timely and organised fashion, reduce tenenacy renewal fees.Attached Filesnbsp;
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Latest Reviews
17th Feb 2023
reviewed by 'Lewis'
1st Dec 2022
reviewed by 'Lorraine'
10th Jun 2022
reviewed by 'D.A. Nicholls'
24th Mar 2022
reviewed by 'Cosmin Alexandru Diaconescu'
4th May 2021
reviewed by 'Jessica'
20th Feb 2020
reviewed by 'Meerim'
Opening Hours
Address
Leaders
9-13 The Facade, Devonshire Road
Forest Hill,London
Greater London
SE23 3HA
020 8699 1600
Performance statistics
| Services | Valuation Accuracy | Fees Satisfaction | Min Price of property reviewed | Max Price of property reviewed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales | 100% | 100% | £347,000 | £494,750 |
| Lettings | 100% | 75% | £950 | £2,000 |
Review statistics
| From Landlords | From Tenants | From Vendors | From Buyers | Other | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33 | 0 | 59 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
Areas covered
- SE4
- SE27
- SE5
- SW2
- SE15
- SW16
- SE19
- SE20
- SE21
- SE22
- SE23
- SE24
- SE26
Services offered
- Sales
- Lettings
- Block Management
- Surveys
- Conveyancing
- Mortgage Advice
- Home Builder
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Latest Properties
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Feb 17,2023
Feb 17,2023
0
people found
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Christine was a lovely and very helpful young lady, she went above and beyond to help me with a friendly but professional manner. Would highly recommend Leaders in Forest Hill....
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Dec 01,2022
Dec 01,2022
0
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Christine is very friendly & kind. She knew what I was looking for by the description I described. Although I'm new to looking for my 1st time property Christine was really informative & patience....
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Jun 10,2022
Jun 10,2022
0
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When Leaders took over the managing agent that we were using we were a little nervous about who were were getting to do business with. There was no need to be nervous at all and, 12 years later, we can safely say that we were in ...
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Mar 24,2022
Mar 24,2022
0
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My reference is towards James Henman and i will describe him as an Excellent , professional with friendly service and prompt response
..! Highly recommend Leaders in Forest Hill!...
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May 04,2021
May 04,2021
0
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We sold our flat recently through Leaders Forest Hill, with Nikki Lumsden and Riz Ali's help. We found them to be a fantastic estate agent to work with. Responsive, patient, very helpful and happy to help answer our questions and reassure us where needed. They ...
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Feb 20,2020
Feb 20,2020
3
people found
this helpful
this helpful
If you respect basic decency then please stay away from this estate agency. We are a family of 4 (parents and two kids), professionals with stable and permanent income. After viewing the place we made an offer for a place, but the agency came back to ...
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Nov 22,2019
Nov 22,2019
2
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Leaders, Forest Hill, looked after my rental property for a number of years and have just completed its sale. Both lettings and sales departments have proved efficient and always civil and charming. Timothy Holland and Nikki Lumsden from Sales were very knowledgable and enthusiastic about ...
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Feb 06,2019
Feb 06,2019
1
people found
this helpful
this helpful
James was great with us. Very nice, efficient and helpful all the time! He was always available to help us and clarify our doubts! Very easy going team! Thanks!...
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Comment on agent fees
The fees could be smaller but all agencies do the same. The good thing is the no deposit option!
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May 17,2018
May 17,2018
0
people found
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this helpful
Their outgoing tenants at 13B Trafalgar Avenue left a fly tip. When reported they couldn't care less. As we're at a bus stop further fly tip occured. The incoming left boxes at the front creating more waste.
In the end I've had to pay £100 private ...
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Comment on agent fees
NA have to say bad assuming Chris does pay a fee and got F.A from them for it in this respect
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Mar 21,2018
Mar 21,2018
2
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Very helpful service from Selwyn. He was very friendly over the phone which a lot of lettings agents lack. Very quick to arrange a viewing. Jenny showed us the property, she was a very nice and friendly person. Everything was dealt professionally and efficiently. Thank ...
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Feb 26,2018
Feb 26,2018
2
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Leaders are a very professional team of property specialists . Dave Lewis the manager leads his group well utilises there skills and attributes and knowledge. They have helped me run my landlord business very efficiently.
I highly recommend Dave Lewis and the Leaders team at Forest ...
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Comment on agent fees
Excellent value for money
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Jan 18,2018
Jan 18,2018
2
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Have let through Leaders as a landlord for nearly three years. Professional and helpful and human. Very happy with Lydia who is looking after me currently....
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Comment on agent fees
A bit toppy but peace of mind is worth some money!
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Nov 10,2017
Nov 10,2017
4
people found
this helpful
this helpful
I think the process to get a new flat with Leaders went really smooth because of their dedicated team ... thanks...
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Comment on agent fees
I think the agents fees is consistent with the market demand
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Oct 24,2016
Oct 24,2016
3
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Good Service, Efficient and Helpful, On hand with relevant information when needed.
In regular communication about moving details and setting up utilities details....
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Jul 02,2016
Jul 02,2016
5
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Terrible experience with this agency - did not keep us updated on our offer or subsequent move, gave us incorrect details multiple times and when unbelievably rude. The experience was so poor we moved letting agencies and luckily the landlord subsequently moved agencies so we ...
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Comment on agent fees
Average
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Feb 25,2016
Feb 25,2016
8
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Worst service I have ever received. He asked questions which are not relevant to the service he provides. He should not be working with people or for people . He is lacking basic skills.
Extremely disappointed....
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Comment on agent fees
bad
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Jun 04,2014
Jun 04,2014
3
people found
this helpful
this helpful
I would strongly discourage prospective tenants from using this lettings agent. We have been renting a property through Leaders (Forest Hill Branch) for over a year and almost without exception their response to issues we have raised has been sluggish, parsimonious and disorganised, and the ...
read full review
read full review
What agent could do to change your mind?
Improve internal communications, follow-up on ongoing cases in a more timely and organised fashion, reduce tenenacy renewal fees.Attached Filesnbsp;
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Mar 12,2014
Mar 12,2014
2
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Over the many years we were renting the house Linda was always helpful in solving any issues that arose and especially in tieing up issues around the end of our tenancy. She was always courteous and professional and a good representative of the organisation....
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Feb 23,2014
Feb 23,2014
1
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Excellent customer service and cooperative during the application and moving process. The display cards in the office window are very clear with good standard photos and when I had to visit the office the other members of staff were very welcoming. I will use them ...
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Feb 21,2014
Feb 21,2014
1
people found
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this helpful
Everything was dealt with professionally and efficiently. The tenants were luckily found within hours of my handing over the keys which was very good, but made it all rather fast and there were some questions in my mind about the detailed process - I'm sure ...
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Feb 11,2014
Feb 11,2014
2
people found
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this helpful
From my initial visit into the branch to discuss the letting of my newly refurbished property the service was excellent. The service was efficient and professional and my property was let in a very short space of time. The property details were well written and ...
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Feb 06,2014
Feb 06,2014
7
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Right from the viewing all the way through to us moving in, Selwyn was absolutely fantastic. Always very honest in the answers he gave to our questions and extremely efficient in everything he did. We just moved to London from Reading and I must say ...
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Jan 20,2014
Jan 20,2014
3
people found
this helpful
this helpful
I got the dream flat i was looking for and without lauras help and prompt responses to all things needed to get through the process of letting the property it wouldnt have been possible.
Thanx for your help laura you were great!!!...
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Nov 21,2013
Nov 21,2013
1
people found
this helpful
this helpful
All great, wish all agents were that good!.
Too many agents ignored me in the past, didn't provide, things had to be repeated, or done myself.
These guys are above expectations, really.
Highly recommended to anyone....
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Nov 13,2013
Nov 13,2013
9
people found
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this helpful
From the minute my partner and I met Selwyn Pacheco, Lettings Consultant with Leaders Forest Hill and Camberwell, outside the towering facade of our new home for our initial viewing, he was personable, professional and enthusiastic. Within minutes of entering the property, we knew that ...
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Nov 02,2013
Nov 02,2013
3
people found
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this helpful
As a member of an investment company with a portfolio in property we use Leaders for the majority of our properties for continuity. We have found Leaders to be extremely proactive, professional and cost efficient. We would highly recommend them to others. It is a ...
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Nov 02,2013
Nov 02,2013
4
people found
this helpful
this helpful
Very enthusiastic from start to finish, honest and up front about all fees and charges, reassuring when we had any concerns and generally all very personable and friendly people. Have only just let the property so I can't speak for what they are like during ...
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Oct 31,2013
Oct 31,2013
3
people found
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this helpful
We have always used The team in Forest Hill to help let our property.
Over the years we have established a good working relationship and
they are very professional at all times. They have always managed to find good tenants
quickly and at the rate ...
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Oct 19,2013
Oct 19,2013
2
people found
this helpful
this helpful
From the very beginning to leaving the flat I was provided a professional but genuinely friendly experience/service, I kept thinking that they worked more for what they are paid, I'm in Australia now living a new life, I feel that my flat is well ...
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Oct 18,2013
Oct 18,2013
5
people found
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this helpful
Great service, took care of absolutely everything. All staff in branch are very professional and helpful, always go the extra mile. I've dealt with quite a few letting agents in the past and can honestly say that Leaders are by far the best. Fees are ...
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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.
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Last updated at 11:52 AM 06/03/2014 by David Montero
