29th Jun 2026 (6 days ago)
I would not recommend renting through this letting agency.<br><br>Throughout our tenancy, it consistently felt as though the agency prioritised protecting the landlord’s interests over ensuring their tenants had a safe and habitable home. Whenever problems arose, communication was poor, repairs were repeatedly delayed, and we were left living in unacceptable conditions for months while being refused permission to leave our tenancy early.<br><br>Our problems began as soon as we moved into our ground-floor flat in St Christopher’s Court. All three freezer drawers were cracked, but despite reporting it, only one replacement was provided. We followed this up but were ignored and lived with broken freezer drawers for the entire tenancy. The blinds also offered very little privacy, and when we asked to install a curtain pole in the bedroom, we were immediately told the landlord would not allow it.<br><br>Around two months into our tenancy, we reported ongoing issues with the water pressure, water temperature and a broken en-suite tap. We were initially told there was nothing wrong and invoiced for the call-out charge. Only after providing evidence and having an estate agent visit was the broken tap acknowledged. Despite repeatedly reporting it throughout the year, it was never repaired before we moved.<br><br>The most serious issue began in November 2025 when a major leak developed directly from the shower of the flat above. Despite reporting it immediately, nothing meaningful was done for several weeks because they insisted it was the guttering and wanted to wait for better weather. We had to contact FirstPort ourselves to raise the issue and inspect our flat as nothing had been done.<br><br>The leak spread into our wardrobe, damaging clothes, and we had to use our bath as a wardrobe. No alternative storage was offered. Eventually mould spread throughout the wardrobe and ceiling, and our bathroom light literally fell from the ceiling. The electrician who attended was excellent, repairing the light and cutting a drainage hole so water could safely drain into the shower—something that should have been done much sooner.<br><br>Instead, it felt like the priority was deciding who would pay for the repairs rather than prioritising us the tenants. We lived with this leak for around four months, including mould, damp, repeated electrical trips, our bathroom fan blowing up and water dripping from the ceiling whenever we showered. The conditions became so bad that we reported the property to the council.<br><br>Although the source of the leak was eventually repaired in February, the damage inside our flat remained. Our wardrobe and ceiling were covered in mould, nothing had dried sufficiently for repairs, and our request to leave the tenancy early because the property was no longer reasonably habitable was refused. We were told repairs were being delayed because the landlord was pursuing the upstairs flat regarding liability.<br><br>We eventually had to request a dehumidifier and professional mould clean ourselves—both things we believe should have been arranged automatically. The dehumidifier had to run continuously throughout winter, increasing our electricity bill by around £80 per month. Even then, the first repair simply painted over the damage without fixing it properly and had to be redone.<br><br>After five months, everything was finally resolved. We requested either reduced rent or permission to leave our tenancy early because we had spent months living with damp, mould and ongoing disruption. Both requests were refused. We were told the landlord had already spent too much money on repairs. After repeatedly pushing the issue, the only concession offered was 50% off our final month’s rent. By that point we had already moved into another property because we could no longer tolerate the conditions, meaning we were paying rent on two properties at once.<br><br>Overall, our experience was awful. Problems were repeatedly dismissed, repairs were unnecessarily delayed, and we felt our wellbeing was consistently treated as secondary to protecting the landlord’s financial interests... Read more