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Warning: Streets Ahead Crystal Palace
David_Haviland
Posts: 1 Newbie
I’m writing to add my voice to the chorus of people warning against having anything to do with Streets Ahead. On Monday I moved into a house let by Streets Ahead, and in 20 years of private renting, they have been by far the worst agents I have ever dealt with.
They charged me £400 in nebulous fees, some of which were not mentioned until after I’d paid the deposit and committed to the property, which is clearly unethical if not actually illegal.
They refused to let me see the tenancy agreement, despite numerous requests, until 7 days before the move. When it arrived, this agreement was the worst I’ve ever seen (Shelter have advised me that parts of it are so unreasonable as to be unlawful and unenforceable), but they refused to amend a single word of it, or even to engage in discussions.
We were told the bathroom would be repaired before we moved in. Today, three days later, we’re still waiting, and the front garden is full of builder’s waste.
Every stage of the admin and paperwork has been incompetently handled, with messages and emails rarely acknowledged, appointments not kept, and commitments not met. One example: we were invoiced for the first month’s rent, but the amount was less than the agreed rent. When we pointed this out, the agents refused to correct it.
I could go on. The irony is that we found the house through a neighbour, and the landlord (who we’ve now met) is extremely helpful and reasonable, and was not aware of any of these issues. Rather than adding value, Streets Ahead have simply got in the way, taken money from both sides, and made the process extremely difficult.
If you’ve had a similar experience, please email me using my name at gmail.com, as it would be useful to see how much of this is standard company policy rather than individual incompetence.
Finally, when you see good reviews for Streets Ahead online, I’d take them with a pinch of salt. While I was still waiting for numerous problems to be resolved, the agent put pressure on me to give her a good online review, so clearly at least some of the reviews are coerced.
They charged me £400 in nebulous fees, some of which were not mentioned until after I’d paid the deposit and committed to the property, which is clearly unethical if not actually illegal.
They refused to let me see the tenancy agreement, despite numerous requests, until 7 days before the move. When it arrived, this agreement was the worst I’ve ever seen (Shelter have advised me that parts of it are so unreasonable as to be unlawful and unenforceable), but they refused to amend a single word of it, or even to engage in discussions.
We were told the bathroom would be repaired before we moved in. Today, three days later, we’re still waiting, and the front garden is full of builder’s waste.
Every stage of the admin and paperwork has been incompetently handled, with messages and emails rarely acknowledged, appointments not kept, and commitments not met. One example: we were invoiced for the first month’s rent, but the amount was less than the agreed rent. When we pointed this out, the agents refused to correct it.
I could go on. The irony is that we found the house through a neighbour, and the landlord (who we’ve now met) is extremely helpful and reasonable, and was not aware of any of these issues. Rather than adding value, Streets Ahead have simply got in the way, taken money from both sides, and made the process extremely difficult.
If you’ve had a similar experience, please email me using my name at gmail.com, as it would be useful to see how much of this is standard company policy rather than individual incompetence.
Finally, when you see good reviews for Streets Ahead online, I’d take them with a pinch of salt. While I was still waiting for numerous problems to be resolved, the agent put pressure on me to give her a good online review, so clearly at least some of the reviews are coerced.
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