Newbury estate agents Options

[Alice]

Hi,

I'm new to the Forum and was just wanting to get some feedback regarding Newbury's estate agents.

I'm currently in dispute with one and was wondering if any of you have had stories you were keen to share about your experiences.

[Bloggo]

Hi,

I'm new to the Forum and was just wanting to get some feedback regarding Newbury's estate agents.

I'm currently in dispute with one and was wondering if any of you have had stories you were keen to share about your experiences.

Hello Alice, welcome to the Forum.
Judging by the lack of response to your post I guess no one has any real opinion one way or the other about Estate Agents. Strange eh?
Which one are you in dispute with?

[Ozzy]

We had a 'difficult' experience when moving into the Newbury area but I wouldn't want to cast names just yet.

Who are you having trouble with?

[Bloggo]

Estate Agencies appear to attract a lot of "Hooray Henrys and Henriettas" who like to strut around the district in suits convincing themselves and trying to convince us they they are inportant people and are adding huge value to the house buying and selling process when in fact they are only putting buyers and sellers in front of each other so that the conveyancing solicitors can then extract as much money as they can for the management of what is, or ought to be, a simple transaction.

[Me-again]

Hello...I am happy to share names......Haart. Nothing but polite, quick, friendly service. Especially from Kim.They were the agent for us when we sold our flat two years ago. I have since recommended them to others who have all had good experiences.

[Alice]

We're having trouble with Atkinson Keene.

We were renting a property with them for over a year and had endless grief from them and their visits every three months.

Now they're trying to take £500 from our deposit which is completely ridiculous. We've spoken to various people and industry bodies who think we have a strong case so we're taking them to dispute with the TDS.

Has anyone else had any experience with the disputes process?

[Guest_Newbury Expat_*]

We're having trouble with Atkinson Keene.

We were renting a property with them for over a year and had endless grief from them and their visits every three months.

Now they're trying to take £500 from our deposit which is completely ridiculous. We've spoken to various people and industry bodies who think we have a strong case so we're taking them to dispute with the TDS.

Has anyone else had any experience with the disputes process?

Did you try CAB at all, they should be able to sit down with you and go over your case.

[ossy1]

I rented a place a few years ago via Preece and Co, they were excellent. The lady that did the checking every three months was great too. It did however help that I had a very good landlord and lived in a small group of flats with their own committee.

I viewed a property with one of the smaller companys once but was put off by the rude lady that showed me around, I can't remember their name now.

I have never had any problems when moving out of propertys with regards to deposits, you should def speak to CAB if there is an issue, they will give you the best advice!

[Sheffordian]

When I lived in Edinburgh I was with a letting agent who were polite and friendly, and while they never get my boiler fixed despite it breaking about once every fortnight for days at a time, they always refused help with a smile.
Then I moved out, having left the place cleaner than when I moved in. Apparently they then found a blu-tac mark on a wall that required all the walls to be sanded back to the plaster and the flat fully redecorating, thus swallowing my entire deposit.
I took them to the small claims court and won (they never even bothered to show up). I don't know if the process is different on this side of the border though. It took a long time and a lot of paperwork.
Good luck. I have my fingers crossed that my current letting agent, Marc Allen, is a good one. They've been fine so far. My landlord certainly seems to be thoroughly nice, has introduced himself in person and been straight round for even the smallest problems, so I'm feeling hopeful.

[Strafin]

We're having trouble with Atkinson Keene.

We were renting a property with them for over a year and had endless grief from them and their visits every three months.

Now they're trying to take £500 from our deposit which is completely ridiculous. We've spoken to various people and industry bodies who think we have a strong case so we're taking them to dispute with the TDS.

Has anyone else had any experience with the disputes process?

Atkinson Keene and Preece and Co are joined somehow, not sure how exactly but they do each others viewings. I found Preece and Co very sneaky, especially when it came to checking out. We lost a large amount of our deposit, and were charged because the outside windows (1st floor flat) were smeared. We were charged for having not had the curtains cleaned. They weren't dirty but apparently it was expected. Our original inventory had glaring omissions (sp?) when we pointed them out and wrote them all down we were told they were put on file. When it came to deposit time it was completely disregarded as it wasn't passed on to the inventory firm. A friend of ours ust lost SIX HUNDRED pounds (Atkinson Keene), because an already damaged mattress was damaged. They are two companies who I think would consider themselves as higher end, especially considering their charges, but do not offer a higher end service to tennants. You can of course dispute the charges but can somebody who is renting afford to leave normally well over thousand pound sitting there whilst it's resolved? One final point, we were not invited to our checkout inventory, so had no say over what was noted down, making it even more difficult.

[diamond41970]

Estate Agencies appear to attract a lot of "Hooray Henrys and Henriettas" who like to strut around the district in suits convincing themselves and trying to convince us they they are inportant people and are adding huge value to the house buying and selling process when in fact they are only putting buyers and sellers in front of each other so that the conveyancing solicitors can then extract as much money as they can for the management of what is, or ought to be, a simple transaction.

I work in a solicitors and actually we usually don't make that much money out of conveyancing and have to have a large turnover just to make a profit which usually leaves that team very frazzled. When an estate agents charges 2.5% to take photographs, measure the rooms and show a few people round it is a mockery - Estate Agent = approx £3750 - solicitor = approx £1,500 you do the maths.........

[Bloggo]

I work in a solicitors and actually we usually don't make that much money out of conveyancing and have to have a large turnover just to make a profit which usually leaves that team very frazzled. When an estate agents charges 2.5% to take photographs, measure the rooms and show a few people round it is a mockery - Estate Agent = approx £3750 - solicitor = approx £1,500 you do the maths.........

Yep, I agree, both sums are far to high for the work involved.

[Bloggo]

We're having trouble with Atkinson Keene.

We were renting a property with them for over a year and had endless grief from them and their visits every three months.

Now they're trying to take £500 from our deposit which is completely ridiculous. We've spoken to various people and industry bodies who think we have a strong case so we're taking them to dispute with the TDS.

Has anyone else had any experience with the disputes process?

As I understand it the deposite made is the Landlords guarantee that the property will be left in the condition that it is in when you move in.
You will have been offered a contract to sign and an inventory of the property.
If there is no damage to the property and you have complied with the "exit" clauses regarding perhaps curtain and carpet cleaning then you should have nothing to pay.
Atkinson and Keene and the Landlord must have a genuine reason to withold your deposit in their eyes.
The fact that they visit the property every 3 months to inspect shows that they are managing the Landlords interests and fulfilling their part of the contract.
Maybe you need to expand on the reason that your deposit is being witheld.

[Bloggo]

Atkinson Keene and Preece and Co are joined somehow, not sure how exactly but they do each others viewings. I found Preece and Co very sneaky, especially when it came to checking out. We lost a large amount of our deposit, and were charged because the outside windows (1st floor flat) were smeared. We were charged for having not had the curtains cleaned. They weren't dirty but apparently it was expected.

Did you sign a contract stating that you would have the curtains cleaned when you left the property. If so, and you didn't, then they are entitled to withkhold some of the deposit because that's what you contracted to do.

[Alice]

When we moved into the property it was quite dirty and as the previous occupier was heavy smoker, the place stank of cigarettes.

When we moved out the place was in a far better condition than when we moved in.

They're currently with holding our deposit for gardening and cleaning.

They claim the property needed 18 hours of professional cleaning after we left - despite the fact that my partner and I took three days off work to scrub the house from top to bottom. There were no clauses in the contract about professional cleaning - however we did employ a professional carpet cleaner to come in. Atkinson Keene have since got another carpet cleaner in to re-do the carpets and are trying to charge us for it.

Also, we had a 3 month check about three weeks before we left the property and the only things they flagged up were some soap in the drawer of the washing machine, and a bit of grease on the cooker hood so it can't have been that dirty.

We also invited them to a pre-inventory checkout inspection so we could address anything they had an issue with - they declined. We then asked to be present at the checkout inventory which they agreed to but then never called us.

With regards to the gardening they never completed the check in or check out inventory for it, and then got a relative of the landlord to carry out the work and charge us over £200 for what was essentially mowing the grass. I don't see how they can be allowed to do this.

Besides the problems we're having with the deposit, Atkinson and Keene have also done a number of other sneaky things - for example, making us sign up to a second 6 month contract instead of allowing us the option of moving to a rolling month by month contract (an option they have to give you by law).

In addition to disputing our deposit, we're also complaining to the Tenancy Deposit Scheme, the industry regulators, ombudsman and the agency group for which they're a member.

Fingers crossed we get somewhere soon.

[Bloggo]

When we moved into the property it was quite dirty and as the previous occupier was heavy smoker, the place stank of cigarettes.

When we moved out the place was in a far better condition than when we moved in.

They're currently with holding our deposit for gardening and cleaning.

They claim the property needed 18 hours of professional cleaning after we left - despite the fact that my partner and I took three days off work to scrub the house from top to bottom. There were no clauses in the contract about professional cleaning - however we did employ a professional carpet cleaner to come in. Atkinson Keene have since got another carpet cleaner in to re-do the carpets and are trying to charge us for it.

Also, we had a 3 month check about three weeks before we left the property and the only things they flagged up were some soap in the drawer of the washing machine, and a bit of grease on the cooker hood so it can't have been that dirty.

We also invited them to a pre-inventory checkout inspection so we could address anything they had an issue with - they declined. We then asked to be present at the checkout inventory which they agreed to but then never called us.

With regards to the gardening they never completed the check in or check out inventory for it, and then got a relative of the landlord to carry out the work and charge us over £200 for what was essentially mowing the grass. I don't see how they can be allowed to do this.

Besides the problems we're having with the deposit, Atkinson and Keene have also done a number of other sneaky things - for example, making us sign up to a second 6 month contract instead of allowing us the option of moving to a rolling month by month contract (an option they have to give you by law).

In addition to disputing our deposit, we're also complaining to the Tenancy Deposit Scheme, the industry regulators, ombudsman and the agency group for which they're a member.

Fingers crossed we get somewhere soon.

Yes, it does all sound a little sloppy on the part of A&K.
Are you sure that it is law that you should be ofered a rolling month by month contract. This doesn't give the Landlord any security.
If you knew about this why did you not insist on it. And you could of if it was law.
Good luck with your negotiations

[Ozzy]

I've had this situation before and to be honest I was too naive to fight it.

The deposit is such an easy way to make money for an agency. No matter how much you clean it and how much better the property looks it all comes down to their own interpretation, which is something you cannot really argue against. Clearly you can't leave the property in the same condition you arrived as that's impossible. I'm sure it all comes down to the general wear and tear clause.

It is such a typical con and many agencies pull this one.

Their word is effectively final on the cleanliness of the property unless you fight it and I strongly suggest you do.

No doubt they are pulling this trick on the assumption you won't fight it, which means they think they can get the money easily.

Don't take it and I would hazard a guess the more of a fight you put up, the more they will back down. I can't remember the statistic exactly but i heard somewhere that the number of complaints in this country is very low and we all take it on the chin with a typical English stiff upper lip.

Most complaints to banks end up with some sort of result, mainly becuase they never expect you to complain.

You've done all the right things by contacting everyone you can. If you can get through to the CAB then use their advice - it's free!

Why not try contacting people like Watchdog as well? They usually have similar cases on their website which might help.

My one bit of advice would be to get your own file in order. Get the contracts together, get photos of before and after, get everything you can so that when you come to put your case to someone there are no gaps at all.

And any tenancy contract should always just roll onto a month to month after the intial term. There should be no need to sign any new contract at all. However, by the sounds of it you did actually sign it which means you are most likely bound to it.

This link should help and offers you some advice

Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme

There is also some advice here on Notice. It quotes:

"From the date the fixed-term ends a tenant can leave, but should still give a month's notice to the landlord. If the tenant opts not to leave, the tenancy becomes a rolling agreement. Tenants on periodic tenancies or rolling agreements should give one month's notice in writing, ending on the day rent is due."

Good luck and don't take it!

[Alice]

Unfortunately we didn't know about the rolling contracts until after we were forced to sign another 6 month agreement.

The landlord still has a degree of security as the tenants still have to give notice before they move out, giving the landlord time to advertise and find new tenants. Also if the landlord wants the tenants out, they too have to give notice so the tenants have time to find a new home.

I also take offence at the fact they charged us a £75+VAT admin fee to renew the contract (something we didn't have to do if we wanted to fall onto the rolling contract). When I asked for a breakdown of what the fee covered they said it was for a new contract (i.e. printing an identical copy of the original we had signed) and for 3 phone calls to us to negotiate terms - these phone calls were actually from us to them to chase other things up and they never even attempted to renegotiate the terms with us.

I could rant all day about Atkinson & Keene's sneakiness.

[Bloggo]

Unfortunately we didn't know about the rolling contracts until after we were forced to sign another 6 month agreement.

The landlord still has a degree of security as the tenants still have to give notice before they move out, giving the landlord time to advertise and find new tenants. Also if the landlord wants the tenants out, they too have to give notice so the tenants have time to find a new home.

I also take offence at the fact they charged us a £75+VAT admin fee to renew the contract (something we didn't have to do if we wanted to fall onto the rolling contract). When I asked for a breakdown of what the fee covered they said it was for a new contract (i.e. printing an identical copy of the original we had signed) and for 3 phone calls to us to negotiate terms - these phone calls were actually from us to them to chase other things up and they never even attempted to renegotiate the terms with us.

I could rant all day about Atkinson & Keene's sneakiness.

I may be wrong but I am pretty sure that the Ladlord has the option to offer his property for any length of tenancy he wishes and so does not have to agree to a rolling "month by month" contract and you as a tenant have the right to accept or decline what is offered.
To avoid the frequency of the £75 admin charge it would be better to sign up for a 12 months lease with a break clause that allows you to give one or two months notice.

[Alice]

Thanks for this, I really appreciate it.

We have no intention of backing down and letting them keep our deposit - we worked hard to earn that £500 and there's no way we're just going to let A&K take it. My partner actually spoke directly to someone at the Tenancy Deposit Scheme and told them about our situation and they said we had a really strong case.

They also advised us to make a direct complaint to them about A&K because it shows them that their customers aren't happy with the level of service and as a result their insurance premium goes up.

We intend to complain to everyone that will listen because we don't want anyone else to get stung by A&K.