KEEP AWAY! Misrepresentation of property
(long read)
We spent around a week and a half viewing properties with various agents when we finally came across something advertised by Helliwell. Alistair took us to see 2 other properties which were both nicer than what we had seen so far.
We liked one enough to make an offer on (leaving a hefty £700 holding deposit as a guarantee that we were serious). But after being introduced to the Landlord, a friend of Joshua Helliwell, the owner of the company, we were informed almost immediately that our offer was rejected. Highly unusual, as we weren't given a proper reason for it (apparently the landlord had someone else in mind, a friend).
Unprofessional but - still, fine.
Just before the rejection that evening, and in the morning as well, someone from the agency pushed another property on to us. It had a garden, it was spacious - we decided to view it.
My partner was sure I wouldn't like it, as it was run-down and old. But I gave it a chance and met with the landlords at the property. The biggest mistake I made was to give it a chance: the landlord lied to my face about the carpet being clean (it was filthy and hadn't been cleaned for months... apart from the fact that it was stained and ancient).
Despite my gut feeling, and because the flat looked great on paper, we put together an offer where we specified our clear requirements: fresh coat of paint throughout, removal of excess furniture, deep cleaning, and new carpet - which we offered to contribute towards, IF we were involved in the process of choosing the colour, quality and budget.
Now, some might argue these requests were unrealistic. But all the landlord/agency had to do was to say NO. Instead, they saw an opportunity to plant this old place on us, at no extra cost to them and with absolutely no effort from the owner. And so they said YES, choosing to misrepresent the property from that point onwards.
Assuring us that all our conditions were met, the agency pressured us to sign the contract and transfer the remaining full amount of money (£3200) before having one final look at the property - they say we couldn't view it before we actually pay and pick up the keys. As we had little choice at the time (having our own time constraints), we chose to TRUST Helliwell and we signed/paid.
Needless to say, nothing was done to the property. It was in the exact same condition as when we viewed it - if not dirtier. The walls weren't painted, the woodwork wasn't painted either, there was black mold in the fridge and the freezer and traces of old food (absolutely not cleaned in ages).
On closer inspection, the mattress proved to be heavily stained and infested with moths. There was dust / dirt on the floor and various surfaces. The furniture we asked to be removed was just displaced - placed somewhere else, but still on the property.
So we wrote emails to `Joshua Helliwell, Anna Thirukeswaran (part of the team that managed our 'case') and the landlord - we shared our dismay at the state of the property and asked to meet. That weekend nobody did anything - we had to wait for the next week to confront them.
When the landlord actually met us, he wasn't at all apologetic or admitted that he didn't respect his part of the deal. He insisted the bedroom and living room were, in fact, redecorated (bedroom wall had a hole!!). He also half-heartedly offered 'a cleaner' and a mattress.
We couldn't trust him at this point and we chose to take the other offer he put on the table: to be released from contract. He verbally assured us that he has no claims to our deposit and holding deposit.
However, the agency informed us, when we finally mutually agreed to terminate the contract, that there would be 'fees' to pay. They couldn't specify, for the longest of times, what were those fees (how much) and what they represented. Finally, we were told the holding deposit was retained in its entirety. AND, as I insisted that it needed to be sure that this is the final cost, Anna added another £444 to the £700 we started from.
There was a feeling that all this was made up as we went along and it was obvious they were looking to hold the largest sum of money possible. But you have to imagine the kind of stress we were under at that moment. We had no accommodation - which needed to be arranged urgently and couldn't risk continuing this traumatic process with an agency that was clearly out to get us and take advantage of everything they could. So we paid up.
I had heard similar stories about rogue letting agents and landlord... but never Have I ever had the chance to experience it first hand. Now I have, with 'local' / part of the community agency - Helliwell. Shame on you!
People, don't do business with them. Protect yourselves and your pockets, they are after your money and will take as much as they can. read more