Countrywide Residential Lettings
based on 106 ratings. This website contains 104 user reviews of Countrywide Residential Lettings.
Agent Information
Countrywide Residential Lettings
Description of Countrywide Residential Lettings is currently unavailable.
Offices / Branches
- Bath - 4 Princes Building George Street, Avon
- Birmingham - 3a Station Approach Dorridge, Solihull,
- Blackburn - 13 Preston New Road, Lancashire
- Blackpool - 32-36 Topping Street, Lancashire
- Bolton - 70 Bradshawgate, Greater Manchester
- Bournemouth - 113 Old Christchurch Road, Hampshire
- Bradford - 1-2 Arndale Centre Market Street, West Yorkshire
- Brighton - 9 Queens Road, Brighton and Hove
- Brighton - 20/22 Gloucester Place, Brighton and Hove
- Brighton - 20 Church Road, Hove,
- Bristol - 33 Badminton Road, Downend,
- Bristol - 108 Whiteladies Road, North Somerset
- Bristol - 16 High Street, Thornbury,
- Bristol - 28 The Mall, North Somerset
- Bromley - 4 West Approach Petts Wood, Orpington,
- Bromley - 30 High Street, Greater London
- Canterbury - 79 Castle Street, Kent ,
- Chelmsford - 17 Duke Street, Essex
- Chelmsford - Estate House 108 High Street, Billericay,
- Chester - 27 Pensby Road, Heswall,
- Chester - The Cross, Cheshire
- Coventry - 161 New Union Street, West Midlands
- Coventry - 24 Sheep Street, Stratford-upon-Avon,
- Coventry - 149/151 New Union Street, West Midlands
- Croydon - 28 Norfolk House George Street, Greater London
- Darlington - 25 Skinnergate, County Durham
- Darlington - 75/76 High Street, Northallerton,
- Derby - 8a Market Place, Derbyshire
- Doncaster - 26 Hallgate, South Yorkshire
- Durham - 15 Elvet Bridge, County Durham
- Exeter - 12-13 South Street, Devon
- Gloucester - 3 Ormond Terrace Regent Street, Cheltenham,
- Guildford - 177-179 Fleet Road, Fleet,
- Guildford - 59 High Street, Alton,
- Guildford - 172 High Street, Surrey
- Guildford - Alliance House 1 West Street, Farnham,
- Harrogate - 16 Albert Street, North Yorkshire
- Kingston Upon Thames - 42 High Street, Esher,
- Kingston Upon Thames - 1 High Street, Epsom,
- Kingston Upon Thames - 2 Holly Parade, Cobham,
- Kingston Upon Thames - 9 Baker Street, Weybridge,
- Kingston Upon Thames - 13-15 Richmond Road, Kingston upon Thames,
- Lancaster - 67-71 Market Street, Lancashire
- Leamington Spa - 1 Euston Place, Warwickshire
- Leicester - 44a Church Gate, Loughborough,
- Leicester - 48 Granby Street, Leicestershire
- Liverpool - 26 Central Square, Maghull,
- Liverpool - 20 Allerton Road, Merseyside
- London - 142 The Grove Stratford, Waltham Forest,
- London - 760 Leabridge Road Walthamstow, Waltham Forest,
- Manchester - 98 Barlow Moor Road Didsbury, Greater Manchester
- Medway - 36 Earl Street, Maidstone,
- Medway - 93 High Street, Sittingbourne,
- Milton Keynes - 58 St Loyes Street, Bedford,
- Newcastle upon Tyne - 92 Grey Street, Newcastle Upon Tyne,
- Newcastle upon Tyne - 121 St GEorge Terrace Jesmond, Tyne and Wear
- Newcastle upon Tyne - Unit Z First Floor The Galleries, Washington,
- Nottingham - 65/66 Long Row, Nottinghamshire
- Nottingham - 75 Westgate, Mansfield,
- Oxford - 18 Bath Street, Abingdon,
- Oxford - 14 Market Square, Bicester,
- Oxford - 12/13 St Clements, Oxfordshire
- Peterborough - 1 Queens Street, Cambridgeshire
- Peterborough - Bank Chambers Tuesday Market Place, Kings Lynn,
- Plymouth - Estate House 1 Market Street, St Austell,
- Plymouth - Hyde Park House Mutley Plain, Devon
- Portsmouth - 30 High Street, Newport (IOW),
- Portsmouth - 127 London Road North End, Hampshire
- Portsmouth - 127 London Road North End, Hampshire
- Portsmouth - 5 Clarendon Road Southsea, Hampshire
- Portsmouth - 9 High Street, Ryde,
- Portsmouth - 35 North Street, Chichester,
- Preston - 1 Winkley Street, Lancashire
- Reading - The old Post pffice 17/18 New Street, Bracknell,
- Reading - 16 Bridge Street Caversham, Oxfordshire
- Redhill - Richmond House Carfax, West Sussex,
- Redhill - 45 High Street, Crawley,
- Redhill - 6 Church Street, Reigate,
- Slough - 34 Packhorse Road, Gerrards Cross,
- Southampton - 26 London Road, Hampshire
- Southampton - 38 Portsmouth Road Woolston, Hampshire
- Southend on Sea - 21 Clifftown Road, Essex
- Stevenage - 29 Market Square, Biggleswade,
- Stockport - 17 Woodford Road Bramhall, Bramhall,
- Stoke on Trent - 54 Merrial Street, Newcastle under Lyme,
- Stoke on Trent - Bank House Greengate Street, Stafford,
- Sutton - 54 High Street, Surrey
- Swindon - 115/118 Commercial Road, Gloucestershire
- Swindon - 14 Market Place, Chippenham,
- Taunton - 14 High Street, Somerset
- Teeside - 127 Albert Road, Middlesbrough,
- Tonbridge - 5 Kings Parade High Street, Ashford,
- Truro - 114 Kenwyn Street, Cornwall
- Walsall - 131 Lichfield Street, West Midlands
- Warrington - 66-70 London Road Stockton Heath, Cheshire
- Watford - 10 Faircross House, Hertfordshire
- Watford - 10 Faircross House 116 The Parade, Hertfordshire
- Windsor - 8 High Street, Berkshire
- Worcester - 21 Vine Street, Evesham,
- Worthing - 33 South Street, West Sussex
- York - 37 Micklegate, Yorkshire
- View All Branches
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Countrywide Residential Lettings has not joined our 'transparent agent' scheme yet.
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Click here and Join the 1000s of Delighted customers that have had success with our recommended agents. If however you do choose to use Countrywide Residential Lettings, please make them aware of the scheme and ask them to get in touch if they want to become a member. - Learn more about 'Transparent Agents'.
Customer Reviews (Page 1 of 4)
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by 'minotaur2012' 17/5/2012
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
I can only agree wholeheartedly with others comments.
You prepare to ring with a problem, you have the paperwork available to hand, and you ring and are put through to a charming lady who promises to look at the problem and will “ring you back…”
You wait, pacing the floor, is this a good week to give up smoking..?
Finally, unable to wait any more you ring back. Again, it seems all is under control, but there is a problem, “accounts are busy/we can’t find the letter/ the person dealing with it has the day off…etc,etc”
You know its coming, the blood pressure is rising... (read more)Was this review helpful? Yes
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by 'Disgusted ex-tenant' 14/5/2012
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
There was not one particular member of staff that we found to be incompetent. Just the entire company as a whole were completely useless when it came to dealing with problems with the property and corresponding with any staff member proved to be near impossible. They were either very rude or disinterested in the problems we had to report and also on several occasions we found it difficult to even get a hold of any agent at all! In the property we rented from countrywide there was a severe damp and mould problem. We spent 3 months complaining about it before countrywide sent out anyone to take... (read more)
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1
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by 'NUTE' 13/5/2012
- Branch:
- 17 Duke Street
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
I have never had the misfortune to deal with such dreadful service. We are renting our property out and paying them a riduculous amount of money for doing nothing. They NEVER reply to emails, they are always unavalailable when you call and when you do get to speak to the right person they are rude and dismissive. Awful, awful, awful.
Was this review helpful? Yes
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by 'Fanscensu' 13/5/2012
- Branch:
- 760 Leabridge Road Walthamstow
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
at the end of January 2012, Entwistle Green showed me a property in Blackburn where I am still (unfortunately) living. The flat to rent looked apparently fine, so I signed a 6-month tenancy contract. After a week of stay in the flat, I found the house flooded as there was a water leak in the ceiling of the bathroom never properly fixed.
The water leak occurred the first time at the beginning of January and I moved in the property the 30th of the same month.
I called the Countrywide Property Management based in Manchester to report the issue and they left me in that house without... (read more)
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1
person found
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by 'paidup' 27/4/2012
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
yet another phone call from this bunch of useless twits,rented from mike jolly's for 11 years and never a problem with them receiving my rent. I keep having to send proof that I have paid.The first time I didn't even know that I wasn't renting from Jollys still and when you'e gone to the trouble of sending proof do they phone and apologise- do they heck !!
telephone manner is disgusting, after dealing with Jollys for all this time and always getting first class service it makes it all the more apparent that this lot have no idea what they are doing.Was this review helpful? Yes
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2
people found
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by 'ghworth87' 26/4/2012
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
I used Entwistle Green estate agents and had no problems, until they started using countrywide lettings to process their payments.
They claim that my rent is in arrears by £200, which happened at the same point they took over the rent payments.
After showing our estate agents our bank statements and them checking their receipts, they still claim I owe them £200, repeatedly ringing my phone and sending e-mails. They never reply to messages and they have done nothing to help me resole the issue, making it difficult for me to move as I now have a bad reference from them, even though I paid rent on time, every month.My problem is with them, not my estate agents, as they cannot deal on country wide's behalf. If you can avoid using them I would encourage it, although they seem to be creeping into more estate agents recently.
VERY bad customer service and ridiculous fee's, steer clear.
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3
people found
this helpful.
by 'Countrywide shocking' 25/4/2012
- Branch:
- 75 Westgate
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Staff Member
- Laurie Dobson
- Staff Member
- Sharon Brown
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
Complete rip off merchants and fraudsters. Non-existent customer service.
Charged me a fee to renew a tenancy agreement, cashed the cheque and did nothing to provide the service apart from trying to charge my tenant a fee too. Eventually sorted the contract out myself but impossible to get a refund from Countrywide. They have told me twice it's in the post for the last month!
Complete jokers. DO NOT USE THEM.Was this review helpful? Yes
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3
people found
this helpful.
by 'BeWarned!' 23/4/2012
- Branch:
- 75 Westgate
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
STAY AWAY from COUNTRYWIDE PLC and FULFORDS. Ripped off, misinformed, landed with scum as tenants who are encouraged to work the benefits system by Fulfords. Our property has been destroyed, Fulfords have employed cowboys (probably relatives) for erroneous repairs, tenants smoking and doing drugs, Countrywide 'insurance' taking 6 months to organize eviction - and ongoing! Noone knows what the hell is going on. We are thousands out of pocket and our property may need thousands in repairs. Everything that could go wrong has done and this appalling 'management' agency could not care less.
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2
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by 'Disgruntled' 17/4/2012
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
Absolutely appalling from start to finish. Took our £1250 deposit and have failed to ensure a safe return to us. Their excuse is that they then passed it on to the landlord, but we paid the money to them in good faith and they washed their hands of us. Woman gave the deposit to treated us like we were dirt on her shoe. Steamrollered us into paying for the house two weeks before we needed to. Dreadful, dreadful swet up in Llandudno North Wales - can't find on branch list.
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3
people found
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by 'trillian12' 28/3/2012
- Branch:
- 37 Micklegate
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
We have had nothing but issues with Countrywide in York, who now seem to have changed names to Bridgfords but are still part of Countrywide. When we moved in we paid nearly £500 in fees, on top of our deposit and first months rent. We got to the office to make the payment and they told us they had accidentally added up the fees wrong and we actually owed them another £120, we were first time tenants, both myself and partner young and wet behind the ears. Throughout the entire initial process the staff were nothing but accommodating and helpful every step of the way. All this soon changed... (read more)
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by 'Ms Daniels' 28/3/2012
- Branch:
- 172 High Street
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? Yes
MANN Countrywide Lettings found me a property within 48hrs of me being registered as an applicant. They processed my needs quickly and provided fantastic customer service. I will recommend them to anyone looking to rent a property in the near future.
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3
people found
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by 'Rosie' 20/3/2012
- Branch:
- 3 Ormond Terrace Regent Street
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
Absolutely the worst company I have ever had the misfortune to deal with, I have been both a landlord and tenant in the past (thankfully with other companies); as a tenant using this company I am in awe of the number of ways they seek to rip off both landlord and tenant, their customer service is terrible and they have never inspected the property on behalf of the landlord, I don't think that they do anything at all past marketing the property.
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4
people found
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by 'Haggard One' 14/3/2012
- Branch:
- 15 Elvet Bridge
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
I agreed to rent a property from Countrywide at the advertised rate.
However after I had agreed to the move Countrywide revealed they were demanding the better part of a months rent for a range of additional charges. These charges were not notified to me before I had committed to the let and appear to be nothing more than a bribe for allowing a tenant to take the property.
Two weeks ago I received the six monthly renewal notice. It seems that Countrywide are demanding another bribe for handling the renewal.
I am not sure if I should cut my losses and move out . On the other hand this bunch of bandits will surely deduct termination fees.
I have honoured my commitment to this company from the start and have not argued about price. All I want is want an honest relationship with an organisation I can trust. This outfit are not such a company. Please for your own sake avoid this outfit.
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2
people found
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by 'nothappy :-(' 27/2/2012
- Branch:
- 75/76 High Street
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
I currently in a property let by countrywide or as its now called bridgfords. i moved into the property in 2009 we were living in the property for less than a fortnight when thick black mold started growing in the living room and both the bedrooms. i got straight on the phone to be told that i have to leave all my windows open during the day in NOVEMBER i had also notice great big holes in one of the cupboards in the bedroom these holes were so big i could see cars driving up the road through them these were supposedly vents similar to the ones you would have seen in a larder in the 50s. As... (read more)
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7
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by 'Angry of Sheffield' 15/2/2012
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
When we first let out our property, it was with Mike Jollys in Sheffield, then at some point towards the end of 2011, Countrywide bought the business.
The staff at Mike Jollys were first class and we had a fantastic working relationship with them. We got paid on time, we knew everything that was happening which was great because we don't live in the UK.
Since the country bumpkins have taken over it's been nothing but a total nightmare. We are having to fight them every step of the way, they've spent something in the region of £1000 of our money without telling us what it's been spent on. When we did eventually get something from them, we shouldn't have paid for most of the charged items. There were things we could have claimed for on our insurance but the bumpkins couldn't be bothered to ask.
They have not respond to our questions in a very timely manner - that's when they can be bothered to reply at all! They're good at passing the buck - nobody owns up to anything!
All in all, these idiots should be avoided at all costs! We shall be dropping them asap.
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6
people found
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by 'dillon' 7/2/2012
- Branch:
- 114 Kenwyn Street
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
They are absolutely awful- we have had two instances of tenants not paying rent, having to take them to court- the worst thing is the agency just does not reply to emails or phone calls... we are compleetly at their mercy as we're in Australia.... DO NOT USE THEM if you are a landlord...
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4
people found
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by 'Not Very Happy! .com!' 1/2/2012
- Branch:
- 1 Winkley Street
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
:-( Never ever go with this company!!! I have had tiles coming off behind my sink taps in my bathroom for near 2 years!! (Since I moved in) With a little 2 year old.... not a goood idea!!! Now trying to say I owe them money for my rent??? No idea! And have contacted my guarantor saying that I owe last months rent...... that has been payed????!!!
Never ever again will I use Courtwide lettings after this experience!!!
I have already had one flat from hell with them but thought they may have sorted themselfs out!! Obviously not!
Never ever again!! Ever again!.....
Be very aware!!!Was this review helpful? Yes
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4
people found
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by 'dantw' 31/1/2012
- Branch:
- 21 Clifftown Road
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
countrywide what can i say.
since november they have threatened to change my locks, have phoned me demanding money, sent numerous letters and are now taking me court for unpaid rent.
the best part is they cant spell my name, and even better I DONT HAVE a tenancy agreement with them, and my landlord has no idea either.good business just charge random people rent for a house that you have nothing to do with.
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5
people found
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by 'angrytenant' 24/1/2012
- Branch:
- 131 Lichfield Street
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
Beyond Disappointing...
1. Countrywide has some of the highest agent admin fees around to get into a rental property. Expect to spend serious £ £ £ .
2. There is no month to month rolling allowed at the end of our 12 month contract. This has been a nightmare for us as we are trying to buy a house while avoiding another costly contract.
3. Expect your annual lease renewal fees to double (ours went from £ 80 to £120 in 1 year). This is what they charge to print out and send last year's lease with a new date on it. Can you please justify this cost?
4. Our upstairs tap... (read more)
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7
people found
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by 'Frank Smith' 19/1/2012
- Branch:
- 75 Westgate
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
Please do not use this agency or Frank Innes who acts as the letting agent, just read other reviews and you will see why.
I have a list so long of complaints ,and they have ignored my emails. If anyone has an email or telephone number e of the Company Director or General manager I would be most grateful as these incompetent, unprofessional managers do not care, and there does not seem to be a complaint procedure to report situations to so this will carry on being a bad firm.Was this review helpful? Yes
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2
people found
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by 'Adriana' 14/1/2012
- Branch:
- Unit Z First Floor The Galleries
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
i did rent a flat for 2 years in albany washintong for 2 years, i moved out on 24th november 2011, they did say the flat need repairs, my deposis was for £ 500 they did say will contact me to give the rest of deposit back, today is 12th jaunuary 2012 they didint contact me when i phoned they put me on waitting for a such a long time, they just robbed me , and i was very good with my payments, i feel that they treat me really just because i am a foreigner they think can abuse, i dont recomend them horrible people
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4
people found
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by 'ooshelley' 13/12/2011
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY: COUNTRYWIDE, AUSTIN & WYATT & MANN & CO are the same company.
My husband & I rented our flat out (with Kivells very a good agency!) & rented a house through countrywide when we were expecting our first child. Their incompetence is outstanding how they get away with it I do not know. I had water dripping down from the loft I rang them & 3 days later some1 came & took photos. They then sent a plumber about another week later after several heated phone calls who said he fixed the leak we went away for 4 days & when we came home the... (read more)Was this review helpful? Yes
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5
people found
this helpful.
by 'Darren' 6/12/2011
- Branch:
- 113 Old Christchurch Road
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
As a tenant, and a customer the service I received was the worst I have ever had from any company. Basic repairs were not carried out for months, such that we could not even lock the doors or flush one of the toilets; the direct debit instruction was sent twice and came out of my bank account twice, yet I received no apology and was told to sort it out with the bank; and in breach of contract they changed the utility company we used and again no apology was given, with the branch simply blaming Head Office. The final inventory was completely different to the discussions had with the inventory clerk, whilst the I had at least two pages of amendments to the original inventory. It was an absolute nightmare and I would recommend any prospective tenant thinks three times before using them as they are the landlord's friend!
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5
people found
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by 'Laura' 1/12/2011
- Branch:
- 28 Norfolk House George Street
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
This agency is abysmal. My friend and I rent a property through one of their agents, King and Chasemore, based in Crawley, West Sussex. They are unwilling to help, never return our phone calls and generally treat us with disdain whenever we do contact them, whether the matter is regarding an issue with the property or if we simply require information from them. They are the most discourteous people I have ever come across, and their customer service skills are practically non-existent.
We have had several issues with the property, the main one being that for four months during 2009 we had... (read more)Was this review helpful? Yes
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3
people found
this helpful.
by 'Belinda' 27/11/2011
- Branch:
- 9 Queens Road
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? Yes
The agency was phenomenal. They took great care to ensure that my property was managed properly, they understood that it was my house but their attitude was "if it were my house, how would I feel ..." it was a very personal service that I received. I was quickly informed of any issues, and excellent advice was given as to the best course of action. Sam - who I dealt with - was extremely fair and made sure that whilst i undertook my own responsibilities, I wasn't taken for a ride in any way. Brilliant connections with workmen to ensure speedy resolution of any problems with the house, meant I knew it was always well looked after by the agency (if not always by the tenant). The attitude it was about what was the right thing - ensuring everyone was fair and proper to the agreements. I would recommend Countrywide - first class service, excellent communication, excellent property management and a very individual and personal service.
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5
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by 'Judith' 26/11/2011
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
I had some problems as the tenant did not maintain the garden and Countrywide did not ensure that this requirement was met. My main complaint is that at the end of the tenancy Countrywide changed the gas & electricity supplier from Scottish Power to EON without any reference to me. When they did this they gave the address for accounts as their own office, consequently the first I knew of the change was a letter from a debt collection agency to the house because of unpaid bills. Since the house was unoccupied this action was taken on the basis of estimated bills when no utilities had actually been used. As I live in South Africa this has caused me considerable time and expense to sort things out. Their office in Stockton told me "Oh, we do this as standard now and have our own team with EON" Other landlords beware as they obviously get a kick-back from all transfers!
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3
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by 'Angry tenant' 24/11/2011
- Branch:
- 1 Euston Place
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
The worst agency ever! They are rude, unprofessional and just plain useless! They called me numerous times for apparently owing money to them, only to find out that it was a mistake from their behalf so effectively I was doing their inadequate job. They are useless in so many ways. I will really encourage people not to let any property from them and this are not words coming from my mouth but also from one of my colleagues who happened to rent a house with them.
Once my hot water broke and I had to go to the agency twice to get fixed.
Once I finish my tenancy, I will go to the Students Union and hopefully publish in the newspaper about how appalling their services are.
Two words: Terrible Service.Was this review helpful? Yes
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5
people found
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by 'TickedOffLandlord' 22/11/2011
- Branch:
- 66-70 London Road Stockton Heath
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Landlord)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
I used this agent for about 5 years, in various guises (Bridgfords, Countrywide), etc. There are not enough adjectives to describe what a terribly inadequate, unprofessional service they provided. The tenant was pretty bad, whch really exposed the limitations of the agents. Poor communication, misrepresentation of events, everyone blaming someone else, pathetically superficial house inspections. I ended up spending hundreds of hours arranging for repairs, etc., myself. I had the full management option, but when I asked the agent (several times) to call the Council to report low water pressure... (read more)
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3
people found
this helpful.
by 'AngryIsAnUnderestimate!' 12/11/2011
- Branch:
- 4 Princes Building George Street
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
We dealt with Beresford Adams who are under the CWL umbrella. Me and my partner thought it was amazing at first, they were very polite and helped us look at the two bedroom flat we were interested in. The mistake we made was renting the property. We have just moved out of the property and it is such a huge relief. We had no hot water for the three years we lived there and where always fobbed off by BA, CWL and the landlords each saying that it wasn't their problem it was someone else's. The only hot water we had in the property was the electric shower which broke after 6 months of living... (read more)
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4
people found
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by 'Angry' 2/11/2011
- Services:
- Lettings (as a Tenant)
- Experience:
- Would you use the agent again? No
To start with the letting agent were great; friendly, co-operative - they would do anything to make sure that I rented the property. The mistake I made was paying them money. As soon as I had signed up and paid my deposit and 1st months rent, they just did not want ot know!!! I've been in the property just over 3 months and have no hot running water to the kitchen sink, the family bathroom is just a toilet as the shower has never worked, there is an elertical fault so we have no light also in the family bathroom, the ensuite shower (shared by a family of four with grown up children, very... (read more)
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 and we still have to hear about whether or not we will be receiving our deposit money back as there has been absolutely no communication from countrywide since handing in our keys. the property now has a new tenant and i know for a fact they will not know about the pre-existing problems as we were not advised on it when we viewed it./&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/24686/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/24686/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
 living. The flat to rent looked apparently fine, so I signed a 6-month tenancy contract. After a week of stay in the flat, I found the house flooded as there was a water leak in the ceiling of the bathroom never properly fixed.
The water leak occurred the first time at the beginning of January and I moved in the property the 30th of the same month.
I called the Countrywide Property Management based in Manchester to report the issue and they left me in that house without repairing the leak. Any time I was calling some agent in charge for the Maintenance, they would say to wait for the caretaker to come and sort the problem.
I had to call the Blackburn City Council Housing Department to have something partially done as they and the neighbour owning the property below insisted for the problem to get sorted (the water was dripping from the ceiling of my bathroom and got through the floor, hence reaching the ceiling of the flat below mine).
After fixing the pipes draining water from the ceiling of the bathroom, I remained with the carpets soaked in water and with stains of mould for 2 months. The agents from Countrywide in Manchester (La Haçienda is the name of the building where they work) said they would remove the stinky and smelly carpets but they never did so.
I filed an official complaint against Entwistle Green for not informing me about the maintenance issues when required and for the lack of service showed by Countrywide toward the same matter.
The response to my complaint was due by the Countrywide by the 19th of April but they have never given an official answer, either disclosed the Internal Complaint Procedure of the Company as they are required to.
I tried to call the Management Dep several times to have a written response but the Manager in Charge (Ms Nugent) is always unattainable. Through some emails sent by the agent who was personally in charge of taking care of my flat stated that they stopped dealing with the property from the same date he called the contractors to come and dry the carpets (not remove them as they had previously said), but they still ask for the money of the rent (how could the agent in charge Mr Turner manage to call the contractors if the Countrywide stopped dealing with my flat since the same date???).
I asked for some clear proof about this, as it all sound impossible (if they do not deal with the property any longer, how can they ask for the money of the rent?), but nobody in the Manchester office has been able to give me a concrete and reliable answer.
I stopped paying the rent awaiting for some clear answer but they still denying it. By contract if a tenant wants to conclude the tenancy prior to its official end, either the landlord (which I have never seen, and never given his phone number until a few days ago) or the letting agency may decide to charge you for the remaining month until the natural end of the tenancy.
On the other side, another term states that if a house is inhabitable, the tenant may stop the payment of the rent and then terminate the tenancy immediately by giving a written notice.
Which term prevails? Now they partially fixed the problem but the carpets are still smelly and in need of a replacement. I want to go away from this property asap without any consequence! I tried to speak with Fairtrade, Citizens Advice Bureau and Shelter (the latter, if I want to arrange some appointment I have to wait for a month at least) but with no concrete result. I wanted to speak with some private lawyer but they discouraged me from having a chargeable legal advice, because expensive for me for the type of problem, so they overtly dropped my request....
I need help/advice. We should all unite against these dodgy companies in order to stop them from working in these conditions.
Countrywide and Enwistle Green illegally abuse of our money without being warned/punished as they should./&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/24630/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/24630/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
 for erroneous repairs, tenants smoking and doing drugs, Countrywide 'insurance' taking 6 months to organize eviction - and ongoing! Noone knows what the hell is going on. We are thousands out of pocket and our property may need thousands in repairs. Everything that could go wrong has done and this appalling 'management' agency could not care less./&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/23545/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/23545/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
; as a tenant using this company I am in awe of the number of ways they seek to rip off both landlord and tenant, their customer service is terrible and they have never inspected the property on behalf of the landlord, I don't think that they do anything at all past marketing the property./&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/21124/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/21124/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
 she came to view the property to check what damaged id done to it!!! fully aware of the mold situation... they told me that before id moved in there had been no problems with mold and when asked why there was huge holes in the wall told me slight specks had started appearing (contradiction). I have since found out from neighbours that countrywide where fully aware that the property has a serious mold problem as the last tenants moved because of the problem and they still let it to me.. They have also moved my bond from the tenancy deposit scheme i have the documents for and keep making excuses as to sending me my new documents so i have no idea where my £750 bond is being held.. i have found a new mold free property with a different agent and countrywide are asking for a £25 fee for providing me with a reference i truly can not wait to leave this house and agency its been a nightmare!!/&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/19756/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/19756/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
 With a little 2 year old.... not a goood idea!!! Now trying to say I owe them money for my rent??? No idea! And have contacted my guarantor saying that I owe last months rent...... that has been payed????!!!
Never ever again will I use Courtwide lettings after this experience!!!
I have already had one flat from hell with them but thought they may have sorted themselfs out!! Obviously not!
Never ever again!! Ever again!.....
Be very aware!!!/&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/18425/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/18425/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
. This is what they charge to print out and send last year's lease with a new date on it. Can you please justify this cost?
4. Our upstairs tap wasn't fixed for 6 months (issue with maintenance dept).
5. We received threatening letters about owing money (due to their accounting error). We spent £20 in phone calls and had to escalate the issue to head office to clear this up. That was because after 2 months of trying to get them to fix the error at our local branch, we were told quite bluntly that the amount wasn't worth their time researching to clear our account. After 4 months of stress we would appreciate an apology from Countrywide.
6. We are regularly treated with significant disrespect, even though we always pay full rent out of our bank account on time.
7. Our entire downstairs floor was covered in plaster when we moved in. I spent 2 weeks scrubbing floors. Our Dyson died on the upstairs carpet it was so dirty. It was really good that the windows were replaced (hence the plaster) but the property was not suitable for moving in. After waiting over a 10 days to see if they were planning to remove the mess outside, we had to call the council to collect a large amount of bin bags and loads of old carpet that we found on the path and stuffed in the back shed. (Just to add, the upstairs sink was hanging off the wall like a rotten tooth, and the entire exterior wall needs damp proofing ASAP.) An agency this size should keep on top of quality & cleanliness standards. Countrywide needs to prove why they deserve to charge high fees. Their quarterly inspections are slightly insulting in this respect and feel more like an invasion of quiet enjoyment.
Overall our experience with Countrywide has been beyond disappointing. One comes to the conclusion after reading all the complaints against them that staff training at Countrywide breeds a culture of blatant mistreatment of both tenants and landlords./&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/17935/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/17935/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
 & rented a house through countrywide when we were expecting our first child. Their incompetence is outstanding how they get away with it I do not know. I had water dripping down from the loft I rang them & 3 days later some1 came & took photos. They then sent a plumber about another week later after several heated phone calls who said he fixed the leak we went away for 4 days & when we came home the upstairs & downstairs ceilings had fallen down and the place was water logged. It took me 2 days to get an emergency plumber to come out & fix the leak as you can imagine the damage was extensive. I waited over 6 weeks for the ceiling to be repaired 8 weeks with no carpet & nails sticking out of the floor and 6 weeks without a working shower. The bathroom ceiling and walls have still not been repaired. I have reported the house to the environmental health & am now moving out. We have a break clause in our contract permitting us to give 2 months notice I rang up last month to tell them I was leaving & was told to ring back in a month as we only need to give 1 months notice. Now I have rung back to give my notice & been told I will be held liable for 2 months notice. You have to ring different companies in totally different parts of the country to do anything & it seems none of the communicate with each other. So 1 person has said yes we can leave with 1 months notice another has said no and the admin dept didn't even know we were leaving. I have had people turning up to view the property and 9am with no warning then even after I asked to be told 24hrs in advance about viewings (as is my right) I had another lot turn up at 1.30pm I am so frustrated I have been in tears on the phone because people are so bloody rude. DO NOT RENT FROM THESE PEOPLE. I am a landlord & would never put my tenants through what we have been through. My agents get people to my tenants within 24 hrs for any problem./&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/16363/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/16363/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
![Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/dialog/feed?app_id=159335870805641&picture=http://allagents.co.uk/images/logo-thumbs.png&description=The agency was phenomenal. They took great care to ensure that my property was managed properly, they understood that it was my house but their attitude was "if it were my house, how would I feel ..." it was a very personal service that I received. I was quickly informed of any issues, and excellent advice was given as to the best course of action. Sam - who I dealt with - was extremely fair and made sure that whilst i undertook my own responsibilities, I wasn't taken for a ride in any way. Brilliant connections with workmen to ensure speedy resolution of any problems with the house, meant I knew it was always well looked after by the agency (if not always by the tenant). The attitude it was about what was the right thing - ensuring everyone was fair and proper to the agreements. I would recommend Countrywide - first class service, excellent communication, excellent property management and a very individual and personal service./&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/15689/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/15689/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
![Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/dialog/feed?app_id=159335870805641&picture=http://allagents.co.uk/images/logo-thumbs.png&description=I had some problems as the tenant did not maintain the garden and Countrywide did not ensure that this requirement was met. My main complaint is that at the end of the tenancy Countrywide changed the gas & electricity supplier from Scottish Power to EON without any reference to me. When they did this they gave the address for accounts as their own office, consequently the first I knew of the change was a letter from a debt collection agency to the house because of unpaid bills. Since the house was unoccupied this action was taken on the basis of estimated bills when no utilities had actually been used. As I live in South Africa this has caused me considerable time and expense to sort things out. Their office in Stockton told me "Oh, we do this as standard now and have our own team with EON" Other landlords beware as they obviously get a kick-back from all transfers!/&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/15685/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/15685/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
, etc. There are not enough adjectives to describe what a terribly inadequate, unprofessional service they provided. The tenant was pretty bad, whch really exposed the limitations of the agents. Poor communication, misrepresentation of events, everyone blaming someone else, pathetically superficial house inspections. I ended up spending hundreds of hours arranging for repairs, etc., myself. I had the full management option, but when I asked the agent (several times) to call the Council to report low water pressure causing the boiler to malfunction, their response was "we are only supposed to deal with minor repairs, not major house modifications" (by this point, a new boiler was needed, and I had arranged for the Coucnil to install a line to a different water supply, all provided by the Council at no cost). So I managed to get done from hundreds of miles away what they didn't get done from about a half-mile away (all they needed to do was call the council!) I am now with a different agents who are already like polar opposites - they actually respond to emails!/&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/15500/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/15500/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
![Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/dialog/feed?app_id=159335870805641&picture=http://allagents.co.uk/images/logo-thumbs.png&description=We dealt with Beresford Adams who are under the CWL umbrella. Me and my partner thought it was amazing at first, they were very polite and helped us look at the two bedroom flat we were interested in. The mistake we made was renting the property. We have just moved out of the property and it is such a huge relief. We had no hot water for the three years we lived there and where always fobbed off by BA, CWL and the landlords each saying that it wasn't their problem it was someone else's. The only hot water we had in the property was the electric shower which broke after 6 months of living there, it took 6 months to fix it as they wanted me "to wait until it got worse". Unbelievable! There was something wrong with the electrics as well and the bulbs were always blowing and sometimes they would ping out of the lights and wizz across the room! Again when we complained it was nobodies fault and nothing was done. The intercom downstairs broke and it took them 3 weeks to fix and I never knew if anyone was ringing the doorbell. The tap was leaking, three months until it was fixed. Every letter they sent us cost 25pounds plus VAT which made it between 30-40pounds. We paid ridiculous amounts of money to renew our contracts and the last straw was when they wanted 120pounds to renew our contract this year. Moving out was another horrendous ordeal. 45pounds+VAT for references which we were promised within 48hs....guess how long we had to wait? 3 weeks! We were so lucky our new landlords were understanding else we would have missed out on our new house. We cleaning the house out and it was spotless when we left apart from some wine stains on the carpet in some of the rooms, we knew they would take money of us for that. However when we got our deposit information back we were charged 180pounds cleaning charges, 220 pounds "clearance" and 60pounds "administrative charge for invoking dilaps process". We left a sponge in the property when we left, I doubt very much that it took them 220pounds to remove it! The dilaps process...they charged us to inspect the property when we left! UNBELIEVABLE!!! Please please please don't rent with anyone under their umbrella. You will get charged for everything and you will not get any of your deposit back. It was the worst thing we ever did and we have lost out on so much money because of them./&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/15218/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/15218/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
 constantly causes the main consumer unit to pop and everything in the house goes off - we cant even set any clocks on any appliances. And the Oven doesn't work, it spoils food - burnt on the outside and raw on the inside!
What are the letting agent doing? Lying, passing the buck, Blaming me! Absolutely anything but fixing these issue. I am extremely stressed, annoyed and frustrated. It cost me a lot of money to move here and they just dont care, the only thing they care about is getting paid. DO NOT USE THESE PEOPLE!/&display=popup&link=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/14676/&redirect_uri=http://www.allagents.co.uk/review/14676/ "Share on your Facebook Wall"){kind=logo}
