Let it Direct

Dear Mr Fernandez, I am sorry to hear that you feel you have not received the highest level of service from Let It Direct. I apologise for any misunderstanding regarding the standard Terms & Conditions in relation to the reservation fee. To clarify, a tenant submits a formal offer to confirm their interest and willingness to proceed with a property, a reservation fee is taken, and an appointment is made to see the landlord. In this case, an offer was submitted for £50.00 a month less than what the landlord was asking for. There were several other offers made for this particular property, and once the landlord had personally met all the potential tenants, a decision was made to whom to proceed with. This process was explained to you upfront prior to you paying a reservation fee and meeting the landlord. Mrs Joanne McGuinness, Office Manager

I was told that my offer had been accepted, the holding deposit is to take the property off the market and meeting with the landlord is so that I have a point of contact. A deposit of £500 was then taken. I was then told the landlord is flying out and can't meet me. During this time I couldn't take up other properties in case the landlord accepts and I had to withdraw. The landlord then came back and arranged a meeting a week later. The day after I was told- he is meeting with another tenant who has given him a higher offer. The deposit was paid back to me only after the landlord met with the new tenant. In short you are paying a holding deposit to meet the landlord and as security to the landlord - there is no surety to you. This is very unfair. Here is the link to Shelter explaining what a holding deposit or reservation fee should be for - https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/private_renting/letting_agent_fees_for_tenants I quote - "If you want to reserve a property, a letting agent may ask you to pay a holding deposit while they check your references. Paying a holding deposit means: you're committed to renting the property the landlord is committed to renting the property to you, subject to checks" This is absolutely not the case. "You can take the letting agent to court for breaking the agreement if they: 1. refuse to give you back your holding deposit 2. decide not to rent to you when all your references and credit checks were in order"