Forum Topic

SARGEANTS ESTATE AGENT

My daughter rented a flat for 18 months from this agency.  Despite four  people leaning the flat from top to bottom they are now claiming that it needs a professional clean and trying to charge £10 for a battery and £10 for a plastic ice tray (amongst other spurious things). My daughter experienced a nightmare with person in the same house stalked her and her partner for weeks and Sargeants did little or nothing to resolve it - thank God the Police and Social Services stepped in and Sargeants now have the cheek to try and charge over £400  to clean a spotlessly clean flat.  Shame on them. They must be so desperate to have to stop to this level to obtain income

Natalie McDermott ● 2968d16 Comments

Surely it's simple. The property has to be i exactly the same condition as it was at the beginning of the tenancy? With photos to support both landlord and tenant?

Simon Wycombe ● 2946d

There does seem to be a problem with this end of tenancy cleaning.  Even if there has been a major clean by the tenants if a professional clean has been stipulated in the agreement then the company will be brought in and a large charge added.  They then have to look very hard for anything to point out.  It's an unfair game.  I remember a fly in the bathroom ceiling lampshade!  However on the other hand I have heard of a parent who went up north with a steam cleaner to clean a student's shower in the hall of residence because it hadn't been cleaned all year. It must take ages to clean if you have tenants like that! I think when moving in you should probably be very very careful to take pictures and make a report because I've seen broken light fittings etc where quite honestly the property should not have been let in that state.

Philippa Bond ● 2953d

Given that they have come to an agreement I would assume that they agreed that the Customer had a case. However there is a bigger question about rip-off charges through agencies for rental. The mark-up on a final clean sounds ridiculous.

Peter Chadburn ● 2954d

should the agents not be given a chance to defend themselves on here?There's always 2 sides to a story. Perhaps they don't read Ealing today but they should do as useful info on here about the area?

Simon Wycombe ● 2954d

Natalie,I am glad you have resolved this in a better way. having to name and shame is perhaps the only choice we have. with social media it gives us a bit of leverage. but as Colin said reasonable costs should apply. when I look at the various costs of renting and you may end up in a flat for just 6 months it is a nightmare. I have been a house owner for 36 years but it was a lot simpler years ago. and also landlords were generally quite good. I feel that with the supply issues in London this will only get worse. but good luck to your daughter. I hope she enjoys a happy home!!

Peter Chadburn ● 2957d

Colin, there are indeed lots of awful tenants out there but my daughter and her partner are not two of them.  Estate Agents have a responsibility to repair their properties in a timely fashion and when issues of health and safety are concerned they should act ensure that they attend to their duties - after all they are quick enough to rely on the terms of their lease to extract money any deposit they hold.  I also thought Sargeants were reputable professional and fair - in our case they were not. They have now deducted a more equitable sum from the deposit and the matters is resolved - they would NOT have done this had we not made such a fuss and named and shamed them. Had they shown consideration at the outset and taken into account the problems at the property (of which my daughter was a  victim) and refrained from making her departure from the property such a money grabbing exercise they may have been held in higher esteem.

Natalie McDermott ● 2957d

So you signed a lease that states at the end of the term / on completion of lease an external professional cleaning company would come in I gather?Did this include a stated charge? If not it needs to be fair, reasonable and at market rates plus other reasonable charges such as administrative costs.The inventory would have been (and sounds like it was) detailed and, most importantly, checkable ahead of signing. I’m amazed a light bulb is an issue - why not simply purchase one and replace it?! Sounds petty but rules are rules Now in respect of repairs... believe it or not, sometimes it takes time for tradesmen to be available. If I need plastering done I have one man I go to and if that means I wait 4 weeks or more then so be it. Just because you’re a tenant doesn’t entitle you to an immediate response or to have a maintenance man on 24/7 standby Granted, a broken window could reasonably be done quicker but you don’t state the nature of the “damage”. Again, these things need to be done in a reasonable time.Plenty of terrible landlords out there but for way of balance there’s also heaps of down right awful tenants. It’s the same with Agents.Sargents have a decent rep locally as far as I’m aware but I suppose at the end of the day that boils down to individuals maybe

Colin Goodman ● 2957d

We certainly need legislation in place to protect us against extortionate charges being levied when you leave a property.

Natalie McDermott ● 2961d

I suppose we are so keen to find somewhere these days that these contracts are there to milk various costs. no doubt the professional clean will cost the agency just £60 at the most. I do hope that at some point we get better legislation on these charges.

Peter Chadburn ● 2961d

We have been forced by the terms of the lease to accept a professional clean and to pay for the inventory report.  We are disputing the charge of £10 for a ice cube tray and £10 for a bulb et al.  We are waiting for the absentee landlady to accept or decline.  We waited over 6 weeks for them to remedy the damp and mould growing up the bedroom wall and 4 weeks to replace the broken window so I guess we will be waiting even longer for them to return the deposit. No wonder Estate Agents have a bad name.

Natalie McDermott ● 2961d

We are waiting for Sargeants to reconsider the matter and act in a reasonable and fair way.  If they reconsider I will be more than happy to update my reviews.

Natalie McDermott ● 2967d

So maybe Sargeants could be persuaded that these were good tenants. they generally appear to have a good reputation on the web. Unless this landlady owns other properties and they are afraid of losing the business. A professional clean charge should have been in any contract if they intend to do it. I have heard of people been charged for a professional clean and the cleaner only gets a fraction.

Peter Chadburn ● 2968d

The landlady is an absentee landlady and ignored all correspondence which was sent to her!!  Despite the situation at the property being dire for many months she ignored all communication. So that is very telling. Luckily we photographed the flat and anyone can see that it is spotless - or at least as good as when they moved in.

Natalie McDermott ● 2968d

Have they photographed the state of the flat. It could be also that the landlord is an awkward character. Maybe the landlord is pushing this. getting charged for missing/broken items i would have thought was normal.

Peter Chadburn ● 2968d

I Know!  What has irked me so much is that the -flat had a really damp wall which had to be treated and re-plastered and it was left like that for months - it was only when my daughter complained that her asthma was getting really bad that they did anything.  They left a broken window for weeks also and only did something when we complained bitterly.  It has been a nightmare for my daughter a really nightmare and even now when she is leaving the property they want to  avoid giving her back a deposit.  We cleaned the flat and it was the same condition as when she moved in..  I shall make a formal complaint with the AIIC.  I am really surprised at Sargeants as I was going to use them for the sale of my own property but will have to rethink!

Natalie McDermott ● 2968d

Some agents are notorious for this behaviour. How much will they pay the people who do the clean? That is a further question? Will she get her deposit back? I have heard a lot of bad stories about the rented sector. it was a lot better 30 plus years ago as there was a better supply and landlords tended to look after you.

Peter Chadburn ● 2968d