are there any decent letting agents in Brighton and Hove then?

[Hatterlovesbrighton]

Pembertons at seven dials were pretty good when I was renting. They did most of the checks themselves whereas Leaders would make you pay some company £110 each for you to provide them with references etc

 

[Sonic]

Avoid Young Lee like the plague. They take forever to do anything. Ask them about something and their response is 'we'll write to the landlord next week'.
Our previous agents (Bradford & Bingley) and our current one (Spencer & Leigh) do everything by phone and on the whole have things sorted the same day or the next.

 

[Nibble]

Avoid Young Lee like the plague. They take forever to do anything. Ask them about something and their response is 'we'll write to the landlord next week'.
Our previous agents (Bradford & Bingley) and our current one (Spencer & Leigh) do everything by phone and on the whole have things sorted the same day or the next.

I heartily agree about Young Lee. When me and my girlfriend moved out of one of their flats a couple of years ago we spent two days cleaning the place from top to bottom. not a surface or appliance left untouched. It was spotless. Their "professional" cleaning company said their were some streak marks on the taps and they would have to charge us £200 to go overthe place.

We contested and they said to us "Your idea of clean and ours my be different".

My other half and I were not impressed so we got them to go round themselves. They agreed it was spotless but since the quote was already in they had to re-clean it. I checked out my position and found out that in the case of the tenant disagreeing with the letting agency the next stage is that the owner of the flat has to inspect for their opinion.

I said that to them and they replied the owner livesd in Australia (which he does) and he would not be happy being called back to inspect the flat. I said that he probably wouldn't would he? But that's your problem. not ours.

Two days later our deposit was refunded in full.

Arseholes.

 

[User removed 4]

No, most professions that incorporate the word "agent" in their title are (unts. Any agent is pointless in his/her existence, pointless profession designed wholly to put themselves between the vendor and the customer in order to con money out of both parties. Soulless, ball-less, spineless, sexless, bunch of motherfuckers every f***ing last one of them.

And that applies to anyone with the word "broker" in their job title too.

ooohhhhh ! has someones "agent" has failed to get them any acting parts lately( usually a no talking walk on extra role), or is it your patent lack of any acting ability whatsoever thats at fault here?

 

[Common as Mook]

As an ex-letting agent, I agree witha lot of what has been said here. There are some shysters out there and of course they are there to make money, but they do offer a service. A service which is in high demand and landlords want and need.

No real need for such contempt and arrogance towards them as they are earning a living. If you don't like it, pick up a copy of the Friday-Ad and let a cowboy landlord fleece you with a dodgy tenancy agreement instead.

 

[Nibble]

ooohhhhh ! has someones "agent" has failed to get them any acting parts lately( usually a no talking walk on extra role), or is it your patent lack of any acting ability whatsoever thats at fault here?

Nice try Bushmeister! I doubt I would be making a living if I was only doing extra roles however I certainly don't turn down a day's extra work if offered - Good pay for doing nothing, doesn't have to go on my CV, get to be on set which is where you make contacts and any day's work is worth it.

 

[maffew]

I've rented with several agents I go private if i can
Leaders is the only agent I would use again

 

[Soul Finger]

Just Lets in Hove claim to be Friends of the Albion, but they are (unts. We used them once and they were truly awful. i don't have the minerals to type everything they did wrong, i'm normally a pretty affable bloke but I wouldn't piss on this lot if they were on fire

Couldn't agree more. That reminds me, I must phone about the multitude of things that are STILL wrong with the flat.

 

[Giraffe]

As an ex-letting agent, I agree witha lot of what has been said here. There are some shysters out there and of course they are there to make money, but they do offer a service. A service which is in high demand and landlords want and need.

No real need for such contempt and arrogance towards them as they are earning a living. If you don't like it, pick up a copy of the Friday-Ad and let a cowboy landlord fleece you with a dodgy tenancy agreement instead.

Agree with this. A good agent will keep the landlord on the straight and narrow, but ultimately a bad landlord is a bad landlord. If the agent is a member of ARLA they will at least have to adhere to a code of practice and their client monies are audited once a year.

I've rented with several agents I go private if i can
Leaders is the only agent I would use again

Agreed, not the cheapest but I would say they offer the best service which saves you money in the long run. And at least one of the directors is a Brighton fan as are many of the staff

They also have a very lovely negotiator in their Western Road office, sorry no pics!!

 

[mistahclarke]

Pembertons at seven dials were pretty good when I was renting. They did most of the checks themselves whereas Leaders would make you pay some company £110 each for you to provide them with references etc

Brices just quoted me 175 quid per person for reference checks. Having a Giraffe!

 

[Giraffe]

Brices just quoted me 175 quid per person for reference checks. Having a Giraffe!

That is a fairly standard price in the market I am afraid. The cost should cover more than just the reference though, there should a full inventory drawn up, check in process, and drawing up of the correct tenancy agreement. A lot of agencies skip some of this but still charge the full price!

 

[gumbopickles]

Q lets on Lewes Road is good, friebdly and reliable service, would highly recommend !!

 

[MikeySmall]

I have used Leaders in the past as a tenant, and now as a landlord, and I think they are very good.

What the question should really be is "are there any good LANDLORDS in Brighton and Hove". The letting agent can only take the landlords insturctions, generally.

What Leaders do well is protect your deposit and rent monies. As they are ARLA members all client funds are covered and as such you have the piece of mind that they won't go under or run off with your money.

A lot of agents are run by crooks. They also tend to be the cheapest ones.

Leaders are not cheap, but in life you get what you pay for. I have found them to be reliable, well staffed (a lot of agents do lettings part time and haven't got a clue) and pleasant.

Leaders are a bunch of arseholes. I rented off them for 18 months - never solved any problems with the flat i was renting (there were many!) and when my ex moved out they tried to charge me a 150 quid admin fee to change the contract.... Now as a landlord having similar problems with Homelets. They make Leaders look good. Im not sure decent estate agents exist. How they are put alongside recruitment consulutants im not sure though.