Estate Agents- getting the deposit back...

[Marie55]

Has anybody else got less of their deposit back than they expected? Rollo&Davidson charged us £200 for cleaning, including deep cleaning the carpet. If it was in a bad way that'd be fair enough but I think our flat was actually cleaner when we left than when we arrived. Also, isn't the owner responsible for reasonable wear and tear?? But the thing is we have no photos to prove it so it's hard to contest. I'll definitely be taking photos this year.

[Diesel]

Rollo are terrible with regards to deposits, I never got mine back until Jan of the next year, and even then it was a predicted estimate and because they cocked up and gave another person that lived there his early and in full we were charged more than we should of. I'm just glad I rented privately the next 2 years, as they are so incompetent.

[Ewan Husami]

Ask for a break down of their charges, including receipts.


Always, ALWAYS take photos of every room as soon as you move in. Check the inventory, and if there's anything missing or damaged, report it immediately. Otherwise, it's very difficult to prove anything when challenged at the end of your contract.

The Union produces a How to Rent guide, which covers many aspects of renting a property (a lot of it might seem straight forward, but there are several things that are very easy to overlook). http://www.yourunion.net/howtorent

[RandomMusings]

There is also a 'How To Leave' guide on the front page of the howtorent mini-site. If you feel that you are being unfairly charged, or have any issues regarding your deposits that you feel are unjust, then don't hesitate to contact me on srcaccommodation@st-andrews.ac.uk.
Alternatively, go straight to our accommodation advocate (Eleanor Feltham) who is employed by the Union to, amongst other things, help deal with issues surrounding deposits. Her contact details are on the howtorent website also.

Finally, look out for the 'How To Rent Survey' which will be taking place around the turn of the year. This is your opportunity to tell us what your landlords/agents are really like - and we then create a list of the top-rated so that future renters can use it as some sort of help.

Phil Pass
SRC Accommodation Officer

**In a purely non-official aspect, has anybody else had problems with Eve Brown and their deposits this year?**

[hr]

? The humble question mark?
? So much mightier than the sword?

[FieryFairy]

Just to join in the deposit rant... We didn't get our full deposit back from our estate agent (unfortunately we didn't take photos so can't do much) and most of the charge was cleaning, but also for replacement of an item that was there when we left, but mysteriously vanished between then and their inspection... Odd...

Anyway, to this year's renters:

* Take photos when you move in if it is unclean/there are areas of damage, and note these on the inventory

* Take photos of the flat when you leave or even better, try to be present when they inspect!

Good luck renters!

[The Jaspar]

Quoting RandomMusings from 20:59, 6th Sep 2008


**In a purely non-official aspect, has anybody else had problems with Eve Brown and their deposits this year?**

[hr]

? The humble question mark?
? So much mightier than the sword?

In a word, yes, but I think it's more to do with the flat's owner than Eve Brown, who I think will hopefully side with us on this one. The owner seems to think we broke pretty much everything we could have in the flat, including cutting a sizable square of linoleum out of the kitchen floor, which was clearly there for the purpose of accessing the washing machine.