So, my blog is back to being a rant, and I apologise for that. But I am fed up with GD Lettings, the letting agent for the house I lived in at University.
Then I was at uni they seemed good. They were laid-back, never chased for the rent and were very understanding if you needed a little extra time. Yes, when it came to fixing problems they were a little slow. But they were always friendly and helpful.
However that view has now changed. I moved out of my house on 16th July, which I make to be 99 days from now (I worked that out while waiting for them to answer their phone). Three and a half months after handing in my keys, and I’m STILL waiting for my deposit. I have called them a number of times, emailed (which got no reply), and I know I’m not alone.
The first time I rang, 'Andy' (not his real name) told me that they were waiting for a new cheque book, which is understandable; they have lots of tenants, all wanting deposits at the same time. I was ok to wait for a few days. That was mid August.
Earlier in September, I was told that they had written my cheque and it was ‘somewhere’ in the office. 'Andy' said he would find it and send it on. Not so acceptable, but I wasn’t going to kick off a fuss an innocent mistake.
Today, after 40 minutes of ringing, getting either no answer or the engaged tone, I finally got through to a female voice. After explaining to her that I was still waiting, she said that 'Andy' was waiting to speak to the landlord about the water rates (which I had agreed to pay from my deposit), and would not write the cheque until that had happened. This is when the bells started ringing. I had obviously been lied to at some point. I made this clear to the voice on the phone (and apologised for taking it out on her). Surely the landlord could have had this conversation with the people handling his numerous properties sometime in the three and a half months since I left. You know, that quiet point in the year when most of their tenants are elsewhere. But no, that would be too easy.
So, left my number and asked them to ring me as soon as they have sorted it, but I think I’m going to play the annoyance card and ring them every day until it is sorted. But in the mean time, if you are ever looking to rent a house in Aberystwyth, avoid GD Lettings like the plague. I’m also going to contact the Guild of Students if I haven’t heard anything in the next week, and ask them to add GD to their ‘blacklist’. I’ll update this post with updates…
On a happier note, a few weeks ago at Wales Synod I was elected to go to Methodist Conference 2012, so in 9 months or so there will be more MethConf blog posts! I know you will all be counting down the days…
