butters john bee Reviews 1.094

Nearly 5 years in the property and still have numerous issues wrong including a boiler that has never worked correctly - they sent someone around numerous times and they say they need a part for the boiler, then they disappear. Still no fence - they get the cheapest workmen in possible so the issues are never properly resolved. Piss poor.

Never called back - lady was quite rude and found patronising when asking questions and situation. Asked to arrange a viewing with suggested dates to put to vendor and was never contacted again. Would avoid.

Do not trust

They only work to help people from winsford, if you’re an outsider you’ll seriously regret buying in this town , Everyone is related and they hate outsiders and they make it very clear.
This estate agent profits off making you buy and forcing a sale for less ! Avoid this town avoid this agent

We moved into a property on the 8th November, reported maintenances issues straight away (windows not closing, faulty shower, door handles faulty). We called Butter John Bee Crewe multiple times to chase this up and was passed onto the property managers each time (Lacy and Ben) both said they would sort this asap every time and call back. Each time we have not had a call back from either them and had to re chase this up. We’ve now lived in this rented property for almost 5 weeks, the windows were only just fixed last week and everything not fixed yet. When speaking to the contractors who came out to fix the windows, they had said they’d only been made aware of the issue a few days prior despite us reporting them weeks before. The service and attitude of property management is not great at all. We are paying for a service each month and we’re not getting it, this is absolute ridiculous and I wouldn’t recommend anyone to go with this estate agents when looking for somewhere to rent.

Possible the worst estate agent in the land. Worked for them and would strongly recommend other agents for both a career path and to see your home. Stay away from them and sister companies

Just thought I’d mention what fantastic service I received from Celine Hollinshead when she came to value our house .

She answered all of our questions & took the time to explain anything I didn’t quite understand there wasn’t a rush at all .

I’m very happy with the service I received from Celine

Chloe was very friendly, polite, and very professional. She is a very good listener and answered all the questions we had, and was always looking for the fastest and the best solution. She went that extra mile to help us, including walking in the snow. We were very impressed with her work ethic and professionalism.

Awful company. Overpaid my last months rent in my property. Alerted them straight away and was told they would look out for it and send it back as soon as it came in at the end of the day. 5 days later still wasn't back so I chased again. The woman on the phone says they actually didn't have my bank details and to email them. The email address she provided didn't even work! It is now 20 days since and I have chased multiple times only to be told it will be sent and accounts have been told the urgency, still everyday it is missed from their payroll. I just want my money back now! It would appear they like to withhold people's money from them. It is very worrying that an accounts department struggle to make even a bacs payment! Certainly not equipped to deal with large fees and houses in my opinion so would run for the hills if anyone was thinking of going with them! I feel for Claire who has kept chasing for me and getting nowhere, as she is the only one in the company who has bothered to even get back to me or chase. They have left me at the point now where I am assuming they are refusing to send me my money and will now have to take further action to retrieve it. Complaint will also be made to the ombudsman.

I am currently in the process of buying my first home and Lily at the Hanley branch has been extremely helpful. Any questions I have had have been answered quickly and nothing is too much to ask!

I am a landlord with a fully managed property. I have repeatedly advised BJB of a change of e mail address and bank details which were not acted upon, and more recently was charged an extortionate amount for two Income and Expenditure reports, neither of which I received, when all I requested was a monthly statement of my account. I have repeatedly asked for a refund, which was promised in mid September, but after much chasing I have only just received half of the amount taken. My e mails have not been acknowledged and promised return of phone calls do not materialise.
Overall, a very inefficient and unprofessional company which should be avoided if at all possible.

As a landlord who has used BJB Lettings for property management services, I wanted to share my experience to help other property owners make informed decisions.

## Pros:
- BJB offers a range of services including letting, rent collection, and full management.
- They have an established presence in the market.

## Cons:
1. Communication: I had 4 contacts who were all good when available. When they weren't I often struggled to get timely responses to issues. Despite having multiple contacts, it was challenging to reach key staff members. Nobody tells the landlord or tenants when people go on holiday. They do have a call concierge but there is no service level in place to return calls. This leaves landlords and tenants hanging at critical times.

2. Accuracy of Reports: There were persistent inaccuracies in the Spicer Hart system reports, with missing payments not being addressed promptly. Even after 12 months, at the end of each month nobody could tell me if all the tenants had paid.

3. Proactive Management: I found a lack of proactivity in several areas:
- Rent increases for existing tenants were not managed efficiently and had to be taken back.
- Room turnovers were not handled smoothly when tenants left unexpectedly.
- There were delays in addressing maintenance issues, such as a blocked drain that took 2 weeks to resolve.

4. Cost Management: Some maintenance charges seemed excessive compared to market rates.

5. Responsiveness: There were instances where tenants were left without essential facilities (e.g., cooking facilities) for extended periods. The cooker electrical engineer failed to turn the power leaving the tenants with no electricity for hot water.

6. Financial Reporting: There were delays in reporting received payments and discrepancies in payment records.

7. Contract Terms: Some clauses in their agreement may be considered restrictive, particularly regarding termination and ongoing fees following termination. These terms carry a significant imbalance and mat not stand up in court. Be very careful. I would advise carefully reviewing the contract terms before signing.

## Advice to Fellow Landlords:
- Thoroughly review the contract terms before engaging with any letting agent.
- Ensure clear communication channels and response times are established from the outset.
- Regularly review financial reports and question any discrepancies promptly.
- Consider the balance between the convenience of using a management service and the potential for higher costs or reduced control.

While my experience with BJB had significant challenges, experiences may vary. I encourage other landlords to do thorough research, ask for references, and carefully consider their specific needs before choosing a letting agent.

harassing me with spam texts telling me to ring them

I contacted butters John bee for a valuation for probate purposes and I spoke to a very nice man called Ryan Cheetham this morning 30/09/2024 and true to his word Ryan said he would email me a letter with the valuation which he did in the same afternoon thank you Ryan very impressed

I won't recommend this company at all.
Hopeless service.
I had a new boiler installed with free 10 years service and I gave all the documents to BJB when I gave the house to rent. After 4 years when i took back the house not single service was done and lost my free service.
When I gave the second house to rent no proper maintenance have done. I told BJB to sign the tenancy agreement for 1 year, but BJB told tenant required for 6 months tenancy agreement. When I met the tenant he said BJB only required them to go for 6 months agreement.
After 2 years I had enough with BJB and the end of agreement I told them to terminate the contract. But BJB said when I terminate the contract I need to vacate the tenant. If I want the tenant to continue I need to pay £820 according to terms and conditions.
By misleading the landlord and tenant I have almost lost £1500 which is not acceptable.
Even they have paid £50 compensation for poor customer service.
Many more complaints to explain but no use
DON'T TRUST THIS COMPANY.

I am extremely disappointed with my experience with Butter John Bee. My 6-month-old and I are currently living in a house with no heating, and despite multiple calls to the agency, I have received nothing but empty promises that someone would be sent to fix the issue.

In addition to the heating problem, there are several other repairs that have been pending for months, and the lack of urgency from the agency is unacceptable. It feels like our concerns are being ignored, and I can’t help but feel that race plays a role in the treatment we are receiving as Black occupants.

I would strongly advise anyone considering renting through this agency to think twice. They are the worst when it comes to addressing maintenance issues and treating their tenants with respect.

We have received an excellent experience as a tenant with Marcin, nothing was too much trouble. We completed all the paperwork for the tenancy which was easy and Marcin explained all the steps well. We received great communication and updates throughout the process.

Thanks for your help Marcin

Awful company, completely incompetent! Expensive, don't return calls, can't retain staff. Queen Bee Kerry, a vile human being and the reason so many staff leave, I was told this by one of the team whilst trying to hurry through my purchase, unprofessional doesn't even cover it.

This is a terrible company to use. They never return calls or emails. Would never use them again and would tell anyone who is considering using them to be aware.
Sold my house through them and had nothing but headache. When I went to collect keys to withdraw property from market, they took me seriously. Very expensive fees for a company that does not value its paying customers

If you are thinking about choosing this agency, I would advise you to compare their social media with any of their competitors. While most other agencies use Facebook and Instagram to effectively and creatively promote their properties, most of BJB’s posts seem to be bland, generic adverts, reposts promoting outside contractors, or random content about bees (I get the brand reference but is it helping to sell houses?). The rare videos that show their properties look tacky and poorly made. Given the prominence of social media as an advertising tool, this is a huge missed opportunity.

From their posts, BJB makes a point of saying that they are not the cheapest, but they are the best. This is a weird flex to make. While very expensive, they are overshadowed by other local agencies, such as Chris Hamriding, an agency that seems to have the creativity and customer service that BJB - at least the Alsager branch - lack. Weirdly, the description I wrote for my property and asked the agent to add to its Rightmove listing is now being used by BJB to advertise other properties in the area. This is disingenuous at best.

This may be an obvious point, but as it is something we were not aware of, it is worth noting that the Alsager branch does not have a physical branch in Alsager. This means that other agencies in Alsager have the advantage of having a window display to engage passing trade and on-site staff to field enquiries. The so-called concierge service seems to be a centralised call centre, so is of little help when you need to discuss your sale in detail.

Although our agent was fairly responsive, communication became increasingly frustrating. By the end of the process, we were made to feel like we were an inconvenience for being anxious (given that the sale nearly fell through due to the buyer’s financial situation, previously unknown to us, these anxieties were well-founded). Although they claim to encourage clients to take the best offer, not the first one, we felt pushed into accepting the first, with the agent implying that it might be our only offer. At this point, the property had been on the market for just two weeks and had one viewing. In retrospect, we should have either refused the offer or gone with an agent who had more faith in their ability to market a character property.

While our experience of Alsager BJB was not entirely negative, I would recommend that other people did what we, rather stupidly, did not and research other agencies before committing to them. I would also be very careful about going with any solicitor or conveyancer recommended by BJB, especially DC Law. Their recommendation seems to be solely based on getting commission from the third party, rather than there being any merit or benefit for the client.

Edited following response from BJB: thank you for your reply. For transparency, the estate agent shared the survey results with us. The surveyor stated that the property was in good overall condition with a price that reflected the necessary modernisation. Again, I would recommend that sellers research this agency before committing to them, including reading the negative reviews recently added to this site.

Received a letter in the post trying to guilt trip us into selling our home so a family of adults can move in? We have a child living here, so I don't see how adults are a priority. Never dealt with BJB before and certainly won't after reading this! Besides, the family want a detached house and most houses around the target areas are semi-detached/terraces, so clearly BJB don't know the area too well.

Update: spoke with the brach over the phone to find out why it's acceptable to be posted this letter, and we were greeted by rude, condesending staff. Terrible service. Maybe BJB should consider the residents that are receiving their letters as they don't know their personal circumstances.