Placefirst Reviews 

What attracted us to Placefirst was the promise of stress-free long-term renting as advertised on their website. When we moved into Placefirst 6 years ago and for the years following it was communicated to us in writing that rent reviews were based on CPI +1%.

However, our latest rent increase is a staggering 31% on top of what we currently pay, despite the fact CPI +1% would be 4.7% for this period. Since moving in six years ago, our rent has increased by 63%. Despite being long-term reasonable tenants who have never missed a payment, we are being told to sign up to a new contract or move out in just over a month.

The reason we are being given for this is ‘the price of units can fluctuate depending on supply and demand at the time the properties are coming to the market.’ As Placefirst is a company that is growing at an exponential rate across the UK, I can only speculate that rent increases of £300+ a month is coming from a place of greed rather than necessity.

Whereas Placefirst used to reassure us they were a ‘responsible professional landlord’ in their communications regarding rent reviews, we note this was removed from their most recent letter to us.

What has kept us here is the false promise of stability for our young family that we could ‘stay here as long as we love’, the proximity to our children’s local school and nursery, our neighbours and the friendships my family has built in the community.

We are now at a point that we have invested a lot of our own money, energy and time in making this house a home, as we were led to believe was the whole point by Placefirst. Being faced with a huge unreasonable increase at a time of cost-of-living crisis is frankly devastating.

We feel we have been deliberately misled by Placefirst. We now have a genuine lack of trust in the company and feel truly unsettled by this whole experience. As for stress free experience, I am losing sleep over how I am going to suddenly find an extra £307 a month to cover these rent increases or find a new place for my family with short notice.

Spotted a property in Liverpool's Welsh Streets that was perfectly located albeit a little overpriced. All went smoothly at first, although the rent crept up by an extra £25 per calendar month between the time I viewed and actually getting my paperwork through. In hindsight, this should have been a red flag for things to come.

Neighbours are currently experiencing huge rent increases. Placefirst are currently justifying these costs to residents by saying they manage and maintain their properties and offer dedicated customer service. I can't say I get to benefit from the good value on this front.

When I recently reported a faulty door handle through the appropriate channels, I received a copy/paste email quoting from my tenancy agreement simply stating it was my responsibility to fix it. I had actually raised the faulty handle on my inventory complete with video evidence of it being loose as part of my moving-in process, but it was never addressed.

When it eventually came off, I was told it was my problem to fix. I sourced a reputable, registered tradesman and was quoted £70 to come and repair; what he anticipated would be a quick in-and-out job required two trips, as well as the purchase of additional hardware. When I queried what had took him so long, he was able to show me where the original fixtures had been so poorly installed in the first place... by Placefirst.

Elsewhere, when I notified the team responsible for solar panel installation that the scaffolding their contractors had erected was blocking my doors and posing a safety issue in case of emergency they ignored the email. This remained in place for three weeks, at best proving an inconvenience and at worst a serious risk.

When I questioned how long giant lorries doing maintenance next would be blocking access to my property, I was asked to note that 'the road is a public highway therefore there are no designated spaces to the properties'. Strangely though, when neighbours have queried their rent increases, they've been told by Placefirst that factors such as parking are taken into effect when calculating individual rents.

As Welsh Streets residents have made their circumstances known, residents in other Placefirst developments have reached out via social media to share their issues, suggesting this isn't down to staff in the local office but a company-wide directive.

Avoid! The rent goes up ridiculous amounts year by year! Crazy rental prices for Toxteth which pushes tenants out after one year!

We moved into our 2-bed flat in 2022 with rent at £850 – a fair price for Liverpool at the time. Fast forward to 2025, and the rent has been increased to a staggering £1,095. That’s a jump of nearly 30% in just three years, with no clear justification in terms of improvements or added value to the property.

This kind of increase might be expected in central London – not in Liverpool – and it’s becoming impossible for working families and middle-class professionals to keep up. What’s worse is that Placefirst seems to be monopolising the local rental market, making it harder for people to find alternatives and driving us closer to housing insecurity.

This company is clearly profit-driven, not people-driven. The way they’re pricing out tenants is unethical and damaging to the community. Many of us chose this housing for long-term living and stability – now we’re being priced out.

I moved up to Liverpool 3 years ago and found The Welsh Streets. Immediately thought it looked good, rent was a little more than I wanted to spend but I thought I’d feel safe in the area. I joined the Facebook page and found a community of people that were helping each other and felt safe moving up here.

3 years later and my rent has increased every year. I dread when March/April comes around with another price hike. I’ve always rented privately prior to moving here and never heard of such increases every year! I’m paying nearly £300 more a month than when I first started.

What can I say, well we found the house on right move and loved it, it was priced a little higher than we were looking for but looked to be in a great area and I was already from L8.
Move in was good, however upon using the ensuite bathroom, water was pouring out from the ceiling light in the bedroom below as the shower tray was not sealed properly! Our garden floods in the rain as there isn’t sufficient drainage, we have a rat problem which seems to be getting worse. Then you start to notice the shoddy workmanship on the rest of the house, cheap fittings, loose door handles, cracks in the staircase, cheap appliances, dodgy windows and the paint! Who puts matt finish paint in a house, the bathroom and the kitchen paint comes off if you need to wipe the wall!!

Then comes the rental pricing, first yearly increase was a flat £100, okay we thought, we can manage this as it is probably a one off higher amount. The second year comes, same increase of £100. You start to wonder then if this will be sustainable longterm as you had hoped and were promised by PlaceFirst as yearly increases like this are not sustainable. Then our most recent is £125, so taking our rent from £1150 pcm to £1475 in the space of 3 years. At this rate we will have no choice to move, especially with the current climate were EVERYTHING is going up. That means our rent is an extra £325pcm since moving in, so we have to find an extra £4000 per year for rent, when wages are stagnant.

PlaceFirst will draw you in with their marketing “Rent as long as you love” and “Building communities” and “Built for renters as an alternative to buying”

In reality, it is more like stay as long as you can afford, they destroy any sense of community as tenants are constantly moving out and they are not built for renters unless they mean to exploit those same people.

We have seen longterm tenants move out after £200 and £300 pcm rent increases, which normal everyday families cannot and should not be expected to afford.

And if you try to negotiate your rent increase, you are met with a “This is none negotiable, move out if you don’t want to pay” - A far cry from what they initially promise.

The houses were former social housing, PlaceFirst were given the contract to restore them to help restore the area of L8 with affordable housing, fast forward now and the rent prices are out of control! They are jacking up the prices as much as they can with no oversite or care for the community and say it is “market rate” – which they are creating with their monopoly of houses in the area, pushing up other private landlords in the area which also drives up social housing prices too. These are in-compassionate criminals.

We the tenants have had no choice but to come together along with ACORN Tenants union to fight these and preserve our homes and our community that PlaceFirst have essentially stolen from the local people and absolutely cashing in on the housing crisis, which THEY ARE NOT part of the solution but part of the problem.

EVERY resident here is unhappy and worried what the next rent hike will be and where they will get that money from, its heartbreaking to see from a faceless, corporate machine that bullies and intimidates it residents with threats of eviction if you don’t sign their fixed term contracts on their higher rates.

I love living here for the area and the people but if we could change the management of these houses that would be fantastic!

Update - Yes PlaceFirst, there are no outstanding maintenance requests on your portal as I raised them and the team came out to fix the carpet and seal the gap on the stairs, but the cracks in the banister and the skirting board remain, however these jobs have been closed?

The time for speaking on an individual basis is over, we the community have come together over these rent hikes, you are making people homeless.

We will settle for nothing short of meeting with David Mawson to discuss our demands along with ACORN
This issue is not going to go away.

Rent increases:
- Immediate halt to rent increases from 1st April 2025
- New rent increases to be capped at CPI + 1%

Repairs:
- Standardised timeline for repairs published
- Fully costed breakdown of inventory, repairs and insurance policy to be distributed to all tenants
- Weekly drop-ins to the office on High Park Street for tenants to speak directly with the property manager, raising concerns and issues.
- Publish standardised lifespan for replaceable items in the property subject to reasonable wear and tear (e.g. carpets)

Inspections:
-24-hour notices for repairs and inspections to be abided by and agreed by both parties
- Annual and 6-month inspections to publish reports and inventory checkouts signed off and agreed by both parties

Fees and charges:
- Abolition of fees to rent appliances
- Removal of direct debit clause for rental payments

What isn’t wrong with placefirst?
A company with no moral compass!
Sell you the dream, to be nothing but disheartened from day dot.

If your looking for a home, with sloping floors, patchy walls, mouldy windows, subsidances, carpet that doesn’t fit properly ( but they REFUSE TO REPLACE, even though maintenance advised it needed new carpets as it was a trip hazard on the stairs) cold houses that don’t retain ANY heat, cheaply done, ( not high spec in the slightest) have to shower with the door wide open as the extractor fans never work nor do you have a bathroom window, rat infested, and a communal garden that we actually CANT use for own own needs, then placefirst is the landlord for you.

Depriving children of being allowed a swing on their patch of communal grass, demanding it’s removed or it will be removed by placefirst, garden planters not allowed, demanded timescales to de-weed our own personal patios.
To live in pure Anxiety of your next rental hike, not reasonable, nor negotiable - like it or lump it style. 3 years in the property and £225 per month additional?
Previously letting with Martin an co, the most I had ever experienced was £20 uplift in rent per month. There is no justification for this rise in rent. There are no wear and tear properly replacements or upkeep. We are told small minor repairs of locks, handles are our responsibility? Contractors sent our aren’t qualified for the job, it’s your typical handyman sent to bodge job everything.

Please THINK WISELY before you decide to enter into any agreements with placefirst.

You could get more for your money in a more admired area with a landlord that values you and your respect you have for their property.

Such a shame as the community in itself ( the neighbours) are great.

Visit acorn and review placefirst on multiple platforms, including social media, bbc, etc. The Welsh streets are not the only neighbourhood of placefirst experiencing these terrible situations.

Shame on your placefirst! How is this a long term solution?

Lived at my property for 7 years and over the last 2 years my rent has been increased in total by £400 - if you can't afford it then get out is the attitude I got from place first - disgusting attitude to have towards a long term tenant. If you decide to move into a place first property then be prepared for a huge increase in rent EACH year (UPDATE - they did reach out but had the same message which was basically tough your rent is going up £300 1st May)

When I moved into the Welsh Streets, it felt like a regeneration success story—historic homes restored with government support and promises of long-term community benefit. Sadly, that promise has not been kept.

Placefirst now owns the majority of properties in the area and has increased rents by £300–£400 a month, pricing many residents out. It’s created a monopoly in what was meant to be an inclusive development.

This issue has now gained national media attention, including coverage by BBC News and ITV. Yet, despite the scrutiny, there seems to be little accountability for what’s happening here.

A development that once stood for affordable, community led regeneration is now becoming an example of gentrification and displacement. I urge Placefirst to reconsider its approach and remember the values this project was originally built on.

We moved in to find we had no heat. This should have been checked before we moved in.
Patio door wouldn't lock without a struggle this too should have been checked before we moved in,
Leak undersink soaked everything.
Not a good start to our new home.

I’ve been a tenant with Placefirst for three years, and unfortunately, the experience has significantly declined over time.

Despite the lack of any meaningful improvements to our home, Placefirst has raised our rent by a staggering £296 per month over two years. A 29.6% increase in rent since moving in. This comes at a time when wages remain flat, inflation is easing, and many of us in the Welsh Streets development are struggling with basic affordability.

Worse still, our property has multiple unresolved issues:

* Ongoing subsidence in one room.
* Frequent leaks and damp patches.
* A break-in with no forced entry, which was never properly investigated.
* Trip hazards in the garden that Placefirst promised to fix but didn’t.
* And shockingly poor energy efficiency, with energy bills regularly exceeding £300 per month—completely unsustainable for a modern rental.

What’s most frustrating is the inconsistency in how tenants are treated. Some neighbours have had their increases frozen or cancelled, while ours was pushed through without any willingness to negotiate. We’ve been told outright that there’s “no room for discussion.”

We've now involved the ACORN Housing Union and are preparing for a tribunal challenge, as we believe the rent increase is unreasonable and unlawful under the Housing Act 1988 and the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018.

Placefirst markets itself as a long-term, community-focused landlord—but the reality is quite different. Many of us feel like we're being priced out of our homes while living with substandard conditions.

If you're considering renting from Placefirst, I would strongly recommend asking detailed questions about property condition, rent review policies, and how complaints are handled—before signing anything.

Since writing my original review, it’s disappointing—but not surprising—to receive what appears to be a templated response from Placefirst, rather than meaningful engagement with the specific issues I raised.

Rent Increases:
The explanation provided is identical to what many other residents have received. It does nothing to address the scale or fairness of the increases, nor the complete lack of negotiation or flexibility offered to us.

Maintenance Issues:
Placefirst claims there are no reports logged regarding subsidence or leaks. This is simply untrue. We’ve experienced three separate leaks from upstairs bathrooms, which required ceiling repairs and repainting. These were reported and addressed at the time, so it’s concerning that they apparently have no record of them. The issue with the back room floor—being visibly uneven and clearly not level—has also been raised repeatedly and dismissed.

Garden Hazards:
The response references timber sleepers, but fails to mention the two raised manhole covers that stick out around 5 inches above the garden surface. We were told previously that these would be made safe—yet nothing was done.

Break-In:
While I understand the police lead criminal investigations, the key concern here is that the property was accessed with a key, while my partner and I were out. Placefirst promised to investigate and review access logs, but this never happened. We even requested a lock change—which was ignored. That’s not just poor service, it’s a serious security oversight.

Overall, this response feels dismissive and out of touch with what residents are actually experiencing. I remain hopeful that Placefirst will one day match its marketing as a "community-focused landlord" with real accountability and care for its tenants.

Lived in the Welsh Streets a couple years. Friendly and streamlined move-in experience. The houses are nicely done up at a simple glance, it’s a great location, and I love my neighbours, but the company is horrible to deal with - broken promises and BS corpo responses to real issues. They lie to local councils to get their hands on chunks of low income areas (promising they’ll sell some of the houses back to the community and keep some of them “affordable”), rapidly gentrify them, and kick you out if you don’t agree to their frequent and massive rent rises. The only reason they’re able to do this is because they’ve carefully curated a positive online presence that makes them feel assured that they can always replace people easily with new tenants. The only way to combat this is for you to see these negative reviews and *don’t apply* until they start treating the tenants they’ve already got with respect- otherwise, it will be YOU.

In my time here, I’ve seen leaky and spontaneously exploding windows, inconsiderate building works damaging cars and presenting a danger to residents, mouldy basements and damp creeping up outer walls, paint that comes too easily off the walls, rodent problems, threats of eviction when you try to negotiate contract specifics or when their platform breaks and a payment doesn’t go through immediately, small details often wrong in email communication leading to time consuming back-and-forths, unannounced inspections, topped off by HUGE rent increases and check-out fees almost guaranteeing you’ll need to fight for your deposit for things that constitute general wear and tear.

Placefirst would prefer to deal with complaints “case-by-case” in order to divide and conquer the community. They market the community as a saleable aspect of their offering, but the community exists *despite* them, not because of them. As per usual, the resident services manager aka the normal local worker is wonderful, nice and hard-working, but the company is managed elsewhere ergo faceless and detached, with a CEO taking huge dividends. They claim to have an effective complaints process, but, like a politician, they have ignore requests for specifics when pressed.

You’ll be dealing with a disruptive problem they’ve caused and they’ll have the gall to send you a snooty email telling you you *need* to set up direct debit (you don’t), you *need* to sign a new 12 month contract (you don’t), you need to remove flowers from your own garden… and then next minute send an email about a competition to win a bar of chocolate if you decorate your front door seasonally so they can take advantage of your creativity for Instagram.

Their justification for a 200-300 a month rent increase is that they purport to provide an exceptional service with a dedicated residents services manager and “24/7 maintenance team”, which makes it sound like there’s someone waiting by the phone at all hours ready to help. In reality, having a property manager is normal and doesn’t really benefit the residents in any special way, and emergency maintenance is required by law… typical maintenance requests take a week to sometimes months to resolve, as they send ill-equipped contractors from Preston. Their other justification is that some houses are mistakenly under-valued and need to be brought in line with others- what they’re essentially saying there is that they’ve lured people in with the promise of taking care of them, convinced them to settle down in a “forever” home “built for renters” that old news articles describe as being specifically for low-income nurses and academics, encouraged them to start a family here with the communal gardens, and then pulled the rug out from under them by effectively kicking them out. The company routinely serves eviction notices, and in my eyes provides no extra value over any other letting agency. You are a number to them, you will be paying wildly different rent to your neighbours in identical houses, and you will roll the dice on what white goods and structural problems you inherit.

Google will show you more real experiences by residents as published by the BBC and local papers; the company’s disgustingly blasé attitude to uprooting working class lives will not continue to go unpunished.

Unmanageable rent increases, not willing to co operate or compromise on these.
Site things like "parking" as a reason for increase, on a public road with no designated parking spots.

I have lived here for over 6 years. When I moved in, I was attracted by the advertising saying that I could live here long term (which to be fair I have), and that the rent would be affordable. However my experience of living here has been very stressful at times and I have been threatened with immediate eviction (one month) when my rent was increased by a large amount. I managed to negotiate smaller increase but my rent has gone up 37% in the period I've lived here. This is far from affordable and way above inflation / consumer price index. I am dreading this year's rent increase. The lack of rental properties suitable for families in Liverpool as a whole prevents me moving. Repairs take a long time, management team are at best disinterested, at worst aggressive, and there is a significant problem with vermin.

Although we were moving quite a long distance, Dave and Mia were both very accommodating and made the process as easy and straightforward as possible. They were both very friendly and professional - nothing has been too much trouble for them and the couple of small issues we had have been dealt with quickly.

We decided to proceed and we're accepted within 48 hours. It was literally as easy as that and everything is done online via a docusign type platform so there's no running around.

The team were phenomenal. Mia was one of the nicest people I've ever dealt with and Dave who showed us round the property and arranged to get us the keys was extremely polite and professional.

Overall the team are genuinely just a great bunch of people

Placefirst has been brilliant throughout our journey. I would like to thank Mia for providing excellent customer service and answering any queries we had. The process took about 2 weeks from viewing to receiving the keys. Dave you have been phenomenal from start to finish. He communicated with a clear and concise manner, went through the inventory in detail, answered questions effectively, friendly and a happy face. Once again thank you Placefirst for your wonderful service.

I have just moved into a Placefirst property and have been very impressed with the whole experience from the very start
Special thanks to Mark - Property Services and Niamh for keeping in touch and being on hand for any queries
The move into Welsh Streets could not have gone any better
I see that there are mixed reviews but I have nothing but thanks to the team
Well done

Me and my partner lived at a Placefirst apartment for around 2 years in the North East. The entire time we have had nothing but excellent service from our landlord and the rest of the Placefirst team, with a special thanks to Dave our landlord for everything you have done for us. I would highly recommend them to anyone.

Helpful

As always Dave (Bellinger) came to the rescue when I needed to get in touch with a neighbour who had recently relocated getting me in contact with them asap. Always a helpful friendly face on the estate to brighten your day!