Stirling Ackroyd, Sales and Lettings Specialists Reviews 1.396

I have my property let through Stirling Ackroyd. I have been with the company a number of years. The past few years Sarah Jones has been my property manager and she has been outstanding. She always phones me to explain any issues and then keeps me updated until any issues are resolved. She had to deal with quite a big issue over a year ago and had to deal with the tenants on a daily basis for some time. She did so professionally and kept me updated every step of the way offering advice. I would recommend her to anyone looking for a 5 star property manager!

I had written a very positive review of working with Stirling Ackroyd when I first moved into one of their properties last month. However, I take every single positive word back.

This team has been really difficult to deal with after I moved in. I was not given proper clarity on who I would be moving in with prior to paying my rent and deposit, and as soon as I paid these fees, they informed me about the co-tenants and it was such an immediate mismatch in age groups. I'm in my late twenties having to live with teenagers- how could they not give me a heads up? The issues get worse as I go on.

When I moved in, the room was left in a shabby state, with a lot of dust everywhere and with slanted, broken blinds. Till date the team insists that the room was not dirty, and that it was cleaned by "professionals". Fair warning, what they mean by professional cleaning is that only top surfaces and spaces around furniture gets cleaned, and my room was cleaned a whole month before I moved in. The team should be cleaning and checking the room the morning I move in! And anyone can clean around the edges- that is not professional! A professional cleaner will deep clean, ensure there are no unclean surprises left under the bed and no stains on the carpets. In addition to a lopsided broken blind, I also received a broken bed and no heating. After threatening to not pay rent (which is three weeks after I moved in), the team started responding better. However, four weeks later, all the fixes remain pending.

They did not let me negotiate a no-break lease before signing and I thought a no-break lease must mean that the house would be in a good condition. It is exactly the opposite of that. Given how frustrating it has been to live here, I have asked to move out. I want move to place where I don't have to fight every other day to get fixes done in the house. More importantly, that the house feels like a resting place not a frigid cold room.

I would advise students to not work with this team. They will run behind you to confirm your tenancy but once you sign and file complaints after complaints, they do very little to make the process of living here or moving out easy and smooth.

I should really thank the angent. I recently travelled from Manchester to Isleworth to look a property with other agency unfortunately it's been given to someone else while I'm on train. However sterling angent helped me to book quickly to view a property by taking effort as they understood my situation.
I appreciate there customer service.

Working alongside Honor, Matt and Ruby from the Twickenham branch of Stirling Ackroyd was a great experience. They have good knowledge of the local market dynamics, they understand the rental business and they are not shy in conducting viewings. Their approach is both professional and personable and I will be working with the team again in the future.

From our first viewing to signing our LET deal, the whole team was fantastic. James in particular was very quick with communication and made the whole process seamless. Would highly recommend using Stirling Ackroyd - a very professional team!

I am a tenant and their property management service is horrendous. We have had an emergency power cut due to the apartment fuse box overheating hich is an health and safety risk and legally the electricity had to be switched off. Having called them their response was we will liaise with the landlord as we cannot give any permission for the work. Such a response is expected for standard issues but how can this be a response for an emergency issue which the landlord is legally bound to take care of immediately.

Im a landlord - they held double the agreed letting fee for two weeks after the tenants moved in (24th Sept -9th October) - only refunded it after quite a few letters and phone calls. They have not yet invoiced me and have revised the "statement" to say I owe them the money in a years time instead. Their accounts are overdue at Companies House - avoid this agent they are shambolic at the moment. They managed to take this "double" fee by taking three months rent in advance from my tenants even though I said in writing I didnt need three months in advance. I will update this in due course. Oh and I only received the deposit the morning the tenants moved in and only because again I had to make a BIG FUSS ie this money was three days late. They are also late giving my old tenants back all their agreed deposit minus deductions. Oh and the check - out I'd asked them to organise on my behalf didnt happen and they didnt tell me either.

I rent a property on the rent collect service with Stirling Ackroyd Guildford Branch. If you are a landlord I would avoid them completely. Despite chasing they have failed to process a rent increase. I've therefore issued notice to them and a month later I've still had no confirmation that the notice has been received and actioned and when their services will end. I have complained to their "complaints" department. This simply gets passed back to the branch manager who then calls me and tries to scare me about the forthcoming Renters Reform Bill into staying with them.
They are good at taking the monthly fee but don't even seem to be capable of answering simple emails.

I had a very poor experience with this branch during a tenancy deposit dispute. Instead of advising us correctly under the tenancy agreement (which clearly required adjudication through the deposit scheme), the agent sided with the landlord and sent a threatening email about court action.

This approach felt unprofessional, biased, and intimidating. Tenants should be able to trust an agent to follow fair process, but that was not my experience. I would not feel comfortable trusting my hard-earned money with them.

Really awful company. Katy and Melanie often lie to hide the fact they do as little possible.
Terrible experience on what should really be a straightforward let.
Obviously their manager doesn't care as long as the money rolls in. Avoid!!!

As an update to my previous review, we are now going through the end of tenancy process with SA. It is worse than I expected.. the checkout report took me several hours to check and fortunately I did as I found approximately 50 errors of issues that they mention, but are also clearly apparent in our check in report. When I informed them they ignored me and later proceeded to take a large amount out of my deposit for which most was for existing issues, or problems that were not our responsibility as per the tenancy agreement. Please please do not use them as it will take a great deal out of you.

If you are a student in London avoid. They would not give holding deposit back after agreeing terms they delayed us to the extend we had to go else where.

Having been initially impressed that within the space of five days from the property going live, a suitable tenant was found, (15th Aug)what has been extremely disappointing about Stirling Akroyd South Norwood, is that the wrong rent amount was paid to my account. This was an under payment of £571. When the error was identified and communicated to the accounts department on Tuesday 19 Aug, the matter was still unresolved on Friday 22 Aug, despite assurances being given that it was being sorted. I rang on Friday morning after allowing a grace period of three days. I rang and the phone was answered and I was then just left waiting, when I verified who I was. The payment I have been advised will not be made until 26th August.It means that having been paying my mortgage for the property for the previous months whilst the property was empty, I will for another month have to do the same. For me the mark of a true professional company, is not just a quick turnaround of finding suitable tenants, it is also about identifying and addressing matters PROMPTLY if there are errors made, as and when they arise. As a result, my view of this company, is that they have not demonstrated professionalism, or a sense of urgency and naturally this is disappointing and means that they would not be who I would recommend.

We had an excellent experience with Livia the property manager. She answered all our questions all the time . I can't recommend her highly enough. She was professional and committed to helping us.
Adama

It was an absolute pleasure working with Stirling Ackroyd Canary Wharf team. A special mention to our property manager, Rebecca Heslam, who has been professional, prompt, and extremely helpful throughout. She made everything smooth and stress-free, always quick to respond and supportive whenever needed. Couldn’t have asked for a better experience!

Absolutely awful experience with Stirling Ackroyd Guildford. I rented a flat in Farnborough through them, and it was a nightmare from start to finish. They clearly didn’t do any proper checks on the property before handing it over — within weeks I was dealing with severe mold, a leaking ceiling, a broken boiler in the middle of winter, and even a rodent infestation. The place was completely unfit to live in, yet they dragged their feet every step of the way when it came to sorting anything out.

Communication was terrible, promises were made and never kept, and I constantly had to chase them for updates. It honestly felt like they cared more about protecting the landlord than their tenant’s safety or wellbeing. I wouldn’t trust them with a garden shed, let alone somewhere to live.

If you value your health, sanity, and basic living conditions, avoid Stirling Ackroyd Guildford at all costs.

Hussain Achour - Streatham Branch
After discussing what kind of property I was looking for, price range, location & amenities nearby.
Hussain organised 3 viewings for me that matched just what I was looking for.
He sent all the information by email and confirmed meeting point and time by text.
Hussain was prompt, polite and knowledgeable. He drove me to the other 2 viewings.
He let me explore each of the three properties and asked if I had any questions.
He was really enthusiastic about his job and obviously enjoys it . Hussain was an excellent guide and I will be contacting him about arranging a second viewing of a property I particularly liked.
He was a very careful driver.

Went for a viewing and they weren't even there at the most confusing maze of a location, no one picked up our many calls, no one called us whatsoever. A waste of a lengthy trip. Horrible agency!

I recently had a residential valuation survey carried out on my property by Stirling Ackroyd for remortgage purposes. The appointment was originally cancelled at short notice due to a surveyor being unavailable and then I received a call to reinstate the appointment.

The surveyor went out but totally undervalued my house!! The valuation was so shocking that the house was valued higher 2 years ago. I don't think the surveyor had a clue or bothered looking at any compatarable properties in the area before submitting their valuation. Highly disappointing.

I had a great experience speaking with Ciaran — such a lovely, helpful guy! He was really professional and made the whole process easy. I really appreciated the excellent customer service. Thank you