Edwards Estate Agents reviews

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

One star is far too generous. If this review can turn at least one renter away from Edwards, I'll be able to sleep happy tonight. Edwards represent everything wrong with the rental market - expect to endure painfully inhuman communication, a total disregard for your basic necessities, and for every penny to be sucked dry. You will be preyed on, purposefully mislead, and robbed of your deposit. Having moved into a filthy house, with bin bags and litter scattered over the garden, a dirty old thong stuffed behind a radiator, and bashed up old white goods (that Edwards claim were brand new), we made Jodie aware that the inventory we were provided with was wrong and our house was a state. Cut to one year later, we leave the house spotless and are subsequently charged around £300 for cleaning services despite us upholding our tenancy agreement. Words cannot describe how disappointed myself and the other tenants are with our experience. Frankly, I have no clue how anyone at Edwards still has a job nor how the Estate Agent is still able to run. The whole operation feels like a scam. Run for the hills, renters. Do not be tempted or pressured into panic-renting from Edwards. No house or flat is worth dealing with all this. What a sad little life, Jodie.

Pascale · 16 April 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

If I could leave 0 stars, I would! Dealing with Jodie was a nightmare. Her communication would completely break down when faced with the slightest inconvenience to her which led to our emails being ignored for up to 3 weeks on a number of occasions. When it came to getting our deposit back we found our attempts to contact ignored for nearly a month. (attached are photos of just two of the things we were accused of leaving dirty-luckily we had photos to prove otherwise!). It became apparent as we worked through our dispute that the check out letter was deliberately misleading to put them in a better bargaining position. If you do rent with Edwards, make sure you know your rights as a tenant because they backed down when we said we were willing to use the dispute service- clearly knew they were trying to get more from us than what would be considered acceptable. Our flat was dirty when we moved in and we were told that when a tenant moves out of a property they only clean the parts of the flat that they can charge the previous tenant for leaving dirty, the rest remains uncleaned! If you find you have to use Edwards photograph everything extensively when you move in and out to avoid being caught out. But if I had the choice, I would steer clear completely.

Keisha · 14 April 2022

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Giving this company 1 star is extremely generous. Never have I dealt with such dismissive, cold and selfish people. EVER! My housemates and I were all working, respectful individuals. Rent was always paid on time and we looked after the property. When an issue arose, we contacted the agency straight away only to be left with long delays and no resolutions. Resulting in us as a household to deal with the issues but ofcourse this was the wrong way. After renting with this agency for 10 months, safe to say I am glad to be out of there! Dealing in particular with Jodie was very difficult. I am not one to name and shame but she never filled me with confidence when I came to her with an issue. She even refused to speak to me at one point. I paid for maintenance repairs out of my own pocket for a property I don't even own and waited weeks to be reimbursed. I hate to submit a negative review, but I strongly felt this was necessary to warn others not use this agency to save your energy and sanity.

Vix · 14 April 2021

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

Perfect Managing Agents for many years. I purchased a property in April 2007 where Edwards were the Estate Agent, they were brilliant. In November 2008 my circumstances changed and I move to London, but I retained/let out the Property (because I was in negative equity) and appointed Edwards as the Managing Agent. That was over 8 years' ago now and it's been great that I can leave my property in their capable hands without the need to travel back to Bristol to get involved in any issues. Edwards have found me great tenants and when maintenance issues have cropped up, acting in a manner which (I feel) is fair to both me and my Tenants. If you are a Landlord in Bristol, then I would thoroughly recommend them.

Gary · 14 April 2018

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Worst estate agent I've ever dealt with. Unprofessional, rude and really don't give a damn about their tenants. Avoid them at all costs. Addition - 13/03/17 As I cant reply to your message on here I thought I'd add a few more details so both yourselves and others can see. You locked us out of our house TWICE after inspections. This resulted in me and other house members having to find alternative accommodation for the night. The last time we had to get a locksmith to break the door in as it was a Sunday. No apology for this either. You failed to tell us about inspections. This was especially annoying as the landlord accompanied you on one visit and didnt portray us in the best way as we hadn't had time to prepare the house to our usual high standards. I especially like how you charged us a £30 fee for removing a small mirror on a wall that was left there. Great service guys! There were lots more issues that were always greeted with an air of arrogance and dismissiveness whenever we spoke to you. Interesting enough I was speaking to one of your ex employees the other day and they conformed how badly run your branch is. But to be honest I don't really need to say anymore. The many negative experiences that people are sharing on here is evidence enough that you don't treat your tenants well at all.

Lewis · 23 June 2017

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

In April 2015 I rented a property via these people. It was a 2 bed semi, and cost £875 pcm. I left the property at the end of July this year, and was presented with a bill for £300 to remove items I had left, clean the property and weed the garden. The property had been refurbished prior to me taking up the tenancy to a standard which Sarah Beeny would be proud of. The landlord told me he had previously run a plastering firm. Given the quality of the plastering, he clearly had an open door employment policy for the blind and disabled. However, it was adequate for my purposes, and clean. I looked after the house, which included me sealing the bath, which hadn't been done, and which resulted in water damage to the ceiling below. I reported this as soon as I discovered it. Any time there was rain, a tropical storm ensued into the kitchen, causing further damage to the ceiling. Again, this was reported but no remedial action was taken. The check out report was like reading a government report. There was a litany of items describing how dirty I had left it, including photographs, zoomed almost to the atomic scale, of cleaning I had missed, such as a six inch section of skirting which I hadn't hoovered/dusted, and a ledge. There was also a zoomed picture of under one of the knobs on the gas cooker, where there was a very small amount of detritus. I had thoroughly cleaned the cooker, but had missed wiping the mr muscle from a two inch section of the oven door. i expected a small charge, mainly to remove some small items in the garage, but £300???!!! i disputed this charge and demanded an invoice from whoever they contracted to carry out the work. They cobbled together an internal invoice on their headed paper for £250 + VAT. Rather suspicious: either they had colluded with the landlord to inflate the charge or they are affiliated to a cleaning company who they have to find work for. When I moved in, the garden was a scrubland which had been barely maintained. They charged me for weeding it, as though it had been previously left by Monty Don. In all, I had left the property in good order and was a model tenant. Their report insinuated that I lived in filth and had trashed the property. At best these people, and the landlord, are dishonest. At worst they deliberately look for isolated pockets of dust in order to generate an over inflated cleaning bill. I vociferously disputed this false charge with the DPS and with Edwards/Landlord. They asked me to make an offer, which I reluctantly did, of half the charge. I ended up getting stung for £150. At most, this charge should have been more like £50. Had they refused the offer, I would have taken it all the way to litigation. Anyone who reads this review and who are in receipt of an over inflated charge should immediately refer it to the DPS adjudication service. These people clearly have a licence to legally rob you. Don't stand for it. Ever.

Mark · 14 April 2017

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Worst estate agent I've ever dealt with. Unprofessional, rude and really don't give a damn about their tenants. Avoid them at all costs. Addition - 13/03/17 As I cant reply to your message on here I thought I'd add a few more details so both yourselves and others can see. You locked us out of our house TWICE after inspections. This resulted in me and other house members having to find alternative accommodation for the night. The last time we had to get a locksmith to break the door in as it was a Sunday. No apology for this either. You failed to tell us about inspections. This was especially annoying as the landlord accompanied you on one visit and didnt portray us in the best way as we hadn't had time to prepare the house to our usual high standards. I especially like how you charged us a £30 fee for removing a small mirror on a wall that was left there. Great service guys! There were lots more issues that were always greeted with an air of arrogance and dismissiveness whenever we spoke to you. Interesting enough I was speaking to one of your ex employees the other day and they conformed how badly run your branch is. But to be honest I don't really need to say anymore. The many negative experiences that people are sharing on here is evidence enough that you don't treat your tenants well at all.

Lewis · 14 April 2017

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Living in an Edwards property has been a huge strain on my wellbeing. Jodie's tone, accusations and disrespect have put us in a frequent state of fear for losing our home, even during a pandemic. We've reported maintenance needs as we were asked to do but I believe they were used to people keeping quiet about poor living conditions. The worst happened under the lockdown when they raised our rent by 10% , refused to negotiate then sent us an eviction notice once we had reluctantly agreed to the new contract. No stars at all.NegativeResponsiveness, Professionalism

Tom · 25 August 2021

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

After renting with Edward’s for 18 months my advice would be to stay well away (we would have left a lot sooner but because of the pandemic, sadly we weren’t able to). Even if you really like the property, do not be tempted. Every interaction, no matter how small, is made incredibly difficult and unpleasant by Jodie. She is unprofessional, rude and incompetent. Jodie hides behind emails, often copying and pasting responses so it feels like you’re dealing with a robot devoid of any humility. She seems unable to have a face to face or phone conversation. After speaking with contractors who work with her and other Edward’s tenants, I understand this is just how she treats people. Edward’s will make you feel like you have no rights and that they’re able to dictate to you when they’re coming round to carry out inspections or to do maintenance, even if it’s inconvenient to you or at short notice. After living in the flat for six months the rent went up by 10%. We questioned why this was as the tenants who lived above us with the same landlord hadn’t had their rent increased in four years. One month after we had to agree to the rent increase (as we had no choice but to stay as we were waiting to complete on a house) we were told the landlord wanted possession of the property. After speaking to the tenants above we understood that they weren’t taking possession of their property - just ours. I was pregnant at the time, which Jodie knew, and I can’t help but feel discriminated against and as though they wanted us to leave so they could get other tenants in. We never missed a rent payment and looked after the property. Jodie will also make getting your deposit back a horrendous experience too. One star is too generous.

Annabel · 17 April 2023

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

I didn't even get the chance to rent a property with Edwards but that's clearly a blessing in disguise. To just view two properties was an absolute chaotic nightmare, 6 appointments to view rescheduled at the very last minute and was told via email. I'm glad I check my emails regularly because I would've shown up to the property. It was to the point where I started to think the company was fake. Managed to get a viewing on the 6th chance, however I was shown around with another possible tenant. On the advert they had said a parking space was included. Then later retracted this, also failed to say in the advert that it was a 12 month contract!! During the tour, the staff member made zero efforts to engage or give decent customer service. When the other tenant had questions and wanted to thoroughly look at the property before signing a 12 month contract (which they failed to mention), she kept looking at her watch and rolling her eyes. Will be avoiding this company in the future.

Charlotte · 17 April 2023

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Failed to pass on my concerns about damp to the landlord for 4 years (they only finally acted once I asked the washing machine engineer to report it), now there are significant structural problems to the property which were confirmed by a structural engineer. The handyman informed them they would need a full kitchen refit after the damp-proofing. Didn't hear from them for months after that so contacted them to ask when the work was getting done so I could book a holiday for the same time to be out of the way when the kitchen was out of action. I was told the owner was waiting on quotes for the work and they'd let me know. I received an eviction notice 2 weeks later. I was told the owner was moving back to Bristol and would be moving back into the property. However, the property was relisted for rental (with a new kitchen) just a couple of months after we moved out. We received threats and abusive emails while we were trying to find a new home for our family and had to get support from BCC and Shelter. They made entirely false claims about the state of the property even falsifying a date on photographs to try to claim the deposit. When I disputed this and referred to mediation they backed down and I received the full deposit. Had I not been utterly exhausted by the whole ordeal I would have filed a harassment claim against them. Terrible agents, utter fraudsters; they don't care for Landlords or Tenants. I wouldn't trust these agents as far as I can throw a house.

Jen · 17 April 2022

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Completely abuse GDPR practices by getting you to fill out a detailed application form, just to notify them of your interest in a property. You should not have to provide that level of information until being accepted for a property. Properties come and ago, so definitely avoid them.

Jonathan · 14 April 2022

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

I recently had dealings with this estate agent whilst exploring renting options for family. I was also considering purchasing a property. Unfortunately my experience was so negative I quickly changed my mind. One member of staff I dealt exclusively with, Jodie, was without doubt the rudest, most unhelpful officious individual, I have ever encountered. Devoid of any warmth or charm, I found her aggressive, confrontational and from a business perspective, a total liability. I cannot imagine how appalling the service might be if, as a tenant/ purchaser you ever had a problem. In almost 15 years experience as both a private landlord and home owner this person exemplified the very worst aspects of the industry.

Bernie · 14 April 2021

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Entered an agreement about renting a propety. I recieved an email confirming this and agreeded upon a holding fee. I paid the holding fee before the alloted time. I tried ringing the office but it went to voicemail. I left a voicemail confirming my payment of the holding fee. I then recieved a call at midday the following day to inform me because they didn't recieve confimation, the landlord has pulled out of the agreement and moved onto new tenants. Fair to say I was left completely stunned by the lack of response and the ridicilous window of time between the agreement, payment and confimation made on my part. Literally less than 12 hours.

Johnathan · 14 April 2021

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Lazy, unprofessional, arduous, incompetent, predatory, rude, expensive, uncaring, inefficient, indecent, unaccommodating, harassing, inflexible, vulgar, dishonest, blunt, harsh, untrustworthy, extorting, inhumane, unknowledgeable, bossy, tedious time-wasters. Tenants should avoid at all costs, the staff here will treat you like you mean absolutely nothing to them. You should make an effort to befriend your landlord directly if you want to get anything done and to protect yourself from their predatory business model. They lost a key to my house and set about blaming me for their blunder. They accused me of changing my locks and threatened to charge me to have them changed back. They harassed me about this issue despite the burden of proof clearly being on them. After numerous emails to protest my innocence I had to call the landlord directly to come round and use his key to finally prove I had not changed them. I received no apology, not even an acknowledgement they were in the wrong. They had lost a key to my house and didn't even offer to change the locks themselves after rendering my house insecure. The only reason I did not pursue this further at the time was because of the sheer stress of dealing with them via email. They will not talk to you on the phone. I have a detailed email chain evidence of this and am considering writing for compensation for the harassment as well as invoicing for all the time I had to take out of my busy working days.

Richard · 14 April 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

MISLEADING AND CARELESS. AVOID. Their lazy listing writing and unprofessional manner wasted my time and energy. I called ahead to schedule a viewing and, as I am disabled, checked that the property was ground floor as noted in the listing. I took time out of a busy work day to attend the viewing at short notice, and only on arrival did I find that the property was actually down a set of steep concrete stairs. This could have been easily avoided if they'd bothered to list the accurate property details online, or if they'd listened to what we said on the phone. The agent hosting the viewing was dismissive of our disappointment and took no responsibility for the failings, saying he'd just recycled the copy from the last time that property was on the market and that it wasn't a deliberate omission for commercial gain. The agent was covered in paint when we arrived as he was redecorating, and shouted up to us from the entrance "I'm down here in the basement". If you refer to the property was "the basement" when you are there, this should be how it is described on the online listing and when scheduling viewings. Other groups of potential tenants were also struggling to find the property for the viewing when we arrived as they too were seeking a ground floor entry. It's clear that we've dodged a bullet here and I would recommend that other prospective renters also avoid this shady company to avoid disappointment. Finding a property suitable for a disabled tenant is already hard enough, and Edwards wasted our time on coming out to view a property that was totally unsuitable. If they can't accurately describe a property, I wouldn't trust them to manage and maintain it either.

Ruby · 14 April 2020

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

I just let a property through Edwards and they were professional and responsive. Matt and Jodie were very helpful throughout.

Sunchi · 14 April 2022

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Extremely rude service from one of the agents as soon as we'd put the holding fee down which is disappointing given how lovely the woman who showed it to us was during viewings. Absolutely no leniance on any matters which were out of our control and could easily have been resolved if an open dialogue was at all established with the agency. Also absolutely no help in negotiating deadlines for people who work a lot and find it difficult to make the time to discuss issues with applications, especially given that they often don't answer the phones during the day. Unfortunately all of this leads me to believe that they do their best to rake in holding fee money to bump up their salaries with zero regard for renters. Do not use these estate agents if you want a pleasant and helpful service.

Harriet · 14 April 2019

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Went to view a place, lady who turned up to show us around didnt really have a clue said she doesn't actually work for them and is just helping them out. Went to office to drop off my form and its all locked up no one inside with signs in window saying shop to let! very unprofessional no one ever there to pick up the phone and judging by other reviews I dodged a bullet. Tried to raise these concerns with the landlord but on email was told by agency that I was very threatening and they dodged the questions.

Lewis · 14 April 2019

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Hands down, the worst service I ever received FROM ANY INDUSTRY!!! All I wanted was to remain in my house (where I'd been living 2 years), after my housemate moved out. They proceeded to charge over £500 "non negotiable fees" and increased my rent for the privilege of a name change. They then found any reason to get me out, so that they could make more money re-letting. They then rubbed it in my face by advertising the property with "reduced agency fees" and "pets welcome" (One of the main reasons for my eviction being that I had a cat). Outrageously unprofessional. NEVER USE Edwards if you value money, time or ease of life.

Sam · 14 April 2018

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

My fiance and I rented a flat through Edwards August 2015. We were promised the flat would be deep cleaned before we moved in which included the cooker. This did not happen. The fridge that was in the property was unhygienic and the damaged seal on the door compromised the temperature inside. It was therefore not serviceable. We informed Edwards who were not interested forcing us to purchase our own fridge. Later in time several damp patches appeared in the lounge, bedroom and bathroom. We informed Edwards about this but they failed to take action. The damp later developed into mold spores and Edwards told us it was our responsibility and that they would send us a PDF document on how to handle Mold/Mildew. Because of this we had no choice but to not extend our 6 month rolling contract with Edwards. When we moved out we were confident that we had left the property in a better state than we found it including painting over the mold. However Edwards decided that we did not deserve 100% of our deposit because of small marks on the hob and marks on the bathroom window sill which we did not create. We took photographs as evidence on arrival and departure yet this still did not prevent them docking our returnable deposit. We cannot in all honesty recommend this agency. We did not find them to be fair and cooperative on any level.

GBGRUNGE · 14 April 2016

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Terrible. Obviously you expect some degree of douchebaggery when dealing with estate agents but these people really take the biscuit. Difficult to deal with, rude, and really over-the-top charges taken from the deposit at the end of tenancy (yes, even compared to what you'd normally expect from agents). There really is no advantage in using these people over finding a private landlord. It's no easier finding a property. With a private landlord you'll save hundreds in fees and charges, and don't have the added annoyance of feeling like you're banging your head against a brick wall trying to resolve issues.

Patti · 14 April 2016

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

I used them to rent a studio flat on Corn Street for about a year. Staff were very friendly and I had no problems moving in. Had some problems with the door and the bed frame, these were resolved within a few days while I was at work after I called them. When I moved out I tidied the flat and cleaned and it was spotless, got the full deposit refunded without a hiccup. No complaints at all, and a million times better than some shady companies I've rented from in the past!

Simon · 14 April 2014

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

The staff here were very helpful, they made my whole experience with moving easy and less stressful. They have continued to support me throughout my tenancy with fast responses and all of the help I need. Would highly recommend and would definitely use again.

Joanna · 14 April 2018