Castles reviews

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Terrible. The charges these people ask for are absurd. A hidden £72 pound fee for leaving the property is taken out of your deposit. Two months later I'm still being charged by the utility companies as they haven't informed them I have left. In order to rectify the accounts I have asked for the meter readings from the date I left however after two ignored e-mails and unanswered phone calls I'm at a loss. There is also the absurd "cleaning and repair" fees they tried to take from me, fortunately by pointing how ridiculous some of them were I was able to knock them down by over £400. Do not accept their initial assessment, be willing to go to an ombudsman to sort it out. Castles also want hundreds to sign and renew contracts. Price gouging.

Sam · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

WOULD DEFINITELY STAY CLEAR FROM CASTLES! unprofessional staff, extremely rude, lack of coordination and maintenance never seems to get done despite it being nearly a month asking to to fix the shower. They grab your money but do not deliver they should. The place had loads of issues which should have been resolved well before i moved in. They do not even have an official receipt! Watch out for their inventory, they say everything is in 'good condition' but ive found over 31 discrepancies in their inventory, which was absolutely contradictory to what their inventory stated. The place had loads of hair all over the carpet, sticky doors and extractor far (just to name a few) despite them saying tht they cleaned the place. Radiator was not working, certain burners on the hob not working and loads and loads of additional issues. Ofcourse, the lack of professionalism from Castles brushed these issues away and accused me of saying that the urgent services is not urgent, yeah cz a non functional radiator and barely operational shower is not urgent, yeah right! Absolutely joke. I highly doubt the 5 star reviews here with their extremely very poor service.

Leander · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

ZERO STARS. As a parent of a tenant......WARNING AVOID THIS UNPROFESSIONAL UNETHICAL COMPANY AT ALL COSTS!!! ..they would enter the property without permission once students had moved in, they act like they are students' friends when contract is being discussed to sweet talk you in to signing...so they can rip you off after with unreasonable charges later....check the contract before you sign , especially where they hold the deposit...as a parent they won't engage with you, not even look you in the eye...they only speak to the lead tenant......after months of lies and ignoring us we did not get our deposit back. They undertook work in the house without showing us estimates of alleged damage/cleaning and in the end we just gave up which is how they make their money. PS - the landlord is their dad as far as I know...a family business but that's their get out clause. Thoroughly recommend Lettuce Agency in Coventry who we used this year - a professional service and no rip off charges like Castles. Got deposit back as soon as we moved out, with a small fee for cleaning.

Hansa · 25 June 2019

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Absolute joke of a company, Probably paying for any reviews which shine in their favour. Been waiting an ENTIRE YEAR for £4000 in deposits. They refuse to deal with/talk to you once they have your money. Very compliant beforehand (don't be fooled). Wouldn't be surprised if this practice is totally illegal. SERIOUSLY. Preen is always 'out the office', she will never return your call (she will even HIDE out the back if you try to catch her in the office). John will always 'leave a message' on her behalf but you'll never hear a response. It has been the largest bane of my 2017/2018. PLEASE don't bother with this company, go elsewhere for property even if its a few pound more, I'm a lazy guy, wouldn't be writing this all if it wasn't true. How funny is it that all reviews are either 5 or one star. I think it makes for a nice average -_-.

Oscar · 25 June 2019

★★★★★ 5/5

Facebook

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Mhlekezi · 2 September 2023

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Whilst Castles might appear to be a good choice for a student due to their central locations I can assure you it's not. They come across quite frendly and willing to find you what you want but all they really want is your signature on the dotted line and their hand in your pocket as soon as possible. You end up having to fork out a small fortune before you step foot in the property and this is where it becomes apparent that all they care about is money! Your rushed into getting them cash and they keep on reminding you that the property isn't yours yet (They are also too lazy to use pre-payed cheques which just makes sense). Don't believe them on having some deal to get you cheap Virgin internet either as it isn't availiable in a lot of properties including CV1. There were many problems with the property, it was basically falling apart and instead of spending money to fix the problem for good, cheap fixes and short cuts were made to ensure frequent visits to Castles. What makes me HATE IT, is that the nightmare isn't over even when you have left. When you ring up to get the deposit back no one is anywhere to be found. Luckily for you reading this I went through this rubbish experience so you don't have too!

Ferds · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

Castles provide an excellent service in managing our student properties. We spoke to many estate agents in relation to what they offer their student landlords for their fully managed service. Castles stood out by far from the rest. On the day we first walked into their office it was full of students applying for properties, all of whom appeared very excited at their chosen property and also happy with the service they were receiving from the student team. We spoke to Pereen in the office about what Castles offered in terms of letting the properties to students and managing them and it was clear from what was being said that they would provide a great service. We arranged for Pereen to come out to our properties. Pereen was very knowledgeable and gave us lots of advice as to how we could improve the property. We appreciated her honesty as she explained what students are looking for and that to appeal to prospective students we needed to ensure the property was maintained to a high standard of quality. Pereen was very aware of what students wanted/want as she could relate to the students given her similar age to them. We decided to go ahead with Castles and it was the right decision; Pereen let the properties shortly after they were signed up with Castles; she said she would let them quickly due to Castles being one of the largest student lettings agents in Coventry but we didn't think it would be that quick! This proved to us that she carried out what she said she would. Castles have provided us a great service from beginning to present. They dealt with everything from finding the students, moving them in and refunding their deposit which lets us have a stress-free summer. We are able to go on holiday and leave our properties in the capable hands of Castles. Pereen keeps us informed and we trust her to do what's best. We receive the rent in our bank on time which means we don't have to chase them. We really couldn't ask for a better service from Castles as Pereen is always happy to go that extra mile. Thank you to Pereen and the rest of the team at Castles for the excellent service. Keep up the good work, we appreciate it.

Jo · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

NO STARS! POOR POOR POOR SERVICES! WORST LETTING AGENCY I HAVE EVER HAD EXPERIENCE WITH!!! This agency promised us a house that would be totally refurbished. However when we arrived to move in, the house was trashy, it smelt, there were flies in the living room, sticky carpets and a dirty kitchen. Following that, majority of the lights did not work, my bed was broken which left me without one for 2 weeks! Some door frames were not attached to the wall, one of the toilets does not flush, the oven doesn't work and many more problems. Not to mention, they did not tell us about paying the first months rent before paying the deposit and summer retainer. They had the cheek to tell us that we could not move in until mid way through that month, this comes as a big blow to us customers. At first glance the company appears to be a friendly professional, student caring establishment. But it seems as though they play on the fact that some students are naive enough to accept less then they were promised, not to mention less then they deserve. Pereen is a lady who appears to be understanding of the student community. However, once the money aspect is not involved, she pulls away from the agreement and plays no further part in paying attention. As a summary the best advice would be to steer clear of this unethical company! They don't know how to handle their customers complaints, and frankly its appalling. p.s WATCH OUT FOR PEREEN!

Bana · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

Me and my friends have just booked our house for September with Castles and would like to say a big thank you to them, especially Pereen for finding it for us. We chose to go to Castles as they were recommended to us by quite a few of our friends who rented a house with them last year and decided to stick with them again this year. Thanks again Pereen and everyone at Castles, we will see you in September! :-) xxx

Jess · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

Very friendly, helpful, professional staff who are always willing to help and go that extra mile. Would highly recommend Castles not only to students but to families and working people looking for a property as well as landlords looking to rent their properties. We were seen to by Pereen last year and she helped us find the house we're currently living in. Pereen was the only estate agent who bothered to tell us about the summer retainer payment, no other agent did and a few of them even brushed it to one side when we asked them to explain it to us, they said it wasn't important and they would explain it once we had paid our deposits so basically when we couldn't back out! Castles were also the cheapest agent for both the deposit and application fees and they had no hidden fees like other agents who charged guarantor fees, contractor signing fees, moving in fees. Moving into the house in September was organised and straight forward and our parents were amazed as to how accommodating and helpful Castles were. We've had a great few months so far and are currently deciding which of us will be staying on with Castles next year and which of us will be going on placements and coming back to Castles the following year. Our friends who are currently renting from other agents are astonished by how much Castles do for us and how much they go out their way that they have decided to rent a house with Castles next year and have already booked it. Pereen and her sister are the main people we deal with and we're sure those of you who deal with either of them will all agree with my friends and I when we say they do a great job and provide a brilliant service. Keep up the good work guys!

James · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

My friends & I rented our student property through Castles in both our 2nd & 3rd year. Our first property was 8 bedrooms however we down sized to 4 bedrooms in 3rd year as half our group went on placements. Both properties were of a high standard in good locations and a fair monthly rent. Before we moved out of each property we each made sure we did as we were advised and removed all of our belongings, deep cleaned the property throughout and ensured we returned the property in the same condition we received it in when we moved in. We were told if we did this the property would be easy to check out and the landlord should be happy with the way we left the property which would mean we should only have minimal deductions from our deposit for any damage we caused. This was the case with both properties and we received our deposits back within a few weeks of moving out. My friends & I would recommend Castles to all students and would like to point out to any of you who read the reviews that most of the negative reviews appear to be from people who haven't received their deposits back. If you don't receive your deposit back and instead have a large amount of deductions you clearly have not returned the property back in the same condition you received it in when you moved in so why would you expect to receive your deposit back? Also you should all know that it is the landlords property so they are the ones who inform the estate agents of any deposit deductions so you are blaming the agent for something they are clearly the middle man in. Its simple if you want your deposit back at the end of the year do what my friends & I did, return the house in the same condition you received it in when you moved in. One thing my friends & I noticed is that when people have a good experience they very rarely say but when they have a bad experience they are sure to say so students take that into consideration when choosing if you rent a property through Castles as all agents have bad reviews. The main person we dealt with was Pereen so thank you so much Pereen & the rest of the staff at Castles for all you done for us during our 2 years with you! :)

Hannah · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Oh dear! If you must use Castles then do not handover any money until you have read the paperwork and I mean ALL the paperwork. Also, ask about retainers. Castles are unethical because they ask students to pay non-refundable deposits without seeing a contract. The next step is the students are then stung by a non-refundable retainer to hold onto the property. My son was hoping to let a room in a lovely property sharing with 6 other First Year students. Fortunately, he asked the 'Bank of Dad' to pay the £450 deposit. 4 of the other students had aleady paid a deposit of £450 and will now have to pay a further retainer of £315 that they did not even know about when putting down the deposit. The contract makes for terrible reading. Life is full of choices. My advice is to select a letting agency that is part of The Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA). Castles is not. Good luck and happy house hunting.

Steve · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

They are the worst ever Estate agents. They are nice and friendly at the beginning, however thier selfish, rude, shady, lying, muniplitive ways soon show. They are professional con artist posing as people who actually care about the Students when they do not care, we are all just £££ signs to them. They rarely replied to emails, or calls. Everytime we called them to speak to Pareen or Karen we were told they were not there. If there is a problem in the place you are staying you will have to wait a couple of months and hours of calling, emails consistently for them to get the point. We moved out in July and yet we are only receiving a fraction of our deposit back. Point is try to avoid this estate agents!! Believe me when I say it will be the worst mistake of your life. Avoid them at ALL COST!!!!! Do not fall for thier con act. That is how they trap you!! Thanks Nikita

Nikita · 25 June 2017

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

My friends & I are currently renting our student house through Castles this academic year and have just chosen another house to rent through them for next year. Castles were extremely helpful in finding us our house this year and have been very supportive throughout our Tenancy so far hence the reason we have decided to stay with them next year. We would highly recommend all students to go to Castles as they will be sure to find you the right house and they are always there to give you a helping hand in any way they can. Thank you Castles for all your help in finding us our amazing house this year and another lovely house for next year. Thanks so much Guys. :-) x

Charlotte · 25 June 2016

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

NO STARS! POOR POOR POOR SERVICES! WORST LETTING AGENCY I HAVE EVER HAD EXPERIENCE WITH!!! This agency promised us a house that would be totally refurbished. However when we arrived to move in, the house was trashy, it smelt, there were flies in the living room, sticky carpets and a dirty kitchen. Following that, majority of the lights did not work, my bed was broken which left me without one for 2 weeks! Some door frames were not attached to the wall, one of the toilets does not flush, the oven doesn't work and many more problems. Not to mention, they did not tell us about paying the first months rent before paying the deposit and summer retainer. They had the cheek to tell us that we could not move in until mid way through that month, this comes as a big blow to us customers. At first glance the company appears to be a friendly professional, student caring establishment. But it seems as though they play on the fact that some students are naive enough to accept less then they were promised, not to mention less then they deserve. Pereen is a lady who appears to be understanding of the student community. However, once the money aspect is not involved, she pulls away from the agreement and plays no further part in paying attention. As a summary the best advice would be to steer clear of this unethical company! They don't know how to handle their customers complaints, and frankly its appalling. p.s WATCH OUT FOR PEREEN!

Bana · 12 March 2016

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

Many thanks to Castles team for the professional and friendly service during my rental period. I looked at a lot of houses (flats) and it was always Castles who showed me the most interest and desire to help me in finding house. Staff has all been very professional and sensitive, which i have very much appreciated. Also, I would like to thank Kyle for doing such a good job when showing me around potential properties. One more 'thank you' for Pereen, who has been very kind and very efficient in keeping me always informed. I would definitely recommend them to anyone who wants a team that cares about their clients. Really efficient, friendly and very professional staff.

Toni · 9 July 2014

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

I used them for a lettings only plus deposit protection scheme in December last year. Things went smoothly for the most part and they found me tenants. However, being a let only service I engaged them for I was surprised to receive a letter from them today giving me 3 options- a)start a further tenancy agreement with tenants, b)gain possession and remarket or c)simply gain possession of property. But, also in body of letter it says -'should we not receive this within the next seven days, we shall renew the Tenancy Agreement if required by the current tenants or market the property for re-letting'!! When I have not engaged them for a managed let, by who's authority are they proposing to evict my tenants or renew the agreement? And who are they to give me 7 days to respond? Surely it is for me to take my business wherever I want. The 3 options given assume I want to carry on working with them and make no mention of the fact that I can opt to not use them at all. I rang to clarify the contents of the letter as I was not happy with it (I'm going on holiday next week and if I missed the letter what would have happened in 7 days time?). However, I got a very rude and arrogant Mr Suri on the line who said he was the manager. Kept contradicting me about contents of letter and kept glossing over 7 day time limit. When asked on who's authority they would have evicted or renewed the contract if I hadn't responded in 7 days he replied "your authority'. Then kept shouting saying 'what do you want me to do now' Even though I said I hadn't made up my mind and was only calling regarding the letters content he wouldn't listen. So I decide to not work with them any longer- he said "fine, we'll take you off our books' Called back 2 mins later to say he would be returning the tenants deposit back to them and it would be up to me to find another scheme. I paid up for a whole year of the scheme and there are still 2 months left in the term yet he is arbitrarily returning the deposit now. Very high handed, arrogant and I feel verging on the illegal. Pressure selling at its worst. Will never use again.

Gaurav · 26 June 2014

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

Many thanks to Castles team for the professional and friendly service during my rental period. I looked at a lot of houses (flats) and it was always Castles who showed me the most interest and desire to help me in finding house. Staff has all been very professional and sensitive, which i have very much appreciated. Also, I would like to thank Kyle for doing such a good job when showing me around potential properties. One more 'thank you' for Pereen, who has been very kind and very efficient in keeping me always informed. I would definitely recommend them to anyone who wants a team that cares about their clients. Really efficient, friendly and very professional staff.

Aday · 26 June 2014

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

Excellent service received from Castles this year whilst renting our student house. The staff in particular Pereen and her sister were very helpful, professional and accommodating throughout both our application and tenancy, which was great after unfortunately an extremely bad experience with another student letting agent last year. Thank you Castles for restoring both mine and my friends faith in letting agents. Would highly recommend Castles to all students looking for student properties.

Laura · 28 July 2019

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

My partner and I have recently moved in to a property and consequently have had multiple dealing with Castles. In both our opinions Castles has outstanding customer service, are always available for the smallest of queries and help and guide wherever they can! Shaun and Cook has been amazing with helping us through our veiwing, application and move, we couldn't of done it without them!! Would highly recommend Shaun, Cook and Castles in the highest regard.

Kimberley · 8 July 2016

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Rent a flat from their agency and called a lot of times regarding bathroom and could not shower for 5 weeks. I called them few times and they were rude and asking me to wash my hair in the bathroom sink!!! I paid all rent in full but could not use bathroom for 7 weeks and instead of apologizing they were shout at me on the phone and blame me that I do not know how to use it. Poor landlord that paid them to manage the flat and I am sure landlord did not know they were not managing it well. At the end they repaired the bathroom without any apologizing about their aggressive behavior.

Mahshid · 24 June 2021

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

Unprofessional, greedy, and sophistic! There is no need to recognise me on public, just sue me if you like, I have all our relevant contracts and your cheated evidences on hand!

Michael · 11 March 2021

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

LANDLORD REVIEW!! I will cut a very long saga short... - Castle rented and managed my property to working professionals as I was based in London. - After 6 months into the rental they advised me that the tenants had stopped paying rent, after several months I visited the property myself to speak with the tenants who showed me proof that in fact they had been paying Castles rent, this was not passed onto me. - After much chasing, arguing they still refused to admit they had kept my rent from me. - I then reported them to the property OMBUDSMAN, who ruled in my favour and fined them, even after this the owners NONE PRACTICING SOLICITOR daughter (joke) continued to threaten me with legal action. - And to top it off they kept the deposit which should have gone to me.

Marius · 24 May 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Google

I phoned to arrange a viewing and spoke to a rather unpleasant individual who asked lots of questions and told me only a selected few would be 'allowed' to view the property in question. In all honestly, he had a shocking attitude towards a potential tenant and it did rather make me wonder how they must treat actual tenants. From what I could gather, they are everything that is wrong within the rental industry and I would not hurry to deal with them. 0 stars.

A · 15 December 2019