Martin & Co Dunfermline reviews

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Absolutely the MOST horrible

Absolutely the MOST horrible, unprofessional, lying, cheating Estate Agency I have ever in my life dealt with. Dawn and Lucy mislead us throughout the purchase process for nearly two month and ending up not to complete. Anyone with healthy rational thinking would not deal with them even if they sell your dream house! Avoid if you don't want to end up with losing money and being lied to. Trust me on this matter, there are many other much much better Estates to go with.

Gona · 12 August 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

I rented a house for 1 year with 3…

I rented a house for 1 year with 3 other trainee doctors in Cornwall. We have been treated appallingly by Martin and Co through the year. The house was in a substandard condition when we arrived, which we noted on our inventory. We returned the inventory to the office as requested, however they conveniently 'lost' the inventory when it came to justifying their extortionate deductions in our deposit. We lived for many months with a mouse infestation in the house, which we notified Martin and Co about numerous times yet they failed to resolve. This was unpleasant to live with and also meant a large number of our possessions and food was destroyed by these rodents. Due to the Covid pandemic, we were redeployed to different hospitals mid way through our tenancy. We continued to pay rent for a house which we did not live in for 5 months. We were then fined a huge amount for having not weeded the garden. I would have hoped for a bit more kindness from both the landlord and agent, seeing as we were by this point based all over the UK, some within lockdown areas and unable to return to do this minute job.In summary, avoid like the plague!

GEORGINA · 11 August 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Really wish i could give 0 stars

Really wish i could give 0 stars. Asked for viewings for a block of largely empty apartments and i wanted to see numerous different ones. I got shown 2, the estate agent didn't know the prices, whether they came with parking, furnished or unfurnished, just completely clueless about any questions we had. We decided to put a deposit down and an offer which the landlord accepted, only to be told 3 days later that they have already let it to someone else. We then got shown another property in the same block which was smaller and worse in almost everyway, we put an offer in and have heard nothing back since. Do not use these clowns, they don't have a clue.

Jake · 5 August 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Disorganised and Deposit scammers

Their partnership with the inventory company in bordering on fraudulent. Inventory clerk they employ lists nearly all aspects of the house as "good", irrespective of pre-existing damage, meaning we have to spend hours making amendments to the check in report. Then when checkout comes they pick out the tiniest flaws, which were already there when we moved in, and send it to the landlord alongside there original report saying everything was fine, with our edits attached in a separate document. I can only assume it is to try and keep as much of the deposit as they can, fortunately I've kept all the photographic evidence from when we moved in.Also the standard of cleaning was very poor when we moved in, when we moved out we used one of their recommended "professional" cleaners, and then they have the cheek to say it was badly cleaned on the check out report! In general they were very disorganised, with different people repeatedly asking for different bits of information. Very slow to get back to us but expecting us to reply same day to their requests!

L · 1 August 2020

★★★★★ 5/5

Google

Superb service every time I use Martin and co Dunfermline. I have used them for many years and couldn’t even see why I would change to another letting agent. Well done and thanks Gray and Yvonne

Gray · 13 November 2018

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Wast of Time

Looking to rent a new apartment. These guys had a few on rightmove but you cannot call them to speak to them, everything is a pre-recorded message, the portal they tell you to use does accept any information and surprise, you cannot call anyone to tell them.Shocking way to do business.!!

NA · 17 January 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Martin & Co required proof of deposit…

Martin & Co required proof of deposit before I could view a property.I am looking for an investment property and saw an advert with Martin & Co last week. I tried to book a viewing but was told that due to new COVID rules, i had to send a Decision in Principle before I could book a viewing. I cooperated but when I asked for the reference that detailed this new requirement, I was simple sent a link to Property Mark with a reference to “serious buyers only can view a property”, there was no mention of financial assessment before viewing a property. Once I had sent through the DIP, I was then asked to send proof of deposit and this is where is drew the line. I don’t mind being financially evaluated if I make an offer, but not to view a property.

Jack · 27 June 2020

★★★★★ 2/5

Trustpilot

Disappointed

To start with I was happy with Martin & Co, the man who showed me around the flat was helpful and was nice. The property was affordable but could have been slightly more ready for me to move in as there were a few issues. The oven door was broken (which was fixed before I moved in), there were holes and marks on the kitchen and cupboard doors and the shelves in the kitchen fell down when I got there which I replaced with nice wooden shelves. It wasn't very clean on arrival either. I also had to wait over a month for hot water as there wasn't any when I moved in! When it was arranged for the plumber to come and fix it whilst I was at work, he found that the spare keys Martin & Co had for the flat were wrong so it couldn't be done! I then had to get a spare set cut for them from a specific key cutting shop they wanted which I found had been closed down and had to run around looking for a place to get a set cut for them! I finally got the hot water fixed after a month but the water pressure was still low which I told them about many times and every time a check was done in the flat, they noted it but never did anything about it. One morning when I was due to go to work, I locked myself out (the keys to the flat and my car key locked inside). I had to wait till 9:00am to ring the shop for them to tell me they couldn't help me and I had to get the key. I explained to them that my car key was locked inside and had no way of getting to them as the flat was in a village twenty minutes drive away from the shop and there were hardly any buses running. Luckily a neighbour could help me but I wasn't happy that they couldn't help me on that one occasion I got locked out. On the day of my one months notice that I was moving out, I found out that the Dover branch who I have been with from the start had been shut down (they never let me know about this) and I was going round in circles trying to get through to the right person to speak to. The lady I finally spoke to wouldn't give a straight answer to my questions and was just trying to get me to stay longer, she was also rude. She then gave me the wrong email address to confirm this with someone else. I wasn't able to get a confirmation until four days after I first contacted them. I was told that a fee of £60 was coming off my deposit so they could do the checks on the flat after I had moved out. I was told "there is no point in arguing about this as we will win as it's in the tenancy aggreement" this was in small print which stated a 'small fee' not giving an actual amount to be paid. I was also told I "WILL NOT be able to be there during the checks due to covid19 regulations" in an email when I asked if I could sit outside in my car incase they had any questions or issues. I spent two weeks before I moved out of the flat making sure it was fully decorated in magnolia and professionally cleaned. This included using a vax machine to clean all carpets and a vax steamer used on all surfaces and the oven. It was left in a much better state and more livable to when I moved in! When I asked to see the check report, I was disappointed with the results. They had complained that I had left things in a draw- things that was there when I moved in, keys that I was given by them but didn't work for anything and a small tea light candle I forgot to take out. I left the packaging which I used to clean the washing machine and oven on the side to show them what I used to clean them which they complained about leaving rubbish and insinuated that the oven was not cleaned when I did in fact scrub it twice! They also quoted the flat was left in an "average state" and the "carpets look like they have been swept". My new landlord helped me to move and his words were "this is immaculate" and "it's the best property he had seen that has been left by a tenant!"Even when I handed the keys over, the man I spoke to in the Folkstone branch described the flat as "run down" before I moved in. I was annoyed that I spent two weeks making the flat clean, tidy and fully decorated to be told it was left in an average state. I expressed this to Martin & Co and the response I got was "don't get so angry, you're still getting your money back". Which took five days to receive after it having to be confirmed with so many different people. Less than a month after I moved out, the flat has already been let out and the rent has been put up to £25 more a month than I was paying and is described as a "great little flat" including all the photos of my hard work of getting it looking nice for the next person!

Chloe · 27 June 2020

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Hey .some one give this guys a bit of…

Hey .some one give this guys a bit of credit.ive recently moved down from the midlands.so got in touch with Martin.co from start to finish they were so helpful first of all finding me a property that I wanted coached me through everything staff very professional on the move date collected keys from office oz personally help me move got welcome package they even came to the flat with me they made sure everything was in order ..fantastic bunch people...Raymond from Lytham st Anne’s

Raymond · 26 June 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

As a landlord I was forced to have them…

As a landlord I was forced to have them as the previous agents sold up to them. They were not allowed to tell us due to competition laws. I just got a new tenant who has been great but dealing with these people. They lost keys and the Directors words "what do you expect me to do about it" the blamed the previous agent. Put their fees up then even more due to landlords paying the fees and tenancy agreements which I support. I told them in March I was moving to another family run agent but instead of co-operating they are the opposite. Delaying everything even my tenants deposit. I have reported them to the Property Ombudsman and I will also report them to ARLA. Do not use. They handed over 4 sets of keys to a plumber I had not used before which is against ARLA rules. They have used the pandemic to make things worse for people. As a landlord they always had my permission to fix everything. But hopefully from Wed new agents never to use these people again.

Mrs · 18 May 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

They didn't help me when I needed it most

I like to be objective and positive but this is by far the worst company I have dealt with. I received a letter the day before Christmas Eve saying that my landlord had not paid his mortgage and there was a court date due. This was a genuine shock and I took the letter to the letting agent who promised to sort it out. Their parting line when I left the office was "if I don't speak to you before, have a nice Christmas". Well, yes of course I'm going to have a lovely Christmas knowing that potentially my 3 young children and myself could be homeless. Finally, I got a response the next day (interestingly my ex husband rang up because I was in such a state and they discussed it with him, even though his name is not on the tenancy and we do not live together) to be told that the landlord had expected his ex-wife to pay and he couldn't understand why she hadn't. Now forgive me for speaking out of turn but my rental agreement was with my landlord and not with his wife. Anyway the message was, he had paid it and it was all sorted. I felt dubious but what can I say. I tried ringing the courts, the bank and the solicitors but no one would tell me if this was true so I had no idea whether we were going to have our family home taken away from us or not, and I was in the middle of a contract so not in a position to look elsewhere.Imagine my extreme surprise (read with heavy sarcasm) when on my son's birthday (always great timing!) I received a letter from the bank's solicitors telling me that the house was going to be repossessed. You can not imagine the utter anguish I felt at receiving this letter. I don't think I slept for a week. No one would tell us anything, Martin and Co promised to phone my landlord and let me know what was happening, 1 month later and despite me chasing them up I have heard nothing.The council have been utterly brilliant giving me advice and support and helping me find alternative accommodation. I have now found another house for the children and myself and I could not ask for a more supportive landlord or more professional letting agent (very thorough, I have never filled in so many forms in my life).The icing on the cake was when I gave in my notice to Martin and Co because we managed to find somewhere else they asked me to do a video of the house for potential viewings. You have got to be kidding me, right?I’m sorry but I really can not recommend this company. As people, the staff are lovely, friendly and approachable but as a company, I have found them unprofessional and unethical. I have had the worst month of my life and whilst I realise I have the landlord to thank and not my letting agent, they have not helped the matter by keeping me in the dark. Very, very upset and disappointed.

Jemma · 27 April 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

0 star. service

We rent flat in birmingham with them, i had an issue with wasching machine they fix it after 1 month , i asked to extend 3 months my contract they asking for 60£ charges. in full pandemic, i had paid nearly 4500£. when i move in a year ago , the manager said he will call us he never called us back, they just want to charge you and in change just roodness and 0star service. , in this hard times is very sad to see this atitude

Doğan · 14 April 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

The worst rental company I have ever used

Below 0. Company which is cheating and wheedle your money. You will pay for evertyhing before you move in and when you check out. For example I have played deduction because they cleaned (I have cleaned the whole flat before move out), I left bed at flat so I needed to pay for removal ( a lot of money) I payed for check out. So if you will pay deposit you can forget about getting it back.I had problem with mices 1,5 month. I was escalating the problem to the company a lot of times to do something with it. When I was asking about the progress they told me that they are still working at it. When I cautch 4 mices by mayself and stop to asking after 1,5 month they inform me that they need to close the issue.

Piotr · 3 April 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Unreasonable, bad business practices

Works with lettings hub for referencing which didn't bother checking my references with employer being a new company and rejected my application within minutes - agency didn't advise on this practice and won't even refund their part of the agency fee. Wouldn't recommend unless you have the most straightforward application. Unreasonable agency.

Stephen · 2 January 2018

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Belongings destroyed by mould...

Absolutely shocking company. Very helpful getting you in but once there, you're very much on your own.Been waiting for 2 weeks to be called back about my deposit - many promises to call back before the end of the day have been broken constantly and nobody seems to care. Lived in Mould for weeks on end due to structural issues. This mould destroyed some of our clothing and a £1,000 mattress. I wish I could add photos the this review to illustrate how bad it was...When we asked for the situation to be resolved, a maintenance guy was sent out and he was shocked, telling us that the mould was dangerous and that he'd advise the agency to send out dehumidifiers.Nothing happened until we chased more and more. A roofer was then sent out who informed us that the roof needed replacing...the next communication we received was from the agency telling us that we were being evicted due to a change in the landlords circumstances.Avoid these cowboys like mad - I've rented many times before and have never experienced anything like this happen.Honestly wish I'd read these reviews as I would have not used them and would never use them again - 73% of Trustpilot reviews are rated as "Bad" - Says everything it needs to really.

Shane · 6 March 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

I can not stress enough to people to never deal with Martin & co

I can not stress enough to people to stay away from Martin and Co. they are the worst estate agent and letting agent I have ever witnessed. They false advertise their buildings as brand new never lived in apartments. Yet had renters in them over for over 2 years. So when their apartments are advertised for sale as brand new, they are not! It then means you can’t sell your apartment as it’s lived in and they are bringing the market value down. They deal with dodgy builders who build these properties with none qualified personnel and you have nothing but major issues including dangerous electrical fire issues. Which the fire service have condemned. They let their properties out to drug dealers and do nothing about the havoc they then cause for families having to witness drug drops and the stench of weed in the communal areas. This is just 1% of how badly this company are! Please for the sake of your families and mental health stay away from this company!

Danny · 2 March 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Pretend to be nice before you sign the…

Pretend to be nice before you sign the contract and pay the money. Assure you they have corrected everything needed in the property but as soon as they got your money they don’t care about you anymore. Lee always advices you to use your money to correct everything and cancelled most of the things that needed fixing. Overall company is run by a clown. Expect an auto reply to this.Sorry, they call and harass you.

Asif · 22 June 2021

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

AVOID martin & co stafford

AVOID martin & co stafford. 2.5yrs lived in this property, been waiting for a council property for around 1.5 years, offered somewhere and I asked if they could deduct the remaining rent from deposit for them to send a reference off (made me pay £20 for) to the housing association that offered the 3 bed home to me as I'm overcrowded with me, 2 boys and my daughter in this 2 bedroom saying I owe the money and they wont deduct from out deposit we have with them. We paid to have brand new carpet put down in the living room costing around £240 as it was chipped laminate. Reported 7 repairs 8months ago, roof leaking/boiler leaking being 2 of them but nothing. So I paid £20 for a 'bad' reference so I have now lost the property I was offered for me and my 3 children. The house is in brilliant condition, I've always looked after my homes I've lived in, I'm absolutely livid with them!

Emilie · 26 February 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Horrendous Company

Horrendous CompanyI have worked with various leasing companies, Martin and Co is by far the worst. They just want your money and once they have it, their "customer service" immediately dissipates. When you email with an urgent matter, there is no rush to respond. The building I live in is invested with mice and break in's, however they do not seem to care. A homeless man entered into the building, and upon emailing the property manager, she said: "And your point?"Please please please beware of using this company. Do your research and avoid them.

Jillian · 25 February 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Unprofessional

Unprofessional, unhelpful and uninterested. Left with damp on walls with mould growing for over 6 months, locks not fixed, leaks left. Nobody answers the phone or tries to resolve issues. Avoid avoid avoid

Louis · 10 November 2022

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

I’ve had really poor communication

I’ve had really poor communication, not contacting me or my other housemate to renew our contracts, to be told by the landlord that they only do 6 months (then my housemate was given a rolling contract) I was then told I’d had an early release from the property to then be charged for the month I’m not there and they expect me to pay for water electric etc that the current housemates are using. They’re terminology is not clear enough, and they don’t ensure you understand what your signing for. Would never recommend them!

Anon · 3 February 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Very good company until checkout and change of staff

I was a very happy tenant for 2 years with extremely nice property manager( oxford office).I vacated the property on 31/12/19, and as to this date have been chasing them (weekly emails and calls) for the check out inventory, my deposit amount. Finally, after a lot of effort, managed to get a new property manager to send me a check out report and an extensive list of deductions. Most of these major issues ( agreeing to removal of professional cleaning clause from the contract, discarding a broken glass table which was a health hazard) were discussed and agreed with the old property manager, however, the new property manager is not ready to believe the same- i have sent her the relavant email threads. Also, as per the contract, the deposit should be returned within 30 days ( and this has been more than 30 days after the check out inventory- so a breach of contract. The property had an old mattress which was stained even in the check in inventory, and the current manager has charged me for that as well. I had actually thought of leaving good reviews as they were very good when i was actually in the property. However, i dont know why team wants to spoil the good reputation made by the previous manager.The saddest part is that they dont have a complaints email id on their website, and the website only asks to email the branch ( the same people who are charging me and causing significant mental trauma)

Adarsh · 3 February 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Don't even bother going near them

Don't even bother going near them, they can't even set up a viewing. Most unorganised company going. I set up a viewing for Friday at 4.30 and immediately after the call I wrote it in my calendar as a reminder. It got to the day and I arrived at the property, no one was there. So I rang them for the same person who set up my appointment to answer and in short tell me there was no appointment set up at all. She then proceeded to make out as though it was my fault; even asking me if I was sure I booked it through them and not another agency, even though she had my email and phone no. in the system. Massive waste of time.

Kyle · 25 January 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Very poor estate agents.

Very poor estate agents.I went with Martin & co as there agent dawn that came out said that she had 2/3 people on her books that was looking and would be interested in our house But these was lies as nothing came of it.so I was actually conned into using Martin & co By gift of the gab.Sale advert was rushed stating the house was 1 minute walk to a school then in the next sentence it was couple of minutes.Photos that was taken wasn’t good they was to Dark.I revamped the bathroom over Xmas Giving it a massive makeover and when the agent came out to do the second viewing she didn’t say that the photos on site should be updated.On our first viewing something didn’t feel right almost as if they wasn’t real buyers like a setup That the agents had arranged.Also this viewing happened after I’d raised concerns and was talking about leaving.After asking for feed back for the first viewing I was Told someone will get back to me and didn’t feel days later had past I rang again and again no communication what so ever.Asked Them for feed back from Rightmove to see how many people viewed the property they said It would take a day to be email To me but it took them 2 weeks! Told them I was giving 2 weeks notice then all of a sudden I have a “VIEWING” again this time it well they wanted second viewing came to viewing day and they didn’t come as there car broke down which is laughable bearing in mind there car wasn’t that old.Asked if estate agent would be willing to pick them up in the sign written Martin & co car to be told they would get back to me again they haven’t.They are rubbish in polite words there’s a reason why they have bad reviews.Ask yourself why is bad review at 72%?!!!Stay clear use someone else to sell your house pay a little higher on the sale fees get a better agent like w h brown do it.No communication just total crap I wouldn’t recommend these to anyone.

Daniel · 15 January 2020