PlaceFirst Elevate reviews

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Absolutely shocking company

Absolutely shocking companyAbsolutely shocking company, do not use them. My best friend is being evicted through no fault of her own. Place first said she needed a guarantor in order to rent a property with them. I have an excellent credit score so I offered to be her guarantor. I spent 3 hours completing forms and sending pay slips, only to be declined! When I asked why? They said to speak to the credit checkers, the credit checkers said all they do is down load from Experian and send over. It isn’t their decision to say yes or no! I have a top rating on Experian! Placefirst a lady called Liz incredibly rude kept saying she didn’t like my tone of voice but wouldn’t tell me why my guarantor application was declined. Apparently if they have someone else they prefer they use the guarantor as a reason to decline. The credit checker company told me this. Outrageous customer service. Still waiting for a manager to call me back. Meanwhile my best friend is still being made homeless. What is the world coming to when these companies want to play GOD! Plus £1150 rent for a small semi because they can! Email reply back from Abbygail Payne telling me to repeat the call back to the credit checkers if I want answers! I thought legally under the GDPR you maintain the rite to explanations? Also they have illegally taken a holding fee for this property and are now refusing to pay it back!

Michele · 28 March 2024

★★★★★ 2/5

Trustpilot

Pros and Cons of Placefirst

Pros and consThis is my honest pros and cons list:pros:- The houses are beautiful- They are pet friendly- The neighbours are lovely and I love the community here- The housing manager is great and goes above and beyond his job description to help, but he does not always get informed about changes form the higher-ups, more about that in the con list- We had a lot of anti-social behaviour and crime issues such as opportunity theft in the area, which improved massively thanks to a lot of community, council and police engagement.Cons: - Placefirst could and in my opinion should have done more to help with the issues of anti-social behaviour and crime. They did add some lighting and cctv but there is police advice which was not followed yet.- When we moved in a rolling contract was an option, that’s no longer the case, they got replaced by fixed term contracts. Furthermore this change came about in very unfortunate circumstances: We were told upon request that we are not due for review, which meant we were not due for a rent increase or a new contract. Suddenly we get a rent increase and an offer for a yearly contract, when we asked our housing manager about it, we learned that they have not been informed about this. - Moving on from my previous point, in our case a contract renewal (and the increase that came with it, twice so far since moving in) is not linked to our moving-in date. The first increase happened Dec. 2022 we moved in May 2022, we then assumed that another renewal (and a potential further increase) would therefore be due in Dec. 2023, which is why we requested early to hear about what’s coming to be able to make a decision as to what’s best for us. We then received the latest increase in March, with very little time so we feel that we didn’t really have many options as to what to do. And again only a yearly, or after a conversation, a half yearly contract was possible. Needless to say that our trust is gone. (This is the reason for the 2 stars only)- Maintenance can be difficult, issues take most often too long to get resolved, and more often than not multiple repair attempts are required to get things fixed. Most of the time this only happens correctly once the housing manager gets involved, who again, goes above and beyond to help which I appreciate a lot

A · 19 March 2024

★★★★★ 2/5

Trustpilot

To avoid. Insane rent and mouldy houses.

My partner and I have been with Placefirst for the 3rd year now and have seen our rent increasing twice to an obscene amount. We understand that rent can increase with inflation, and that the general guideline is cpi +1%, however ours was over 15% in one year and 25% across 2 years.

Powis · 6 May 2025

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Placefirst Elevate

We have stayed at Placefirst Elevate for almost a year already. Overall, our stay is going well. Importantly, pets are allowed in the building, and there are many dogs and cats around. Sarah, our building manager, did her best to make our experience as comfortable as possible during this time. She is a very kind, friendly, and welcoming person and helps to deal with any issues that emerge.

Alex · 9 October 2024

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

During our stay at Scholars View

During our stay at Scholars View, we had a very good experience. Our manager, Dev, was incredibly supportive and always ready to help. We truly appreciate his assistance and highly recommend this place.

Santhi · 19 November 2025

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Liz and Dean at Placefirst have made…

Liz and Dean at Placefirst have made the experience of renting basically stress free by going above and beyond to make sure I could move into the property at the earliest convenience despite some delays with the vetting process. As an experienced tenant, I can honestly say this was the best customer experience I have ever had and I wish every other estate/ letting agent would take note of this great service overall.

Thomas · 28 June 2024

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Great experience at Placefirst

We have stayed at Placefirst for a year. Our stay went really good. We enjoyed the property/neighbourhood. The process for check in/out was really quick and Dave our building manager been really friendly, kind and always understood our busy schedule and did his best to accommodate. We had no issue while we stayed there and totally recommend ( houses are really nice, area is really good)

Georgiana · 10 October 2024

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Mia and team were very quick and…

Mia and team were very quick and helpful updating us every step of the way couldn't fault them

Scott · 4 October 2024

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Dave was a great help and went through…

Dave was a great help and went through the process with us as we are both first time buyers and made the experience 10/10 he was friendly and just a down to earth person ! Would definitely recommend

Shannon · 12 August 2023

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Moving into our new home with place first

My partner and I have recently gone through the process of confirming our first home with place first. We were supported with our application by Mia, who was really helpful - she listened and guided us through the process while making us feel at ease, helping resolve any issues we faced, we were really thankful for her help! We are looking forward to moving in soon.

Mili · 14 August 2024

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Flexible and helpful

We recently recieved news of a slight rent bump and a new contract with terms that are a little too long for us. We love our home and have had great experiences with Placefirst since we moved in over a year ago but need to relocate for our own convenience. Generously, we were offered a shorter term contract, allowing us some time to get our things in order without having to sign ourselves up to a longer term than wanted. I highly recommend renting with Placefirst and getting in touch with their services should you need to discuss arraigning adjustments or options that they can tailor to you if you find yourself in an uncomfortable situation.

Chloe · 10 November 2023

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Despite being sold on a dream of a…

Despite being sold on a dream of a wonderful home and community experience, place first on many occasions made us feel unwelcome in our own home. Our cat ended up severely injured after they conducted viewings in our house. Four of us were living in the house as friends which they agreed to, then a year and a half into our contract made attempts to kick us out of the property, on top of many many more awful and stressful circumstances. 2/5 would not recommend at all, if it wasn’t for the lovely neighbours it would have been a hell of a lot worse.

Flo · 21 April 2025

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Lived in the Welsh Streets for 3 years

Lived in the Welsh Streets for 3 years. The house was incredibly noisy due to the communal gardens and there is very little privacy. Placefirst put our rent up by 11% this year and have sent several threatening emails about non-existing rent arrears (threatening eviction no less). The houses are cheaply done up and the company is very difficult to contact. They are the epitome of a profit-driven corporate landlord and they do not care about tenants. I'd recommend caution if looking to rent a placefirst property.

Bill · 20 October 2023

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

The first time I set my eyes on…

The first time I set my eyes on Scholars View, I was amazed at the spectacular view. The application , background check, moving in were seamless and smooth. Thanks to constant communication of the place first team.The efficiency and professionalism of Dave B, the property manager throughout the whole was awesome. He kept following up even after moving in to ensure we are settling in well. My family loves the serenity and ambience of the environment. Friendly neighbors and peaceful neighborhood. The Properties are lovely, nicely decorated and modern. I have recommended this property to different families. Opeyemi Adetoyi

OPEYEMI · 17 October 2023

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

I have been living in Placefirst…

I have been living in Placefirst apartment in Sheffield for over a year now, and I'm thoroughly impressed with the level of maintenance and attention to detail. The management team is incredibly responsive to any issues that arise within the apartment. Whether it's a leaky faucet, a malfunctioning appliance, or any other maintenance request, they address it promptly and efficiently. This proactive approach to maintenance has made my living experience here truly enjoyable. Additionally, their commitment to environmental sustainability is commendable, and I appreciate the eco-friendly initiatives in place. Overall, I highly recommend this apartment for its excellent maintenance and environmentally conscious practices.

EZEKIEL · 30 September 2023

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

I rented a house in Welsh Street…

I rented a house in Welsh Street Houses, Liverpool. During my application journey, a lot happened and I had so many phone calls with Placefirst's customer service team. I am writing to express my sincere gratitude for their outstanding service during my recent home renting journey. I am so impressed with their responsiveness to my needs, and their willingness to go the extra mile.I am so grateful to have both Meera and Liz on the other side of the phone line, they made this process such a positive experience for me!

Utku · 4 September 2023

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

A different type of renting experience.

I’ve rented with multiple landlords and Placefirst have been by far the best. I’ve been with them for years now and as with all houses, issues have cropped up. What makes Placefirst a good landlord is not just their willingness to fix any issues but the speed in which they do it. Even minor issues have been fixed in a timely manner. Though their rent prices are slightly higher, the small extra cost is worth it for the high standard housing with dedicated maintenance teams.Pet friendly, a local manager who is always available and even best dressed house competitions for Halloween makes their areas feel more like a community.Top marks from me!

Anthony · 1 September 2023

★★★★★ 2/5

Trustpilot

Awful at responding

Awful at responding, still currently waiting on a response from weeks ago and now can’t get through to anyone still discussing!!!

Niamh · 23 December 2025

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Houses are Riddled with MICE!!!

Houses are riddled with mice! You get rid of them then they come back again. Found this was due to shoddy fixtures and fittings, they have left gaping holes between the floorboards and kitchen fittings meaning mice will keep appearing if not fixed correctly.

Rachael · 30 April 2025

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Amazing work what as been carried out

I am so pleased with the work what as been carried out it looks amazing I am really happy ... evolution was amazing I didn't feel stressed at all... They updated me every night on what was happening next. Simone she was lovely checking in to make sure I was oki and to see the work being carried out I would 100% recommend placefirst also evolution team also the other contractors what placfirst has used

Rachael · 21 November 2023

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Terrible customer service.

Terrible customer service.I have had several phone conversations with different members of Placefirst staff over the last few weeks. Finally managed to book 2 viewings, one of which was for a property that was already empty (I was told the previous application had fallen through) but could not view the properties until at least 10 days later. Couldn't understand why one of the houses had no tenants and was completely empty. I was worried this would be too late and the properties would be signed quickly but was falsely reassured by the a member of the team who said I was on the first day of viewings, and the only one to view the specific property on that day. This meant I stopped house hunting for a week as I was pretty confident I would put down a holding deposit after the official viewing. 30 mins before the viewing after waiting over a week to view, I was informed the property had been signed, and that I should have not been told by their own team that I was the only one to view it that day with no other bookings being taken. Thanks to Placefirst I have a delayed move in date for another property and need to stay with friends for nearly a month. After this ordeal they had the audacity to offer me a more expensive property. I wish I had never clicked on their website.

Vicky · 7 July 2023

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Untrustworthy

Both myself and my husband are disabled. After seeing the advertisement for Morecambe we applied for ground floor apartment. We completed the form got through to “ Thank you for your application our office in Morecambe will contact you. Nothing, nada, zilch happened. I then went online to check and it said property gone. So I phoned asking how the criteria worked. She denied they had ever received my application despite it saying on their website application received our staff will contact you. She then asked if I wanted apartment on upper floors despite my email stating we are disabled. So she said they would put us down for phase 2 on checking I found none of which are ground floor properties. A disgraceful company.

Sharon · 20 June 2023

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

I've been a resident in placefirst…

I've been a resident in placefirst elevate Manchester for about a year and a half. Amazing organised company. Whenever I needed maintinance or help inside the flat, they sorted that out quickly. All of this was possible because of Sarah our kind manager who is always helping out and seeking improvement and comfortable residents experiance. Many thanks.

Ibrahim · 1 October 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Absolute Waste Of Time

My partner and I had booked a viewing for a 2 bed house 6 weeks ago. We received a phone call the day before to say our appointment had been cancelled, and the reason they gave was that the current tenants didn’t want people looking around the house whilst they still lived there. Fair enough. They asked if we wanted to rearrange the appointment for today. We were unsure whether we’d be able to as we both work full time and would have to take more time off of work to do the viewing, and we’d previously been told they work on a first come first serve basis, so we didn’t want to take more time off for potentially no reason. We were told that, the person that does the viewings in our area would be overseeing a window fitting in another property that day, so her first appointment wouldn’t be until 12pm, so we’d be the first appointment to view that property. We agreed to take the appointment and arranged with our employers to have the required time off work to view the property. Then today, just over an hour before our appointment, I get a voicemail come through to say that the property has now been let. We went to our local office (at around 11:30am) and it was closed, so I rang the head office number to ask how the property had already been let when we had the first viewing. I was told that they had someone go to view a different property this morning, but it had already been let, so they, in her words, ‘managed to squeeze them in’ to view the house that we were supposed to see as they had been ‘let down as the first property was no longer available’. I questioned how this was fair on us, as we had both had to take time out of work, and had been reassured weeks beforehand that we would be the first people to view the property, and the response I got was ‘all I can do is apologise and offer you the only other property we currently have’. When I asked what property that was, I was told it was ‘still a 2 bed, but it’s a 1st floor apartment’. I explained this was no good to us as we have two dogs and we required a garden, but again, she just apologised for us ‘missing out’ on the property we wanted. The treatment we have received from this company is absolutely ridiculous, but reading all of the bad reviews they’ve been given, I’m now starting to think we’ve had a lucky escape. We will definitely be looking to rent a property elsewhere, and avoiding PlaceFirst

Jade · 23 May 2023