Tenancy review for 5 South Yorkshire Buildings in Penistone East, Barnsley rented from Granville Clarke

Landlord rating: 1

The worst landlord I have had the pleasure of dealing with!
Refuses to fix common simple problems, such as roof flashing, annual boiler servicing, and there were no carbon monoxide alarms fitted when we arrived. He stated that he was not legally obliged to provide them (despite the presence of a gas boiler and gas fire in lounge).
On one occasion we had a chimney fire (from the bedroom fireplace, we were assured we could use for small fires). This was due to the chimney having not been swept for years. The smoke leaked from the attic and roof void, and 3 fire tenders arrived to make sure the fire would not spread to the rest of the terraces (in addition, the property adjoining did not have a separate wall between the attic spaces, and both were jammed full of his junk). Despite the commotion, landlord made no attempt to see what was happening, despite living 2 doors away, and lots of flashing blue lights! He had to be almost dragged out by the fire chief to take responsibility for his negligence.
The roof leakage was reported several times over our 18 month stay, and was never resolved. Eventually the plaster of the ceiling collapsed into the bedroom.
He also had a pile of rubbish in the back alley behind the yard wall, which was eventually reported to the council by another neighbour. His answer was to set fire to it, which resulted in the destruction of a lovely mature apple tree and the other neighbours wheelie bins!
He was rude and unhelpful when challenged on basic maintenance issues, and there was always an excuse ("I haven't done many art classes this month" - he was a self-styled 'art guru'!), and the property continued to remain shabby and unsafe throughout our tenancy, until we finally got the opportunity to depart.
Needless to say, we did NOT receive the full refund of our security bond, which was not kept in a Deposit Protection Scheme (another law he broke).
AVOID AT ALL COSTS!

Property rating: 1

The property was very shoddy. There were gaps of daylight in front and rear doors. Decorative paintwork was streaky and patchy.
Damp patches on bedroom ceiling where roof tiles had slipped, causing water ingress. Eventually the affected area collapsed, causing plaster to fall onto our bedroom items.
The loft contained all manner of junk and, apparently, "antiques" collected by the landlord who used this space for storage. The loft void was open to the adjoining properties loft space (surely illegal?), a property which was also owned the landlord, and also contained several junk items.
The 'kitchen' was essentially a piece of worktop on 2 very old cabinets with a sink in the middle.
The bath was in dire need of replacement or re-enameling. Landlord's answer was to paint the bath with emulsion!
The central heating system was in a poor state, and the boiler was mounted over the bath, with no 'splash' protection for the exposed cables and electrical wiring. The boiler frequently leaked gas and had to be reported/shut down on several occasions.
The garden shed was another area used by the landlord to store his rubbish, and was often inhabited by rats and vermin, and was something that was never addressed or resolved.

Area rating: 8

Despite the poor state of the property, the village was lovely! A nice pub, lovely country walks nearby, a very convenient railway station taking you either way to Huddersfield or Sheffield.
Nice local bakery in the village, and very convenient for commuting to the M1 motorway. The neighbours (with the exception of the landlord 2 doors away), where all lovely and helpful.