126 Bayswater Road

Rented the property through Greatham Gilbert who provided a tenant find service on behalf of Richard Baker. (Holmwood Properties) They were excellent, responsive and professional, the same however cannot be said for Richard Baker. On phoning him to tell him about the poor, unsafe state of his flat we were told ‘they’re students, they’ll only trash the place’. He continued to be difficult to contact, rude and unhelpful. We asked for a replacement sofa and a table to eat meals from and were refused. Given how much money he was being paid per month for a furnished property we did not think this was unreasonable. Eventually he sent a cleaner and workmen to try and deal with the damp. They attempted to fix the damp and cover ceiling stains (some belongings got paint on them) He also said it didn’t matter what state it was in, he could let it out ‘ten times over’ due to its location. When we left he even tried to take £270 of the deposit but failed in this due to the amount of before and after photos we took. TDS refunded the full deposit as it was in a cleaner state than when it was taken on. Sadly he will probably continue to behave like this as there doesn’t seem to be anyone to hold him to account.

Rented 126 Bayswater Road (Holmwood Properties) in West Jesmond as 3 Final year female students. The property is in a great location near the Metro, shops, bars etc however it was in a disgusting condition. The previous tenants had literally walked out of the door. Not cleaned, no inventory, broken, stained, ripped sofas, mould on walls and the TV, rubbish in the back yard, food remains in the freezer, damp and stains on ceilings where the roof leaked.
It was too late to move anywhere else which we would have done.
Such a shame as it’s in a great location but as long as landlords are able to let out student properties like this it will continue to happen.