Me and my girlfriend decided to move in together unfortunately we can't afford to buy a house so we decided to rent one. After no luck since January we came across an ad from this agency. It happened that the house ticked most of the boxes so we decided to go ahead with the renting procedure based on photos and videos provided by the agency. We have paid the holding deposit of more than £200 and were hoping the whole process will go smoothly. Unfortunately there was a problem with my references running by a third party company. It happened that I had a CCJ (country court judgement) issued on my name. After finding out about the issue the same dayI have managed to pay outstanding £30 and inform the agent about it. My explanation was not satisfactory for the agency and they have requested a proof of payment which I was expecting to receive by post. In the meantime the tenants moved out from the property and we have the offer to see the house for the first time. However we also received an email from the agency pointing out a list of about 8 issues and damages to the property. We were also informed that we won't be able to move in by the already discussed date as some of the issues were health and safety hazard. When we finally had a chance to view the property It was clear as the property hasn't been renovated for a really long period of time. The walls were patchy and dirty. Paint all over varnished woodwork. The floors dirty and squeak with every step. Addition to the list of issues was the fact the whole house had only two 1970s electric storage heaters. One in the living room and one in the hallway upstairs. So no heating in both bedrooms, bathroom or kitchen. Also the style of coming off the wall wallpaper in the utility room was suggesting that the house hasn't been refurbished since the 70s. After the agent failed to provide us with the date of repairs and potential move in date plus our viewing experience we decided not to go any further with the renting procedure. Disappointed with the extremely low standard of the property and the issues pointed out by the agency we were hoping to get our invested money back. However that same day I received email from the branch manager saying that they will hold our money as: "You decided not to proceed with the tenancy. You failed to take all reasonable steps to enter into the tenancy (and we and the landlord have taken all reasonable steps to enter into a tenancy agreement with you). You provided false or misleading information regarding your ability to meet the referencing criteria outlined in the application to rent." I am extremely disappointed with the service this agency has provided and the decision about holding the deposit was just out of order especially in such a difficult time for everyone especially a young couple trying to find a dream home.

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