AVOID !!! AVOID!!! AVOID!!! MO SHAH & AMELIA BRADY I would never write a bad review but unfortunately this has been the worst experience I’ve ever had with an estate agency. They might be efficient for landlords, but as a tenant, I would strongly advise staying far away. I rented a two-bedroom flat through this agency for a year and never missed a single payment. When I first viewed the flat, it looked clean and well-kept. I was told I could move in within a few weeks, as the landlord wanted to freshen the place up. However, on the day of key collection, I was shocked to find the flat in a complete mess — nothing like what I’d originally seen. I immediately raised this with the letting agent, only to be told that I hadn’t requested the place to be cleaned — a bizarre and dismissive response. Even more concerning, the move-in inventory had falsely listed the property as “very clean,” which set off alarm bells. I tried to overlook this and make the most of my time there, but two months in, a major leak from the upstairs flat caused serious issues. I contacted the agency repeatedly, but they showed no interest. Soon after, my hot water tank began to overflow, and to prevent further damage, I shut off the water myself. I informed the agent, Mo, right away — but no action was taken for six months. Only after threatening legal action did he finally address the issue. That meant six months without hot water for me and my young daughter. After deciding not to renew my tenancy, I gave the required two months’ notice. Suddenly, the agency became interested in fixing the various outstanding problems, including the mold caused by the leak. Unfortunately, due to my work commitments, I wasn’t available during the limited time frame they proposed. The final straw came during the viewing process. Although the contract stated that I would be given proper notice for viewings, one Saturday at 10am I heard someone trying to enter the property unannounced. I refused entry and emailed the agents, asking that they always notify me in advance. A week later, my neighbor called me to say people were again at the door. I then received a call from Amelia at the agency asking if I was home — she had gotten the viewing date wrong. I told her the viewing couldn’t proceed. Despite this, she attempted to enter the flat anyway. My neighbor informed me they were inside, and when I tried to call Amelia, she ignored all my calls even though she was clearly on the property. When I raised this with property manager Mo Shah, he claimed I had given permission for the entry. I was told the calls were recorded, but after submitting a subject access request, I was informed that the specific call in question wasn’t recorded after all — highly suspicious. To make matters worse, more than three weeks after moving out, I’m still waiting on the return of my deposit. This week I have tried contacting the agents and advised I will get a call back…No call back. I have just received a email back advising it can take a further 4 weeks. How is this even legal to wait up to 8 weeks. I will be contacting The Property Ombudsman to report this appalling treatment. I strongly recommend avoiding this agency, especially if you’re a tenant. The level of service, professionalism, and respect for tenant rights was simply unacceptable.

WORST ESTATE AGENCY! Awful experience, as soon as you have signed a tenancy agreement they are rude & useless! If they ask for a review initially just wait until you have fully had to deal with them ... all I am going to say is good luck. I WISH I read the bad reviews because they are all true. Worst experience ever. Staff are the most unhelpful agents ever

DO NOT USE MARTIN & CO. I tell everyone I meet to stay clear of this estate agency. I had a leak in my property for 2 months that they did not resolve it was coming through my kitchen light which is unsafe. I ended up paying to leave the property early and had so many issues. Communication is poor and they try rip you off at every opportunity. Staff are rude and need a reality check.

APPALLING, MONEY GRABBING ESTATE AGENTS! They have completely ripped us off, poor communication & terrible to deal with - all staff members have been rude. Stay away from them!

Very unprofessional

Unfortunately, our experience as tenants aligns with many other reviews here. Our property manager Zainab's priority seemed to be keeping the landlord satisfied, rather than acting as a mediator and equally supporting our needs. I am sorry to say her dismissive, petty and confrontational attitude made us feel unwelcome in the house we were paying rent to live in. On two occasions when we reported issues with the property, the blame was shifted onto us, accompanied by accusations of tenant misuse. Some concerns were just ignored altogether and marked as resolved on the tenancy portal, even though nothing had been done. To make matters worse, we also had to sit through unnecessary and invasive house inspections every six months, which honestly seemed more about monitoring us and how we lived than identifying any real problems with the property. This may be due to the house having been involved in illegal activities in the past, something we only learned from the neighbours, since the agency conveniently forgot to mention it. They became more difficult as the end of the tenancy approached, being pushy about arranging viewings and, once again, completely disregarding our privacy, even attempting to show up with less than 24 hours notice. The viewings were conducted by a young agent who, it seems, could benefit from additional training in communication as well, particularly when it comes to respectfully and thoughtfully requesting access to someone's HOME. Finally came the deposit return situation. The landlord had requested excessive deductions to be made to our deposit and our property manager was clearly fighting his corner. We asked for clearer evidence of the alleged “damage” (not in the least visible in the check-out report) along with receipts or quotes to support the amounts requested off our deposit. This all fell in deaf ears and went on for a MONTH in spite of our repeated requests, getting told by Zainab that the landlord was under no obligation to provide such evidence. No receipts, no quotes, no proof of cost whatsoever, just arbitrary figures which we were expected to accept at face value. Once again, ineffective communication and a clear lack of courtesy toward customers, more focused on closing the issue than on resolving it fairly and impartially. We have always taken great care of the properties we rented, often leaving them in better condition than when we arrived, yet from day one, we were treated with utter disrespect. GOOD LUCK to anyone who is unfortunate enough to rent from this company.

Hands down the worst experience I’ve ever had with a letting agency. Our property manager, Zainab, was incredibly difficult to communicate with. It was honestly baffling at times trying to have a coherent exchange with her. From the start this agency has been consistently invasive and inconsiderate. In the final weeks of our tenancy they kept trying to schedule viewings without us being present, even after we made it very clear, that no one from the agency was to enter our HOME without us there. As for the landlord, just another money-hungry leech. He hiked the rent after just one year and would have done it again if we hadn’t terminated the contract. He and the agency also tried to squeeze more money out of us at the end of the tenancy by withholding some of our initial deposit. The irony is that we left the place in better condition than we found it. We asked for receipts and a breakdown of the charges, but Zainab blatantly ignored our requests. Apparently we were just meant to blindly accept the charges without question. We barely made it two years in that place and honestly that was already too long to be dealing with this agency. Avoid them if you value your sanity.

I'm deeply disappointed with the level of service received. It appears that vital checks on the properties were overlooked, leading to some serious safety concerns. Furthermore, I encountered instances of misinformation and deceptive practices on multiple occasions. This has caused significant inconvenience and distress. I hope these issues will be addressed promptly for the benefit of future customers.

A totally fraud Birmingham based estate agent. They took the nin-refundable deposit and then asked something funny. Thats mean you can't provide it and they get away. And the lady in harborne office name Amelia Bradey is act like she's Queen , but unfortunatley in working estae agent.

Worst estate agent to use. House was left on market for up to 18 months. They did not liaise with solicitors and buyer so buyer walked as they wanted to close.