We recently tried to rent a one-bedroom flat in Edinburgh for just over £1000 per month through ELC Sales & Lettings as a couple, both working full-time. Despite having a solid rental history and no issues in the past, the experience with ELC was deeply frustrating and unnecessarily stressful. Firstly, ELC does not handle referencing in-house. Instead, they rely on a third-party service called Let Alliance, which uses an automated AI system to assess references. There are no real people involved in the process, meaning your actual financial situation including bank statements, payslips, or proof of affordability is completely ignored. In our case, the system rejected us for not meeting income requirements, even though we would no longer be paying rent at our previous property once we moved, a key detail the automated system failed to take into account. Even more concerning is the fact that ELC asked for a full deposit to be paid before referencing was completed, and well before any contract was signed. This is not a standard practice with most reputable agencies. Now that the referencing has failed, we are having to wait 2 to 5 working days just to get our own money returned. Throughout the process, we found ourselves constantly chasing ELC for updates. Communication was poor, and the entire application process was far more stressful than it needed to be. There was no personal touch, no support, and certainly no flexibility or understanding of real-world circumstances. In short: Impersonal, AI-only referencing. Deposit required before referencing. Poor communication and support. Time-wasting and stressful process. Never again. I would strongly recommend others to avoid ELC Sales & Lettings and save yourself the time, stress, and frustration. There are better, more professional agencies out there who will treat you like a human being, not just a data point in an algorithm.