Find Me a Flat?

If you've stumbled upon this blog, the chances are you're either considering working with the estate agents at http://www.findmeaflat.com, or have already made the mistake of doing so.

I did not long ago, and was cheated out of a £1200 deposit. This site serves a dual purpose: 1) to chronicle my attempt to get my money back and 2) to warn off anyone else naive enough to trust in these fraudsters.

A quick story:

I arrived in London knowing little of the city and not planning to stay long. I found my first flat through an online posting. The ad was put up by http://www.findmeaflat.com, and on a crisp winter night I was ushered into the apartment by Mark, a short young man with slick hair and an even slicker car. The flat wasn't the one pictured in the ad _ in fact the picture advertised is still on their site, but I took it anyways, paying £900 or so a month for a bright, cheery, newly refurbished studio in Whitechapel. The deposit was around £1200. Mark was solicitous, if a little evasive, but I trusted him. Six months later, it came time to move. My landlord wrote me a letter saying the flat was returned in impeccable shape, and I wrote to Mark to collect my deposit.

That's when Mark disappeared.

Two months later, I finally cornered him in his Vestry street office, rapping on his window as he came back from a viewing. Flustered, he let me in, saying he had no idea why I had not received his cheque, making a million apologies for not being in touch. He finally handed me an envelope _ with a cheque for £400. I said it was unacceptable. Mark said there must have been some mistake. He promised to clarify it.

I never heard from him again.

Several weeks and dozens of phone calls later I received an e-mail from John, Mark's colleague. He said I would not see the rest of my deposit again. He threatened to sue if I ever tried to retrieve the rest of the money.

I was unimpressed, and decided to sue him in turn. Over the next few months, we'll see how just how easy it is to bring London's property fraudsters to justice.