Tenancy review for 8 Hereford Close in Westborough, Guildford rented from George Popadopolous

Landlord rating: 1

The landlord appears very friendly at first however this soon changes once you become a resident. He will come to the house without notice using his own keys to enter the property and bedrooms without authorisation. He is also quite manipulative and asks that tenants spy on each other and report back to him. He increased the rent for two tenants despite having and agreed set term, when they did not comply he asked them to leave. The contract for tenancy is poor which is not signed by either party therefore not binding however the landlord will claim it is when it is to his benefit.
The property is very old and tired therefore breakages occurred due to wear and tear however the landlord accused tenants of breaking items, which he repaired at the lowest cost hence why breakages occur.
On leaving the landlord was attempting to bring in another tenant whilst another was still paying for the room which would give him double rent. The rent is pricey for the quality of the house which is of a poor standard. When attempting to leave the property due to all of the above issues the landlord refused to provide reference as he was not informed that the tenant wished to leave (for obvious reasons) so he therefore threatened on the spot eviction which is not legal. He also then requested that the tenant should advertise and arrange viewings for the room to repay him for the tenant leaving early which was not in the contract and the landlord was the one to terminate the tenancy on the grounds that the tenant wanted to leave although now had nowhere to go as he had refused referencing for the estate agent the tenant hoped to move with.
The landlord was very unreliable throughout, he turned up 1 hour late to my initial viewing - I had to phone him to remind him of it. On the day of key collection again he was late and had to be prompted with a phone call. He arranged meetings with the tenants that he then does not attend himself. Overall this landlord is extremely unreliable, dishonest and exploitive.

Property rating: 3

4 bedroom house in Hereford Close, the house has been converted to fit 4 bedrooms. Only one toilet with seperate bathroom which opens out into the kitchen. House is generally run down requiring maintenance, mould is an issue. There is a driveway however the landlord does not allow tenants to park on it - only he is allowed to. There is a garden with a washing line and a shed, tenants are not allowed access to the shed. The furniture is all second hand and doesn't match with obvious damage to it.

Area rating: 5

Lots of student houses surrounding which was at times noisy late at night. Lots of on street parking available. Close to the university.