A guide to living in Canary Wharf

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

One positive aspect was the location of the apartment. It was well connected by public transport, close to shops, supermarkets, and restaurants, making it convenient for everyday life and commuting around London.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

No actions from the building management have been taken. To make matters worse, when I moved out they tried to charge me almost £500 for a bed that was already broken when I moved into that room.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

The property I rented was not as advertised. The listing photos were outdated and did not reflect the actual condition of the flat. For around 10 months, there were major leaks from the living room, bathroom, and bedroom ceilings. They were aware of the issues but never properly fixed them, and the situation only got worse over time. At one point, while I was sleeping, a large piece of the ceiling/wall (around 20 kg) collapsed just a few feet from my bed. It could have caused a very serious injury. Despite this, I never received any compensation or even a rent reduction for the months I lived in those conditions.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

Love absolutely everything about Ark, the community events, sunday brunch and what not. Only bad thing I would say is temporary residents/hotel guests, I wish long stay guests had more separation from the short term guests because it can be disturbing at times.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Yes they are mostly quick with resolving any problems that I may have

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I wish I knew more about the long stay residency and short stay. How the building is also a hotel

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

I have lived at Newfoundland for 4 years and, until recently, I had always respected the building and management team. Unfortunately, my experience has changed significantly, especially after dealing with Rafael from the Renewals team. The handling of my tenancy situation was extremely disappointing. I asked for clarification, relied on the information I was given verbally, and acted in good faith. However, when issues arose, I felt the responsibility was placed entirely on me rather than the communication issues being acknowledged. I was also disappointed by the lack of transparency regarding tenancy changes and the rent increase, which I only became aware of after making my own enquiries.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

I wish I had known that the rent does not always feel justified compared to the overall experience and service provided. I was also disappointed by the lack of clear communication regarding rent increases. In my case, I only became aware of the increase after making my own enquiries, and the communication process involved delays and confusion.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

What I found particularly frustrating was that while residents are expected to provide notice within a very strict timeframe, the notice period calculation feels very unfair. Instead of considering the actual date notice is given, it appears to be calculated from the first day of the following month, meaning that if you give notice on 9th July, it can effectively add extra time and costs to your tenancy. My advice to future residents would be to make sure everything is confirmed in writing, ask exactly how notice periods are calculated, and not rely only on verbal information.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

Good links to transportation and central location within Canary Wharf. Plenty of restaurants and shops close by.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Have lived here since 2022. Issues within the flat (broken locks/windows) took 6-9months to be resolved.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

Customer engagement / service around renewals. Awful. Gym membership subsidy for third space was taken away soon after we signed up.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

Location is good. New building with new facilities. Friendly concierge. But the building has issues with basics, such as frequent water outage, malfunction of smart meters and radiator noise.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Only respond within their office hours and not caring

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I wish I had known it has so many basic issues. ..