A guide to living in East Sussex

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

The location of the Blockhouse is perfect as it sits right in the heart of Brighton. You walk out of the building and you are right next to the Laines. There are numerous coffee shops, cute independent businesses and smiley faces right at your doorstep. Living in The Blockhouse means to truly experience what Brighton is. I think a lot of other BTRs in the city are quite remote and you miss out from what is happening, but The Blockhouse is unique in that you get to live in luxury whilst also being in the centre. In terms of transport links, you are a 7' walk from the train station which goes to London in an hour. There are also 3 different bus stops (2 behind the building and 1 on the side) which connect you to the entire city and there are buses literally every 3 minutes. For parking availability you can ask the building to see if there is a free car park space to reserve inside the premises but if not, I used the Trafalgar street car park my first year living here and it was absolutely fine, nor did I ever have any concerns about anti-social behaviour. It's in a location that is well connected and so even as a single woman I felt completely safe walking home at night.

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

Responded right away (if it was working hours), listened to me and resolved the issue as quickly as possible!

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

I wish I knew how easy it would be to move to a new city by myself because when I moved to The Blockhouse I genuinely felt like I had a community. If you are thinking of moving in here, do it!! It's a lovely space and the residents try to look after it and it's quite nice to have events to get to know your neighbours.

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

Love being a shared owner at Home X. Community is outstanding, beautiful gardens and attentive staff.

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

More info about utility providers e.g. spent alot of time trying to set bill up with Utilita. How temperamental the balcony doors are.

What is the best feature of your home:

Large balcony doors with surrounding views and communal gardens.

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

It is safe , friendly and clean and maintained well . It is convenient for transport and shopping . Parking can be tricky but there is a carpark if reaidents prefer to pay the cost . Bin and recycling is regular . Only noise atm is the Briggton and hove bus depot development . Has been an issue with noise and dust . Otherwise we havent experienced any anti social behaviour as management are strict on that with good security . . The resident entertainment provided creates a nice family vibe .

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

Considering there are constant requests around the building the staff manage this very well .

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

Staff were really helpful with supporting us with the moving in process .

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

Residential neighbourhood. Aldi and Lidl 5 mins walk away. Hove park close by too. Excellent bus links to city and train stations

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

Broken automatic doors make access a significant issue for disabled residents

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

The App is unavailable for many people and glitchy for others who can get on. This should be fixed

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

The location of Hove Gardens is great in terms of transport and amenities. Within 2 minutes you're at Hove Station or one of the main bus stops in Hove, so it's incredibly well connected to London & Brighton. You're a 5 minute walk down to George Street or 15 minutes to the sea. There are plenty of supermarkets close by too (big Tescos and Lidl within a 10minute walk). Despite it being on quite a quiet street, it can be loud outside from time to time. The block is directly opposite a bus depot, so the buses will park up for the evening and then all leave at 5/6am the next day. It's also on one of the main cut throughs to get out of Hove, so the traffic in the morning and evenings can surprisingly busy too. Outside of this, it's generally pretty quiet.

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

My main ongoing issue has been the lack of access to the post room. The normal process is a code gets generated, but often I don't receive one and when I try and access it using my email address I get an error message. Every time I raise it with the front desk it's acknowledged but no further action taken. I haven't had any maintenance issues with my flat in the 5 months I've lived here, so I can't comment on the speed or quality of the maintenance team. Mark the maintenance guy is very friendly and lovely though.

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

I wish I had asked more questions about the energy bills. These are based on your own usage eventually but you will automatically be put on a direct debit based on the size of your flat. For me, a one bedroom flat was £156 a month to start with. I live on my own and this is significantly more than I have used or was expecting to pay. I've had to wait for my first bill to arrive (3 months in) before I've been able to change it (now down to £80). I also wished I asked more about the access and fobs. Only named tenants on the tenancy agreement get a fob (so there's no way of buying an additional one for a partner or an emergency spare for a family member). This is really tricky when guests are staying. The intercom for your flat will only let guests into the lobby, as there is a secondary entry door which requires a fob which they then need to pass through to access the apartments. This means you need to go down to the lobby and let every guest in. This may be common in BTR properties, but when you're used to private renting it's a bit of a shock (and sometimes logistical nightmare) to have to accompany your guests everywhere. I also wished I asked more about the front of house service/team. When are they available, how are they contacted, what are the response times, what can they help with. Since living here I've found out they cant help with deliveries, food orders, letting guests in etc. That's been a bit of a shock and disappointment from what was advertised. Finally, if you are looking at the wheelchair accessible flats, I would take your time asking what on-site help is on offer. Front of house have strict rules around not accepting deliveries and not letting people in without a resident coming down, and I know some vulnerable residents really struggle with no additional support to help them (carers etc.).