Bale & Anchor, SE13

This building had so much potential to be nice, and it feels like they cut corners on everything that made the building incredibly disappointing. We lived there for approximately 18 months, and I think every single month that we lived there, something was broken: - water supplies - lifts were broken (usually at least 1 broken at any given time, multiple occasions where all were broken in a 34 story building...) - no access to the parcel room - a washing machine broken in the flat - windows unable to close Just to name a few of the issues we encountered whilst we were there. The front of house staff were largely helpful with most of our issues (management actually got considerably better as our tenancy progressed. It was really poor service when we first moved in, but lately I would say the front of house have been a lot more communicative on certain issues), but the building management just seemed very poor. The flat itself was okay for a one-bedroom flat. I would say it's a little expensive for what you get in the area, but we were lucky to have some nice views from the window and the space was fine. It definitely could do with a lot more storage and just a higher quality finish to everything, as everything felt a little cheap. The flat also got incredibly warm in summer, and the building offers no form of aircon, which really, in most modern buildings, I think should be a default. When you're on higher floors, the building gets very, very hot, and there's no real way to ventilate this. The Homebox service used for bills is incredibly hard to use and I believe it is expensive for bills. It would be much better if you just had controls over your own bills in the property. In addition, you're locked into the Wi-Fi that they provide, and the Wi-Fi service is very poor. The default option is incredibly slow and constantly cuts out, and there are multiple times where the service dropped entirely whilst we lived there. Again, we had very little that we could do to improve this. The communal areas were overall quite nice. The rooftop views were very nice, and we had booked the dining spaces a couple of times, which were very pleasant to take people to, albeit quite expensive to book. The games room was another example of things just feeling quite disappointing and having very little thought put into them. There was a pool table where there is no room to lean around it, so it's effectively useless. There was a shuffleboard table with no sand put on it, so it's just completely scratched and you can't play. It feels like these items were just put in the room for aesthetic purposes rather than being something that anyone would use. I overall would not recommend this property to anyone unless you're just looking for a quick and easy short-term rent. It's worth noting that they also offer incentives for people to leave good reviews on this website, so I would take many of the positive reviews here with a little bit of a pinch of salt.

A nice building let down by poor property management. They are nonsensically slow to reply to issues / messages, and when they do, it can still take a long time to resolve issues. We have a leaking washing machine - 6 weeks later, and 3 visits of contractors later, it is still leaking. What they should have done was replace my washing machine with a functional one, and taken the faulty one away for repair. Instead, I have had to take time off from work, get my floor wet every time I do laundry, and chase them for follow ups. We lost hot water for 4 days, and communication during that time was sub-bar. For the impact that had on everyone, we were offered in the region of 20 pounds rent reduction - which actually just felt offensive. It is just such a shame, as they could do so much better.

Design looks nice and communal spaces are great but management is poor and convoluted when there are serious issues. The front desk / concierge staff are really nice and helpful but the management of issues is terrible- an example is hot water went out for days and no one is taking responsibility for it. Lifts break all the time and windows / balcony doors break all the time with poor system to track and correct issues (our window was not fixed for 6+ months) and have heard others have had problems with doors, vents, holes in walls etc. Fine for 6 month - 12 month stays but I’d be wary of longer term commitments especially if your patience levels aren’t good!! Pros include nice modern apartments, good sized bedrooms and nice bathrooms, appliances are nice, there is a nice WhatsApp group with residents and the place is generally very clean. Finally regarding bills wifi comes included but people in anchor house noted very slow times (I believe this is being resolved now) but the big thing is that energy supplier they use is callers Homebox and their billing is AWFUL - no transparency, charging some people 3x what they charge others and no regular updated billing so you have no idea if you are spending lots or little. They have also said it takes 3 months to close the account

I've had a great experience living in Bale House. The building is well-designed, but what really stands out is the service. Sariya at the front desk is exceptional. Whether I’m heading out or coming home, she is always incredibly welcoming and professional. She’s very efficient with the mail and deliveries and always goes the extra mile to help residents. She is a credit to the management team and makes a huge difference to the atmosphere here.

A lot of research had been done before moving into this property and we have no regrets. Starting from the location, to the amenities, the design, environment, a sense of community to bring pet friendly - Bale and Anchor has it all. Although I hope maintenance requests can be accelerated, it takes ages for a request to look into. Furthermore, Homebox is a rising and painful concern. That contractor should be changed if Bale and Anchor wants their tenants to stay back!