Clarendon Quarter, LS3

In general it is good and I was satisfied, but here I highlight a few not-so-good points: Flats in The Court building have no washing machine: there is a circuit laundry in the basement with not many washing machines/driers for such a large amount of people. Also, flats in the court have no classic oven (it is more like an advanced microwave). There is no option to change the provider of utilities or negotiate the price (Community Utilities for water and electricity, Glide for internet). Importantly, since the owners and management changed, the bills for utilities have been increasing a lot (way over the inflation rates). Critically, the bills have raised due to increased/added fixed monthly charges. So, it almost does not matter if you try to consume less. In my case, ~80% of my bill consisted of fixed charges (£45.5), and only ~20% due to actual consumption. Additionally, despite paying the council tax, you have no right to park your car in the neighbourhood. You cannot obtain a residence parking permit. I found out that residence parking permits depend on an agreement between the building (Clarendon Quarters in this case) and the Council. This unfair agreement for the tenant might partially arise from the fact that Clarendon Quarters offers private parking inside the building for a price... The upper management is not really good, but I would like to highlight that the lower management/reception team are very nice and helpful (special mention to Joe, thanks!). I would finally like to mention that there is a nice free gym in the basement, and that all house repairs are typically well-taken care off in a remarkably short time.

I think Clarendon Quarter has great facilities such as the the car park which provides the option for shelter for your vehicle or pedal bike. Aswell as the gym and communal washing facilities. Security and cctv along with the security gates with electronic access are also provided which puts the mind at ease to your valuables as security are working 24/7

The Court Building is a historic structure with exquisite sculptures, a towering top floor, and vintage glass Windows. It is very beautiful and spectacular. Walking through this building gives one a feeling of traveling through history. The Garden Building is a modern-style building. Both buildings require keys to enter and are very safe. Both buildings have large lounge rooms, which are very spacious and bright and are very suitable for studying and gatherings with friends. A wide garden is behind the building where you can walk, sunbathe, and walk your dog (This apartment is pet-friendly). The facilities in the community are very complete. The gym is relatively large and well-equipped. The laundry room is very large. Besides the washing machine and dryer, electric irons and clotheslines are also available. Garbage classification is done very well, and plenty of parking Spaces are in the parking lot. I really enjoy the time living here.

Re. CQ the Court. The Court has great historic value and the characterful building previously was, (and still has the potential to be), an excellent place to live, but the experience is now overshadowed by the hassle of dealing with the ineffective management team, who took ownership of the building in Oct/Nov 23, and the building appears to suffer from poor maintenance as it is in noticeably deteriorating condition compared to when I moved in in March 23. The building, though historic, does not appear to be maintained to a good standards and parts of the building appear to be deteriorating quite quickly, as pictured. The front gates of the development are also regularly broken (unlocked) and the main lift is often out of use. Due to recent bad weather, the roof of the Court has also leaked in certain areas of the building, rendering stairwells out of use. I often saw fly-tipping in the surrounding area in which the development is situated (see picture) and smash-and-grabs from parked cars on the main road in the summers were a real problem. The local shop is also, from what the staff say, constantly dealing with armed robberies. The management team, although friendly in person, are extremely hard to get in contact with and provide unreasonably slow responses to emails, sometimes upwards of eleven days, despite repeated chaser telephone calls and emails. It should not be that hard for a tenant to receive a response to an email within a reasonable time-frame (and was not so with the previous management). Though I was prepared to give the benefit of the doubt on the first few occasions that emails went unanswered or had unreasonable delays in response, this unprofessional level of communication unfortunately was commonplace and regretfully became expected. Upon visiting the reception office in person in attempts to seek clarity or resolve issues, I was, on numerous occasions, told that what I had said/requested would be 'passed on' to the manager or, on some occasions, would be actioned but yet it often transpired that messages were not passed on & action was not taken or, when it was, it was only so after further chasing. Clear and effective communication from the new management is lacking and this view appears to be the consensus amongst the majority of residents. The housekeeping staff and the security team are worthy of praise and are friendly, and though other tenants voiced to me that they sometimes found certain security guards a little abrasive when asked whether a parcel has arrived, this was not my experience. The battery in the my front door fob, which is necessary to access the tenant's apartment, died on approximately five occasions, over the course of a few months from May 24, on these repeated occasions rendering me locked out of the room and so I had to go to the reception and on all but one of these occasions I was assisted by Joe, one of the members of staff, who was able to change the internal door battery, and was always helpful and apologetic. However the third occasion in which the fob broke took place on a weekend in late June 24 (when the management staff are not on site) and, due to the door handle also not being fully operational (and thus the lock un-openable by the guard's site master key), I was locked out for 4.5 hours and had to await a locksmith's arrival from Dewsbury in order to gain access to the room; it was very disappointing that I was locked out of my own room, given that the situation would've not been unforeseen/could've been avoided by management in that 1. I had been told on the second occasion that I was locked out that a replacement door monitor would be ordered to ensure that I was not locked out again but yet the monitor was not replaced and 2. I had raised the faulty door handle on two occasions – on my check in report upon initial move-in in April 24 and verbally on the first occasion in which my door fob died in early May 24 but yet the handle was not repaired.

The building has a good design with nice common rooms on each floor. The location is convenient, close to the city center and university. However, the laundry room is often busy, and the washing machines sometimes malfunction, requiring multiple cycles. The biggest issue is the management team—they rarely take responsibility and often shift blame onto tenants. Rent was affordable when I moved in three years ago, but it has increased every year. While it was good value initially, there are now better options for the same price without the hassle of poor management and service.