London letting agency shuts up shop leaving landlords ‘in the lurch’
The Romford franchise branch of Northwood has closed its doors, and its website is redirecting customers to another office.
The business behind a branch of estate agency Northwood in East London is reported to be going into liquidation after closing its office doors.
The Romford franchise (main image) has shut up shop and its website is redirecting customers to the Southend-on-Sea branch while its telephone number is going unanswered.
And local landlords claim they are owed rent payments, the Romford Recorder reports.
Payments stopped
Landlords tell the newspaper that their regular monthly payments have been delayed before they recently stopped altogether.
One property owner, who has used Northwood for 20 years, said the experience was “hell”. And another landlord said he had been left “in the lurch” by the closure of the branch.
“I was quite lucky that I’ve got a relationship with our tenants, so I’ve managed to sort something out with them,” he said.
“If there had been an issue with the property like a leak, they wouldn’t have anyone they could have contacted, because they shut their Romford office.”
Recovery plan
A spokesperson for Northwood head office told the Recorder that it is “supporting a recovery plan”, which will address any arrears owed to clients.
“While Northwood GB does not exercise day-to-day control over the conduct of its franchisees’ businesses, it deeply regrets the distress and inconvenience the company’s difficulties will have caused to those affected.
“At this early stage in the process, efforts are underway to contact landlord clients of the company, with the priority being to assist and support them in liaising directly with their tenants.”
Northwood is owned by Belvoir, which was bought by The Property Franchise Group earlier this year.
