Ashtons Estate Agents - Hertfordshire Avis 9

Already left a google review but wanted to leave a Trustpilot too - genuine tenant review.
The difference between Ashtons and our previous letting agency (Life Residential Greenwich) is night & day.
Emails and phone calls are returned very professionally and promptly.
In particular, Freya from the Harpenden branch was great during our move-in, and maintenance issues have been dealt with by Nicola fantastically.
I would highly recommend renting through Ashtons

A very swift response from Ashtons got the property to market and a buyer for the house in as little as two weeks.

Very efficient and professional service. Kept informed and updated on progress on a weekly basis. Was also able to get my queries answered in a timely fashion.

I recently sold my house through Ashtons in St Albans. My first point of contact was with Alex who was really friendly and helpful.
There were a couple of minor hiccups in communication with the sales team but generally everyone was polite and professional and my sale went through fairly smoothly. Hannah was great in the last few weeks - keeping things moving and letting me know what was happening. I'd happily recommend Ashtons.

I honestly couldn’t fault Ashtons Estate Agents. From the very first point of contact they were friendly, professional and acted with care. Communication was consistent throughout and I was always kept up to date. Once the sale was agreed they stayed on top of everything and kept things moving to completion, despite the inevitable bumps in the road with surveys / solicitors etc. What I will say is this - it’s clear they care about clients, which I’ve not had the experience with from a previous estate agent. I’d definitely recommend them to anyone thinking of buying or selling in Hertfordshire.

Fantastic service from Ashtons, I really couldn’t have asked for more with my moving experience. All staff members I worked with explained processes clearly and provided support above and beyond. Thank you for making a challenging life experience so much easier to navigate.

We recently made the difficult decision to withdraw from the purchase of a property marketed through Ashtons in Harpenden. This decision came after we commissioned a full building survey and an in-depth report into local planning, environmental, and development factors. The findings raised significant concerns, including a high risk of subsidence and flooding, as well as proximity to several large-scale developments.

Shortly after I emailed to confirm our withdrawal, I received a call from a lady named Hannah. She was very understanding, professional, and empathetic - exactly what you would hope for in such a conversation. I appreciated her approach greatly.

However, just a few minutes later, I received a call from James - the agent who had initially dealt with us. I was surprised to be contacted again, having already explained the situation. Unfortunately, this call was markedly different. Rather than seeking to understand or even acknowledge our reasoning, James interrupted me abruptly and questioned the validity of the information we had obtained. He made dismissive remarks such as, “Well, that’s not been approved yet, has it?” and “I don’t see how that would affect you - it’s 10 minutes down the road,” when in fact the site in question is just a 2-minute drive or 8-minute walk away.

More concerning still, James went on to suggest that if this kind of development concerned us, we should “take Harpenden off the table” altogether and look elsewhere - even suggesting we would struggle to buy anywhere because “they’re developing everywhere,” and that we would be better off living in the middle of a city where development wouldn’t be a concern.

His tone was noticeably disbelieving, and he asked where I had obtained the information. Due to the level of doubt he expressed, I offered to send him the documentation we had received from the solicitor as evidence. He responded that he would “absolutely” like me to send it that evening.

However, later in the conversation, I noticed a note on the documents stating that they were not to be shared with third parties, so I was unable to do so.

I felt that the way in which he questioned me and our decision was inappropriate and unprofessional.

His tone was antagonistic and confrontational, and the conversation felt more like an interrogation than a professional discussion. He appeared unwilling to listen, and instead focused on challenging my decision. As a first-time buyer trying to make an informed and responsible choice, I found this not only inappropriate but also extremely disheartening - particularly as we already felt bad about disappointing the sellers.

This experience has left me with serious reservations about engaging with Ashtons in the future. I fully appreciate that the withdrawal from a purchase can be frustrating, but buyers deserve to be treated with respect, especially when they have conducted thorough due diligence and reached their decision in good faith.

Further to our disappointment, we were concerned to find that our detailed email outlining the situation and our concerns has not received any acknowledgement from the Managing Director. We had expected at least a professional response, and the lack of courtesy in this instance has only reinforced our view of the standards we have experienced with Ashtons.

Great experience with Jason @ Ashtons Berkhamsted when buying my home. Communication was excellent, he really drove things forward with my purchase and he was always able to help with my queries. Following completion he has always been available to help me, thanks Jason!

Hmm... so my experience of Estate agents (Ashton's Berkhamsted on this occasion) so far is:

1. Condescending.
2. You must immediately agree with what they say, and do what they say, quickly!!
3. They will consider it inconvenient if you have any queries.

If you don't they'll accept your offer and then promptly take it away and give it to someone else.

That's it, nothing more to say.