South London Lofts Ltd Avis 

The only positive thing I can say is that the build itself was fast. While we have achieved a good finished product, that is at the cost of a lot of blood, sweat and tears from us.

As pointed out by other reviewers, you pay the initial deposit to South London Lofts and then they hand you off to sub-contractors. We were clear upfront that we had never done anything like this before and were assured that the project manager would tell us everything we needed to know.

South London Lofts quotes it’s service aim as giving “you the best loft conversion speedily built and to the highest of quality, for a competitive price & to make the process as painless as possible.” For us, we took this to mean that the project manager would explain what decisions we had to make by when and what the options were; to possibly make suggestions if things would work better another way; to be a conduit between the trades to make sure they delivered what we asked for; and to perform some level of quality control. This was absolutely NOT what we experienced.

A summary of the issues we had:

- The project manager provided no information about what decisions needed to be made by when and what our options were. The standard level of the information provided was “The electrician is coming next week.”
- The balcony and windows were all doubled in size without communicating this to us at all to check if it left us enough wall space and to consider implications for heat loss etc.
- During the initial sales meeting we were shown a clay tile and given the name of the colour as an example of the tiles included in the price - when it came to choose tiles, we were told only concrete tiles were included and clay was extra.
- When we indicated that we would get other quotes for roofing we were told that using other tradespeople would invalidate our warranty with South London Lofts.
- When we raised concerns a few weeks in about the lack of communication and misleading info about tiles we received a strong-arm response effectively saying that if we weren’t happy they could take all the builders off the job and we can find another builder knowing full well that would be next to impossible.
- There were generally no plans/drawings to record our decisions and when considerable errors were made (e.g. wrong size shower) we were told we must have forgotten what we agreed to. Similarly we were charged extra for work we didn’t ask for, approve or want and had to fight to have the charges removed.
- The project manager’s response to a lot of our questions was a shrug and roll of the eyes. For example, we asked the project manager for dates of when the plastering/roofing would finish so we could organise exterior painting, joinery and tiling to start. The response was a shrug and roll of the eyes “I don’t know, ask the roofer.” We had to really press for an estimated date.
- When we pointed out that e.g. the plastering was of very poor quality and would need considerable patching the response was a shrug, roll of the eyes and words to the effect of “you can’t get good tradespeople these days.”
- We saw the project manager approximately once in the last four weeks of the build and only because we specifically asked him to come.
- Most of the tradespeople spoke little to no English so communication was very difficult.
- The fittings used e.g. lights and power sockets are very cheap and they look it.
- It took weeks and weeks for the scaffolding to finally be removed.
- The house was absolutely filthy throughout the build. I think they probably gave it a quick clean once or twice. Otherwise we had to clean up regularly including taking a lot of building debris outside to be collected and constantly sweeping up nails outside front and back.
- We had considerable damage to our front hedge from the tube for the rubble, and also had damage to our front foot path from the scaffolders smashing the scaffolding boards on the ground - this was patched.

We were able to get a good final product by using other tradespeople as much as possible instead of going through South London Lofts for e.g. joinery, tiling, painting, etc. And by spending a lot of time and effort patching the plastering, sanding, re-patching.

I was called by SLL and abused for this review.

Update - I can confirm that concerns were raised throughout with the project manager and once with the salesperson who said we should only raise concerns with the project manager. I laughed on the phone in utter disbelief that the caller implied I was lying and wrong. My review isn’t bitter - just factual. SLL’s response to my review says everything you need to know about them… I’ve set out what my expectations were so others can consider if those were reasonable and align with theirs. I submitted a GDPR request using a template after being contacted and abused over the phone this evening.

We have just had an extension completed by South London Lofts. This is the second time we have used them; they built our loft in 2016. They are a very honest and hardworking group of guys; we cannot fault their workmanship. The on-site builders were very respectful, each night they left the building site clean, tidy and secure.
South London Lofts were so impressive when they built our loft, in 2016, that we knew when we were ready to get our extension, we would use them again. We did get a couple of quotes and South London Lofts were very competitive. Craig visited us on both occasions and went through the plan, outlining any additional costs we need to consider, this is made very clear and we were grateful, as they are not always apparent when you are thinking of have building work. Sergio our Project Manager was absolutely lovely, he always answered my calls and kept me well informed of each stage, he even helped us out on a few occasions, once when my son took the radiator off and our heating stopped, he sent a plumber immediately, at no extra cost. The quality of our build is amazing, we cannot fault it, we simply love the outcome. I would most definitely use them again and I would highly recommend them.

We have just had our loft conversion completed by South London Lofts. They have been extremely efficient from start to finish from the initial quote to completion. The work started much sooner than other quotes we obtained and they have stuck to the schedule. All the teams were professional throughout and all coordinated smoothly by our project manager who was available 24/7. I would use them again.

Absolute 5 star experience from the initial meeting and consultation with Brian through to the execution via project manager Paul and his construction teams! Big thanks to Romas’ team, everyone was amazingly polite, sympathetic to the age of our house and understanding of our needs, happy to be flexible and comms throughout we’re fantastic!

We’ll be back in a couple of years to discuss a kitchen extension!

None of the nightmares you hear about - the roof was off swiftly and replaced with the structure and made weather proof double quick. The whole build took around 8-10 weeks and was a very smooth and enjoyable process!

We arranged a full refurbishment, back extension and loft conversion of a terraced house in south west London. The pandemic and Brexit have not been kind to us. The whole experience has been enormously stressful, time consuming and expensive. The only part of this project which has gone entirely smoothly has been the loft extension and upstairs refurbishment, which were aspects dealt with by Mindy and South London Lofts. This work was done, in spite of challenging conditions (and neighbours!) extremely quickly and in line with costs and other estimates. Mindy showed a genuine concern to get the work done efficiently. He was responsive to us at all times. The suppliers he put us in touch with were reliable and a pleasure to work with. We will use Mindy as a first port of call for any query or work we require going forwards. Highly rated from our perspective!

Our loft conversion has just been completed. Very happy with the end result and have already recommended a friend. Everyone involved are professional and work to a good standard.
We were told by a previous builder that we couldn’t have a conversion due to a low roof pitch, however after a quick conversation with Brian he assured us this was possible and at a reasonable price. It’s a little more disruptive and dusty but well worth it and we managed to get the double bedroom and bathroom we wanted. Don’t let this put you off.... South London Lofts are able to advise on unusual conversions.

We hired SLL to help us convert our loft into an extra bedrooms and bathroom in a very tight deadline as we needed the extra space to accommodate our son, as well as home offices for me and my wife.
They were great throughout and helped us resolve any issues that came up along the way. Paul was very good keeping things running smoothly.
Definitely recommend their services

We have had a very positive experience with South London Lofts from start to finish. Our timing for starting a large dormer loft conversion couldn’t have been worse starting as we did in one of the wettest Septembers in the middle of Covid, but Paul and the different teams who came in at various stages all did a great job whilst being quick and efficient.
Everything has been done to a very high standard, roofing, electrics and plumbing, in fact the building inspector who signed off the job for the council made a point of telling us it was a very good job, which he didn’t have to mention.
The best advise I can give is to try and have as many of the choices you will have to make regarding socket/light fittings, windows, shower trays etc, researched and chosen, as they come at you thick and fast once the work begins.
All in all, we are delighted with the results and would recommend to anyone without hesitation.

I’ve had good experience all around with SLL, they did my actual loft conversion 3 years ago and were quick, professional and standards very high. No hidden costs, all very transparent. Have recommended them to friends who have gone on to have work done with the them also. We are now moving and in need of another loft extension , I went straight back to Brian who has been so helpful visiting property and giving us realistic ideas and quotes. Really helpful and hopefully able to help with our next project !

We live in Brockley and have South London Lofts in and we’re very happy with the end result great... Viktor the roofing work is the best I’ve seen on out street... we would recommend SLL

South London Lofts did fantastic conversion for us.
L shape dormer with two rooms, plus shower room

Beautiful project, we're so pleased we got it done, as we really needed the extra space working from home

Mindaugus was the project manager and was always on hand to discuss what was happening next and keeping us update, very good indeed.
He also helped us get the project completed with the decoration and some extras we needed, also tradesman were on hand to help with these, we had a heating upgrade as our boiler was old and not up to it.

It was great also watching work so fast putting in the loft shell in place in the 1st couple of weeks

Happy to recommend them

We recently had our loft in Southwark converted by South London Lofts. It was for a mansard conversion that required planning permission and the entire process was handled efficiently from start to finish, and the end result is a great addition to our home. We would definitely recommend them to others.

South London loft did my loft conversion. Good quality of work and really nice workers. Even in the middle of the pandemic they managed to deliver good quality work. I already have recommended them to other friends. They are very competitive also
Good job!

We had a very good experience with South London Lofts and a great project manager, Paul. He communicated well throughout the process and was extremely helpful in getting any glitches resolved quickly. They have created a wonderful, sturdy and beautiful space that we're delighted with. We can recommend South London Lofts for your space conversion.

South London loft recently did my loft/terrace extension and refurbished my kitchen. After obtaining a handful of quotes they were the most price competitive. After a few very helpful detailed meetings explaining how the process was going to work, they started within a few weeks of confirm terms. They did a great job from start to finish. There were various different traders men who visit for the different jobs, they were all extremely professional and there work was excellent. My project manager did an excellent job throughout, dealing with all my questions and pushing the project forward. He ensure that the tradesmen’s were on site at the right times, with clear instructions, so we stuck to the timeline. I would not hesitate to use them again!!

I chose south London lofts for a recent two bedroom, two bathroom conversion in Colliers Wood.

I obtained a handful of quotes, and was met by Craig who explained about the company and their model. During the initial sales process Craig was very helpful and once I everything was agreed I received updated drawings within hours, and the build was ready to start within a fortnight.

One of the reasons I chose South London Lofts was that they had a physical office in Balham. I considered others, who had mailbox offices or shared registered offices which didn’t make me feel confident with such a large purchase.

South London Lofts use separate teams of tradespeople who work in the same trade day in and day out. This was different to other companies who used the same people to do all the trades - I think this has resulted in a better end result.

The build progressed quickly and was completed within the time that was estimated. I kept in contact with the project manager and he made me aware of what was happening and when. Each of the teams of tradespeople were easy to deal with, and very attentive - the plumbers were very helpful to put everything in the exact place, the electricians came round in advance to agree socket locations etc - everything was well organised and detailed.

There was one minor issue - which I reported to the project manager and someone was round to fix the issue within 20 minutes. I was impressed with how quickly they responded.

I’m very happy with the quality of the work and would recommend them to anyone considering a loft conversion.

South London lofts did a great conversation for us, we can highly recommended them. Their 1st shell guys are amazing, working so fast to build the main extension shell in just 2 weeks. It’s wasn’t long before we had to make decisions regarding the positions of the electrical and plumbing aspects of the work, such as lights sockets, radiators and shower room suite. We have to say we kind of knew it was going to be a great conversation because our friends had used them, we weren’t disappointed with the end result fantastic price too would highly recommend them x

Amazing service and build by South London Lofts for our loft extension. We had Marius and his team carried out their work very professionally, very efficient but all work care and with our needs/requests catered for especially on extra large Velux windows, extra large French windows/doors and recommended a sky light for the staircase which allows so much natural light into our house. From start to finish SLL were exlempary and I would highly recommend to anyone thinking of having a loft extension. Keep up the good work SLL

We had a double bedroom and large bathroom built in our loft. The work was well done and all the tradesmen were clean and tidy. They were all very respectful to our property and were very quick to change anything that we weren’t happy with.
Very pleased with the end result.

South London Lofts carried out a loft extension and bathroom conversion to our home in the summer/autumn of 2020. The quality or work is high and we are pleased with the end result. The tradesmen were hard-working, respectful of our home and were good at keeping mess etc to a minimum. The project manager was responsive and helpful throughout. Would recommend.