$#*! THIS $#*! THIS the website sucks anyway, aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaasaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
I have used SpareRoom since 2014 when I first got into the shared living "experience" after moving to the city and discovering that is how most people live due to costs of living being much more. I have rented 5 rooms since then and every single one of them has been extremely negative. No, I'll rephrase... every single experience has been hell. SpareRoom DOES NOTHING to mediate the process and merely push themselves as 'advertisers' therefore abdicating responsibility for being an intermediary. This creates the potential for an unregulated toxic environment where tenants have a diminished perceived role in the whole process, one of being a pawn in the herrendous housing market. SpareRoom willingly promotes this unbalanced unfair and incredibly negative dynamic. I have met some of societys most deprived, challenged and violent individuals while renting rooms from the toxic rogue landlords from SpareRoom and many times had to involve the council, police and seek legal advice. I have been physically threatened, physically assaulted, mentally and emotionally abused, harrassed and thrown into some of the most disgusting situations I have ever encountered. And why? Because I chose to use SpareRoom and rent a room that was listed on their app/site. What I found is the lowest of the low in both landlord and the experience that came about as a result.
SpareRoom ARE complicit in all of it by choosing to pretend they have no responsibility over the community they have chosen to create. Scum landlords prowl the app as well as predatory agents who exploit the already horrific housing crisis here in the UK. They exploit the app because it's a free-for-all. There are no community standards, no vetting process, nothing. Ads are often left up days, weeks and even months after a room is taken while SpareRoom does nothing to prevent this. Landlords freely discriminate and dominate the proceedings because the app allows for no balanced relationship dynamic. You either take what they are given or you leave. Landlords send blacket spammy messages to prospective tenants without even so much as looking at their requirements. I've had landlords send me referrals to ads which are way out of my budget and some of them even wanted female tenants! Do you really care so little to spend a few seconds looking at a profile picture to see the gender of the person you are sending a message to? When you send a message back to clarify they ignore you but will continue to send them! Many of the ads are fake or massively misleading, the content of the ads are fake so many times as well such as the pictures and descriptions which often don't remotely match up with the reality of the room you then go on to view. SpareRoom's response? NOTHING. They don't care in the slightest. They make money from the landlords who display premium listings which then allow free members to message them. They absolutely do not want to lose their cash cows to regulating their services better.
To make things worse more and more people are now struggling to cope due to COVID-19 and to give back SpareRoom have chosen to discretely remove any indication of housing benefit on the ads posted to the app/site. More and more people are now reliant on benefits than ever before through no fault of their own, many able and ready (if not desperate) to return back to work. You can still search for those that may accept housing benefit but when you get the results there is NOTHING to indicate OF ANY KIND any ad does and may accept housing benefit. You have to second guess. You're not worth a simple indication. They have removed ALL indication from their searches/search results. I guess all those millions of people now reliant on some form of state support due to a crisis in COVID-19 they weren't responsible for deserved to have their lives made just that little bit harder thanks to the evident discrimination and direction SpareRoom want to go with their products.
They don't care about the end user. They don't care about looking after the community they so aptly rant and rave about supporting. There is no support. You are quite literally on your own with this app surrounded by predatory landlords and agents who have capitalized on the lawlessness of this app/site. And I say this based on 6 whole years of accrued experience with this app/site and the experiences I have had as a result.
SpareRoom is a meat market for landlords/agents run by a company that has no connection to their audience other than providing a sub quality service. The end user has very little say in the whole process and simply has to put up or shut up when it comes to the quality, reliability and peace of mind of this app/site. OpenRent for example which has it's flaws at least attempts to balance out the renting process by balancing the responsibilities of both tenant and landlord. You are required to at least make an effort and adhere to some level of standards, unlike SpareRoom, where that doesn't apply in the slightest.
This is by far the best example of how BAD relying on apps/sites like this can be. I'd much rather go through the necessary tediousness of ringing around landlord and agents the old fashioned way and facing the same age old aches and pains of renting then give that responsibility to a company that doesn't even accept that responsibility in the first place! They will happily tell you they are simply an advertising platform which therefore means they really don't exist when it comes to being involved in the process, at least according to their mission statement anyway.
Stay away
Spareroom had my review taken down on Trust Pilot which I think is wrong on so many levels. I have a right to leave a review. They are a pathetic company. They just expect 5 star reviews which is unrealistic.
My experience renting from spareroom with private landlords and agencies has not been great. One house share I lived in for 5 months had bed bugs and I didn't get my deposit back of £250 all I got back was £80. The landlord accused me of leaving tea stains on the wall near the radiator. I had to live on £80 till pay day and cried in my new house thinking what am I going to do. Especially after spending rent and deposit on the new place.
The 2nd place wanted rent the 1st of every month despite me paying rent every month. So sadly I had to move out. The people were nice and friendly so I cried when I had to leave. But there was one girl who complained my tv was too loud. But after that we were cool.
The 3rd house share a guy tried to come in the bathroom I was very scared. I reported him to the police. The agency didn't have my back at all. Another guy always complained to the agency about noise banging of doors. The doors were heavy. It was never on purpose.
Then the 4th house I moved in with a live in landlord she was harassing and abusive to me. I had to report her to the police twice. Also, she only told me she had bi-polar disorder when I moved in. I was told by a professional that she shouldn't be renting to people if she does. It was awful. She also didn't give me my £450 deposit back on the day of leaving. I was very upset. I contacted her to give it back to no avail. I had to borrow money till I got paid which only led me into debt.
The 5th house share had 4 people who made my life a living hell who were racist and verbally abusive to me. One Portuguese woman even went as far as to bang on my door at 3am to accuse me of making noise. I was scared for my life and reported her to the police. Then when I emailed the agent the agent showed her the email I sent. The agent had no respect for me and doesn't know anything about privacy and confidential emails. I heard the Portuguese lady tenant slagging me off in the kitchen with two other female tenants saying "oh she said I spoke to her like an animal, well I'll show her what an animal is." Then what she did to get revenge on me is call the police on me and accuse me of stabbing her. I never have had anyone call the police on me before. I was shocked and disgusted. I was the blame for literally anything and everything despite not being the only person who lived there. There were five people who lived in the house 4 females including me and 1 guy. These people who I lived with had it out for me.
Despite going to court for only rent arrears the 2 female tenants wrote false statements about me and the agent put it forward to the judge. The judge dismissed it. While I lived there I stopped paying rent & had to go court on 3 occasions as the judge adjourned the hearing as the agent didn't send me any Section 8 which is notice to leave. I only received court papers for rent arrears.
I had to get outside help to liaise with the agent of paying my rent arrears. But the agent never told me they were taking me to court. I was blind sighted. I only ended up in rent arrears after losing my job. I wanted to move out so bad before it got to that stage but obstacles were in my way. I lost my new job as I didn't pass my probation. So I was stuck there in the House Of Hell with 4 demons. I had demon nightmares. It was a wicked place to live in.
My solicitor was really good hence I got the judges to adjourn the hearing as the agent and landlord couldn't give proof of sending me a Section 8 which is notice. The new judge when I went back gave the landlord possession. But if I failed to pay my rent they could get me evicted. If I lost the case I could have ended up paying £7,000 in court fees. That's what the landlord wanted to do to me. Plus the agent had the kitchen ripped out for 4 weeks. Due to renovation. They failed to deduct rent for 4 weeks when they said it was 2 weeks it would take to be completed. It was so noisy and unbearable. I had to buy takeaways and go to the launderette for 4 weeks. It cost me a fortune. Luckily I bought a microwave in my room so I had microwave foods so it saved me a bit of money. I bought a microwave so I could avoid seeing those tenants in the kitchen. I also had my own fridge I bought a year prior so didn't have to share a fridge with them. Thank God! In house shares people do steal your food hence I bought one. I would get so frustrated in the past to come home after work to find out my milk had been nicked to make a cup of tea or food for dinner.
Eventually I saved up for a deposit and rent to get my own flat. I have been living in a year now. The abuse I got from the last two house shares has left a psychological devastating effect on my life. I get bad dreams from the last house share. I am scarred for life. I will never be the same again. It's changed my character and my belief in humanity. The world is a cruel wicked place to live in. Do not rent from Spareroom the people that use the site who advertise should be DBS checked. People are not to be trusted. You have to be so careful.
I was in total disappointment the the LandLord that I rented out from that she had no key to give me upon giving her rent. Her Dog which is a pit bull is her deadbolt for protection. Her house is totally unlocked she heavily relies on her pit bull to protect the house with all doors unlocked day and night 7 days a week. Upon staying there Within the first two days my staying there I noticed my brand new bottle of expensive Olive oil in a nice beautiful can was all scratched up... she has no locks on the room doors anyone can just come into your room and do whatever they want. I made no accusations I just stated to her that my expensive can of Olive oil was scratched up. She immediately got offended and said I was accusing her: I told I wasn't but that I did have suspicions about the one other tenant who always went to the restroom immediately after I used it every time I used it. I felt this very odd and discomforting. There weee strange things happening in her house that I did not like Strange knock on my door I opened the door and in comes a big fat water bug oversized cockroach. I was taking a shower and I hear a strange knock at the door, I stay silent the bathroom door is closed but no one on the other side responds leaving me feeling very eerie inside. I was looking at a web site of adult material in my own spare time my phone was hack by nosy neighbor in the house my business was spread concerning my privacy. I said only one thing to her and the was what else gave you learned about me seeing they wanted to see what I was watching not bothering nobody she the landlord got offended again and wanted to know what I meant by that... I basically was not trying to make a issue out of it but just go my way and not bother with it anymore but she wanted to be persistent and kept asking what I meant by that so I said looking up things on the computer just to say anything to keep from having to go into what she unbelievingly kept asking me. I really was not trying to make a big thing out of this because I just planned on moving on and enjoy the rest of my day. After couple days she comes to me complaining about what was said which I had moved on and forgot the whole scenario and now she is talking she wants me out and trying to say I am not happy here which i never said and if I had decide to move I would have told her. But I had no intentions because I was alright. I didn't let a few mishaps cause me to think about running from her place but she obviously was unhappy trying make like I was unhappy with her place which I never said. Nevertheless she asked me to moved and I had not even been there for two months. I feel that I wasted time and precious money. I would not advise anyone to go to this woman's place at 52dr in Maspeth Queens NY green house the house is not secure she never keeps lock and she heavily depends on her out bull to guard the house. There is no locks on the doors of your room so tenant who is nosy can go into your room anytime. Who's to say? My food has been tampered with my box of cereal open brand new was never opened by me: she the LandLord has no lock on my door so my privacy to my belonging can be violated. I have a secret camera video recording in the room when I am gone. Nevertheless I have to leave because she the landlord is trying to make it that I'm not happy there. When in all actuality she is the one not happy. She fussed over the smallest of things and that's a fidgety landlord that just can't be pleased. I would not want to rent to someone like this ever again. Now I got to find a new place all over again. I think she is too smart for her own good.
"When you're a Jet you're a Jet all the way..."
They take no responsibility even when there is MASSIVE information available to them.
They sound so "safe". Yes, for opportunists, profiteers and those who know they'll never have anyone taking them to court for flagrantly violating local laws regarding roommate/share situations.
SURE -- they used to "advise" their advertisers to check local laws.
No mention that under FEDERAL law, Flatshare Ltd, of Manchester, UK, which OWNS the Spare Room web site is fully responsible for falsehoods placed on their site, and the FTC, which enforces FCC regulations, can take the site down in a heartbeat.
They let people register just to trawl the waters for people in need in the worst housing market in US history -- then say "Oh, so sorry... we have no jurisdiction over people like that, but please keep us informed..." right into the circular file.
And those profiteers (profiteering -- a federal felony, go look it up, it falls under the RICO statutes) who've been breaking local "roommate" laws for years, and years and years -- easy to track them... but "we have no way of..." blah, blah, blah... a load of H. S.
You find the lies in the ads... they say "we have no access to the ads." (HUH? I found one in 3 minutes, several months after it was posted -- while someone was still living there and it even said "available: now".
Keep copies of EVERYTHING on Spare Room. You will need it in court.
Take your chances. Be firm. Remember, opportunists and profiteers don't care about the LAW -- they know you're desperate and will take you for all you're worth.
The "moderators" give you a load of hooey. "Keep us posted." (reply no. 4 on their list)
They don't know that OUR federal agencies consider EVERYTHING POSTED ON THEIR WEB SITE IS THEIR RESPONSIBILITY, AS ARE ALL CRIMES COMMITTED USING THEIR WEB SITE.
Do not fall for their B. S.
Yes, they have JUST RECENTLY added a great deal of cautionary verbiage lately -- now that they know they're about to answer to the U.S. Attorney General, a state Attorney General, and a local District Attorney.
But they're just another commercial enterprise that thinks an ocean absolves them of any culpability.
It does not.
Know your laws backward and forward.
"Just an advertising platform," they say. Really? They are a commercial enterprise in one of England's most corrupt cities. (Manchester is second only to the London Metropolitan police force.)
Our country dealt with ADVERTISING in the 1960s. Of course, these guys weren't even born then.
Go into this venture well armed.