Ascot Road, Watford, WD18

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

The best aspect of living in the local area is its location. It is situated in the heart of the city centre, with excellent access to shops, restaurants, bars, entertainment venues, public transport and other amenities. Everything is within walking distance, making it an extremely convenient place to live. The area is vibrant, diverse and lively, with plenty to do throughout the year. I do not have any significant concerns about the local area itself. The location offers a good balance of convenience, accessibility and entertainment, and I have generally found it to be an enjoyable place to live. My concerns relate more to the management and operation of the building rather than the surrounding neighbourhood.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Building management generally responds to reported issues, although resolution times can sometimes be slower than expected. My experience has been that problems are acknowledged, but the process of getting them fully resolved can be frustrating. I have also found that interactions with some members of staff can feel dismissive or lacking in professionalism. On one occasion, I felt uncomfortable during a visit from a maintenance contractor due to behaviour that I perceived as inappropriate, which left me feeling uneasy in my own home. Whilst issues are usually responded to eventually, I believe there is room for improvement in both the speed of response and the overall standard of customer service provided to residents.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I wish I had known that the reality of living here would be very different from the image presented during the viewing and marketing process. Whilst the location is excellent and the residents are generally friendly, the overall standard of management, maintenance and customer service has been disappointing. I was not expecting the frequency of maintenance access requests, the volume of emails sent to residents, the regular issues with lifts, or the limited availability of facilities such as the Sky Lounge. I also wish I had known that the apartments offered relatively poor sound insulation and that communal areas would not always be maintained to the standard expected of a luxury development. Most importantly, I wish I had known more about the day to day management experience. In my experience, some members of staff can be rude, dismissive and unhelpful when dealing with residents. A more professional, approachable and customer focused attitude would have made a significant difference to my overall experience. Had I known these things in advance, I would have made a more informed decision before choosing to live here.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

I want to start by saying that my first year here was genuinely one of the best living experiences I’ve had. There was a real sense of community, the building’s first anniversary celebration, New Year’s gatherings, neighbours who felt like family. I still look back at photos from that time with a smile. Sadly, that Cortland no longer exists. The building has gradually shifted to student accommodation, and with that shift came a noticeable drop in how residents are treated. The atmosphere in communal spaces has become unwelcoming. Practical issues that have built up over time: 1. The bin room is in a genuinely shocking state. I stepped in today and the level of dirt was such that I was genuinely concerned for my health. 2. There is persistent, strong odour in the lifts and corridors , no ventilation, no resolution. 3. The communal rooms look impressive but are largely unusable. There isn’t a single glass available anywhere in the building, residents have to walk back to their own flat just to get a drink of water. The coffee machine has also been removed. 4. Monthly residents’ meetings are scheduled at times when almost nobody can attend, and have been cancelled on several occasions. The reception situation deserves special mention and to be clear, this is not a criticism of the staff. The reception team are doing their best in an impossible situation. Staffing has been cut significantly most of the time there is nobody at the desk, and at best one person trying to manage everything at once. You can see the exhaustion and low morale on their faces. The warm, genuine smiles that used to greet you are gone and I don’t blame the staff, I blame the system they’ve been put in. The clearest example of how serious this has become: a couple of weeks ago, an ambulance arrived at reception looking for a resident. There was nobody at the desk. I happened to be passing on my way to the gym and personally walked the paramedics to the resident’s apartment, because there was simply no one else and a life was potentially at risk. I later found out the sole reception staff member had been taken off the desk to show an apartment because the leasing team no longer exists and reception is now expected to cover that role as well. This is a structural failure by management, and it has real safety consequences.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Residents’ meetings which are the main channel for raising issues — have been cancelled on several occasions and are consistently scheduled at times when most residents cannot attend. Beyond that, there is little evidence of issues being acknowledged or acted upon. The problems I have described (bin room hygiene, smells, understaffing at reception) are ongoing and unresolved.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I wish I had known how much the building would change. When I first moved in, it felt like a genuine community, well-managed, welcoming, and full of life. That is not what it is today. The communal spaces look impressive, but in practice there is nothing available to use. It wasn't always like this there used to be pots, cutlery, and kitchen equipment available. Now you'd be lucky to find a handful of items. Among residents, the general feeling is that management is cutting costs wherever possible, which would explain why even the most basic amenities have quietly disappeared.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

The area around Broad Street is one of the main attractions of living here. There is a wide range of restaurants, cafés, and bars within a short walk, covering everything from casual to upscale, and the quality is generally very good. Supermarkets and everyday shops are easily accessible, and Brindleyplace and the canal offer pleasant open spaces to walk and relax. Transport links are excellent. New Street Station is within walking distance, the tram stop is close by, and bus connections across the city are frequent and reliable. Living on the street itself is generally fine. Bin collection is managed through the building rather than the street, parking can be limited given the central location, and there is some traffic noise at peak times, as expected in a city-centre location. Anti-social behaviour has not been an issue for us.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

In the first year, the response to issues raised was prompt, professional, and properly followed through. In the second year, this has changed significantly. Response times have become slower, issues often require repeated follow-up, and in some cases meaningful action only seems to happen once matters are formally escalated. The responsiveness that defined the earlier experience is no longer consistent.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

One thing I wish I had known before moving in is how much the quality of day-to-day living here depends on the management team rather than on the building itself. On a viewing, you see the apartment, the amenities, and the communal spaces, and on those measures the development is genuinely impressive. What you cannot see is how responsive management will be when something actually goes wrong, and how consistently that responsiveness is maintained over time.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

Cortland is really ideal for shops, gyms, reformer pilates, links to Greater Manchester. There is also a lot of parking available, trams, buses, trains close by. Good restaurants and bars - and links to Manchester Airport.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Steve, Alan, Ant & Charlotte are super stars! Steve and Alan have always been super friendly, approachable and organised. They get everything you need sorted. Steve is the reception OG, he's got everything in an order and he will act on things. Alan has the friendliness and chill everyone I think everyone should have in life! His energy and approach is something we really admire and appreciate living here. Charlotte was so understanding and supported us with a recent situation, really understanding our perspective - which we really appreciate! Ant is amazing - he's always on the ball for repairs, goes out of his way to help and he really does deserve all of the recognition for his hard work around Cortland! As a girl who absolutely lives life without any toolbox, I never feel silly asking Ant for help with repairs and things that I honestly have no idea about!

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

There is a construction site which you should be mindful of before choosing your apartment. But it is each to their own and everyone has a different lifestyle, so this may not impact some people.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

Area is nice but this is no where near worth the hassle and stress associated with living in this building

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Wasted my time over 3 months - stating compensation would be provided after works complete, everytime they tell me works are complete and I ask for the compensation they create another problem to avoid paying

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

The incompetence of the staff - any problem that should be solved swiftly is a HUGE task and inconvenience to the resident