Hackney Road, London, E2

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

The location itself is convenient, with good transport connections and easy access to central London. However, the area can feel very busy and noisy, and the overall experience depends heavily on the quality of the accommodation itself.

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

The reception staff have always been polite, friendly, and professional. However, the response to serious room-related issues and requests for flexibility has been disappointing. Several problems were reported, but some were not properly resolved. For example, issues such as noise from the fuse box, mattress quality, and room differences were dismissed as being standard, despite later moving to another room where these problems did not exist. When we raised concerns about the temperature making the room extremely difficult to live in, we requested a reasonable solution, such as changing to a shorter membership period or finding a replacement tenant. Unfortunately, no flexible solution was offered.

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

I wish I had known that this was a membership agreement rather than a standard tenancy agreement, and that there would be very limited flexibility once signed. I would also have wanted to know more about room conditions, especially temperature control during hot weather. The room became extremely hot at night, making it impossible to sleep comfortably for months. I would strongly recommend future residents carefully check the contract terms, understand the exit conditions, and view the exact room before committing.

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

There a lots of really great supermarkets and things to do in the area! Sainsburys Local is JUST down the road and is open till pretty late. Boxpark also has some fantastic food options, with some events happening here too (weekly quizzes!) I’d say the only downside to living here is the lack of parking, particularly when you have guests over. As someone who doesn’t own a car, but frequently has visitors over, it’s very difficult to find affordable, all day parking

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

Yes they are very good at responding any issues I raise

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

The rooms have no ovens!! But there are ovens on the 12th floor.

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

Love absolutely everything about Ark, the community events, sunday brunch and what not. Only bad thing I would say is temporary residents/hotel guests, I wish long stay guests had more separation from the short term guests because it can be disturbing at times.

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

Yes they are mostly quick with resolving any problems that I may have

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

I wish I knew more about the long stay residency and short stay. How the building is also a hotel

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

Good - the area feels very safe and is well lit at night. I have never had any bad experiences walking around the area at any times of day. Bad - can be difficult on event days to get around as roads are closed.

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

They usually respond quickly to my issues and always try to find a solution

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

Don’t go out on an event day until everyone is inside the stadium!!

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

The good aspects about living in my area are safety and shops to buy food, however, it feels a bit far from the tube.

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

Yes, within 24h. They were really helpful, I hope this continues being that way as for now, no improvements are needed.

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

I wish I’d known short stays would be staying there.