Shady company
Waited for over a month to receive a contract from them which was not even valid and was incorrect. They kept promising to deliver but kept missing their own self-imposed deadlines.
They also charge service fees to the prospective tenants, especially internationals. There are many useful guides on the internet for expats on how to reclaim unjust agency fees. Don't be fooled by names such as "credit check fee" or "short-term contract fee" or whatever creative name the agents at the Rental shop come up with to charge tenants. None of these fees are legal since the Rental Shop represents the landlord and should not be charging the tenant. The Dutch law is clear on this.
Luckily, in my case, the landlord refunded me when he found out I (the tenant) had been charged by the rental shop behind his back and he also sorted out the contract for me, much quicker and with less hassle than the rental shop.
The Rental Shop called me after two months, asking me to take down my review (on Google) and having the audacity to claim the fees are not illegal. They also claimed that the actions of the Amsterdam branch of the rental shop are not related to the rest of the business.
Navigating the rental market in Amsterdam is already stressful and the rental shop has certainly made it much harder than it needed to be for me, I hope others can learn from my experience with this company.
Edit: Response to the rental shop's reply
1. I only mailed the so-called "different company" in Amsterdam, never mailed you. It is interesting that their emails had the same domain, the same logo, and the same letterhead as you since you are a "different company".
2. If you are a different company than the one in Amsterdam, then how did you get my number and call me? If you were in fact a different company, I never shared my number with you and you should not have stalked me and investigate my sensitive personal details from a so-called "different company in Amsterdam".
3. If you are a different company than the one in Amsterdam, then why do you still share the same website and the same name? The property was advertised on your shared website and no distinction was made that there are multiple companies. It was all called the rental shop.
It is the same company. With the same logo, same name, same website, and they even exchanged my phone number between their people in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. If you check out their website, you will find both branches listed there.
November 16, 2020
Unprompted review