Hello, me and my wife are planning to move to Stoke in the next few weeks for work related reasons along with our pet (indoor cat). We both are full time working professionals. I did find a property that allows pets & spoke to the agent already. They advised us to come for a viewing in-person.
As we are moving from the north-east, I requested for an online viewing or if I could arrange someone to do the viewing on my behalf which my work colleagues are happy to do. They declined these options and want me to attend the viewing myself. My worry is that, the agency is just asking you to drive all the way to attend a viewing and then decide to reject us afterwards and waste my time and money.
How is the rental market scenes in Stoke? Is it fast moving where you like a place, pay the deposit and rent and move in instantly or the agents require you to do multiple viewings and can take months before even letting you know if you have been accepted or rejected?
I have faced similar issues when I used to live in Kingston upon Hull. Luckily my boss recommended me to a local agent and they offered the house for rent without any hassles.
Unfortunately in my current work place, my colleagues are mostly Irish & no one is really from Stoke itself. So they have nothing like that to offer to us apart from providing a guarantor if needed.