Origin Housing Reviews 66

I would strongly advise others to think very carefully before entering into shared ownership with Origin Housing, particularly in large estates and high-rise buildings (10–15 floors).
Since 2022, my rent has increased by £147.53, which represents an increase of approximately 22%. This does not include the additional hundreds of pounds in yearly service charges surplus costs, which make the overall financial burden even more significant.

The management of the building and estate has been very poor. There have been serious errors, including being incorrectly charged for a boiler bill belonging to another block. Communication is often delayed or completely absent, even after repeated follow-ups.

There are also ongoing health and safety concerns that have not been properly resolved and have had to be escalated to the Ombudsman, despite intervention from an MP. Additionally, there have been inaccuracies in surveyor reports, including denial of the true source of a leak.

Origin Housing does have a compensation scheme in place for service failures and poor performance; however, in my experience, issues have not been resolved promptly or effectively through this process.

Based on my experience, I would not recommend shared ownership with Origin Housing or shared ownership in large developments or multi-storey buildings.

A man who has a criminal record still lives here, he broke down someone's apartment thrashed the place. Came back after a few days and barely anyone feels safe, some people even had to move and now my house is leaking. No one came to repair it even after being called. This is really bad and I can't honestly handle this anymore. Its poor.

As many people have said wish I could give Origins zero stars. Put in a request for repair in November 2023. and am still waiting. This is for a replacement glass panel on balcony. After several visits by Gilmartins in 2024/25 we were told that they were waiting for permission from Origins. After many phone calls and emails during 2025 we finally put a complaint in threatening legal action. In Dec 2025 we received a 3 page apology assuring us that they were looking into this failure but also stating that if a repair is not done within 12 months then appears to wiped off their to do list . Great method to get out of sorting repairs!!!! It is now 2026 nothing has been done and Gilmartins has informed me [After calling them 3 times) that Origins have not granted permission as it is too expensive.. so I presume it is now more complaints, then maybe writing to the Ombudsman or going to Court.. simply appalled at their attitude to a very dangerous problem. A large gap on the balcony of a 6th floor flat. Two and a half years since first reported and only now have they decided not to do anything about it.

For over 24 hours we have had a serious drainage issue affecting the only toilet in our flat, with sewage backing up into the bath and previous leakage behind the toilet. A drainage engineer confirmed there is a restriction at our connection to the soil stack which could not be cleared using mechanical equipment.

Since then, multiple engineers have attended, spent around 10 minutes attempting work, then left saying they would return with more equipment or support. No one has returned as promised.

I have called the office more than five times. Each time, staff appear unaware of what work has already been done, what the diagnosis is, or what the next steps are. I keep being asked if I “want an appointment”, despite engineers already attending and failing to resolve the issue. There is no clear plan, no ownership, and no follow-up.

The situation has been made worse by repeated visits where the bathroom has been left in an unsanitary state, with sewage water splashed around and no care taken for the property or the people living here.

This is particularly serious as my mother, who lives in the flat, is disabled. Being left without a reliable toilet and with constant uncertainty has been extremely distressing.

This is an urgent sanitation issue involving health and dignity. The lack of care, communication, and accountability shown so far has been unacceptable.

Posting this so others are aware and in the hope that this situation is finally taken seriously and resolved.

The company that is used for repairs gilmartins are useless they often dont show up at all and are very comfortable to tell you lies as to why hopeless

We are extremely frustrated with the management of this block. We are dealing with an emergency in a flat we manage, where maintenance in the communal areas has led to 2cm of water seeping under the wood flooring, causing significant damage. Despite our persistent efforts to get someone to address this issue since Friday, 21st November, no action has been taken. Calls are not being answered promptly, and when we do finally get through after hours on hold, we encounter false information or abrupt call endings. This is our third attempt to reach you on 03003230325. The WhatsApp message we received merely instructs us to call the same number. Immediate attention to this matter is urgently required.

My housing officer is really good and the repairs team are quiet quick to attend to repairs. However origin on a whole have failed miserably. I am on the top floor with medical needs(mobility abd mental health) . I spent almost a year in hospital and still in recovery to this date. Have fallen countless times down the stair with my child,to be told oh they have
put me on a list for a managed transfer thanks, but What they fail to tell people is this list is a floating listyso people will always be ahead of me. (one week you could be 2nd on the list the next week you could be 8th) i fully understand some other people's situations are more in need however this means i will never be rehoused. Its clealry affecting my health making it worse and they simply don't care. Its disgusting they have allowed this to happen to many of their residents.

Worst housing association you can ever come across. They pride themselves for their extremely poor services. Email responses take months, legal teams are almost non existent. Forgot to charge me ground rent for 6 years and then just dumped on me to chase every day.

I have lived in an Origin Housing development for 3 years and at every opportunity they have attempted to scam residents out of money, increase the service fee by over £100/month and take no accountability whatsoever. I would actively avoid this developer in future.

ONE YEAR TO LAY THE FLOORCOVERING , WHICH WAS MEASURED WRONG , A FOOT WHOLE . SHORT . NOW DOORWAY HAS A VERY DANGEROUS JOIN , WHICH I HAVE SNAGGED MY FOOT ON SEVERAL TIMES. 5 WORKMEN HAVE COME TO "LOOK" AT IT ,ENDLESS VAGUE PHONE CALLS FROM ORIGIN &GILMARTINS.... 3 VISITS IN ONE WEEK.

Recently moved into a new property that seemed to have been rushed, they painted over holes without sealing and now there is a disgusting Rodent issue with Mice, I've called the 03 office number and was told by the rude and dismissive lady on the phone nothing they can do about it. This is a health and safety issue and they refuse to do anything and housing officer is not answering the phone. I've filled out request forms online which imply a response between 10 - 30 days. I'm supposed to live with rodents for 30 days i can't sleep and i can't eat and have nowhere else to go. What a horrific service, what am i supposed to do??

I wish I had read the Trustpilot reviews of Origin Housing before my husband and I chose to buy at Culvert West House in Harrow. We would not have purchased in this development. Since we moved in, the lifts have alternatively not been working at all (not responding to the fob), sometimes working, and working too well (being able to access any floor without needing a fob).
The magnetic locks on the doors to each floor from the stairwell are not working - any floor can be accessed from the stairwell. Now, due to there being possible issues with how the cladding has been applied to the building, we have scaffolding outside the building that provides both a handy ladder and floorboards for any stranger from the street to be able to climb up onto our first floor balcony. The car park has also been broken into more than once and I don’t believe the gate has been repaired, as residents are now using a chain and padlock to lock the gate. There is also mould growing in the basement and the ‘roof terrace’ has not been available since we moved in in July 2024.

Despite all of these issues, Origin has just increased our services charges by 80% less than a year after moving in. Rent has also been increased. The service charge was also increased to a standard amount across all the flats, despite it being in the contract that services charges are proportionate to the size of the flat. So, living in a one bedroom flat, we are paying the same service charge as those in two and three bedroom flats. When this was brought to Origin’s attention, the response was ‘oops - we’ll look into it’. We have now overpaid service charges for two months, with no timeline of when this is going to be resolved and no indication of when we will be reimbursed.

We have also just been asked for more money for developmental upkeep. Although the tendering process for the company to do this work was not conducted in a transparent or unbiased manner, they expect the leaseholders to just agree to this.

In addition to this, when we moved in and created one of our utility accounts, the provider told us that there was an outstanding charge of over £200 connected to our flat. We were being contacted by debt collectors. We bought the showroom flat and were the first people to live in it, so we forwarded their correspondence to Origin. We were eventually able to separate our account from the previous one connected to the flat, but it took weeks to resolve.

Stay away from any developments managed by Origin Housing. They are inept.

Really unprofessional company. No communication, poorly run by those in charge. Would give less than 1 star if i could.

THE NOISE SAGA CONTINUES.
24/7 NON STOP.16 YEARS AND ROUGHLY 2 MONTHS.
SOME NUTTER AM SECOND NOISE.PESTOLOGY CAME AND WENT.BEASTIES STAINS STILL ON WALLS,CEILING AND ON FLOOR,WITH THE TIMES
PESTOLOGY HAS BEEN HERE,I ASSUMNE UNDERHARDBOARD FLOORBOARDS ARE ROTTEN.
STILL THE 200 YEARS OLD FLORBOARDS STILL
HERE,NO INSULATION UNDERNEATH.YELLOW DAMP PATCHES ON WALLS.NOTHING FROM ORIGIN.1 STAR I GOT A METAL FROM PESTOLOGY
WOODEN SPARS KEPT FALLING OUT.
I BOUGHT SEPARATELY DOUBLE METAL BED FRAME AND MATTRESS TOTAL COST ROUGHLY £198.ALL METAL SPARS SEE ME OUT.
MAYBE HYPOTHERMIA GETS ME FIRST.
I JUST WANT OUR FLATS TO BE WARM COMFORTABLE AND WELCOMING.WHO WOULD STAY OVERNIGHT IN A FREEZING FLAT.

Origin Housing is an abysmal organisation. The Chairman, NEDs, CEO, Operational Directors with the staff working across the organisation are totally inept. I have moved albeit 4 months into their most recent development Harrow Heights, and there has been multiple issues arising on a daily basis. The development is no more than 2 years old and most the issues are related to the structural build i.e. security of the building and car park, stolen parcels, lifts mail functioning, air vents shuttering loud noise all through the night which has caused many sleepless night, roof top terrace fire door left unlock which slams open and shut, repairs work sub-standard, sills to the window gone missing, structural failures relating to cladding, flooding to he basement which left the walls totally damp and the wall plaster now starting to peel away, front entrance doors not shutting due to poor design thus leaving the building block exposed to unsavoury characters gaining access to the building and the intercom to each of the flat across the block out of commission. In a recent communication via the Housing Manager from the Development Director to render any responsibility of the sills missing from the window "as its not in their control, and its a matter for the developer to resolve, we are waiting for a quote from the developer before deciding on the next steps". This is highly unacceptable and show a total disregard to the resident. The fact building block was developed and handed over to Origin would mean sole responsibility now residing with Origin to sort out, but clearly the Development Director seems to think otherwise.

It's quite surprising, the issues were experience at Harrow Height are the same as those from Origin previous development. There is a constant failing that is being overlooked and piss poor management both from senior management and the agents of the organisation.

My recommendation is for each of the block residents to pool together and consider submitting an Ombudsmen process.

Ensure you have physical evidence and the inept responses from the Origin staff on the matters which were highlighted to them, as this will further demonstrate a flagrant negligence on their part.

Just because Origin is a registered charity and HA should not prevent the organisation being investigated for dereliction of duty.

I would also suggest, speaking to the local newspaper to highlight the ongoing issues around the Shared Ownership properties managed by Origin.

Pop quiz, i'm expecting a banal and standard response from one of there internal staff to contact team shortly.

The company is very poorly run, level of service is nowhere near what they collect as service charges from customers. They jeapordise the health and safety of their residents.

This company Origin Housing is getting worse if that was at all possible 😳.
Build at Birch Court unsecured so anyone can walk in .
Damp evidence everywhere.
Repairs not done to a high standard.
Nobody bothered at high level
You Don't even get a reply from an email anymore. 😒
Very sad.

Certainly! Here’s an example of something you could write about your experience for social media. It’s direct and highlights the key issues:

🚨 My 4-Year Nightmare with Origin Housing 🚨

Since 2021, my family and I have been living in unbearable conditions caused by Origin Housing’s failure to act. We’ve endured anti-social behavior, verbal abuse, invasion of privacy, and constant health risks like exposure to harmful fumes—all while paying rent and service charges.

When we moved in, we were never told that some properties were allocated to residents with severe mental health issues. While we sympathize with everyone’s struggles, we’ve had no protection or support when one neighbor’s behavior began damaging our lives.

Despite countless complaints, emails, and even a report from the Ombudsman, Origin Housing has done NOTHING to resolve this. Their empty promises and lack of action have left us suffering.

We’re calling on @OriginHousing and anyone who can help to finally take this seriously. We deserve safety and peace in our home, just like everyone else.

Origin’s response adds insult to injury!
Origin has had 10 Surveyors in my home … some of whom many times … they have lied consistently stating there to be no issues with the failed wetroom snd ignored the rest
Over the years I went to a no win no fee solicitor … Origin spent two years promising repairs but with one exception failed to attend … on that occasion a sub contractor attended with a crew of 4 … they were shocked by the extent of disrepair and stated that they had been contracted to provide minor repairs … but the required repairs were major works for which they had neither the tools nor experience to address … and left!
Origin spent the first 6 months of 2024 in monthly “Professionals Meetings” represented by 4 members of Origin Staff … two of whom are allegedly Surveyors … a Neighbourhood Manager who has been in the property on numerous occasions … with a Senior Environmental Health Officer discussing and planning required repairs … putting required said repairs in writing … sending an Accountant and Electrician to assess the Disrepair
There were multiple bubbles growing in size which the Accountant and Electrician witnessed telling me that if the bubbles in the ceiling got worse … I should climb up and put a screwdriver through the ceiling to release the water collecting between the failed wetroom floor and kitchen ceiling … and prevent the ceiling coming down
I am 74 years of age … disabled … and live alone … of course I would be rushing to do that
Still no repairs done
And the EHO was unable to enforce any repairs alleging that Origin had stated they “plan” to do the repairs
All Meetings were attended by my Community Nurse who advocated for me
The Accountant was interim … and replaced by a permanent Senior Manager who attended with Origin’s 10th Surveyor … ten Surveyors! … employed by Origin have attended the property
The problems with the property have only continued to escalate with Meetings for Meetings leading to no action … but the requirement for more Meetings …
I reported Origin to the Housing Ombudsman … Origin’s response was to inform me that they had opened a Stage One Complaint
I have complained to Origin’s Chief Executive … the Chief Executive of Places for People of whom Origin HA became a subsidiary some months ago and have spoken to Origin’s so called ‘Customer Service’ staff more times than you can shake a stick at
The individuals with the authority to act are invariably ‘not available’ but with equal regularity advise that they have sent an email to said individual who has to reply to me within a set time frame … they don’t!
I have provided video footage of the water cascading through the kitchen ceiling from the failed Wetroom above to the Chief Executive of Places for People … the Chief Executive of Origin HA … multiple Senior Managers … and Origin’s Complaints Team
The Environmental Health Officer of Watford Borough Council states that she can’t enforce any of the outstanding works as Origin Ha have stated to her that they “plan to tepair”
Nothing that I have stated is news to either Origin HA or her now parent company … Places for People
The only reason Origin HA has 1 star from me is because you have to score something to be able to post
I have been an Origin HA Tenant for rising 28 years and have resided in my current home since 12/07/2000 … 23.5 years at the time of writing … with extensive repairs outstanding and on going for 9.5 years at the time of writing
This has to be the worst social housing landlord on the planet …
Water runs through the floor from the failed wetroom installed when we were going into the first Covid lockdown … the water cascades through the kitchen ceiling daily when I shower and currently has 40+ holes full of mould through which the water flows … the ceiling is bowed … the landing floor was damaged by Origin’s dodgy Contractor when they tore the floor up to run the electrics for the shower years ago so it is not possible to fit any floor covering
I have no heating in most of the house as there is an issue with the radiators which don’t heat up despite being regularly bled … a fact of which Origin is fully aware
Origin has repeatedly put in writing that they are going to repair … it never happens … the tiles on the concrete hall floor started lifting in 2016 … there are no tiles left now … the concrete is porous and is breaking down with the mix exposed
There is untreated mould in both the kitchen and bathroom
I would have liked to have attached a video of the water cascading through the kitchen ceiling but unfortunately there is no facility to do so
I am riding 75 years of age … and live alone
These are the worst of the issues … there are many more

I'm not really sure where to begin with Origin. Several residents in the building have repeatedly tried to contact Origin to report issues that require resolution.
Historically, Origin were understanding and wanted to resolve the issues and find the solutions. However, clearly they have lost interest in performing the services they are obliged to do so and for which they continue to know how to charge fees.