About
The beginning
Hi, I'm Ene Alu.
I'm 26, living in Bristol, working remotely full time, and I've been a private renter in the UK for the last four years. In that time I've lived in four different properties and moved all the way from Aberdeen to Bristol. I've done the online viewings where you're squinting at a wide angle photo trying to work out if that bedroom can actually fit a bed. I've done the in person viewings where you get fifteen minutes to decide if this is where you want to spend the next twelve months of your life.
Neither tells you much.
A viewing doesn't tell you whether the landlord picks up the phone when the boiler breaks in January. It doesn't tell you if the letting agent will fight you over the deposit when you leave. It doesn't tell you that the neighbours upstairs have a drum kit, or that the damp behind the wardrobe has been painted over three times.
The person who lived there before you knows all of this. Every dent, every scratch, every late repair. But you almost never get to speak to them. They move out, you move in, and whatever they learned the hard way stays with them.
That's the gap Tattlers exists to close.
The modern renter
Renting in the UK looks nothing like it did a generation ago. More of us are renting for longer, many well into our thirties and beyond, as the cost of homeownership continues to outpace what most people can realistically save. The number of people in shared accommodation is growing. More of us work from home, which means the place we rent isn't just where we sleep, it's where we live, work, and build our daily lives.
The reasons people move are as varied as the people themselves. Leaving home for the first time. Starting university in a city where you don't know anyone. Relocating for a job. Needing a fresh start after a relationship ends. Downsizing after the kids leave. Looking for community in a new place. Each move is a significant moment, often tied to a new chapter, and the place you choose shapes how that chapter plays out.
We call this generation of renters the modern renter. We're more mobile, more digitally connected, and more likely to research before we commit. We read reviews before we book a restaurant, a hotel, or a holiday. We check ratings before we buy a pair of headphones. But when it comes to the biggest recurring expense most of us have, our home, there's almost nothing. No reviews. No ratings. No way to know what you're getting into until you're already paying rent.
That felt like something worth fixing.
Our purpose
The Renters' Rights Act is bringing meaningful new protections for tenants across England. That matters. But legislation works best when it's paired with real world transparency, when people can share what they've experienced, and others can benefit from that knowledge.
Tattlers was built on a simple idea. The person who lived there before you has information that could genuinely help you, and there should be an easy, anonymous way for them to share it.
A Tattle takes about three minutes to write. It covers the property, the landlord, and the letting agent. It's anonymous, your identity is never shared. And it stays on the property listing for the next person searching that address or postcode.
Some Tattles are about terrible experiences, repairs ignored, deposits withheld, agents who stopped returning calls. Those reviews hold people accountable. But plenty of Tattles are positive, responsive landlords, well maintained properties, agents who actually helped. Those reviews matter just as much, because good landlords deserve to be recognised, and tenants deserve to know who they are.
The vision
Tattlers isn't a complaint box. It's a transparency platform.
We want every rental property in the UK to have a review history, the same way hotels, restaurants, and workplaces do. We want tenants to be able to make informed decisions before they sign a lease. We want landlords who take care of their properties and treat tenants fairly to stand out. And we want the rental market to work better for everyone, not just the people who own the buildings.
We're early. We're growing. And every Tattle that gets written makes the platform more useful for the next person searching.
If you've rented a property in the UK, past or present, your experience could help someone make a better decision about where to live. It takes three minutes, and it's completely anonymous.
Every tenant has a story. What's yours?