02/03/2025
Since so many of you have asked in the comments, messages, and in the shop about what happened, we want to explain everything. This will probably be the longest post here, and I apologize if it’s a bit messy. If you're interested, keep reading, if you want to just check the landlord details - thats on the end of this post 🙂
The reason we decided to close Istanbul is because of the landlord. From the moment we rented the property through the agency (which, to make things more interesting, he also owns), the problems started. Our electrician discovered that he was stealing electricity from the shop to supply two apartments upstairs. The tenants in those apartments were paying him £200 a month for electricity, but that money went straight into his pocket—not to me or the previous tenants who had rented before me.
When I confronted him about it, I told him this wasn’t right. His response—this part is important—was that he would cover all the electricity bills until the illegal meters were disconnected. I still have the text message where he said this. The full process to disconnect those meters took about six months, and during that time, the bills kept increasing. However, he never paid them. I couldn’t even switch to a cheaper electricity provider (which would have been nearly half the price) because the outstanding balance had to be paid first.
We went to the police, but they couldn’t do anything because it was a civil matter. We spoke with EDF and Scottish Power, but since he wasn’t stealing directly from them, they said they couldn’t help. So, we turned to a solicitor. Initially, she said we had a strong case and could win. We paid her £700, and she sent a few emails to the landlord's agency. Then, suddenly, she changed her mind and said there was nothing we could do. Why she took the case in the first place, I have no idea.
In the end, I had to pay the electricity bill myself because otherwise, they would have cut off the power. For a small business, £10,000 is a huge amount of money. I stopped paying rent for two weeks as a way to push back, but he quickly sent letters threatening to evict me, so I had no choice but to pay.
A few days ago I spoked with the tenants upstairs, now he charge them even more for electricity, but they still don't get any bills, just his word, so I think he is still taking the electricity from the shop. He just moved the meters in different place.
In December 2024, I received an invoice from him for building insurance. That was fair enough—it was in the contract. However, I was only supposed to pay for the ground floor. The last insurance payment I made was in March 2024 (since it’s an annual payment), so I expected the next bill to come in March 2025. But instead the paiment was due in January. When I questioned why the amount was so high (it was double the previous year) and why I was being billed two months early, he didn’t respond. I also asked him to provide documentation from the insurance company as proof of the charges, but he never did. Instead of an explanation, I received another invoice with additional charges for late payment, his office fees, and several other unexplained costs. All together, these extra charges added up to over £3,000.
From the start, he takes a ridiculously high deposit—for us, it was £7,800. Of course, we won’t be getting that back. Looking back, I believe this is all done on purpose: a new tenant moves in, pays a high deposit and rent, and then he starts adding extra costs. Since he has rent loss insurance, maybe that’s another reason he operates this way.
To anyone considering renting from him—don’t. For the sake of your financial stability and mental health, avoid it. I know he owns several other properties in Irvine, so please be careful.
His name is Lawrence De Marco, and he is the landlord of the building (129 High Street, Irvine) and the owner of agencies. For a long time, he pretended he was just working for the agency, refusing to confirm that he was actually the owner. When we first rented the shop in November 2023, the agency was called Mondo Property. Now, it’s called MPM Property Services Limited, and the other agency is ASC Asset Management (EK) Ltd.
Please share this post—hopefully, someone considering renting this property after us will see it and think twice if they really want to deal with this scammer 🙂
