You may have already heard a case in the newspaper in which the person paid for the rent, however when arriving at the place, he did not have what was agreed or even the place does not exist. Today we're going to give tips on how to fall into scams like this.
What happens in all scams is the request for advance payment of rent. Many properties that are really real and with good people request a part of the payment, usually 10%.
But the scammers ask half the amount and they still provide several options for payment, they are insistent and will facilitate in any way all the options you ask for, such as check-in and check-out times.
Be careful at first, because the insistence not a primary feature of renters!
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How to avoid scams in renting houses and apartments in the summer season
Rentals of houses and apartments through social networks – misleading ads
You cyber scams are becoming more common and improved.
Facebook is one of the places with the most malicious people, because there is no method of verifying the location being disclosed, so any information that is passed on will be considered true.
However, be careful!
My tip is: do not make any rental agreement through facebook. Unless you don't request payment in advance.
Booking.comfalse tenants
There are cases where the house or apartment is real, it really exists, however when you arrive at the place the owner who contacted you is not the same.
That's because the fake owner simply used the real photos to pull off the scam.
Tip: request property data, full name of the person, video call from the location (when suspicious). This scammer will request payment in advance and the rent will be well below market.
Below average values in vacation rentals
The first thing you need to keep in mind, there is no such thing as a price when it comes to high season and upscale neighborhoods or close to the beach.
That's a hit!
For example: you search a region of the city and all the rentals are around R$400.00 a day, and suddenly one appears for R$150.00, stay tuned, generally the pattern of this region is the same and is already the first alert that you need to call!
Tip: Check the data that the person shares, if it is a house with a pool, look on google maps if it exists (it may happen that it is not yet updated on google), but if it is, it is already a verification option.
Another tip is to pay attention to advance payment. I don't do it when the offer is too big!
Transaction data X property data
Criminals can use the real renter's data and at the time of advance payment, the data is different.
For example when making a pix. The tenant passed a name and informed another for the transfer. Stay tuned.
Duplicity in lease
There are owners who make more than one lease for the same date in the same place, this happens when he publishes his property in several places, for example: facebook, booking, airbnb among others. For not being careful or even malicious, the person who arrives first will have the place.
If you have already made an advance payment, you will forfeit your share and still be left with no place to stay.
Report fraudulent ads
If you are the owner of the property or responsible for it, report it!
Acting quickly in situations like this can prevent more people from falling for the scam as soon as possible.
Tips to prevent rental fraud
- If you have the opportunity, request an early visit to the place or ask an acquaintance (if you have one) to go to the place to verify the veracity.
- Photos of the property are not guarantees of its veracity!
- Requesting half of the advance payment is already a warning. Scammers are usually in a hurry to receive. Be aware of this behavior and be suspicious.
- Renting through trusted sites and checking reviews is a good option!
- If you hear a lot of insistence, stay alert.
Have you ever fallen for such a scam? Leave it here in the comments, share with us!
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