Got money and disappeared: how scammers cheat online apartment tenants

Advice on how to avoid fraud when renting a home on the Internet, gives on the website "Roskachestvo" deputy. the head of this portal is Alexander Borisov.

Of course, you should carefully read and understand everything that you sign when concluding an agreement, and in case something is not clear, consult with a lawyer, - first of all, the expert advises. Make sure that all conditions and procedures are clearly spelled out, for example, early eviction or compensation for repairs, as well as a description of the housing, the property in it and the details of the documents for it. If, when renting, they are trying to impose on you the obligation to carry out repairs in the apartment under the pretext of reducing the payment, then it is better not to contact such landlords. It is also worth paying attention to the correspondence of the address when viewing the apartment indicated in the documents, as well as to the fact that its owner has in his hands all the documents that confirm him, and not relatives or other persons, the right of ownership, moreover, the originals. It is also necessary to check the housing on the Rosreestr website, according to the extract from the USRN, which should be asked from the landlord.

Particular attention should be paid to manipulative actions, including the haste of the owner, calls for urgent payment, obstacles in the careful reading of the contract, as well as a clear discrepancy between the price and the location of the property.

Before the summer season, scammers especially often deceive those who want to rent an apartment on the Internet, so that almost 10% of offers, according to experts, are doubtful. Deception can be recognized immediately, when viewing photos (there are either few of them, or they are not of high quality) and the ads themselves (either the price is too low, or the information is too general). The expert lists several schemes that are used by scammers.

First, prepayment. This demand or request often comes from a person who has nothing to do with the apartment, and having received the money, he disappears without a trace. And he asks for them under the pretext that he is away and he needs to make sure of the seriousness of the tenant's intentions, and therefore it would be good to get a small amount right now. In return, he is ready to send a scan of his passport and confirm the fact of ownership of the property with an extract from the cadastre, which - and very few people know about this - can be obtained without being the owner of any property,

Secondly, an unscrupulous realtor who places an advertisement for the delivery of expensive housing at a reduced cost. A potential victim out of greed bites on it, and the scammers ask to make a 50% payment and conclude a contract. But only the contract, upon careful reading, will not be for renting a house, but for searching for it. At the same time, the client is rushed, so that he does not read the contract carefully, and in the end pays for the "provision of information services", which mean anything, up to providing a simple list of options that are not suitable for the client.

Thirdly, the false owner, who is announced on the Internet, is urging clients to post a deposit right now and pay the first month of rent, because the apartment may go to another candidate. As a result, it turns out that his documents are false, and a perplexed real owner appears before the amazed tenants, when the one who received the money disappeared long ago.

Fourth, renting out housing to several people at once. The realtor says that he needs to prepare the apartment, so that he will hand over the keys tomorrow, but he can give it right away, albeit by changing the lock. But the next day there is a whole queue to the apartment (sometimes a large one) and no one in it is a legal tenant.

If such a situation nevertheless happened, you must immediately contact the police with a statement about the crime. According to Art. 151 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, it is she who will investigate.