Home or vacation-home rental scams are out there
It’s easy to get swept up in the urgency to find a new home, but make sure you do your research to protect yourself from scams.
Finding a new place to live or even a vacation rental can be a time-consuming process. Scammers know this and cash in on eager renters who rush into agreements without doing the necessary research. The proliferation of online real estate and vacation rental sites make it easy for scammers to steal photos and descriptions of real places, and free online bulletin boards attract bargain hunters.
Rental scams may lure you with online ads touting beautiful homes, low rents, and great amenities.
For vacation rentals, everything is handled online. For local rentals, the scammer may claim to be out of town and unable to show the property.
In some cases, bold scammers have even gained illegal access to homes belonging to others and have “shown” the property as if they own it.
In either case, the scammer may create a false sense of urgency, telling the prospective renter that others are interested so immediate action is required. The renter puts down a security deposit or prepays a vacation rental, only to find out that the property is not available or does not exist.
The Better Business Bureau of Greater Houston and South Texas offers the following tips to avoid these types of scams:
• Watch out for deals that are too good to be true. Scammers lure you in by promising low rents, extra amenities, great locations, and other perks. If the price seems much better than offered elsewhere, it may be a scam. Search online for the listings, or the scammer’s email address or phone number.
If you find the same ad listed in other cities, that’s a huge red flag.
• Verify the address online and see the property in person. Don’t send money to someone you’ve never met for an apartment you haven’t seen. If you can’t visit an apartment or house yourself, ask someone you trust to go and confirm that it is what was advertised.
And don’t fall for the overseas landlord story, as scammers often claim to be out of the country and instruct targets to send money overseas.
• Don’t wire money or use a prepaid debit card. You should never pay a security deposit or first month’s rent by prepaid debit card or wire transfer. These payments are the same as sending cash; once you send it, you have no way to get it back.
• Watch out for identity thieves. If the property owner emails you a link to fill out a credit application, be cautious. Only give out personal information in person after viewing the property or on trusted and secured websites.
• As an additional step, check with the BBB. If there is a business associated with the rental property, verify its information at BBBHouston. org to see if there are any complaints or customer reviews. You also can search for any relevant scams at BBBHouston.org/scamtracker.
The Better Business Bureau is an unbiased nonprofit organization that sets and upholds high standards for fair and honest business behavior. Every year, more than 87 million consumers rely on BBB Business Reviews and BBB Wise Giving Reports to help them find trustworthy businesses and charities across North America. For information or to check the reliability of a company and find trustworthy businesses, visit www.bbbhouston.org, which includes our BBB Accredited Business Directory, or call 713-868-9500. Leah Napoliello is senior director of Investigative Services with the Better Business Bureau of Greater Houston and South Texas. Send questions regarding homeowner issues to Leah Napoliello, Better Business Bureau, 1333 West Loop South, Suite 1200, Houston, TX 77027, or e-mail her at lnapoliello@bbbhou.org. Include mailing address and phone number on letters and emails.