Rental listing scams, and how to check a listing is real

Some rental listings are copied from real ones: the scammer takes the photos, the description or the virtual tour, swaps in their own phone number or email, and reposts the ad on another site. Others advertise a place that isn't for rent or doesn't exist, often at a low rent with great amenities. Either way, the scammer wants money or your personal details before you've seen the place. Wire transfers, gift cards and cryptocurrency work like cash, so money sent those ways is probably gone.

The warning signs

• Money before you've seen the placeThe listing asks for an application fee or the first month's rent before a showing.
• A wire transfer, a gift card or cryptocurrency
• A reason the place can't be shownThe owner is out of the country, or has another excuse.
• Pressure to decide fast
• Rent much lower than similar places nearby
• The same property listed for sale rather than for rent
• A request for your Social Security number, a photo of your license or your pay stubs before you've agreed to rent
• A request for a screenshot of your credit scoresA pitch for a paid credit monitoring program with recurring fees often follows.

Checking the listing

• Search the address with the owner's or company's nameThe same address under a different owner or company in another ad points to a scam.
• Look for the listing on the rental company's own website
• Search the owner's or company's name with "complaint," "review" or "scam"
• Compare the rent with other rents in the area
• Look up the owner on the city or county tax assessment websiteFor a private landlord, check that the name on the property records matches the person you're dealing with, and check their ID against it.

Seeing the place

• Visit in person, or have someone you trust goA video or a virtual tour works when you can't be there, but a self-guided tour can be faked too.
• Ask the agent for a business card and an IDCheck them against the records of the company that owns or manages the property.
• Contact the owner or company yourselfUse contact details you already have or found on your own, not ones from someone who says they work with them.
• For a vacation rental, get the contract firstConfirm the address exists, and if it's in a resort, call the front desk to check the details.