Found the home I rented on Zillow

[Alicia681]

I recently rented my first airbnb for a trip my friends and I are making in January. The home was perfect- it had enough space for everyone and a heated pool... which is perfect here in Florida in the Winter. 

The problem? After booking, I received the address and searched it to find driving directions for further planning. And found the home listed as sale pending on several websites. I contacted the host, and they are claiming that they're the ones purchasing the home, and closing is in two weeks.

Every picture on Zillow matches every picture on airbnb. I'm very suspicious, especially since their cancellation policy is very strict- full refund before 48 hours but after that, I only get half my money back? Is this common? Should I cancel now before I lose all the money I spent ($500 for two nights)? 

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Alicia681  yes, if I were you I would cancel within 48 hours. You can even contact Airbnb , explain the problem and ask them to cancel.

This sounds familiar, a week ago I've seen another post here on CC whre the real owner of villa reported a scam listing of his villa published on Airbnb. All the photos were taken from another website where his villa was listed for sale.

[Anonymous]

@Alicia681 unfortunately this is a common scam. If you're still within the grace period for cancellation,do that right away, and then report everything to Airbnb.

For your replacement booking, if there aren't multiple reviews from genuine guests, use extra caution - for example, do a reverse image search on the pictures, and check the host's profile for verifications.

[Lisa723]

@Alicia681 @Anonymous @Branka-and-Silvia0 

How does this scam work? When the guest arrives and has nowhere to stay presumably they report to Airbnb and the “host” doesn’t get paid...?

[Mark116]

@Lisa723   Maybe it's like the Vice scam, the listing that the guest books isn't real, and then at the last minute the 'host' will claim some unforeseen circumstance and shuttle the guest off to some dive.  Based on what I read here, a lot of guests will not want to deal with doing their reservation from scratch at the last minute so will go along with such scams.

[Kelly149]

@Alicia681 you're out of your depth to deal with this on your own..... Call ABB CS, hope you get a decent agent and ask them to move you. They have the best ability to know if this is a real listing/good host. Come back and let us know

[Alicia681]

Thank you for all the advice! I cancelled the booking about 24 hours after initially making it, and will get all of the money I spent back. In hindsight, I should have been more careful, and am very glad I caught it in time to cancel for a refund. I also proceeded with a report to Airbnb about the fraudulent listing, so hopefully no one else will be put in the same situation. 

[Sierra11]

I don’t think this makes it a scam. As a Realtor I’ve seen plenty active Airbnb properties sell to new owners also hoping to Airbnb. Or people buying a home in general with the intention to Airbnb. 

I would just advise to confirm with them that their home purchase closes on time. You can even request written documentation. 

Sierra Kluson 

Keller Williams Realty St Pete