Rental scam using Airbnb? How should I go forward, if at all?

[Elizabeth103]

I have been trying to find an apartment and found a listing on a popular rental website (not Airbnb). We started e-mailing, and the owner told me that he lives in Spain and will be using Airbnb's services for payment. It didn't seem strange until this last email. What bothers me about this is that it doesn't seem to follow any of Airbnb's practices. It also threw up other rental scam red flags, such as the fact that he wants me to pay before seeing the property, he's asking for my personal information outside the Airbnb platform, and the place doesn't come up on the Airbnb search list. Here is the portion of the most recent e-mail that I find odd, copy/pasted, edited for clarity:

"If you decide to proceed with this transaction, I will need your phone number along with your full name and address where you can be contacted for the keys and the rental contract. Then I will start the process through Airbnb here in Spain, providing them your information. Next you will receive a notification message from them, containing a receipt with all the instructions that you need to follow in order to complete the process and receive the keys and the rental contract.
Regarding the payment, you will get all the necessarily [sic] instructions on the invoice, so you can deposit the money for the first month along with the warranty, into an escrow bank account from AIRBNB. They will hold and insure your money until you check the apartment and decide if you want to rent it or not.
As soon as you will complete the deposit of $1,100 + $1,100 = $2,200 into their bank account, an agent from Airbnb will meet and show you the property. You will be given one day inspection period to take a decision and [in case you are not satisfied with the apartment], next day the total amount will be refunded to you by Airbnb. If you'll like the flat then you can keep the keys, sign the contract, and we will fix a date for the monthly payment, that it has to be done by you directly to my personal bank account."

There's a lot about the whole exchance that seems quite.... off. The more I think about it, the stranger it sounds. There is nothing on Airbnb about "escrow accounts," etc. It just smells terribly fishy, and I want to make certain that my eagerness and need for a place to go doesn't get me ensnared into some scammer's net. 

So, what are your thoughts on this? 

[Jenitza0]

I just responded to this exact offer on "Turbo tenant" regarding a property in Weymouth, MA. Thank you for helping me in not being a victim!

[Sasha178]

Hi All 

I nearly fell for it, this is happening in London, I responded to a advert on FB Market Place. Where I was told by Jill Loates that is was her cousins place and he will contact me via email. To which he has I have attached the emails from him, sadly I did send my ID but then something was bothering me, 100 2 bedroom 2 bathroom apartment in London???? Bill's included something was telling me to do my research, guy claimed to be a pilot, yet the email address was not the company's address, that alone I couldn't find his profile in LinkedIn, or find the apartment on B&B something was telling me this is weird and now I came across this page. Thankfully I did not send over £1800 but sadly they have my ID

 

 

 

 

 

[Anne9825]

Wow scammers are getting better and better. I was just talking to one right now and she said she lives in Montana. An airbnb agent will show me the property once i pay the deposit of $1000 and if I reject the property airbnb will refund me. Whats really surprising it she used airbnb link for the reservation and she has a profile that says superhost. I am contacting Airbnb support right now to report it.

[Sarah977]

Are you sure it's the Airbnb link? These scammers use URLs that look almost like Airbnb's if you don't know what to look for, and take you to a site that looks like Airbnb but is fake. So the URL, Superhost, reviews, etc. are all fake, created by the scammer. Can you post the link you received? 

Occasionally I think these scammers do put up a real Airbnb ad, just long enough for the victim to look at it and assess that it's real, then they immediately take it down again. But I can assure you that none of these scammers is a Superhost and if it was the real Airbnb site, Superhost would definitely not appear on their profile.

@Anne9825

[Anne9825]

Hi! I used my laptop to get the link cause when I use my phone URL doesnt show. Now i confirmed its a fake site!! Here it is:

https://app-listing.display40384.com/676f/1bed-1-bath-on-2437-lambert-dr/ddc063

[Sarah977]

Wow, that one doesn't even bother to make itself look like a slightly different Airbnb URL. What you should do is report it to the site where you originally found it. Of course that doesn't stop the scammers from putting up another ad with slightly different details, but at least it puts a bit of a wrench in their works.

@Anne9825

[Winnie94]

Hey just encountered one of these and thought I’d add the details in case any one else almost falls for it! 

Listing was on spare room for a 2 bed in Hammersmith London, listed under Paula Witters but the person who emailed/WhatsApped me was Nico Sotto

The email read as follows: 

Hi, I`m messaging you regarding the flat from Crisp Road, W6 9NE. So, it`s a two bedroom, two bathroom apartment and the monthly rent for the en-suite bedroom is 600GBP and for the double one is 540GBP (including bills, council tax, etc.).

I want the first month of rent + one month security deposit.

The place is fully furnished.

Due to the fact that my sister is back home to Italy and we`re currently under lockdown I would prefer renting through Airbnb.

Airbnb offers a simple verification process for landlords and new tenants. They can certify my person as owner of the property and you as a potential tenant.

The procedure is as follows: as an owner, I will present the contract and ownership documents that certify that I am the owner to Airbnb. After Airbnb will inspect my documents and accepted the contract, they will communicate with you, and you as a future tenant must prove that you have the funds available. Once the verification process has been successfully completed, the keys and lease agreement will be delivered to you. After you will receive the keys and the agreement you will have 72 hours to go to the apartment, inspect it and take a decision. If you will like it, you will have to sign the contract and send it back to me. If the apartment will not suit your needs or it`s not exactly like I`ve presented it you can refuse to rent it. If you want more details please do let me know. Thanks!

I’ve since blocked his number/email and reported to spare room. (Just thought I’d all details in case someone searches him by name or area) xx 

[Navindi0]

This is the email my husband received. We are in London, UK and trying to move into an apartment.

This email has several redflags and the more we discussed it, the more we saw how weird it was. This is a scam NEVER TRANSFER MONEY TO ANYONE BEFORE VIEWING A PROPERTY. 

PROPER AGENTS NEVER ASK FOR MONEY BEFORE VIEWING A PROPERTY. 

Neither does AIRBNB do any kind of business outside the Airbnb app.

Posting for future awareness. 

Hello,

I am Jurgen owner of the flat in Kew Bridge Court, W4 3AE. It has 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, very clean and comes fully furnished. Please see attached pictures. It is priced at £1,250/ month with all bills included and is available now!

Your contact was sent to me by TheHouseShop wich works with lots of renting websites ( OpenRent, Rightmove, Zoopla etc ) and I was informed that you are looking in this area and my flat would meet your criterias.
I'm looking for a serious and responsible person to care, keep the house clean and see it as his own home. It would be great if you can send me some personal information about you (age, employment, life style, etc)?
The minimum period of rent is 2 months up to maximum 5 years.

Last year we moved back to Parlma de Mallorca, Spain to open up a business in tourism. We own a villa, which at the moment is our main source of income. It was pretty hard, we were very close to giving up but in the end we made it.
At the moment, it's impossible for both of us to personally show you the apartment due to our busy schedule and chalet administration but this is not a problem because we can use Airbnb services. They handle rentals for people all over the world providing secure services for both tenants and hosts.
We can offer you more details if you are interested.

Regards,
Jurgen and Angela

[Sarah977]

@Navindi0  While you are quite correct about Airbnb not working like this and I'm glad you were savvy enough not to get scammed by this criminal, the part about not transferring money before viewing the property, as far as legitimate Airbmb bookings go, is not correct. 

When you make a legitimate Airbnb booking through the Airbnb site, your payment method is charged by Airbnb at the time of booking. The host does not receive the payment until 24 hours after the guest checks in. There are hardly any Airbnb hosts who will let you preview a property- it is a security risk for hosts.

Guests should be able to decide on a place by looking at the photos, thoroughly reading the listing description, and communicating with the host with any questions before commiting to a booking.

All of these ads that say they are leasing the place for a year but will use Airbnb for the first payment, are scams. Airbnb hosts don't operate like that.

[Sebastian868]

Hi folks! Just received a similar scam email from Viviana Tersten. Asked me for my passport details silly bitch, fortunately I wised up quick enough. Those scammers disgust me. Beware of that **bleep**. There should be a place where we can report those names so they come up in Google results as scammers.

[Sarah977]

@Sebastian868 The thing is, they're false names and scammers just keep changing them as people wise up to their scam. One name might be around for awhile, so it might save a few folks from getting scammed, but that name will be retired and replaced at some point.

And if the name is on some google warning site, it'll likely disappear even quicker, I'd think. These scammers spend their whole day online and are hip to this stuff.

[Sebastian868]

I have also reported her email as phishing in Gmail. I hope that will fire a warning shot for the next person that gets contacted by her. That name has been around for a while it seems, perhaps no one reported it as yet. There must be a better way to stop those scammers in their starting blocks. Perhaps reporting it to the police would help to track ip address. Thanks! 

[Sarah977]

@Sebastian868 The first place to report it is to the site the ad appeared on. These scammers don't normally email their marks out of the blue, the person looking for accommodation sees the ad on some site and initiates the contact.

Then it could be reported, as you say, to the cybercrimes division of the local police.

[Patrick2089]

Very similar thing happened to me. Only I live in Augsburg and the other party told me they had to stay in Ireland because of Corona travel bans.

[Nanat0]

Guys!

I just am now in this situation.

I got the email stated exactly the same

Also I got the link of her airbnb here

https://airbnb.co.uk-room.478489357uk4893.xyz/rooms/template.php?kode=SP656VA128&ukode=26754286

Her email is haleykimberlin3sa@yahoo.com

Almost fall for this as I'm desperately looking for a new place to move in. I was so closed to click pay!!! I am actually crying a little cuz that would be all my saving money.

This world is so sad!!