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Rental scams

What are rental accommodation scams?

A rental accommodation scam tries to con you out of your money by pretending to offer you a property or room to rent. These scams often involve fake listings, requests for deposits before viewing and landlords who cannot show you the property in person. Scammers may also try to obtain your personal information for identity theft.

Always check the property on the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB), view the property yourself, and never pay money before signing a lease. On this page, you'll learn how to spot rental accommodation scams, protect your money and report it if you get caught out.

If you’ve been scammed and have transferred money online or given your bank details to someone, contact your bank or credit card company immediately. They can cancel your cards and secure your account. You may be able to get the transaction reversed through a chargeback from your card provider. Then report the incident to your local Garda station. Rental scams can lead to significant financial loss and legal complications. Remain alert to the warning signs.

What should you do if you get scammed?

Keep records of all messages and transactions to assist with any investigation. Contact your bank or credit card company immediately if you have transferred money online or given your bank details to someone. Your bank can cancel your cards and secure your account. You may be able to get the transaction reversed through a chargeback from your card provider. 

If you spot a fake listing on a property or booking website, contact the site immediately so it can be taken down. Report the incident to your local Garda station.

What are the red flags for rental scams when searching for accommodation?

  • Landlord cannot show you the property in person
  • Pressure to pay a deposit or rent quickly, often with threats that you will lose the property if you delay
  • Requests for a deposit and rent before any lease
  • Fake contracts or keys
  • Rent that seems too good to be true
  • Listings advertised only through social media
  • No questions asked of you as a tenant
  • Contact only through email, text, or social media
  • Same bogus properties advertised in multiple places

What actions can you take to stay safe during your rental search?

  1. Research the advertised property, use online maps to verify it exists, and view it in person.
  2. Research rent prices for similar properties in the area.
  3. View the property yourself before handing over any deposit or rent.
  4. Try out all the locks with the keys you receive.
  5. Ask for a written lease or rent book before paying any money.
  6. Pay only by card or bank transfer – you may be able to get money back if something goes wrong. Never pay in cash or by cryptocurrency, as these payments are difficult to trace or recover.
  7. Get a proper receipt in writing for any payment.
  8. Keep all contact details for the landlord, agent, or advertiser.
  9. Hold on to copies of any email/phone messages between you and the landlord/agent.
Top tip

Landlords are required to register their tenancies annually with the Residential Tenancies Board. Check the RTB Register to make sure the rental property you’re looking at is registered. Note: Some types of accommodation, such as student digs or certain short-term lets, may not be required to register with the RTB.

Holiday rental scams

Holiday accommodation, especially abroad, is an easy target for scammers. It can be harder to spot this type of scam as the rental address is typically in a different country.

How a holiday rental scam works

A person spots a property online, contacts the owner, and is asked to send a deposit quickly to secure it. The scammer may ask for payment outside the booking website’s platform. Once paid, the supposed landlord disappears and ends all communication.

Example

Kate and Susan decided to go on a trip to Barcelona. They booked cheap flights but were having difficulty finding affordable accommodation. One of them spotted a small apartment advertised on social media close to the city centre and within their budget. 

They contacted the owner, who asked them to send a deposit immediately to secure it, saying demand was high. Contact was made initially through social media and then by email. 

Kate and Susan received a written agreement by email and instructions to collect a key from a safe box. When they flew to Barcelona and arrived at the location, the keys in the safe box did not work. There were people already occupying the address and the alleged owner was no longer answering their calls. The two friends had been scammed. 

Use a secure booking site

Trusted booking websites have strong security measures in place. All communications and payments are made safely through their websites and usually have protections in place to avoid people being scammed on their platform.

However, many rental scammers use the secure reputation of these booking sites to scam people. They do this by sending people links on the legitimate platform to a separate site to get payment or confirm a booking. This separate site may be a clone of the legitimate site, and any payments you make will not be protected.

Booking holiday accommodation 

When booking holiday accommodation, pay only using the platform’s secure website. Never pay by bank transfer, cryptocurrency or an online payment provider. Never click on a link to an external site for payment – only pay directly on the platform.

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