Breakdown 03
The rental deposit, taken apart by Zavialov Ilia Nikolaevich
Renting is a rare case where the victim searches for the other side themselves, and the scheme still works. Its entire weight rests on one step: the money moves before the flat has been seen.
How this scheme unfolds
- Step 1A listing below market
- Step 2Correspondence and trust
- Step 3«Others are interested»
- Step 4A deposit before viewing
- Step 5Contact stops
A listing that looks too good
The price is a quarter below the market, the photographs are good, the description is detailed. That combination of cheap and attractive collects the flow of enquiries from which the scheme picks the fastest.
The photographs are usually somebody else's, taken from another listing or from a hotel site. A reverse image search settles the question in a minute and is done before the correspondence, not after.
Trust built through correspondence
The other side answers quickly, politely and in detail, sends extra photographs on request and is ready to show documents in a messenger.
A document in a messenger is not a document: an image is edited in ten minutes. What matters is ownership checked in a register and the owner's surname matching the person being paid.
Money does not move before the viewing and before signing. The exception for the best offer is the bait itself.
The deadline that appears right before payment
«Viewings start tomorrow», «two other people are interested», «the owner is holding it until the evening». The deadline appears not at the start of the conversation but exactly when money is mentioned.
It is the same construction as on the telephone: leave no time for a viewing and no time for the register.
The moment of loss: a deposit before viewing
The step the whole scheme depends on is transferring a deposit for a flat you have not seen, to a person you have not met. Everything else in the scheme exists for the sake of that step.
The rule is short: money does not move before the viewing and before signing. There is no exception for a particularly good offer, because the offer being good is the bait.
What to do if the deposit has already gone
The payment route decides everything. A transfer to a private card is rarely recovered and only in the first hours; payment through a service that holds funds gives a procedure.
Then save the listing, the correspondence, the payment details and the time of the transfer, and file with the bank and the police. Listings are taken down within hours, so the screenshot is taken immediately.
| Route | What remains possible | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Cash at the viewing and signing | Inspection before handing over | None |
| Card through a service holding funds | Held until confirmation | Set by the service |
| Transfer to a private card | Recall in the first hours | Hours |
| Cryptocurrency | Nothing | None |
Questions and answers
Is asking for a rental deposit normal?
It is normal after the viewing and together with an agreement. A request for a deposit before the viewing is the step the scheme rests on.
How do I check the owner of a flat?
Through the register of ownership rights and by matching the owner's surname with the payee. A document sent in a messenger is not a check.
What if the deposit has already gone to a card?
Contact the bank within the first hour and save the listing, the correspondence and the payment details. Within a few hours the listing is usually gone.