Tips on Safer Renting

November 15, 2023 00:17

How can I spot fraudulent listings and stay safe on AllHomes?

Safer renting on AllHomes

Here are some helpful tips on renting safely.

Never contact an 'agent' or individual outside of the AllHomes website/app.

If you see a listing telling you to make contact externally via an email account – don't. Only contact the agent via the contact form on AllHomes or by calling the phone number in the agent's contact details – at least until you're sure they are a legitimate agency with a legitimate property.

Never send any money prior to inspecting the property!
Never pay a deposit or any other payment before seeing the property, agent or landlord in person.
Always inspect the property and its papers before exchanging any money or signing a contract.
Be wary of suspicious claims by sellers or landlords to obtain money (in any form) from potential buyers/renters.
Do not transfer money via Western Union to someone you've never met in person.

AllHomes Group will never request or hold money on behalf of any Seller, Landlord or Agent. All monetary transactions should be directly referred to the Seller or Landlord or the Agent once the deal is finalised.

If you ever have any concerns regarding your transactions or receive a suspicious claim asking for money, contact AllHomes Group Support immediately via the Support icon and stop communicating with the Seller or Landlord.

Some more helpful tips on renting safely...

Never transact with someone claiming to be overseas. International property owners will, in most cases, use an Australian-based property manager.
Always be suspicious of under-priced rental properties.
Never continue your enquiry on a rental property if the 'agent' or 'landlord' is trying to lead you away from AllHomes Group websites.
Never engage with someone who sends you a lengthy email explaining their situation - it's not normal for a landlord to give you their life story.
Always use the AllHomes contact/enquiry form to ensure you are contacting the actual agent - an enquiry form appears on every property details page.
Avoid "freight" scams, where you as the renter are asked to pay a fee via a third party to receive the keys to a property.
Look out for spelling mistakes, poor grammar, or foreign real-estate terminology such as "escrow" or "notary". These indicate the listing/email could be from a scammer.
If it seems too good to be true, it probably is!

What does a fraudulent listing look like?

If you’re a property searcher:

The listing may ask you to contact the ‘agent’ externally via an email account and not through the AllHomes web form.

Or the ‘agent' may ask you to deposit money without you even seeing the apartment, promising to send you the keys once they have the deposit.

If you’re an agent:

It’s any property in your stock list that you don’t recognise or any enquiries on a property that you don’t recognise.

Report anything suspicious!

If you think you’ve seen a fraudulent listing or any other suspicious activity, contact AllHomes Support immediately on 1300 255 466, or chat with us during business hours via the red help bubble on the bottom right of this page.