Renting a house we havent seen from a landlord in another country

csgohan4

I rented without seeing once, from Scam tree, learnt a lesson in my younger days. No matter how desperate you are, don't do it, it will cost you more in the long run

knightstyle

How about scamming the landlord?  Say you think it is a scam bank account and could they send you £5 first and you will them send £££  as a deposit as you really want this property.

Definite

davidmcn said:

Zendetta said:

davidmcn said:

What method of payment is your "landlord" proposing you use?

This is the bit im waiting to see. If its a UK bank account and the names match am i safe to pay? Surely if it is a scam i can get this money back through criminal action?

No, and no.
Besides, why on earth would you sign up and pay for a property you haven't viewed? Nobody does that. 

I’ve rented twice in another country without viewing, although through an agency, and have purchased a house in another country twice without viewing. The second rental was a disaster because we didn’t see how bad it was online, but both purchases worked out well. 

Zendetta

mobileron said:

Tell us what the address is,someone may live nearby.

knightstyle said:

Opp. how about talking to the people who live next door to the house?  Plus I thought all landlords had to have an address in the UK that was not the place you are renting?

Think im gonna concede to the very many scam warnings i have here. Every one has been incredibly helpful.
To be honest the reason i went this far is because i believed his story, the place is great and i didnt want to miss out for sake of being overly careful (no such thing i know). 
I am still interested to know, can a landlord list the rented place as their sole residence in the UK and point of contact; Does that not break Section 48 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987?

The advert for refence is: facebook.com/marketplace/item/147886637101870/?ref=shops_pdp_share
The sale ad has been taken down. 
Genuinely thanks again to everyone. 

SaintJudy

I did a reverse image search on one of the pictures and it threw up the Rightmove ad from when it was for sale. Added in December and now marked as Sold STC. If it'd been withdrawn from the market it would've removed, not changed to Sold STC, so I reckon someone's stolen the pictures to make the Facebook listing.  Also, a 2 bed house in Zone 2 for £1305 a month is way too cheap!
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/100959272#/

csgohan4

general rule of thumb, if it has facebook/twitter/ Social media attached to the ad, it's a scam until proven otherwise. 

Why would you trust that ad over your own search via normal channels 

Cakeguts

This is an extremely common scam.  The clues are

1 The property seems to be cheap for what or where it is.

2 The landlord is abroad and can't show you round

3 You are asked to send money for the tenancy agreement before you have seen the inside. 

What happens then is that you send the money and the landlord disappears. If you turn up at the house you will find that you can't get in and that it isn't owned by the person who claims to own it. The advertiser has stolen the photos from a listing.

JGB1955

Perhaps @ryanm8655 could wander over there and have a gander?!

MalMonroe

There must be plenty of places to rent from people who are in the UK.

I'd add my scam comment but I think it's already been done . . . Hope you've reported this scammer to action fraud, or similar? Even if evidence of them has disappeared from the internet. 

[Cue comments about how action fraud is useless - but they do send out regular newsletters advising people about what kind of scams are operating and where they are - I've found their advice useful in the past.]

Zendetta

SaintJudy said:

I did a reverse image search on one of the pictures and it threw up the Rightmove ad from when it was for sale. Added in December and now marked as Sold STC. If it'd been withdrawn from the market it would've removed, not changed to Sold STC, so I reckon someone's stolen the pictures to make the Facebook listing.  Also, a 2 bed house in Zone 2 for £1305 a month is way too cheap!
rightmove.co.uk/properties/100959272#/

This is amazing work, little bit blown away that you found it again. £1305 is too cheap but thats why im almost too invested.
When we first saw the Facebook ad i found the property for sale @ Dexter's and was going to ask them for a viewing but then the ad was taken down, now im wondering if its because it was sold?
Have been to the location, it is what's advertised. Really only worry is the landlord the same person. He is emailing from the same account as listed in the landregistery but spoofing is a thing.