Rogue Landlords and Fraudsters - How to Avoid?

GDB2222

When I used Openrent, I had to give them a copy of the Land Register and ID. I thought they took reasonable care.  Gumtree is different. 

BikingBud

Try here seems a great bloke 

FreeBear

macman said: Picking out someone from a  Gumtree or Facebook presence alone is bound to be risky.

If you want real dodgy, wacky, weird, or just plain perverted, try Craigslist

David2710

davidmcn said:

moneysavinghero said:

Avoid sites such as Gumtree and Openrent. Stick to properties where the LA has a high street presence.

Indeed - I'm not sure how you would think an agent is "reputable" if you haven't even verified their real-life existence somehow. I suspect the vast majority of conned tenants have been too trusting of anonymous mobile numbers / email addresses or whoever shows them around the property - not some elaborate scam where somebody makes an effort to pass themselves off as Foxtons or whoever.

I read of a scam recently in which fast food deliveries were being intercepted by criminal gangs resulting in home invasions. Because viewings are in many cases virtual and the application completed online it's not easy for the tenant no matter how experienced. That's why I was asking about a third party, maybe a governing body that would protect the tenant against fraud.  

RoisinDove

You are way overthinking this. The only people I know who have been scammed like this have frankly been idiots who gave a deposit to some bloke off Gumtree. If you use any reputable high street agent and google them, you won't get scammed. You might get a terrible service and end up with an awful landlord (this is often par for the course) but someone just running off with your money and not providing a flat to rent? Very unlikely.

David2710

moneysavinghero said:

There is ARLA who protect you through their Propertymark scheme. But as with ABTA the LA would have to be signed up for the benefits to apply.

https://www.arla.co.uk/
https://www.propertymark.co.uk/how-we-protect-you/landlords-tenants/

Very helpful thanks. 

David2710

macman said:

As to qualifications, there are absolutely none required to call yourself a letting agent. It's probably safer to use an estate agent who also handles lettings, as these are more likely to be longer established.
Picking out someone from a  Gumtree or Facebook presence alone is bound to be risky.
Your deposit is only protected once it's in one of the deposit schemes: it offers no protection if it never gets there because the agent or LL never passes it through.

Unless I'm mistaken, no formal qualifications and or criminal record checks are required even for Estate Agents in the UK. Things are very different in the USA for instance. 

Whilst the deposit might be protected using a deposit scheme, what about the rent if paid 2, 3, 6 months in advance? That's where the really big losses can occur. What's to stop a Landlord or a Letting agent requesting 6 months rent in advance, as it quite common these days and simply running off with the cash? I've heard of instances in which the tenant has paid 6 months up front only to be given a Section 21 eviction notice by the lender. What if that happens to me and what are my rights as a tenant for recompense? Because most LA's don't accept people claiming LHA and or sickness/disability benefit (NO DSS) without a guarantor or 6 months rent in advance, my options are narrow to put it mildly.          

RoisinDove

David2710 said:

macman said:

As to qualifications, there are absolutely none required to call yourself a letting agent. It's probably safer to use an estate agent who also handles lettings, as these are more likely to be longer established.
Picking out someone from a  Gumtree or Facebook presence alone is bound to be risky.
Your deposit is only protected once it's in one of the deposit schemes: it offers no protection if it never gets there because the agent or LL never passes it through.

Unless I'm mistaken, no formal qualifications and or criminal record checks are required even for Estate Agents in the UK. Things are very different in the USA for instance. 

Whilst the deposit might be protected using a deposit scheme, what about the rent if paid 2, 3, 6 months in advance? That's where the really big losses can occur. What's to stop a Landlord or a Letting agent requesting 6 months rent in advance, as it quite common these days and simply running off with the cash? I've heard of instances in which the tenant has paid 6 months up front only to be given a Section 21 eviction notice by the lender. What if that happens to me and what are my rights as a tenant for recompense? Because most LA's don't accept people claiming LHA and or sickness/disability benefit (NO DSS) without a guarantor or 6 months rent in advance, my options are narrow to put it mildly.          

It is not common to request 6 months' rent in advance and even if they asked that, why would you pay it?!

macman

If you'd paid 6m rent upfront, then your TA would have a minimum term of 6m, so you couldn't be served with an S21 within that period anyway. And with 6m notice currently required, plus a further 9m to 12m to gain possession, it would probably be 2 years before you could be removed.
6m upfront tends to be for the kind of properties rented by overseas students where wealthy daddy is footing the bill.
If you are wealthy enough to afford 6m rent upfront, then you are more than able to gather sufficient resources to ensure that the deal is not a scam. Most of the victims of these scams are poor and ill-informed of their rights, often not having English as their first language.
You don't get any 'recompense' if your tenancy is legally ended: why would you?

[Deleted User]

The legit landlords and letting agents always advertise "no DSS."