Be in the know on property scamming tactics

The real estate industry is a multi-billion rand industry which is very lucrative for those in the business of buying and selling properties and by extension, rentals. It is therefore not surprising that criminals look for loopholes to rob people of their hard-earned money.

The most common scamming methods:
Intercepted emails
It’s common knowledge that a great exchange of documents is done through emails. Scammers usually intercept emails at a critical moment of the transaction, which is at the point of payments. They intercept emails and end up providing their own banking details for payments.

Stolen identity
Identity theft is very common. Scammers often steal identity documents, falsify property ownership documents and end up obtaining a mortgage or financing based on that. In the end, the owner of the ID will be liable for debts accrued through stolen ID cards.

Duplicated listings
You need to carefully check property listings. Criminal elements go to authentic sites to duplicate legitimate ads but at a much cheaper price. Out of desperation, you are likely to pay a deposit and commit to a bogus advert.

Bait and switch scheme
The bait in this regard is a higher buying price offered by the buyer to dupe the seller into signing a contract. A delay tactic in finalising is deployed which often turns into an extension of time. The seller is in the meantime bound for a specific period of time to the signed contract. In the midst of pressure to continue paying for taxes, maintenance, utilities and insurance, the seller is often arm-twisted into further reducing the price of the property.

Signs to look out for:
• Very low rent or selling price.
Any property purchasing price or rental must reasonably match its value. Bargains do happen every now and then but you just need to be careful of ridiculously cheap rent or selling price.
• Money transfer modalities.
The method of paying is a big tell tale sign. Don’t fall for the trap of cash payments or odd payment methods. You need a proper paper trail for property payments and transactions.
• Deposit.
Any demands of deposit before viewing or signing legitimate relevant documents should ring alarm bells. Only pay deposit once the right steps are followed and you are sure it’s a legitimate deal.
• Agency.
If you are dealing with an agency, you need to keep an eye on poorly worded adverts, non-existent online presence and no disclosure of property pictures. All these point to a scam.