The rental market at the moment is in absolutely dire straits. Anyone faced with the impossible task of moving right now will know that viewings and open calls are akin to trudging through the fires of hell.
Demand is incredibly high in Dublin at the moment, which of course increases prices. But then one day, you magically find the unicorn of apartments and you settle into blissful living.
Sadly many people this weekend thought they had found their unicorn when a popular email rental scam started doing the rounds.
The email comes from a personal email address in which a landlord apologises for the delay in replying, says they’re currently abroad and then proceeds to talk passionately about the apartment.
As someone currently trekking through the aforementioned fires, I received the email on Monday.
My fictional would-be-landlord Antonio stated that his apartment was available, that I could have a pet if I wanted and that all bills were included in the rent.
The email:
In further emails, the scammer will ask for your name, address, phone number and a photocopy of your passport.
Daft.ie have warned renters about the scam on their website.
They write:
“If it looks too good to be true, it probably is. The place probably isn’t even on the market and you won’t have an opportunity to view it or meet the landlord before handing over your cash.”
They state the red flags for email scams usually include the following:
Long-distance Landlords
- Requests for wire funds via Western Union or other Electronic Fund services
- Users claiming to work with or for Daft.ie
- Sob Stories
- Typos
The email below is an example of what victims can expect to receive.
The email also includes a link to a stunning apartment, beautifully decked out and in a superb location.
Take it from me, it’s a heartbreaking experience. I had already imagined the dinner parties I would have with my kitten.
Just stick in there and keep searching. In the meantime, if anyone knows of a unicorn in the Dublin 6 / Dublin 8 area, I dibs it.
