How to avoid being scammed when looking a property to rent in Spain

Shorouk Express

Finding somewhere to live in a new country can be challenging enough without having to worry about fraud and being scammed out of money, so here are the things you need to be aware of.

With the current housing crisis in Spain, competition for property is fierce, and people are finding it more and more difficult to find somewhere to rent. This is especially true for foreigners who often need to prove they have a Spanish job contract too.

As a result of this, rental scams are on the rise. They particularly like to target foreigners who may not be too familiar with the market, the best places to look or the potential scams that exist.

At the end of last year, a woman was arrested on the island of Tenerife for allegedly committing at least ten fraud offences related to rental housing, defrauding victims of at least €10,000, but there are many more who get away with it and are still operating.

Here’s how to make sure that you don’t fall victim.

READ ALSO: How Spain’s new temporary contract rules make it hard for foreigners to rent

Look out for fake rental listings

One of the most common scams is a fake rental listing. These are properties which are advertised as being up for rent, often with beautiful photos and ideal descriptions, but which either don’t exist or are not for rent at all. The photos may even have been created using AI or are of another building, not the one being advertised.

The golden rule is that if it looks too good to be true, it usually is. These properties often look and sound perfect and are advertised below the market value, making you think like you’re getting a great bargain, but chances are if the bargain is that good, the property probably doesn’t exist.

Familiarise yourself with the market before you arrive in Spain and find out what you should expect to be paying for a property in a certain location, this will help you figure out which ones are fake, and which are not.

READ ALSO: Can my landlord in Spain force me to pay the rent in cash?

Be aware of fake agents and landlords

As well as fake apartments, there will often be scammers posing as agents or even landlords. It is safer to go with a reputable agency than an individual landlord as you’ll have more assurances of legal contracts and listings, but unfortunately there are people who act as fake agents too.

You can also tell if an agent is a fraud because they often tell you that you’ll need to put down an urgent deposit to secure the property or make you think you will lose out if you don’t act immediately. Inevitably it will usually involve paying them some of type of deposit to secure the property up front.

Never send money upfront without seeing the property first

This brings us on to our next point, even if an agent or a landlord is telling you that the property will go if you don’t pay a deposit right away, you should never ever give them any money before going to see the property yourself or send someone you trust on your behalf. You need to ensure the property and the agents actually exist before handing any money over. You should only need to pay a deposit when signing the actual rental contract and not before.

READ ALSO: Can you rent in Spain if you’re not a resident?

Only use reputable rental sites

There are many different types of rental sites out there, but unfortunately not all of them a real. You need to be careful about which sites you use and make sure they’ve got reviews and other people can recommend them to make sure they are legit. It’s worth keeping in mind though, even on reputable sites like Fotocasa, you can still find scam ads, so you need to keep you wits about you and keep an eye out for red flags.

Verify listing and owner

Properties are often listed on multiple sites if they’re legit, so it’s important you look on the main property websites such as Idealista, Fotocasa etc to see if you can find the apartment you’re interested in elsewhere too. If you do decide to rent directly from a landlord, you’ll want to ensure that they own the property that they say they do. If the scam is sophisticated sometimes landlords can even have access to an apartment to show you round and may even give you a set of fake keys, but they do not own it and therefore do not have the right to rent it to you. To make sure, you can request what’s called a nota simple from a notary to find out who the true owner is.

READ ALSO: Can I pay several months of rent in Spain to prove I’m solvent?

Check official documents

Besides checking if the landlord actually owns the property, you’ll want to check over any other documents landlords or agents give you such as contracts and receipts. Make sure that these look real and don’t sign anything that has clauses asking you to pay more money than you should. Remember, legally a landlord can only ask you to pay one month’s rent as a deposit according to Spain’s Urban Leasing Law. If they ask for more, they may be trying to defraud you out of some extra months.

Avoid contacting agents through third-party sites

If you contact an agent or a landlord through a reputable property site, but they quickly ask you to switch to contacting them through a different platform, this can also be a red flag. Look carefully at any links they send you to ensure the websites are real. They may be similar to the real names but have a few slight changes in the URL. Also, don’t pay any money through these links unless they are official ones that have security measures in place.

Don’t provide personal details up front

If a landlord or agent is asking for all your personal documents straight away such as passport, TIE card and bank details, this should immediately send up red flags. If an agency is legit, they will not need this information until further down the line, right before you sign a contract. They shouldn’t need this info for simply going to look at properties or giving you advice on what’s available in different areas.

If you do unfortunately fall victim to a rental scam, there are several steps you should take. The first is to file a denuncia with the local police department so they are aware of the scammers, the second is to contact your bank and let them know what happened – in some cases they may be able to reverse the payment. If it’s financially worth your while, you can also contact a property lawyer to help fight your case. Finally, it’s important to share scams online so that others don’t fall victim to the same ones.

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