ST : Con men pose as landlords in online scams

May 14, 2010

Con men pose as landlords in online scams

They target expatriates, offer fake properties

By Mavis Toh

AS THE expatriate population grows, con men have started trawling Singapore-based rental websites, targeting foreigners who are looking to rent properties here.

Posing as owners of choice properties such as condominiums in District 10, they give potential tenants fake addresses and even pictures of well-furnished homes to trick unsuspecting foreigners into wiring down payments to them.

The police did not give details on how many people have been cheated in online property rental scams.

However, its statistics showed that one person fell victim to a property rental scam nearly every day for the past two years.

Police figures showed that there were 324 reports lodged last year from victims who claimed they were cheated in rental scams. In 2008, the figure was 355.

The number includes those who were fleeced after responding to advertisements and paying the down payments, only to find out that their landlords did not even own the properties.

Property experts told The Straits Times they are aware of such online rental scams, and have told their expatriate clients they should check with their companies' human resources departments to help them find apartments.

When The Straits Times recently posted a notice on some of these locally based property websites, posing as an expatriate looking for an apartment, three people claiming to be Singaporeans living overseas responded the same night.

Giving the excuse that they were not in Singapore, they said they could not arrange for any viewing of the apartments.

Instead, they sent images of well-renovated and well-furnished rooms, purportedly taken from inside the units.

However, a check showed that two addresses led to shops in Far East Plaza, and the other to a condominium in Mount Elizabeth Road which has not even been built yet.

When pressed for a viewing or for the unit number of the apartment, all three broke off contact.

An American expatriate working in the food and beverage industry here fell victim to a ruse earlier this year and lost $1,500 to a con man.

The man, who gave his name only as Marcus, was approached after he posted on a website here that he was looking for rental accommodation.

The con man e-mailed him photographs he claimed were of an apartment in South Bridge Road, and asked for $1,500 as rental and a deposit for the unit.

The con man even sent him a contract, and Marcus paid up because 'the apartment looks pretty good in the photos'.

But the moment the money was wired to a London bank account, the 'landlord' said the room had been rented out and promised to send the money back.

After a week, the 'landlord' stopped replying. 'That was when I knew I had been scammed,' said Marcus, who filed a police report in the United States.

Filipino system analyst Manuel Nacionales, 44, almost became another victim when he went apartment-hunting online in February this year.

He had posted a notice on a website after his rental lease in a Hougang flat expired. Within a day, a man claiming to be a Singaporean working in Britain e-mailed him, saying that he had an apartment in town for rent.

Said Mr Nacionales, who eventually backed out of the deal: 'He wanted me to wire $1,100 and said he would send the keys only after he got the money. Thankfully my colleagues cautioned me against it.'

mavistoh@sph.com.sg


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How to avoid falling victim to rental scams



TO AVOID falling prey to the con men, the police said that tenants should request that all parties - including landlords and agents - be present when signing the tenancy documents.

They should also avoid making large payments in cash, its spokesman said.

When it comes to dealing with property agents, the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) said that tenants should use accredited agents and check with the property firms to ensure that these are bona fide agents, before engaging their services.

Dr Tan Tee Khoon, chief of Singapore Accredited Estate Agencies, said tenants could do an online check on the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore's website, to make sure landlords are the genuine homeowners before they sign tenancy agreements or make any payments.

'Online scams are dangerous because one can easily conceal his identity and it'll be hard to trace the crime back to him and if he works fast enough, he can fleece people just like that,' said Dr Tan.