A plausible rental advert can still lead to a scam. The Reddit accounts linked below include people who received contracts, ID photos and apartment videos before losing money. Those details can make an offer feel reassuring, but the crucial question remains whether the person taking payment can actually let you that home.
Check the advert and contact details
When searching on Idealista, Fotocasa or another portal, save the listing and check for inconsistencies. Search distinctive wording and reverse-search the photos. Different towns, prices or unrelated contacts attached to the same home deserve an explanation.
Check an agency's details independently, using a contact you find outside the message you're assessing. Be careful with links to payment pages supposedly belonging to a familiar platform: a copied logo doesn't establish who operates the page.
An ID photo proves surprisingly little
A genuine-looking ID can belong to someone whose documents were stolen. A contract can copy those details. What you need to establish is that the person taking your money has authority to let this particular home.
View it yourself or send someone you trust, and ask how ownership or agency authority is being shown. Even a viewing isn't the whole check: access to a flat doesn't automatically mean the person can rent it to you. Match the property, names and payment details, and ask about anything that doesn't line up.
Read what the reservation actually reserves
Before transferring a holding payment, get the terms: which home, how much, what happens if the deal falls through, and how the money is used if it goes ahead. ‘There are three other people waiting’ isn't a substitute for any of that.
A bank transfer gives you a record; it doesn't guarantee you'll get the money back. An unexplained third-party account, gift cards or cryptocurrency should stop the transaction. Don't let the fear of missing out talk you into a payment you can't explain.
If you have already paid
Contact your bank straight away and ask what can be done. Save the advert, full messages, emails, recipient details and transfer confirmation. Report the listing to the portal and suspected fraud to the police.
Even if the advertiser deletes the listing or stops replying, keep the records you have. Reporting quickly gives the bank and police more to work with than waiting for another promised reply.
Before you go ahead
- Images and wording searched
- Address and access verified
- Owner or agent authority checked
- Recipient matches written agreement
- Evidence saved before the advert disappears
Useful places to look
These links open the searches mentioned in the guide. Check each advert's dates and terms with the advertiser.
Common questions
Is a passport photo from the landlord enough?
No. Stolen identity documents are used in scams. Verify the person's authority over the specific property and keep payment connected to a clear written agreement.
Is a bank transfer safe?
A transfer creates a record but does not prove the recipient is legitimate. Complete the property, identity and contract checks first.
People are talking about this
A few Reddit discussions behind this guide. These are personal accounts; they aren't a measure of how often it happens.
One renter reported receiving an owner ID, contract and apartment video before discovering that the setup had been fabricated. Read the discussion
Another account shows that even seeing a property and photographing an ID is not the same as proving ownership or authority to let it. Read the discussion
Sources and further reading
Official information checked on 12 October 2026. Rules and procedures can change; verify the live source for your exact circumstances.