Real Estate Scams

[Lämmchen]

What are some red flags when looking at real estate so you can avoid a scam?

I think that some online realtor sites are safer than others, as in, if you deal with a true realty, you are sure that the posting is legitimate.

I'm not sure how accurate Zillow is though for people who try to sell by owner? What other sites are safe and which ones should be held in high suspicion?

 

[Grant]

It's a scary situation because real estate scams are getting worse. There are people who will hijack an ad for a house or apartment, post it to something like craigslist with their number and will try to get the security deposit and then they will leave you in the dust. It's been a big problem, that I think people need to be verified on these sites selling properties. Which should be the case for any real estate site.

 

[Nomad]

In my home country, a lot of properties are built on marshy lands (the properties are built by filling them with soil first), and some properties are built on river banks (where rivers have changed course). These properties do not have strong foundations and collapse too quickly. These are the most common real estate scams in our country.