How to Avoid Rental Scams When Apartment Hunting Online

Rental scams follow patterns specific enough that you can actually check for them, rather than just "trusting your gut."

Price below market, with urgency attached. A listing priced noticeably under comparable units nearby, paired with pressure to act fast ("I have three other people interested"), is the single most common scam pattern. Real landlords with a genuinely good deal don't usually need to manufacture urgency — the listing sells itself.

Refusal to do a live video call or in-person tour. A "landlord" who's conveniently always out of town, always has a reason the tour has to be virtual-only via pre-recorded video, or insists on handling everything by text is a real warning sign. Ask for a live video walkthrough — a scammer working from stolen photos can't produce one.

Payment requests before you've verified anything. Wire transfers, gift cards, or payment apps requested before a lease is signed or before you've confirmed the person actually controls the property are the most common way rental scams actually take money. A deposit or first month's rent should follow a signed lease, not precede any verification.

The address doesn't match who's listing it. A quick search of the address alongside the landlord's name, or checking if the same photos appear on multiple listings under different names or prices, catches a surprising number of scams before you're out anything.

The single best protection: use a platform that actually verifies who's posting before a listing goes live — see what "verified listing" should actually mean — and never send money before a live tour and a signed lease.

Browse listings that have already been checked on RentNova →.