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Protect yourself from Vacation Rentals Scams
By Alex Ross
Fraud is common in most industries, but the travel industry is especially vulnerable to be preyed up by would-be thieves. But there are a few simple things a person can do to protect themselves from being scammed. Vacation Rentals scammers tactics - Scammers will usually buy a listing package on numerous vacation rentals websites using a stolen credit card. Some are lucky enough to put their ad on free websites. This naive assumption makes the website operators believe they have a legitimate advertisement. Vacation Rentals websites should do some background checking and verification, but travelers should not rely on this because websites can be fooled just as easily as any person. (Especially in this age of buy now, put live now). There are a few surefire signs of fraud. A scammer will usually create an advertisement for a fake property using pictures stolen from other websites. They will make this property in a highly desirable location, with a price that is very aggressive (but not too low to stick out). Usually they will offer more space/amenities or bedrooms than similar properties. 9 times out of 10 a scammer will purchase featured or priority placement on a website in order to get as many inquiries as possible in the shortest amount of time. Since most of these listings will be disconnected after administrators take a closer look, that is a wise strategy for a scammer. What happens when a traveler look at such a property is what happens to most victims of fraud. A deal that can not be resisted, a price that makes something more accessible, a bit of good fortune some would say. They fill out the inquiry and get excited, something the scammers latch on to like sharks. In some scams, a person will be contacted via email and sent some terms and conditions. Typically the scammer tries very hard to sound like a real owner, requiring a deposit upfront along with signed terms and conditions. At this point the scammer request that a person wire transfer this money (since these wires are unprotected). Most people will get a bit nervous from this, so they request to talk to the person on the phone. But the scammer has a few tricks up his sleeve. Disposable cell phones are used and it is not uncommon for the scammer to call from far distances, maybe 10 states away or even from another country. Once the traveler is on the phone, he has a much better chance of building trust. Some people at this point would just send the money. A wise traveler would do well to contact the operators of the website to check the person out. Do a few google searches for the persons phone number. Sometimes you will turn up properties in different states with different names. The sad thing is many people just go ahead and send the money. For those that do, sometimes the scammer will try and get the rest of the money upfront (because there usually is no such property). When that happens, red flags go off in most peoples minds, but some travelers are foolish enough to wire the rest of the money. As was said before this is common scam to many industries, but I have seen with my own eyes the victims of this type of fraud and it is really upsetting. Unfortunately when it comes to this type of scam, No one can protect you, so the number one rule is "trust your instincts".
Alex Ross is a vacation rentals industry professional with over 20 years of marketing experience. Alex has recenetly been helping people find affordable vacation rentals on VacationRentalsAd.com
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Vacation Rentals Scams
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Incredible how devious these people can get. Thank you for the valuable intel - and welcome to Qondio.
This is a very valuable intel. Real Estate is fraught with frauds alike any other area and when it comes to spent money not coming back you have testified to be a witness for people who have might have lost pretty huge sums. Alas!
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