We can’t blame you for wanting to try staying in a luxury villa, especially if you want to start investing in luxury villas in Coimbatore and beyond. Trying before you splurge is a great idea after all! But with all that being said, scams when you book villas online are becoming more common.
So let’s take you through ways to prevent falling for common scams.
How To Prevent Being Scammed When Booking
- Make Sure You Speak To A Real Person
When you go to rent a luxury property online and you don’t see a way to contact the rental property it’s a red flag. Scammers will usually avoid personal interactions and rely on emails and messages to communicate, so you should make sure you can call over the phone to discuss details, ask any questions you may have and see if the business is legitimate.
- Look Up Their Name & Background
Begin your investigation by looking up the person’s name and the company they represent if there is one. This will usually lead you to a solid digital presence if it’s a real company, and scammers usually don’t take the time to do this.
- Find Reviews
Great companies who are legitimate, and even private renters will have reviews somewhere. Look for third party reviews that are not paid or on the actual renter’s website. This is because the rental company or person can fabricate the reviews easily, and it’s hard to discern what’s honest and what’s not. Instead opt for Google reviews, and reviews on booking websites that are run by third parties instead.
- Use Social Media To Check
Many luxury rental companies will have a presence on social media. This is because they need to spread the word about their business and is often a sign of legitimacy, especially if they respond to people in the comments and have a presence online beyond the last year or two.
- Ask Relevant Questions
If you can get a hold of the property owner, make sure to ask them questions only a local would know about the area, such as how close the shopping centres are, where the nearest taxi service is coming from, and more. Genuine people will have these answers whereas scammers usually aren’t even in the country the villa is located in.
- Do Some Digging
If you can, do a reverse Google search on the images listed by the property to make sure they weren’t stolen from somewhere else. This is how scammers make listings look real. If you see the images used in the listing elsewhere it’s most likely one of the images are duplicates. Also check Google Street view to check if the property you’re looking at even exists at all. If the exterior of the property doesn’t match the listing on Google street view, it’s a red flag.
- Check The Location
If you aren’t even given the exact location of the property it’s a definite red flag. Some platforms like Airbnb won’t disclose the exact home but will give you a locality, this is okay as the seller has no choice. But if you’re looking at someone’s website and they aren’t disclosing the location, you can always ask. If they’re hesitant to tell you without some money exchanging hands, it’s a sign of scammers.
- Review The Contract
When you decide to book from a business or platform you need to check the fine print. Make sure to look at their Terms and Conditions, their contact details and the frequently asked questions so you can be aware if there’s anything that seems suspicious.
9 Watch Out For Typos
Legitimate business owners will take a lot of time to make a great website and ensure it functions as it should. Scammers on the other hand have many fraudulent websites up at one time, so they don’t put a lot of effort in. You’ll often see typos and text that doesn’t seem written by a person. This is a red flag.
- Don’t Give Up Too Much Info
Legitimate rental providers will rarely ask for sensitive information such as bank account details, card details or even your ID. If you feel pressured to give this information, you should just look elsewhere and protect your identity.
If renting a luxury villa makes you feel like you’d like to own one down the line, we can’t blame you. Radvi Real Estate Consultants, India can help you tap into the elusive luxury market in a growing country.
Radvi.com
Visit us11, Bank Of India Colony,
Kovaipudur,
Coimbatore 641042
India.