While there are a lot of good landlords out there for you to choose from, there are also a ton of scams to consider at the same time. If you are apartment hunting and you see some deals that just seem too good to be true or they ask for payments upfront before you have even signed a lease, then this is a sign that you are dealing with a scam and you need to run the other direction. Seeing an apartment in person is one of the best ways that you can avoid anything to do with rental fraud.

There are a number of different rental scams that you need to be aware of from the start. Some of these include:

# Bait and switch: This is where a scammer is going to try and get a deposit from you or they will have you sign a lease on a property that you were not expecting.

# Phantom rentals: This is when a fraudulent listing is created and the prices are going to be low so a lot of potential tenants will answer. The problem is that these rentals do not exist. The scammer hopes that the person will send a deposit and then the scammer disappears with the money and the tenant is left with nothing.

# Hijacked ads: This is when fake property managers or landlords post an ad for a property that is real, but they will change some of the contact information so that everyone contacts them instead of the actual person.

# Missing amenities: Many scam artists will try to score a higher rent by listing a lot of additional amenities that just don’t exist in the apartment. This gets them a higher rent and it is hard to fight off.

# Already leased: A scam artist or a landlord may try to list an already-leased apartment so that they can get more deposits or application fees. The victim will not be able to move into the apartment because someone else already calls it home.

Finding the right apartment and avoiding some of the potential scams is something that all tenants and renters need to work hard on. When you need a good apartment that feels like you are right at home, come and check out some of our Oakland two bedroom apts and see why they are the right choice for all of your needs. We have some great amenities and the space that you need to make this all your own. Come and take a look at some of our units to see why they are a great option for you.