SCAM ALERT on @Immoweb /Airbnb in Brussels. If you are an expat living in Brussels or about to move here, please read this carefully. Yesterday I went on Immoweb looking for furnished appartments for rent. One of them looked amazing and very cheap. Maybe too cheap... #THREAD 1/14

As usual, I used the form to get in contact with the owner/agency by sending an automated e-mail to "show interest". A few hours later, I received a personal e-mail from "Garcia Luzia" from a gmail address. She pretended to be the owner and moving soon to another country. (2/14)

She asked a lot of personal information about me. She wanted to know more about my background and tenant profile since she is the owner and wanted somebody who will take care of her place. There was a litlle polite exchange by e-mail and everything seemed normal. (3/14)

She sent more pictures in which the appartment looked actually AMAZING. The dream apartment, new, clean, equiped, well located next to Jourdan. She also sent the address so I could check on Google Streetview and see the building. Everything looked perfect and normal. (4/14)

But then things got complicated. She told me that she would use Airbnb Plus platform to do the booking. I had to pay one month + 1 month deposit so I could visit the place with a "local Airbnb agent" (WTF?). In the case I would cancel, no problem: it would be refunded. (5/14)

It was really confusing I must say because at that stage, you already exchanged a few e-mail with personal information and also you really liked the apartment and its low price. You feel like it's gonna be taken very soon by someone else anyway, the best deal of the year! (6/14)

But YOU'RE NOT STUPID. Even in Covid time, you ask to first have a real Whatsapp voice contact with the owner. What I did. She replied that we "could do that" if I send her a copy of my passport. WTF! What if I wanted to go for dinner, would she ask my criminal record? (7/14)

Since a whatsapp conversation seemed to be a BIG STEP in her life, I started to think that the appartment was really TOO cheap. I checked the description and then I realized that a garage box was also included! So now the price looks really underrated and the flat FAKE. (8/14)

That's when you start to ask for help and call some expats friends who have 1000 stories to tell you about scams in the real estate business. I forgot about the appartment and did not reply anymore to her latest passport asking e-mail. But then something crazy happened! (9/14)

She finally decided to get over the passport thing and contacted me on Whatsapp! Living dangerously! She wrote "Good afternoon, Etterbeek!" which is weird by the way, Etterbeek is the discrict where the flat is located, not my first name :-) Bad start to seduce me! (10/14)

At this time, I was already aware it was a scam but I went on playing a bit. So I convinced her to send me the booking link without having to send all the personal details and the passport copy. And she did. The link looked like https://www.airbnb.be.property-90338828.eu/rooms/plus/14760676 (11/14)

That kind of link is sending you to a "Canada Dry Airbnb booking page". It looks like Airbnb, it feels like Airbnb, it will take your money like Airbnb BUT IT'S NOT AIRBNB. Of course, I did not pay and asked if she was sure about the platform... (12/14)

And then she got a bit angry (which is a typical desperate scammer behaviour, according to many blogs I have read on the topic) and went back to English lesson 1: "You not answer me!" "Why ask me that?" Please: reminder if you are about to rent an appartment in Brussels: (13/14)

1) Don't believe well-known websites are safe: even Immoweb has scam ads!
2) Never trust someone who avoids personal contact like voice/video chat
3) Always double check URL/website when it comes to online payments
4) Don't believe renting flats in Brussels is cheap! :-) (14/14)