January and September are peak seasons for the rental housing hunt

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This is when many ask:
How much does it really cost to rent – and how can you avoid getting scammed in the process?

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This is also the time when many house hunters ask themselves: How much does it actually cost to rent? How do you find a rental quickly? What types of rental housing are available?

These are just a few of the many questions that arise when searching for a place to live. The rental housing market can seem overwhelming, and if you’re looking for an apartment or a room, it often takes time, effort, and a good deal of patience to find the right fit. It’s a confusing, stressful, and sometimes anxiety-inducing process – but with a few good tips, you can avoid housing scams and make the process safer and more manageable.

Rental scams – especially deposit scams where fraudsters deceive prospective tenants into paying upfront – can happen on both social media and rental websites. It’s a serious issue for rental platforms, and BoligPortal.dk has publicly shared what steps they are taking to prevent it.

“At BoligPortal, we take housing fraud very seriously, and we are committed to preventing and minimizing rental scams. We do this by verifying all new landlords before their listings are published,”
says Anders Hyldborg, CEO of BoligPortal.dk.

And BoligPortal isn’t the only platform taking security seriously. DBA.dk encourages all users to validate themselves with NemID before sharing personal information or sending advance payments to a landlord. Unfortunately, it’s not hard for scammers to obtain a fake NemID, and with polite language and attractive photos, even the most cautious renter can fall victim to fraud.

It’s not just housing platforms that are taking this seriously – the Danish police are too. They have issued public warnings, noting that reports of housing fraud always increase around the start of the academic year.

“That’s why we know that students, who may be in a hurry to find accommodation, are particularly at risk of being scammed,” says Jens Skovbjerg, Chief Inspector at the National Center for Cybercrime, in an interview with Berlingske.

BoligPortal.dk, DBA.dk, and the Danish Police are just some of the actors who take rental fraud just as seriously as PayProff.

Online rental and deposit fraud undermine trust in rental platforms and in the general sense of safety online. At PayProff, we believe the internet should be a space for positive connections and safe transactions – including renting a home.

It is simply not acceptable that a few bad actors are allowed to ruin this experience for the many people out there looking for a home.

“Scammers will often try to collect some kind of upfront payment – for example a deposit or prepaid rent – by claiming there are many other interested renters. They pressure people into transferring money immediately. Our general advice is to use common sense and be a bit critical. Who is the person you’re making a deal with?” says Jens Skovbjerg on behalf of the Danish Police.

Online transactions should be simple, safe, and secure. And while even the most cautious people can fall victim to fraud, there are ways to reduce the risk.

That’s why we recommend using a secure third-party financial service designed to protect you from scams – like PayProff.

PayProff was created to protect you when transferring your deposit to a landlord you essentially don’t know.

Through our partnership with Secure Payments – a company regulated by the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority – PayProff holds the funds in a separate account until both parties have confirmed the agreement. This setup allows us to rebuild trust between renters and landlords online – especially on rental platforms.

In many cases, it’s almost impossible to recover your money once it’s been sent. But with PayProff, it becomes easier to get your money back if fraud occurs.

At PayProff, we are working hard to restore trust in the online marketplace, because we believe the internet should be – and can be – a place where people connect and do business safely.