Expat falls victim to rent advance scam

IN THE ever-evolving world of shady rental dealings, the latest case of a prospective customer taken for a ride by a real estate agent in Doha has all the trappings of a well-organised racket.

The prospective tenant, who has been in Qatar for four years, was happy to read an advertisement on a community website, saying two-bedroom apartments were available for affordable rent.

“The ad sounded reasonable and so I called the mobile number listed there on February 6,” the affected expatriate told Gulf Times.

He said an agent met him at a supermarket in Mansoura and a two-bedroom-two-bathroom unit in a new building nearby was shown to him.

“It was not furnished as what was said in the advertisement but I was told everything would be ready by February 15 when I would be moving in,” he said.

“At an office near the Gold Souq, I was later introduced to an Arab couple who took over the dealings from the first contact.

“Being a cautious person I asked them if they were the landlord and only agent upon which a copy of an agreement between them and the landlord was handed over to me.

“They insisted that I pay QR54,000, the full-year rent in advance, and in cash. I refused and they finally agreed to the payment of QR4,500, a month’s rent, for which I was given a receipt,” he explained.

However, on February 15, when he called the agent on his mobile before heading out to the new residence with his furniture, there was no answer.

“I dialled the two numbers listed on the receipt, but again there was no response. I kept trying until February 18 when both the landlines were disconnected.”

The victim said a complaint with the police had been filed.

“I was fortunate to have a landlord who understood my plight and allowed me to stay at the current place for a couple of weeks more, but I can only imagine what other people in my situation are going through,” the victim said.

It was not clear how many other people have fallen victim to the phony “agents”.

Calls to the mobile and land phone numbers on the “contract”, copies of which we obtained yesterday, went unanswered as well.