Rent without getting burned.
Most listers are honest. A few are not. These are the habits that keep the good deals good, and the scams easy to spot.
Never pay before you have seen the unit.
In person, or on a live video call where you can ask them to move around the unit. No deposit, no reservation fee, no “just to hold it”. Nothing changes hands before you have seen what you are renting. Any lister worth renting from expects this.
Red flags.
Reservation or holding fees only make sense after a viewing and a contract. Asked for one before you have seen the unit? Walk away.
If a unit is far cheaper than everything else in the same tower, it is usually bait. Compare against the building profile before you get excited.
Pushing you off-platform to a private number or app right away is how scammers avoid a paper trail. Keep the conversation where it started until you have met.
"I am overseas, just send the deposit and I will courier the keys" is one of the oldest rental scams in the Philippines. Real handovers happen in person.
No time for an in-person viewing and no willingness to do a live video tour is a refusal to prove the unit exists. That is your answer.
A quick checklist.
Before you view
- Search the building name. Every unit here is filed under its building, so a real address is easy to confirm.
- Ask for the exact unit number and floor.
- Agree to meet at the building lobby, not a random spot nearby.
At the viewing
- Check the unit matches the photos and the floor in the listing.
- If it is a broker, ask to see the owner’s authorization and a valid ID.
- Meet in person, or on a live video call. Never just photos.
Before you pay
- Get a signed contract before any money moves.
- Pay to a named account that matches the lister, never cash to a stranger.
- Use a traceable method and keep every receipt.
Got an ad to check?
Drop its photos and its price into Legit Check. The registry compares the photos with every photo it has collected, the price with the building’s median, and tells you what it found and what it checked against.
See something off?
Forward the listing or the message to listings@units.ph. It goes to a real person, not a bot. Anything that breaks the house rules has no place here.