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We got an inquiry a couple of days ago about staying for two months this spring. We often host people for a month or two when they first arrive while getting settled, but this wasn’t someone moving to the city. Here are the red flags, as I saw them:
new member (one month)
no reviews
writing from New York City (so he says) in Chinese
First message he’s asking for a discount.
purpose of trip: travelling to Vancouver with “my secretary”* to do “market research”
very quickly in chat went to “You can send me a message at +1 (917-217/XXXX) Wx (HopehopeXX) This time I’m renting for a short term, next time I’ll rent for a longer period, thank you!”
At one point he said “This was my first time using Airbnb” and a little further down the thread “I don’t use Airbnb often”
When we told him we do all communicating and reservations through the Airbnb platform, he responded with this weirdly-worded defence of going outside the platform: “I am very abiding by the rules of Airbnb and the transaction is still on Airbnb.For a clearer understanding of the dynamics of the house and the environmental facilities, off-site communication will also make the relationship between the landlord and the tenant more harmonious, thank you!”
When we again clarified that the AIRBNB platform was the only way we communicated with new guests, he went silent.
** (do “secretaries” even exist any more, and how do you do market research in Canada if you cannot speak English)
So – back to the question posed in the topic – is there even the remotest chance my instincts were wrong when I smelled a rat here? – because it WAS a $5,000 reservation (if real), and I didn’t do much to encourage him.
I would say there is no chance in hell this is a legit inquiry. Your last point, that the “guest” went silent when you made it clear for the second time that you wouldn’t communicate off-platform, seals the deal.
These scams, as host posts indicate, always come from new accounts, always ask to communicate off-platform, always are for months-long bookings, and almost always are in Chinese. Your inquiry checks all the boxes and should be reported to Airbnb, although these scammers just open new accounts.
Gotta love the part where he tells you:
“For a clearer understanding of the dynamics of the house and the environmental facilities, off-site communication will also make the relationship between the landlord and the tenant more harmonious”.
Sounds like he used ChatGPT to come up with that one.
“Give me some examples of ways to convince a short term rental host to conmunicate off-platform.”
We actually got a pop-up warning from Airbnb the instant he posted his phone and his handle on ws (whatever that is). I’m surprised they (or their Airbnb algorithm) didn’t jump in and redact… was actually expecting them to do so.
Lol more like “Give me some examples of ways to convince a short term rental host to communicate off-platform, in the style of a badly written fortune cookie"
I think what happens when you get that pop-up, is that Airbnb does, in fact, redact the inquiry on the guest end- a booking from them if you were to pre-approve wouldn’t go through. At least that’s what I’ve gleaned from other host’s posts on other forums.
And if you check back on that profile in a few days, I bet you find it’s been removed.
I had something like this when I first signed up for VRBO. They sent confusing messages about when they were going to come and how long they’d stay and that their employer would be writing a check. I did not accept the request.
Ah, the good ole “My employer is paying by check” scam.
Here’s what comes next:
"Hi XX, Guess what? My cousin, who lives in the area, just told me I could stay for free at his place when I’m in town.
But since my employer is going to pay for accommodation, how about we just split the amount, but I won’t actually stay. Then you could rent it out directly to someone else and we’ll both come out ahead.
So when I send the check, you just send me half the money. "
Of course, the check will bounce.
Imagine spending your days concoting schemes to bilk hardworking people out of their money.
The other version is that they send a [fake] certified check for too much money. When you contact them to tell them it’s too much, they tell you to deposit it in your account but send them most/all of the difference back. By the time the check bounces, they already have the difference.
I’m already treating him as dangerous… but my question was – if a host was naive enough to play the game, where would the scammer go with this? What’s the grift… specifically?
Ask the scammer, he’s the only one who knows for sure.
I’ve almost wished I’d get one of these scam inquiries so I could respond, “Sounds good, I just have one question before we proceed- when you were a little kid and people asked what you wanted to be when you grew up, did you say ‘Online scammer!’?”
I’ve almost wished I’d get one of these scam inquiries so I could respond, “Sounds good, I just have one question before we proceed- when you were a little kid and people asked what you wanted to be when you grew up, did you say ‘Online scammer!’?”
When I get phone scammers I ask quickly – before they have a chance to hang up mid-sentence – “Does your mother know you’re a crook, or do you lie to her about your work?” I would say about a quarter of them react in a way that’s clearly under their skin.
A lot of these calls come from countries where typically two or three generations live together in a family home… and the scammer’s mother is probably telling him how proud she is he got that fancy white-collar job with a bank or a call centre.
Yeah, I’ve pictured most of these scammers sitting in Mom’s basement, her believing he’s taking online courses, and being proud that he’s so industrious and motivated to further himself.
A guy I know was vacationing in Mexico and headed back up to the border, when he was getting too tired to drive anymore and pulled off the highway in a rural area, figuring to get a few hours sleep in his van before carrying on.
No sooner had he fallen asleep when there was someone banging on the van door- it was a young cop asking him what he was doing there. He explained, but the cop told him he had to move. He asked why?- he wasn’t bothering anyone- there was nothing but farmers’ fields around him, and it would be dangerous for him to drive until he got some sleep. The cop insisted he couldn’t stay there, so the guy said “I’ll bet your mother is proud of the fact that her son is a police officer. What would she think if she knew you were spending your time hassling law-abiding people who are just trying to sleep?”
The cop got back in his cruiser and drove away.
Funny but I had one of those today. No reviews or prior stays. Only partially verified, no Profile. Said he was new to AirBnB and could only see a few photos so would I send the rest to his text number but he knew enough about how to get past AirBnB not letting you send your phone number. Oh and for 6 weeks too.
Declined him and reported him for all the good that will do but if they give you suspicious vibes you gotta walk away!
I love it!! Travelling with his secretary!! Classic!! He’s a very poor scammer, he needs to polish his skills( NO!!)
Frame that one and hang it on your wall!!
