How to Spot and Avoid Rental Scams in Nigeria

Most Nigerian rentals are arranged informally - cash, no written agreement, no oversight - which is exactly the gap scammers exploit. The classic version is the ghost landlord: someone advertises a property they do not own or that is already occupied, collects a fee, and disappears.

Walk away the moment you see any of these:

• You are asked to pay before seeing the property in person.
• The price is well below similar listings in the same area.
• You are pressured to pay now because "others are interested".
• Payment is to a personal account, with no agreement and no receipt.
• The person cannot prove they own or are authorised to let the property.

• Inspection-fee scam: collecting viewing fees for a property they cannot actually let.
• Ghost landlord: taking a deposit for a property that is fake or occupied.
• Double-let: renting the same unit to several people at once.
• Fake agent: posing as an agent for a listing they have no link to.

Inspect in person before paying anything, verify the landlord or agent owns or can let the property, insist on a written tenancy agreement, get a receipt for every payment, and never send cash to a stranger. On Flatmates Nigeria, hosts are identity-verified and your money is held in escrow until you confirm move-in - so a deposit can never simply vanish.

Keep all messages, receipts and account details, stop communicating, and report it. The stronger your paper trail, the better your chance of recourse - and the more you help protect the next renter.