House Hunters Beware: Scammers In Hyderabad Are On The Prowl
Planning to move to Hyderabad but cannot find a hostel? While you look for brokers to find your abode in the city, be careful of scammers preying on newcomers. Hyderabad faces a rising threat of fraudsters pretending to be brokers and steal money from new job seekers.
How does the scam work? As innocent job seekers flock to the metropolis in search of hostels, PGs, and rental areas, these fraudsters working as brokers demand “refundable” deposits sometimes to just show the properties.
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Creating a sense of urgency and preying on the desperation and helplessness of the newcomers, a Times of India report said, the brokers pressurise them to fish out hefty amounts, sometimes even going up to Rs 25,000. Once the payment is made, the brokers disappear and are unreachable.
Notably, many of these scammers are listed on popular and reputable property apps, which makes it a challenge to differentiate between legitimate agents and fraudsters.
One such individual who fell victim to the scam recounted how a broker sent her pictures and videos of a property near Kondapur and demanded Rs 20,000 as a deposit. Threatening to give the house to someone else, the program analyst from Nashik paid the sum, and since then, she has been unable to contact him.
Another victim ended up losing Rs 10,000 as a “security measure” before even seeing the property. He too faced a similar outcome where the broker stopped taking his calls and eventually became unreachable.
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According to reports, there have been several cases of scammers being particularly active in the western side of the city, looking to find professionals heading to places like Hitec City, Gachibowli, Madhapur, and Nanakramguda.
