Scam Busters: 7 signs a Nairobi house is fake
The tricks fake agents use, and the one rule that beats all of them.
Most house scams in Nairobi follow the same script. Here's how to spot it.
The one rule
Never send money before you've stood inside the house and met the landlord or their official agent. Not a "booking fee", not a "viewing fee", not a deposit "to hold it".
The 7 signs
- The price is too good. A 3-bedroom house in Ruiru for KES 8,000 is bait.
- They want money to view. Viewing fees of KES 1,000–2,500 are common, and so are agents who vanish after you pay.
- "The landlord is abroad." So you'll pay the "agent" and get keys later. You won't.
- Photos look like a magazine. Search the photo on Google Images. Stolen photos turn up on other sites.
- Pressure. "Three people are coming today, send the deposit now."
- The M-Pesa name doesn't match. The money goes to a name that isn't the landlord or a registered company.
- No paperwork. A real letting comes with a tenancy agreement and a receipt.
If it happened to you
- Report the number to Safaricom by forwarding the M-Pesa message to 333.
- Report at the nearest police station and get an OB number.
- Tell us. We share known scam numbers with our community.