9 signs that a property listing is a fraud

The main lure. A unique price for a 'great flat in central Almaty or Astana' is not luck — it is engineered: you are supposed to rush so as not to miss it. Genuine good deals go at the normal price.

Run a few of the photographs through an image search (Google Lens, Yandex Images). If the same shots appear in other cities or countries, the listing is a fake.

Glossy shots of flats that look like a furniture catalogue are often renders or stolen developer marketing material. Ask for casual photos from additional angles.

'I already have four interested parties — reserve it with a prepayment.' A real owner is happy to wait for a viewing. A fraudster pushes urgency — the scheme only works until the first check.

'I'm on a business trip / in another country / receiving treatment.' Any pretext for not showing the flat or meeting in person is a critical red flag. No transfers without a personal meeting and viewing.

A scan of the register extract and the seller's ID is a normal buyer's demand at the negotiation stage. A refusal to provide them is your equally normal refusal of the deal.

Especially if the card is with a foreign bank. A real rental or purchase goes through a notary, a bank safety-deposit box or a receipt at a personal meeting. Card = money gone for good.

One listing, but you are speaking now to 'the wife', now to 'the brother', now to 'the manager'. A classic scheme for spreading responsibility — none of them knows the details, and there is nobody to hold liable.

If the documents sent show one address but at the meeting you are shown a flat at another, don't even try to 'clarify'. They are different flats, and the second one most likely does not belong to the seller.