2025 Zürich Area Edition
Homegate is the primary platform for advertising properties for sale and rent in Switzerland. Many such platforms do have scammers trying to con victims out of their money and Homegate is no different. They do have scam systems in place and there are ways to report fake adverts.
Of course, as defences get better, attacks and scams get better. Here is the early 2025 edition of how to try to avoid getting scammed on Homegate.
While there are still some adverts that seem too good/cheap/something to be true, there are more convincing adverts that try to mingle with the normal, real properties that are being legitimately advertised.
The classic “bait and switch” scam revolves around getting the person seeking a new home to step outside the Homegate platform and borrow from a “partner”, in this case TripAdvisor.
The path to this point is online-only contact via the Homegate platform where a message is sent to the advertiser. The advertiser then asks you to move to WhatsApp, in this case on a German number (+49 1590 4847137, probably a pay-as-you-go or eSIM number with the scammer most likely not in Germany, Switzerland or anywhere close).
Of course as the market for property in the Zürich area is extremely difficult, the phrase “Wir würden uns freuen Sie schon bald als neuen Mieter begrüßen zu dürfen” gets the victim very motivated for those next steps on TripAdvisor – or more likely, a TripAdvisor fake platform.
The objective is to relieve the victim of money, either a deposit or a first months’ rent with the promise that the search for an apartment in Zürich, or nearby, is over.
WhatsApp is not the only method that is used to try to entice people to part with their money when facing a promise of a new place to live.
Guten Tag,
Vielen Dank für Ihr Interesse an unserer Mietwohnung in der Stadtturmstrasse 15, 5400 Baden. Mein Name ist Patricia Gallardo und zusammen mit meinem Mann sind wir die Eigentümer.
Die Miete beträgt 2.480 CHF/Monat (inkl. Nebenkosten).
Da wir Sie besser kennenlernen möchten, würden wir uns freuen, etwas über Sie zu hören (Alter, Beruf, Lebensstil oder was immer Sie denken,macht Sie zu einem guten Mieter). Wenn du auf Englisch schreiben kannst, wäre das eine große Hilfe für mich.
Ich wünsche Ihnen einen schönen Tag und hoffe, von Ihnen zu hören.Grüße,
Patricia Gallardo ([email protected])
It’s not the first time I met Patricia:
Vielen Dank für Ihr Interesse an unserer Mietwohnung in der Drahtzugstrasse 4 8008 Zürich.
Mein Name ist Patricia Gallardo und zusammen mit meinem Mann sind wir die Eigentümer.
Die Miete beträgt 2.370 CHF/Monat (inkl. Nebenkosten).
Da wir Sie besser kennenlernen möchten, würden wir uns freuen, etwas über Sie zu hören (Alter, Beruf, Lebensstil oder was immer Sie denken, macht Sie zu einem guten Mieter). Wenn du auf Englisch schreiben kannst, wäre das eine große Hilfe für mich. Ich wünsche Ihnen einen schönen Tag und hoffe, von Ihnen zu hören.Grüße,
Patricia Gallardo
Did I mention that this was all based on “partners” and a bait-and-switch? I wrote back to her in English once (reading the above, you can imagine why) and got this:
Thanks for the information and we will gladly rent you the flat if we can reach an agreement.
Everything looks good and we consider that as long as the rent is paid on time and you will take good care of the apartment, we will get along just fine!
As i told you, the monthly rent is 2.370 CHF with the utilities included. A security deposit of 2.370 CHF is required at the start of the lease and it will be refunded at the end of the contract. The agreement can be terminated by any party with 3 months prior notification.
Now, a little bit about ourself so we can get to know each other better. We are living in Santa Cruz de Tenerife and we inherited this apartment a couple of years ago. Our daughter used to live there for a short period, but now she has a new job as a Business Development Manager in medical Devices for Endoprothetics and Orthopaedic here in Spain, so we decided to rent it.
We will be glad to rent it to anyone who likes to keep it clean and tidy. We can rent out the flat for unlimited time.
The only problem is that we are in Tenerife right now, so we won’t be able to show you the apartment ourselves because of the actual situation but we will find a suitable solution if you are still interested.
When would you like to move in?
After that, I got this:
Thanks for your answer and I will gladly rent you the flat if we can reach an agreement.
The apartment is vacant so you can move-in anytime you want. It is furnished now. You may use my furniture, or you can use your own, it’s the same thing for me. I have the option of sending all my furniture to storage, if you want to bring your own (no extra cost).
I am ready to travel as soon as possible back to Switzerland to sort out the long term lease. Last month I took 2 days off from my job and came to show the apartment to a person that was interested in renting it and when I arrived there, he called me and said that is no longer interested in my apartment. That is the way I entrusted Booking.com which offers a simple control process for owners and new tenants.
Since I would not like to lose time and money again for nothing, I will require a trial check through Booking.com before deciding about the flat. You will book it for 1-2 days to check the apartment before deciding to rent the flat or not (the security deposit against damage which is required, will be either calculated as coverage for the first month rent or it is refunded after you check out). After you will check the apartment, if you decide to rent it, I will personally come and make the arrangements with you (the long term contract will be made under Swiss rental rules).
If you agree I will enable my ad again on Booking.com so you can book it.
Thank you for your interest and waiting news from you.Regards,
Patricia Gallardo
So the switch would be to Booking.com (or a fake look-a-like) where a payment is made for a place that she will gladly rent to you, no questions asked. What could possibly go wrong?!
The advice for anyone looking for a place to live on Homegate is very simple – never give anyone any money up front and always, always ensure you go and see a place before you rent it. Scammers are not in the country, they are trying to game the huge amount of people that are seeking a new place to live and, given the difficulties in securing a new apartment, especially around Zürich, there are people who are desperate enough to fall for these scams. Don’t be one of them…..
