Apartment rental query - sending money
#1
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Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 65
Apartment rental query - sending money
I am moving to Vancouver in a few weeks and in discussion to rent a place. A good friend checked the place out so I am happy to move procees. I completed an application form and provided my Equifax credit score. The property manager has now asked me to send money (first month plus deposit) via email transfer. Should there not be some sort of agreement outlining rental terms etc. in place before sending money ? The process feels very informal and not sure what protection I have. Is this the normal?
#2
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
I am moving to Vancouver in a few weeks and in discussion to rent a place. A good friend checked the place out so I am happy to move procees. I completed an application form and provided my Equifax credit score. The property manager has now asked me to send money (first month plus deposit) via email transfer. Should there not be some sort of agreement outlining rental terms etc. in place before sending money ? The process feels very informal and not sure what protection I have. Is this the normal?
There will be orher places in Vancouver that you can actually look at before handing $$ over. If you need a recommendation for a really nice AirBNB I have srayed at let me know. I would stay somewhere like that first while you look.
#3
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Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 65
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
Thanks, my friend viewed the place and I trust their opinion. It’s just the lack of agreement that is concerning. It’s through a company but the website is out of order which is a red flag for me.
#4
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
I have a quite a high tolerance for internet shopping risk. For example, I bought a car without seeing it by wire transferring over fifty grand US to someone I didn't know. I would not touch this. City notorious for rental scams, company with no website, nah.
#5
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
I am moving to Vancouver in a few weeks and in discussion to rent a place. A good friend checked the place out so I am happy to move procees. I completed an application form and provided my Equifax credit score. The property manager has now asked me to send money (first month plus deposit) via email transfer. Should there not be some sort of agreement outlining rental terms etc. in place before sending money ? The process feels very informal and not sure what protection I have. Is this the normal?
#6
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
As someone who's very risk adverse in financial matters, it's impossible not to admire your chutzpah!
#7
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
#8
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
Fifty grand is, btw, a lot of money for me. I don't have another fifty grand. At the bank they fetched a senior fellow to point out that once the money is sent there's no getting it back. You have to have a lot of confidence before wiring and, for me, that means everything I can check has to check out. In this case the broken website is enough to chase me away. There will always be another apartment and it's always a better idea to be nearby before signing up for a year or more. Maybe the friend has different tastes and genuinely wouldn't realize that, for example, living over a 24 hour Chinese take away wouldn't suit.
#9
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
I am moving to Vancouver in a few weeks and in discussion to rent a place. A good friend checked the place out so I am happy to move procees. I completed an application form and provided my Equifax credit score. The property manager has now asked me to send money (first month plus deposit) via email transfer. Should there not be some sort of agreement outlining rental terms etc. in place before sending money ? The process feels very informal and not sure what protection I have. Is this the normal?
#12
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
Ow! I still simmer with resentment over a book that never came ten years ago; it probably cost $20.
#13
Banned
Joined: Apr 2009
Location: SW Ontario
Posts: 19,879
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
Do not send any money and certainly never hand money over without a signed contract and after inspecting the property prior to moving in - i.e. to ascertain if any repairs are required - so you don't get dinged for damage you didn't cause if you move out! (read the tenancy rules in the links) .
BC Landlord and Tenant Resources - Resource for BC Tenants
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/h...ting-a-tenancy
BC Landlord and Tenant Resources - Resource for BC Tenants
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/h...ting-a-tenancy
#14
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Joined: Dec 2016
Location: St Catharines, Ontario From Bournemouth UK
Posts: 417
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
Get an Airbnb for a month while you look for a place when you arrive. Never send money without a written contract.
#15
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Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 65
Re: Apartment rental query - sending money
Thanks for all the comments. Did as suggested And now got an Airbnb for a month.