Student accommodation is in tight supply but students looking for non-university accommodation should beware of a scam that has hit some of our freshers over the past couple of years.
Student accommodation is in tight supply but students looking for non-university accommodation should beware of a scam that has hit some of our freshers over the past couple of years.
Students, often living outside the UK, “view” a flat online and transfer money for a deposit to a “landlord” to secure a place to live before they arrive in Edinburgh. It all looks fine, except that when the student arrives s/he finds that the flat is already occupied by someone else and not for rent. Meantime the so-called “landlord”, usually resident outside the UK and difficult to track, has disappeared with the deposit money and it’s almost impossible for Police to get it back.
If you can’t find accommodation before you arrive and can’t authenticate a landlord, it’s best to stay in bed and breakfast or a hostel when you first arrive and flat hunt where you can actually visit properties.