Almost every rental scam in Da Nang ends the same way: money sent by bank transfer for an apartment you have not seen, to someone who is not its owner, and a chat that goes silent. In June 2025 the Da Nang City People's Court sentenced a man to seven years for exactly that kind of fraud: he rented an apartment in a Son Tra building, had documents altered to show himself as its owner, and took close to 1 billion dong from three people. You can avoid nearly all of this with three checks that take an evening: who the owner is, where the money goes, and whether the apartment exists as shown.

The schemes

  • A listing that is not real. Photos copied from another agency or a sales site, a price well below the building's market, and a request for a deposit "to hold it" before any viewing. After the transfer the account disappears. Our building pages show what apartments in each building usually rent for, and a price far below that is the first warning.
  • Someone who is not the owner. A tenant subletting without the owner's consent, a "relative", or someone with forged papers, as in the court case above, where the papers were black-and-white copies without the red seal. They can show you the apartment, because they have the keys.
  • One apartment promised to several people. The same person takes a deposit from more than one tenant for the same dates; whoever arrives second finds someone living there.
  • Fees before the lease. A "booking fee", a "viewing fee", an "application fee" or a "confirmation of intent". None of these is normal on the long-term market in Da Nang.
  • A flat that cannot be registered. Apartments meant for nightly rent, or in buildings where registration is a problem, offered as long-term. Without the temporary residence registration (tạm trú) you cannot extend a visa, so ask before paying whether the owner will register you; how it works is in our registration guide.

The warning signs when you rent from abroad, such as an owner who will not show the apartment live on camera, are listed in our guide to renting before arrival.

How to check the owner

Ask to see the title certificate (the "pink book", sổ hồng) or, in a building handed over recently, the sale contract with the developer and the handover minutes, plus the owner's ID card. Look at the originals or a clear photo of the originals, not black-and-white copies. The name on these documents must match the name in the lease and the name on the bank account you pay into. If someone else signs for the owner, they need a written power of attorney from the owner, and the owner's own documents still have to be shown. A real owner expects these questions; someone who takes offence at them has answered already.

How to pay safely

  1. Nothing before the lease. Read and sign the lease first, then pay.
  2. Pay only the person named in the lease. A Vietnamese banking app shows the recipient's name before you confirm a transfer: check it against the lease, and do not pay to a "manager's" personal card.
  3. Write a payment reference, such as "deposit, apartment 1205, lease of 1 November", and keep the receipt.
  4. The deposit is usually one month's rent, two in pricier apartments and villas. A request for three months' deposit or six months up front is a reason to negotiate or walk away.

What the deposit covers and how it comes back at the end is in our guide to getting your deposit back.

If you have already sent money

  1. Call your bank at once and ask them to trace the transfer and contact the receiving bank; the sooner, the better the chance the money is still there.
  2. Report it to the police of the ward where the apartment is or where you live, with your passport, the transfer receipt, the account number, the chat and the listing. Take a Vietnamese speaker if you can.
  3. Keep every screenshot and do not delete the chat.
  4. Do not pay anyone who offers to "recover" the money for a fee. Vietnamese banks warn that these offers are a second scam; deal only with your bank and the police.
  5. Tell the admins of the group where the listing was posted, so it is removed before the next person pays.

How it works with us

The deposit and rent go to the owner named in the lease, and you sign a bilingual lease before any money changes hands. The full process is on the how to rent page, and what to check at the viewing and in the papers is on the documents and safety page.