I thought I'd got my dream flat - so did 23 others

Last summer, 20-year-old Mide Awosika thought she had secured her imagination level up of starting a caller word astatine Queen Mary University successful London.

She and 2 flatmates unneurotic paid a £12,000 deposit to rent a four-bedroom spot successful Poplar, eastbound London. But erstwhile they arrived connected moving day, determination were nary keys – and they recovered 9 different radical besides trying to determination into the aforesaid flat.

The spot had been advertised connected large rental websites Zoopla and OpenRent. After a viewing successful July, Awosika said the letting agent, who identified himself arsenic Derrick Fringe, told them determination was stiff contention and they needed to wage instantly to unafraid it. She said they handed implicit 3 months' rent upfront, positive holding and information deposits.

She told america that conscionable earlier the scheduled August move-in date, Fringe told them the existing tenants had refused to permission and bailiffs were needed. Then interaction stopped.

When Awosika went to the gathering the pursuing day, she realised the standard of the occupation and described however radical aft radical arrived, each expecting to cod keys for the aforesaid property.

She decided to acceptable up a WhatsApp radical to support way of and stock accusation amongst those affected.

Neither Fringe nor the landlord who owns the spot responded to the BBC's questions.

Since then, Awosika said, 23 radical person contacted her claiming to person been targeted successful the aforesaid way, each linked to the aforesaid level and the aforesaid agent.

Figures from Report Fraud indicated the outgo of rental fraud was a increasing contented with reported losses astir doubling successful the past 5 years.

In 2021, determination were 4,642 rental fraud cases reported leaving those affected £7.2m retired of pocket.

In 2025, 4,178 cases were reported successful England and Wales and Northern Ireland - costing victims £14.5m.

Among those who joined Awosika's WhatsApp radical were Freazy Warr, 24, Nirrhit Pal, 23, and 3 different flatmates, who betwixt them transferred £7,200 to unafraid the aforesaid property. They ne'er received the keys either.

"As the moving van was pulling into the road, we were told by a person to cancel instantly due to the fact that 2 different groups were already waiting," Warr said.

"My lease was ending and I was terrified I'd person obscurity to live."

He said the unit of London's rental marketplace had near them feeling vulnerable.

"There are truthful fewer affordable properties," helium said. "Students and radical without a batch of wealth are pushed online, wherever it's harder to cognize who to trust."

Two young professionals moving successful adjacent Canary Wharf paid a £9,460 deposit to rent the flat.

Satchit Warade and different tenant, who asked for her sanction to beryllium withheld, said they were rushed into the viewing with the cause saying they had 45 minutes to get there.

On their moving-in day, the 23-year-olds told america they called Fringe betwixt 20 and 30 times earlier helium called them backmost to accidental the existing tenants would not determination retired and claimed helium was going to evict them.

The adjacent time they could not scope Fringe truthful reported the substance to the police.

Warade said the acquisition was "harrowing".

"Especially successful cases similar these wherever a mendacious consciousness of urgency is created, it becomes each the much stressful.

"It has decidedly made maine ace cautious and I deliberation I volition everlastingly beryllium connected my toes present each clip I'm renting successful London.

"There's thing astir conscionable the trauma of having to spell done thing that makes maine suffer the spot successful the marketplace and however it works."

The level was listed connected some OpenRent and Zoopla.

Open Rent said it offered its "sympathies" to those "affected by fraudulent activities" but claimed it had "a broad vetting strategy successful spot to verify the legitimacy of landlords and properties listed connected our platform".

"Upon receiving this study we acted promptly, removing the listing and suspending the relationship pending the result of immoderate investigation," a spokesperson said.

"When users take to wage off-platform against our explicit guidance, which appears to beryllium the lawsuit here, unluckily we cannot warrant the information of funds.

"Our quality to assistance retrieve funds is much constricted erstwhile nonstop slope transfers person been made to a backstage idiosyncratic off-platform."

Zoopla did not respond to the BBC.

The level was advertised arsenic being managed by a letting cause calling itself Propertiesmatter.com.

Its website utilized to picture it arsenic a "leading UK existent property agency" with "eight branches" and "170 staff". That website appears to person been taken down.

However, lone 2 unit members were named online. The cause besides claimed to beryllium a subordinate of the manufacture assemblage Arla Propertymark. Arla said it had nary grounds of the name.

An code listed for complaints links, connected Companies House, went to an unrelated steadfast with a akin name.

A spokesperson for that institution told the BBC it was unaware its details were being utilized without its cognition oregon consent, had thing to bash with the flat, and said it was a "victim of firm individuality theft".

Using tenancy documents fixed to america by Satchit Warade, the BBC traced an email code linked to the idiosyncratic listed arsenic the landlord, Edward Robinson, who appeared to person bought the spot successful March 2025. The email was connected to the aforesaid email relationship utilized by the letting agent.

Awosika said her radical emailed Robinson erstwhile she could not entree the level but ne'er received a reply.

Another prospective tenant claimed gathering managers flagged to him the contented connected the time of the failed move-in. The BBC contacted some men. The idiosyncratic known arsenic Fringe did not respond portion Robinson declined to reply questions and ended the call.

Another student, Samyek, told however helium was portion of a radical that transferred much than £26,000 to a antithetic person named arsenic landlord connected their contract. Tenants were fixed antithetic landlord names and slope details, but each linked to the aforesaid address, the BBC found.

After reporting the substance arsenic a suspected fraud, Samyek managed to retrieve astir of his wealth done his bank. The lawsuit was passed by Report Fraud to Kent Police, which is present investigating.

All the affected would-be tenants told the BBC they felt pressured to wage much than they could afford.

The National Residential Landlord Association said demands for ample upfront payments were a large informing sign.

The organisation's main argumentation advisor said prospective tenants should:

As for Awosika, she said the acquisition had near her acold much cautious.

"It was specified an elaborate scam," she said. "It felt real. Telling my mum was awful.

"It was a immense magnitude of wealth – and it was conscionable gone."

Additional reporting by Thomas Spencer and Paul Myers.