Be careful, it can happen to anyone! 'Carp Spiral' trap in the real estate sector

Fraud methods that are spreading rapidly in the real estate market in Turkey continue to victimize buyers and sellers. In Marmaris, one of the districts where the most housing sales take place in Muğla, real estate consultant Nilüfer Tezci drew attention to the recent increase in fraud attempts made with the 'Carp Spiral' method and warned citizens.

Nilüfer Tezci stated that the scammers who target homeowners by posting 'for sale by owner' ads on some ad pages try to defraud both the buyer and the seller by first gaining trust and then manipulating the buyer and seller. She said, "The scammers who follow the ad pages reach out to the homeowner and say, 'We want to buy your house but we have a relative, please do not talk about the price, we do not want him to know.' While they make the seller believe that they are selling the house for a high price, they tell the buyer that they are offering a price below the market value. They try to transfer the difference to their own accounts by motivating both parties," and warned those who will buy and sell.

Real Estate Consultant Nilüfer Tezci, who noted that she had experienced an interesting fraud case herself but could not achieve the fraudsters' evil intentions because she knew the right procedures, said, "Fraudsters use a method called 'Sazan Sarma' to scam people who will buy and sell. A person who said he called me upon recommendation told me that they had a house they wanted to sell urgently, that the market value was around 7-7.5 million TL, but that they were willing to make a quick sale for 4.5 million TL. We went to the address to see the house. They were really asking for a price below the market value. We contacted the buyer and started to proceed as if it were a normal sales process. The buyer kept saying, 'Let's not discuss the price between us, do not interfere.' In the meantime, the homeowner came to me because he could not access his e-government. We were constantly receiving phone calls at that time. Both me and the seller were being pressured with things like 'Have you made the application, do not leave us wondering.' I have been in the real estate sector for many years. "During the purchase and sale, it caught my attention that the buyer and seller did not know each other and that they were quoting different prices. We somehow prevented the fraud. Everyone should be clear during purchases and sales, and definitely do not give money to anyone other than the official owner of the house," he said.

Tezci, who said that the confident and oppressive attitudes of the scammers in the incident he experienced were another striking aspect of the process, said, "When I asked the homeowner, 'How much are you selling this house for?' he said, 'I made a big oath, I can't tell you.' The buyer kept saying, 'Don't worry too much about this.' I realized at that moment that we were about to be scammed. Moreover, the scammer was very relaxed. We immediately reported the situation to the police. However, we did not receive the support we expected regarding official procedures in the rest of the process. We made a voice recording and said that we would file a criminal complaint. However, it was stated that the scammer used a fake ID and phone number. We saved the person who was going to sell his house from being scammed, but others should be careful," and asked citizens to be careful against such scams that have become quite widespread in touristic districts in recent years. He recommended that homeowners make transactions through a real estate consultant or real estate office they trust and know.