ĪreiRīga Tips for tenants

How to spot fraudsters when looking for a rented flat in Rīga

Updated 05.10.2026.

A fraudster posing as a landlord usually wants one thing: for you to transfer money before you have seen the flat. The State Police (Valsts policija) has been warning about this for years (Valsts policija, 29.04.2021), and the scheme changes little.

What the scheme usually looks like

What to check before any payment

1. View the flat in person. The State Police advises not to transfer money or make any payments before you have seen the flat in real life and signed the tenancy agreement (Valsts policija, 29.04.2021). If you cannot come, ask an acquaintance, or ask for a video call from the flat showing the stairwell door number and a window onto the street. A video call does not replace a viewing, but it can filter out some fake listings.

2. Check the owner in the Land Register (zemesgrāmata). The Land Register is open to everyone, and its entries are publicly reliable (Zemesgrāmatu likums (Land Register Law), article 1). On the zemesgramata.lv portal you can find the flat by address or cadastral number and, for a fee, look at its folio (nodalījums): the whole folio costs 5.20 euros, one part 1.70 euros (Court Administration price list for paid services; Land Register frequently asked questions). The owner's first name, surname and personal identity number are in the second part of the folio (Land Register Law, articles 14 and 16). Compare this with the person who is talking to you and who will sign the agreement. If someone else is letting the flat, ask on what basis (for example a power of attorney), and ask to see it.

3. The agreement is in writing. A tenancy agreement is made in writing, and the only basis for living in a rented flat is an agreement made in writing (Dzīvojamo telpu īres likums (Residential Tenancy Law), articles 6 and 7). If the landlord says no agreement is needed, that is a sign to stop.

4. Pay by bank transfer to the owner's name. The account holder must be the same person who is in the agreement and in the Land Register. Since 9 October 2025 your bank checks, before each transfer, whether the payee's name matches the account number and shows you the result; the decision whether to pay remains yours (Latvijas Banka, 02.10.2025). If the bank reports a mismatch, do not transfer. Do not pay in cash without a receipt, in cryptocurrency, through money transfer services or via a link the landlord has sent you.

5. Do not give your personal identity number or copies of documents before a viewing. The aim of fraudsters is often to get people to reveal their personal or financial data (Valsts policija, 29.07.2025). During the selection of candidates, the landlord does not need your personal identity number (Datu valsts inspekcija, 07.05.2025).

If you have paid a fraudster

  1. Contact your bank immediately and ask it to stop or recall the payment. The sooner, the better the chance. In some internet banks, for example SEB, you can recall a payment yourself; this does not guarantee you will get the money back, but it starts the process (SEB).
  2. Report it to the State Police. You can submit a written report on the latvija.gov.lv portal with your e-address, signed with eParaksts to pasts@vp.gov.lv, or by post to any State Police unit. If the situation is urgent, call 112 (Valsts policija, "Kā ziņot policijai"). Fraud is a criminal offence (Krimināllikums (Criminal Law), article 177).
  3. Keep everything: a screenshot of the listing and its link, the messages, the phone number, the account number, the payment order.
  4. Report the listing to the listings portal, so that it is removed and others are not harmed.

If the police refuse to open criminal proceedings, they take a decision and inform you of it. You can appeal this decision to a prosecutor within 10 days of receiving the notice (Kriminālprocesa likums (Criminal Procedure Law), article 373; LV portāls, 25.02.2026).

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