Everything is an investment when it comes to buying property in Bangladesh regardless of it being for commercial or real estate purposes. As a buyer, you invest your time, effort and money to find the perfect property. It is a long-term investment that impacts your future decisions. Sadly, real estate scams in Bangladesh are not unheard of; threatening the integrity of a successful acquisition of property. The last thing you want is to encounter a real estate scammer. Because of that, it is imperative to know how you can protect yourself from such deception; the goal, after all, is to make a safe investment. Today we’ll take a look at some measures that you can take to help identify potential real estate scams.
Do Background Checks on the Parties
Before you start dealing with someone about buying property, you first need to find out who they actually are. It is highly inadvisable to conduct any sort of business without finding out there standing in the sector. A thorough background check will tell you whether there is something to worry about or not. Try to find out about their track record, their past dealings and verify the people who are behind the firm. This is an effective first step to identify real estate scams in Bangladesh and help you make a safe investment.
Ask Questions
There is nothing wrong with asking questions when buying something, especially when it’s real estate. In fact, asking questions can help you figure out if the deal in front of you is genuine or questionable. Unlike background checks where you gather information on your own, here you ask questions directly to the concerned party. Ask as many questions you feel is necessary, both about the operation and the property. This could include everything from how much commission they are going to take to the features and amenities of the property. Questions and their subsequent answers allow you to get a clearer image of the situation and can even help build trust between parties. Trust and transparency in real estate transactions are vital and are key to avoiding real estate scams. Even from an informational perspective, learning about the real estate in question will help you make a safe investment.
Check the floor plan and utility connection
If you are looking to buy an apartment and everything has gone well without a hitch up to this point, it’s time to delve deeper. Floor plans are the blueprints of an apartment that give you an idea about its inner workings. Learning about the makeup of the building, allocated common space and other features allows you to be more decisive as well as check for any warning signs. Similarly, checking to see if all necessary utility is connected is imperative. A real estate scammer will assure you of uninterrupted electricity and water connection even if it’s available for only a few hours a day.
Insist on inspecting the property
The next step in figuring out real estate scams in Bangladesh is to examine the property first-hand. Often a real estate scammer will offer clients a flawless listing that in reality has many issues; a kind of bait and switch. Many buyers trust the word of others instead of verifying authenticity, either due to naivety or to avoid extra work, and fall victim to faulty setups. As a buyer, you can easily protect your investment by inspecting the property yourself. Visiting a property in question takes little time but helps you verify its integrity. Furthermore, a real estate scammer will try to come up with excuses continually to prevent you from visiting the property. This kind of behaviour is a good indicator that things need to be handled carefully.
Read the deed
Nothing is more important when buying property than the contract itself. It is the legal document that sets the conditions for both the buyer and the seller. From the cost of the real estate and the amount of real estate to detailing the transfer of ownership; everything is written within the contract. Every condition within the legal document can be upheld in the court of law. A real estate scammer will try to interject conditions that will cheat you out of your investment and leave you helpless. To protect yourself and make a safe investment, you or your legal guide should read every line carefully to ensure nothing out of the ordinary is present.
Get legal counsel
It is a good idea to get professional legal help to protect yourself from real estate scams further. Contracts, by their very nature, are very confusing and difficult to understand. Missing vital information without expert knowledge can be easy. You need to be fully aware of what you are signing on. And that is when legal counsel comes in. Lawyers and legal experts can go through the deed and explain the information in simpler terms. This allows you to be on top of everything and safeguard against a real estate scammer.
Be wary of local brokers
More often than not, people in Bangladesh tend to enlist the help of the notorious ‘local broker’ when buying property. This is one of the biggest real estate mistakes you can make. Though these ‘local brokers’ are an excellent lead on existing properties in an area, they are incredibly deceptive and untrustworthy when it comes to dealings. Buyers should be very wary of such individuals as they have a reputation for being untrustworthy. As such, they don’t provide any trust or transparency during real estate transactions and as such should be avoided by individuals.
Many people have been victim to real estate scams in Bangladesh each year and lose their savings. As a buyer, you need to know how to protect yourself and make a safe investment. And the first step in defending yourself from deceit is to be prepared.
Do you have any special tactic to spot a scam when buying property? Let us know in the comments.
