In short
- Viewing fees do not add up forever. The law caps the search, viewing and file fees a real estate agent may charge at 25,000 FCFA.
- No advance before you have seen the home, the landlord, and a document linking one to the other.
- Read the name Mobile Money shows before confirming a payment, and compare it with the person renting to you.
- A dated, signed receipt for every amount paid, no exceptions.
- Beware of urgency. "Another tenant is waiting" is the first line of a scam.
The most common scams
Paid viewings that lead nowhere
A middleman asks 2,000, 5,000 or 10,000 FCFA for each viewing. The homes shown are already taken, pricier than announced or impossible to find, and there is always another one, for new fees. After a few weeks, the bill can exceed a month's rent.
Decree No. 2007/1138/PM (art. 34) caps the search, advertising, viewing, lease drafting and file opening fees a real estate agent may charge at 25,000 FCFA. Beyond that, it is not a local custom, it is abuse.
An advance paid to someone who is not the landlord
A fake owner, a caretaker, a neighbour or a former tenant shows a home they have no right to rent. They collect several months in advance, sometimes hand over a key, then vanish. The real owner finds an occupant they have never met, and the money is gone.
The same home rented to several people
Several applicants pay an advance for the same room or studio, each convinced they are the only one. Whoever moves in first keeps the home. The others chase their money.
Photos that do not show the real home
Photos copied from Facebook, a foreign website or a listing in another city are used as bait. The price is attractive, often too attractive. On site, the home is different, or does not exist.
Urgency and remote payment
"Someone else is coming tomorrow", "just send enough to hold the room": the pressure pushes you to pay by Mobile Money before any viewing, to a personal number. Once the money is gone, the number stops answering.
An excessive advance
Some middlemen ask for six, ten or twelve months in advance at once. When rent is paid in advance into the hands of a real estate agent, the law limits it to three months, and the mandate must say so (Decree No. 2007/1138/PM, art. 36). The longer the advance, the more you lose if something goes wrong.
Before paying hand to hand
Outside a platform that holds the money, these checks are your only protection.
- Meet the landlord, not just the middleman. Ask for their ID and a document linking them to the home: land title, previous lease, or an electricity or water bill in their name.
- Visit in person, in daylight. Check that the keys open, the water runs and the power works. If you can, bring someone along.
- Talk to the neighbours. A neighbour or the caretaker often knows whether the home is really free, and who owns it.
- Read the name shown before confirming a transfer. Both MTN MoMo and Orange Money show the account holder's name at confirmation. If it does not match the person renting to you, stop there.
- Ask for a receipt for every amount: date, amount, purpose, name and signature of the person collecting. Refusing a receipt is a warning sign.
- Do not pay a middleman without the landlord's written agreement. A serious agent can say who they work for, and on what terms.
- Take your time. A real landlord accepts a viewing today and an answer tomorrow.
What Dada changes
Dada is a home rental platform in Cameroon, built around these scams. It does not remove every risk. It removes the ones that rest on someone's word alone.
- The landlord is identified before their listing can be paid: ID document, selfie and Mobile Money number.
- Photos are taken on site from the Dada app, with GPS position and timestamp. A photo copied from the internet does not get through.
- Your advance is held in escrow by a licensed payment provider. DaDa never holds your money.
- You have 72 hours after paying to visit and check the home. The order is reversed on purpose: the exact address is revealed only after payment, but your money stays blocked during the viewing. If the home does not match, you open a dispute: the payout to the landlord is frozen, and you can be refunded, minus the Mobile Money fees of the refund.
- A home can only be reserved once at a time. Two people cannot pay for the same home at the same moment.
- The agent's commission is signed with the landlord on Dada, before the rental. The tenant pays nothing to Dada.
- Every published photo carries a reference like L-XXXXXX. Saw a listing on WhatsApp or Facebook? Check it on Dada before paying anyone.
One rule stays in your hands: if someone asks you to pay outside the app, refuse and report the listing. A payment outside Dada has no escrow, no checking window and no recourse.
If you have already been scammed
- Keep every trace: screenshots of the conversation and the listing, phone numbers, receipts, Mobile Money history.
- Contact your operator as soon as possible, MTN or Orange, to report the transaction. A transaction reported early has a better chance of being reviewed, with no guarantee it will be reversed.
- File a complaint at the nearest police station or gendarmerie brigade, with your evidence.
- Warn the next person: report the listing wherever you saw it. On Dada, reports are confidential.
This guide informs, it does not replace advice from a legal professional. Texts cited: Law No. 2001/020 of 18 December 2001 organising the real estate agent profession, and Decree No. 2007/1138/PM of 3 September 2007 setting out its implementing rules.