Is this apartment legit?

The website looks legitimate and has a London phone number. Having said that, scammers are scammers because they make fake things look legitimate. Do his other properties have many reviews on vrbo? What are the vrbo numbers?

Some local councils in London have cracked down on owner rentals or limited them to 30 or 90 days per year. Maybe he has reached the maximum for the current year. If he has withdrawn it to comply with that regulation, I would view that as a good thing---as long as my own rental was within the allowance.

atrocious font so for that reason alone I wouldn't bother with it

one way to find if the apartment is legit is to google some of the descriptions and see if they appear on other sites - especially estate agent For Sale sites - using Chrome you can search for images as well to see if they have been lifted from elsewhere

also if the price seems to good to be true - remember London is expensive

I did look at the apartments. One of them is not there---the button leads to the Homeaway page with Notting Hill apartment, lots of them. Is this where your apartment was removed? The other two buttons lead to apartment listings on Homeaway ( British VRBO) which appear legit. Both have Payment Protection which is good, and a good many reviews. The 3-4 very negative reviews for the Hyde Park apartment ( all for last minute cancellations in December, apparently due to family emergencies) seem to bolster the legitimacy. The other one, in the Heron skyscraper, has all good reviews and apparently is nearly fully booked through August.

Yes, it is the link to Notting Hill that was the one that had the apartment we booked. And it was definitely filling quickly- a decent price for the location and had several great reviews- it's didn't seem "too cheap" though.

So with payment protection through VRBO the main risk I run is having no place, since I will get my money back if it falls through? I'm feeling a tad calmer today, since I looked at VRBO and indeed owners can hide a property.

There were several reviews (all positive) on the apartment and his other listings also have reviews. He is solidly booked as well. I'm just nervous!!

Here is his link to the specific one I booked:
http://www.londondesignrental.com/en/593919/beautiful-and-romantic-penthouse-near-kensington-palace

If it's genuine, why is it written in American? Stove instead of hob. Meter instead of metre?

Does it really include a carport in that neighbourhood?

Zero reviews on the site is a huge red flag to me.

hmmmmmmm

The owner is Russian. Maybe he learned American English instead of British. There are lots of misspelled words.

As I understand Payment Protection with Homeaway/VRBO, your money is fully refunded if you are not given access to the apartment---in other words it is a scam listing. There may be recourse if the apartment is materially different from the description, but that part is a bit unclear---you may have to work with the owner first.

The font remarks definitely sent me to check it out.

Agreed!

It may be OK. I don't know. It seems an awfully big place for only £160 a night.

I would walk away as soon as I saw the "art" above the TV in the pink room. It appears that the huge word "Love" is composed of a machine gun for the E and a woman vomiting for the L, and the vomit going over to another one.

No thanks.

But I probably don't understand modern art.

I hope that you have a great time in London.

Egad---I didn't notice that. Is the "o" in Love a hand grenade? It looks like all the letters are formed from weapons.

It was the picture of the seductive girl undressing in the bedroom that put me off. My husband does not have a wandering eye but I just wouldn't want art like that in our bedroom.

I do like the cheery messages in the bathroom, though.

Nigel, the reviews are on the Home Away website at least.
I don't know whether to cancel it now and find another spot, or stick with it? He certainly replies to all of my emails, and seems a bit "interesting" but legit. He is Russian.

Hi Laura
I have also booked accommodation through VRBO for the Hyde Park flat for the end of March and that listing has gone from the VRBO site. I looked on Evgeny's site and he is still obviously advertising this as a rental. But I notice the dates we are supposed to be staying are listed as available still. I have emailed him and await a response.

I am wondering what my cancellation options through Home Away might be?

Simon

I would recommend contacting VRBO with your concerns. One of the "benefits" of booking through the site vs. doing it independently is the added layer of security. If you don't receive a reassuring response, I would cancel your booking and go elsewhere. Good luck -

Contact VRBO or HOMEAWAY (in Austin, TX) who owns VRBO. Never hurts.

Also, some sites like this limit people with many houses - as it was designed for people to rent out their own homes, not a rental business per se! I've had someone on AirBNB do this - take listings down when they fill up, to keep thei number of properties low.

good luck!

Tried to contact owner just did not respond. Took advice cancelled booking through Vrbo. Took a number of emails but have money returned and have booked elsewhere. Feel happier as need assurity that have place when we arrived.

I recently dealt with this exact person and based on my experience i will highly recommend you be very careful.

I booked through homeaway and paid full. Listing was removed month later before my arrival. I reached out to him multiple times and never got response. Couple weeks later when i tried again randomly and he did answer the call. He explained that there was dispute between him and homeaway (btw same on airbnb too), so he removed his listing. He said he will honor the booking and confirmed with me through email. But when my friend queried availability of that time period (longer stay than my booking), he immediately responded available.

Additionally i got another email alert that his web is possible fraud recently.

I did get money back though, but please note homeaway doesn't count this as fraud (big surprise). It's not covered by homeaway basic fraud insurance if home owner doesn't deliver or disappeared after booking as long as they did some successful renting prior. You need to buy a special insurance which covers if you cannot access a "legit" rental place.

You can always dispute through credit card company if paid through them.

Hope this helps.