How to rent an apartment safely in Poland

5 rules of safe renting

1. 1

   Never pay a deposit or advance before viewing the apartment in person.

   A “reservation fee” requested before any viewing is the most common rental scam. A legitimate landlord shows you the apartment first and talks money later. If someone pushes for a transfer “because others are interested” — walk away.

2. 2

   Check that the price isn’t inflated — compare it with the district median.

   The price map shows the median rent for every district, so you can quickly tell if an offer is out of line. A price far below the median is a warning sign too — scammers bait with deals that don’t exist. Open the rent price map

3. 3

   Be wary of “WhatsApp/transfer only” listings with an owner abroad.

   It’s a classic script: the “owner” supposedly works abroad and will courier the keys once you pay a deposit. Never send money to someone you have never met, and don’t trust supposed Booking or Airbnb “guarantees” for a private rental. Refusing to meet or take a video call ends the conversation.

4. 4

   Get a written contract plus a move-in handover protocol with photos.

   A verbal agreement proves nothing in a dispute. A handover protocol with meter readings and photos of every room protects your deposit when you move out. Ask the landlord to show a document confirming their right to rent out the place.

5. 5

   Offers from monitored sources in one place + alerts for new ones.

   Good offers go in hours, not days — the first to reply gets the viewing. Set up a free alert to get notified after a matching listing is detected in a successful monitoring cycle. Set up an alert for new offers

Red flags — stop the moment you see:

• Photos that look like stock images or show up in other listings (run them through a reverse image search).
• A price clearly below market rates for the district.
• Pressure to pay fast: “it will be gone by tonight”, “ten people are interested”.
• An owner who refuses to meet in person or take a video call.
• Requests for an ID scan, a BLIK code, or any payment before you have seen the apartment.