For the past 12 years, Leanne Newton has been renting out her one-bedroom apartment in East London.
But last week, the 54-year-old began to hesitate to give up his career as a landlord altogether.
However, she was not struck by soaring mortgage rates or the looming Renters Reform Bill, but because she met a "brazen" tenant and was scammed.
Newton's tenant is a woman named Ifende Uzoka, who works in the fitness industry and is a former bodybuilding champion. She calls herself "MsFit Queen" online and also runs an online clothing company of the same name.
Uzoka's daily life also seems to be varied, and she often travels to places like Dubai.
However, it is such a glamorous lady who uses Newton's house to make illegal gains.
In 2023, Newton and Uzoka signed a rental contract, which began in October.
What was thought to be an ordinary lease took a long time for Newton to discover that Uzoka, 34, had never moved in since the contract began, even though she had been personally involved in renting the apartment.
Instead, Uzoka began to make up lies, rented out the house on Booking.com and other websites behind Newton's back, and became a "second landlord".
Uzoka rents out the apartment for £190 per night, meaning she can earn up to £69,350 a year. She pays Newton only £1,900 a month in rent, or £22,800 a year.
In other words, by changing hands in this way, Uzoka can earn more than 40,000 pounds a year.
Forget about making money with your own house, and what makes Newton even more depressed is that Uzoka has carried out a "major remodel" of the house without his permission.
(House before remodeling)
Her house was supposed to be a one-bedroom apartment, but Uzoka converted the dining room into another bedroom, claiming online that it was a two-bedroom apartment that could accommodate four people.
(Remodeled house)
After discovering this truth and reviewing the entire rental process, Newton couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.
She said angrily, "I don't know what to say except for swearing." How can there be another house in London, similar in architecture and artwork to mine, only the furniture is different? ”
She also said that she was very "cautious" throughout the rental process, and she did not expect to be deceived. "I've heard of these kinds of scams, but I think we've been careful in the process of screening tenants and signing contracts, and we're still falling for them," she said. ”
Newton revealed that Uzoka had also come to see the property in person at the time, passed an employment check and a credit check, and "everything looked legitimate."
(Uzoka's website, now deregistered)
As for how he found out about the scam, Newton said it was because Uzoka had been deferring nine months after the contract was signed.
After several reminders, Uzoka paid off the rent arrears, but refused to pay the new rent and cut off contact with Newton.
Unable to get in touch, Newton had no choice but to call Uzoka's employer, only to find out that the company had never hired Uzoka, and it was only then that the scam began to surface.
During his investigation of Uzoka, Newton finally discovered that his house had been illegally subletted.
Newton said she tried to meet with Uzoka several times after she defaulted on rent to find out if she was in financial difficulty, but Uzoka denied each request.
"Now I finally know why, because as soon as I walk into my house and see all the furniture changed, I immediately know what's going on." "There's really nothing I can do right now. ”
Newton said the apartment had been booked for at least 48 nights on Booking.com website alone, as early as November, a month after Uzoka rented the house. In addition, although it is advertised that it can accommodate up to four people, in the actual reservation, it shows that it can accommodate eight people.
In the reviews of the site, a lot of vacationers give bad reviews. Some accused Uzoka of canceling their stay "two minutes before check-in".
There was also a warning against booking the house, writing: "False advertising. There were only 2 beds instead of the advertised 3. ”
Someone else wrote: "The furniture is broken - the couch legs and doors are broken, there are wet clothes everywhere, cigarette butts are everywhere, there is no toilet paper, there is a smell in the bathroom." Booking.com didn't help...... But I haven't finished complaining yet and would like a full refund. The owner ignored my messages and phone calls. ”
Newton said that when she learned she had been scammed and tried to book her apartment on Booking.com, she received a message from "Bella Ruiz's team" suggesting that Uzoka was using a company to manage reservations.
Explaining how Uzoka works, Newton revealed: "They changed the furniture so that the landlord wouldn't find out. ”
But Newton adds: "The hidden dangers of these retrofits are very big, and Uzoka has installed panels on the walls and large screen TVs on unsafe walls. ”
With the kitchen behind the dining room converted into a bedroom, Newton was concerned about the danger, saying: "There are no fire doors, no security measures, and no safety exits. If someone lives in this house and an accident happens, and someone is injured or even killed, the consequences are simply unimaginable. ”
(Renovated house from restaurant)
"My house can only be rented to a maximum of two people under the licensing law, but Uzoka plans to rent it to eight people," she added. ”
After figuring out what was going on, Newton immediately notified his agent. She also sent an email to the tenant warning them that it was illegal to sublet and issued an eviction notice. But so far, Uzoka has not replied to her.
It is reported that Newton has owned the property since 2007 but has been renting it out to tenants since 2012.
"There is such a shortage of rental housing in London that she can make money, but it prevents legal people from getting housing," she said angrily. I treat my rental and tenants like family, this is my home. So the thought that someone could make money with that made me felt very inappropriate. ”
"If even an experienced landlord like me falls for a scam, will there be fewer scams? While you can check before you host, how do you know if someone gives you false information? ”
Newton continued: "So, in this case, the person was discovered on the way to the fraud, and under the current legislation in the United Kingdom and the proposed legislation, how can I, as a landlord, resolve this issue in a timely manner without having to wait for eviction proceedings or a Section 21 procedure?" And how to ensure that the house is not completely destroyed in the process? ”
"I saw from photos online that the hinges of at least two doors had fallen off, and that the lack of cleanliness and clogged pipes were mentioned several times in online reviews. There are still two large TVs hanging on the walls, and our walls can't handle such heavy weight. ”
In addition to contacting tenants, Newton also contacted websites such as the local council, the Metropolitan Police and Booking.com to inform them of his situation.
In response, the Metropolitan Police believes that Newton should contact the local council.
A spokesman for the local council said: "We have received a report about this property, as it was only received last week. We haven't reviewed and responded directly to the landlord. ”
"If the property is illegally occupied or the right to lease is violated, the landlord should take appropriate legal action to repossess the property. If the landlord has hired a professional letting agent to manage the property and this is stated in the contract, then they should contact the agent directly and we recommend that the landlord seek legal advice. ”
The good news is that Booking.com and Airbnb have now taken Newton's house off the market, but it will take some time for the tenants to be evicted and repossessed.
After Newton's story was reported, netizens also expressed their opinions. Many people think that Uzoka is too much, and hope that Newton will evict her as soon as possible and reclaim his property.
While everyone condemned Uzoka, some netizens also believed that Newton's agent when renting out the house was also partly responsible, because Uzoka faked her job, and the agent did not find out about the problem when the tenant checked.
Final tips for real estate circles:
While such cases are uncommon, they do sometimes happen due to the lack of regulation of online short-term rental platforms.
Some industry insiders said that when this happens, the landlord can terminate the lease by giving notice, as this is a clear violation of the terms of the lease agreement.
In order to prevent this kind of thing from happening, it is also best for the landlord to do some homework in advance before renting out the property, do a good job of tenant research, and verify the documents provided by the tenant, rather than thinking that "there is".
After the house is rented, you don't think you can "let it go", and you usually have time to take a look. You can also protect your property by purchasing insurance and cooperating with professional and reliable intermediaries.
In addition, if you are really unfortunate enough to encounter such a rogue tenant, you must not be nervous, but bravely defend your interests through legal weapons.