HousingAnywhere booking + SoloStudenti extra fee – normal or scam?
I’m an international student and I’m going to Venice for exchange.
I booked a room in Venice through HousingAnywhere. The booking is already “rental confirmed” and I have paid €675 on HousingAnywhere (€500 rent + €175 Tenant Protection/service fee).
After that, someone who says she is the landlord’s colleague from “SoloStudenti” contacted me and said:
- The real deposit is €250 (not €500 as shown on the listing)
- I must pay an extra €250 “agency fee” in advance
- I have to register on their own platform (SoloStudenti), upload my documents and my IBAN
- Only after that, I will sign a contract with the landlord
I asked her politely if she could send me the rental contract first (including the agency fee terms), so I can read it before paying or creating an account. She replied: “it’s not possible”.
On HousingAnywhere, they say tenants should keep communication and payments on the platform, and that deposits/extra fees should be paid via Payment Request, with money held until 48 hours after move‑in.
So now I’m confused and a bit scared. I’d like to ask:
- In Italy (especially Venice / Mestre), is this process (external platform, giving IBAN, paying agency fee before seeing any contract) normal?
- Does this sound like a scam, or at least a very risky situation?
- Has anyone had experience with SoloStudenti / SoloStudente?
Thank you for any advice or experiences.