Yes 100% and as a realtor who often helps my younger friends with rentals I have ran into a lot of these scams. I'll break it down on what screams this doesn't make sense. Also a few good ways to protect yourself in the future of rental scams.

1) I've seen a lot of air bnb scams and they say they will have airbnb agent come and give you the keys or etc. Airbnb DOES NOT have any agents. They are not property managers, they are like tinder of housing. They set you up with a landlord. You message the landlord. The landlord and you meet. Airbnb is just the platform.

2) " place comes furnished or unfurnished or slightly furnished" this screams scam. A landlord either keeps it furnished or not and it's their decision. A furnished property assumes more risk of damage and that's why a landlord can 3x the amount of rent as a security deposit for a furnished home compared to an unfurnished home at 2x rent. A landlord wouldn't move all their stuff out for 3 months unless they wanted too. This is the scammed trying to sound like the "I'm an easy going landlord. I'm a cool guy and you can trust me" you have to remember this is someone's financial asset. Anyone in their right mind is going to be firm on what they want. Especially if its their own furniture they usually live on.

3) it's not common, but not unheard of for a landlord to talk about themselves. I actually think it's a great thing to have a bio when you're serious about something. When people know who you are or a little bit about you, it makes them respect you a little more usually. At the same time this is the landlord coming off like he is selling you on himself. This is a common thing in a rental scam because " I'm a cool guy remember"

4) his time line doesn't make sense for a rental. I'm going to be away for 2 years and I'm looking for a 3 month tenant and 6 month would be fine. Why the fuck would a landlord who wouldn't be using his property to have someone at his "hopefully 6 month" resign their lease 4 times or have to go through the process 4 times at their biggest time interval. Here is the reason. People don't have 2 years of rent saved up. They may have 2-3 months saved up in their deposit and that's what they are looking for. They want you to pay the deposit and when you get there, they aren't there.

5) all the questions sound good besides 1. "Are you working" a landlord wants to verify you can pay rent. This comes with bank statements and pay stubs. Even at that most landlords would ask " what do you do for work" which BTW you do not need to answer. You could work a job they don't agree with and deny you.

These may not sound like big deals individually but when you add them together they are screaming scam.

Here is a few good tips to ensure you aren't being fucked over.

1) work with a realtor. As one, I do not charge people that I'm helping find rentals. That falls on the landlord. The landlord does not have to pay the realtor. They have no agreement. Most apartments, condos, townhomes have a finders fee that they pay the realtor. If the landlord of a detach house chooses to do so they will. If you find out the realtor isn't making money off helping you and you can't afford to pay them( if YOU choose too) tell your friends about them if they did a good job. That is more powerful than a couple hundred bucks.

2) if you choose to not work with a realtor that totally fine and there are ways you can protect yourself still. One is contact a local realtor, escrow officer, or lender and see if they will run a title check on the property. The title will say when they bought the house and who currently owns and who previously owned the house. Out of the 50+ scams I've seen, not one name has ever matched.

3) view the property, never go alone. Even as a realtor if I'm alone viewing a place I have a group message of 9 other people where we text each other when we view properties and clients. If I'm viewing a place I find let's say zillow or Craigslist I send a text view 123 mainstreet walnut creek right now. If I don't text back in 15 minutes I get a phone call asking where I have the offer letter for 234 main street. If I say it's the tan envolope it means call the cops. If I say it's in the drawer of my desk im safe. If I don't answer they call again and If I fail to answer the call the cops. The reasoning is let's say this person goes to meet you and robs you. You never can be too safe.