Safety

Money goes to the title company. Only.

Earnest money only ever goes to the title company named in the contract; never wire money to a person.

• The same goes for the option fee and anything else paid toward the home.
• ListedBy never holds money for a sale, and nobody at ListedBy will ask you to send any.
• Messages here that ask for money outside the title company, or that carry bank numbers or wiring instructions, are blocked before anyone sees them.
• Never send back “extra” money from an overpayment, and never pay toward a home with gift cards, crypto or a payment app.

Wiring money? Call first.

1. Get wiring instructions only from the title company.
2. Before you send money, call the title company at a phone number you looked up yourself, such as on its own website, and confirm the instructions. Never use a number from the email or message that carried them.
3. If the instructions change at the last minute, stop and call. Changed instructions are the classic sign of wire fraud.
4. If money has already gone to the wrong place, call your bank right away and ask it to recall the wire. Then report it to the FBI at ic3.gov and to your local police.

How we check an owner

A listing says “Verified owner” only after the seller passes this check.

• We compare the legal name of the person claiming the home with the owner on the county appraisal roll.
• We mail an 8-character code on a postcard to the owner’s mailing address on that roll. When the roll can’t vouch for the person, such as a recent buyer or a name that doesn’t match, the card goes to the home itself and we ask for the recorded deed.
• Companies, trusts and estates also send papers: a Texas Comptroller report and a company resolution, a certificate of trust, or letters from a probate court or a recorded affidavit of heirship.
• The code works for 30 days. Five wrong tries lock it for 24 hours.
• When something doesn’t add up, such as a vacant lot, an out-of-state company owner or a home someone has already verified, a person reviews the claim.
• No face scans, no selfies, no photos of IDs.

“Verified owner” means the seller entered the code we mailed to the address on the county’s record, or to the home along with a recorded deed, and sent any papers we asked for. It doesn’t mean we’ve inspected the home.

Showings

Ask for a tour from a listing’s page: pick up to three of the owner’s open times. Every buyer is asked the same two questions, when they’re looking to buy and whether they work with an agent, and nothing else about themselves. We send the home’s address and a calendar invitation once a time is confirmed.

Stay safe at a showing

• Meet in daylight, and tell someone where you're going.
• Bring someone with you — buyers and owners alike.
• Never share door or lockbox codes by text or email. The owner opens the door in person.

For owners

• Show by appointment, and have someone with you.
• Ask for the buyer’s full name before the showing and, if they’re borrowing, a lender’s pre-approval letter.
• Put away valuables, medicine, keys, mail and papers with personal details.
• Walk behind visitors, and keep your phone with you.
• Tell a friend or neighbor when a showing is set. If something feels wrong, cancel.

For buyers

• Meet at the home, in daylight when you can, and tell someone where you’re going.
• Look for the “Verified owner” label.
• Every home on ListedBy is for sale, not for rent. If someone offers to rent you a home listed here, it’s a scam.

Report a fake listing

• A listing: if a listing here is your home and you didn’t list it, or a listing looks fake, tell us right away at listedby.ai/report. If you have the postcard we mailed when it went live, give us its code: a listing reported with it as not the owner’s, a scam or a wire-fraud attempt comes off the site while a person checks.
• A postcard you didn’t expect: if we mailed you a code for a home you didn’t claim, keep the code to yourself. Nobody can finish verifying a claim without it.
• A message: choose Report on it in your inbox. Owners can also block a buyer.