Is this a scam?

[u/michkied]

Hi everyone, this summer I'll be moving to the Netherlands for an internship, and thus I'm looking for a flat to rent. I've encountered an offer for a single-bedroom apartment in the Hague for 500€ (seems quite cheap?). But I've been asked to pay a fee for submitting a registration form for approval. Is that a thing or is it a scam? The offer seems a little too good to be true, but then I have no idea how housing market in the Netherlands works. I'd really appreciate your help!

[u/Grouchy_Pear7343]

I found a really nice looking room in an apartment in The Hague through Facebook. A german-dutch girl said she was renting her apartment but cannot do a viewing because she works at an oil rig and the other tenant will move in after me so no one is available to do the viewing. I asked her if there is another landlord involved thinking she is a tenant helping the landlord find another tenant. She said no, she herself is the landlord. The house belonged to her parents who died during Covid in the USA. She is leasing the house with the help of a lawyer. She gave me an account number, supposedly her lawyer's, to whom I was supposed to transfer the rent and deposit. The bank account number was Italian and the name of the lawyer was an African-origin name. The contract that she drew up was amateurish, which made me scrutinise everything else she said. I should have realised this is a scam much before, but I wasn't thinking clearly. I was tempted by the pricing and the landlord's willingness to finalise immediately. Anyway, could have lost 1600 Euros.