Here we go again! Another one of my listings advertised on Craigslist as a rental so the thieves can collect rental deposits and rent.  Luckily this time the proposed victim was smart enough to smell a rat.  They contacted me after doing a search on the internet for this particular address.  Thanks to my ActiveRain listing posts, the victim found my contact info and emailed me.

They sent me an email asking if this fake posting was a scam.  They were almost ready to wire a deposit and 1st month's rent to someone in South Africa.  That's where the suspicion came in.  If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck.......

I've run into this before and it even made the news in San Diego as a Rental Scam.  In a previous blog, the thieves would post a listing for rent on a vacant home on Craigslist then meet the potential victim at the property pretending to be the landlord.  They even had a Realtor's lockbox key so they had full access to all vacant properties for sale.  (Yes, there was an agent in cahoots with the thieves)  They would then collect a deposit, 1st and last months rent and then disappear.  The victim is left with an empty pocket and wondering how they could be so foolish. 

I try to manually search for each of my listings weekly but sometimes it's hard to stay ahead of the scammers.  Google alerts work pretty well but they don't catch everything on Craigslist.  I would highly recommend using Google Alerts on ALL your listings just to make sure someone else is not advertising them.

Todd Armstrong is a Realtor Specializing in Luxury properties in the metro area of San Diego California.  See more about Todd at www.ArmstrongEstates.com or check out this blog at www.MetroHomeNews.com.