Buyer/Renter Beware. You may not get what you expected!
I happen to tune into Anderson Cooper’s program this afternoon when they were discussing real estate scams found on Craigs List and similar sites by people who don’t actually own the properties and are renting or selling them. These people find foreclosures and abandomed buildings, change the locks and claim that they own them, and proceed to advertise them for rent or sale!
There were three different couples who were interviewed. Each loosing over $9,000 between renovations and upgrades before the bank came and told them that they did not own the homes!
One had actually lived there 8 months before that knock came on the door. They are actually trying to work it out to stay there and perhaps even buy the foreclosure. Others were just out their money. Person who did this is under arrest.
One couple said that there were red flags right from start, but they thought, who would rent their home like that! She did, and to two different people in same neighborhood.
The main red flags they pointed out were:
1) They say it needs to be cash or money order
2) Want face to face transactions only
What you want is a transaction that has an extensive papertrail, including checks that are traceable to a bank and deposited, and contracts that are signed in a legitimate office. Some of these people pose as real estate agents.
You can read how to protect yourself via this link to Anderson Cooper Show:
http://www.andersoncooper.com/201
3/03/01/top-3-ways-to-protect-yourself-against-online-scams/
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