Attention: Please be aware that scammers are taking your online listing information and MLS photos in order to create fake rental ads on Craigslist. They are creating these in order to scam consumers out of their “initial deposits” to rent the property.
This week our office has had multiple agents reporting that their listings were created into fake ads and posted on craiglist as properties for rent by the “owner”. These scammers will usually provide just an email as they are hard to trace and wait for consumers to contact them regarding the ad. These are typically priced very attractively so as to scam multiple consumers. Once a consumer reaches out, the “owner” will respond to the email and explain that they are out of the country and unavailable to meet face to face or to show them the interior. They also may tell you that the home was either recently purchased or recently for sale and they decided to rent the property instead, thus explaining the Realtor's sign. They will ask for personal info and lure you in to send them a deposit to hold your reservation.
Agents: Protect your clients, yourself, and the general renting public by searching for your listings on Craigslist and flagging and reporting these thieves right away. There are links on craigslist about how to report this. Agents have said that renters have called them at the last minute(i.e. RIGHT BEFORE THEY WERE GOING TO WIRE THE MONEY) to confirm the home was for rent.
Renters: If is seems to good to be true, it probably is! Craigslist will tell you to never send a deposit via a wire and never send any deposit without seeing the interior. Protect yourself or you may find yourself unwittingly giving your money to these theives!
Adam C Dalton · Century 21 M&M and Associates
1351 Geer Rd Suite 103· Turlock, CA 95380
209.844.4967 · Fax: 209.840.5440 · Adalton@c21mm.com
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