The Better Business Bureau (BBB) recently released a study on rental properties. It estimates $5 million people in the US have fallen victim to a rental scam.
Lacey McMahon, a real estate agent at in Cadillac, says it’s happened to one of her clients who had people show up to her property thinking they were moving in. “These scammers are trying to pray on people in a desperate situation, people who are trying to find somewhere to live.” .
For scammers, it’s as easy as copying a picture of a vacant property and posing as a renter. McMahon says she sees a lot of the scams come from Craigslist. “If you come across a rental on Craigslist and you’re reaching out, you’re corresponding via email, typically you’re not ever going to be told that the keys are going to be mailed to you.
That’s why the Better Business Bureau says you should stop and look for the red flags. Troy Baker, manager of BBB Communications, says “The best advice is before you rent a house really do your research on who you are renting it from, make sure they are really affiliated with that address and then see what other people are saying about the people renting or the address.”
A step that could save you money and disappointment in the end.
McMahon warns, “It is really important, if something sounds too good to be true, or if you have those little red flags that you feeling don’t discredit that.”
If you are a victim of a scam, report to the Better Business Bureau as well as the Attorney General’s Office, and the Federal Trade Commission.
For the full BBB reporter on rental scams, click :
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