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It is exciting to find a new place to rent in the neighborhood or in a new city. It is, of course, as long as you are not fooled.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, so -called rental list scams configure a list that cannot be rented or unauthorized to take money. In many cases, scammers require payments, deposits, the rent of the first month, and such a mixture.
“If the payment is sent, the (so -called) landlord or listing representative will disappear,” said the vice president of the National Consumers League, a consumer advocacy organization, Denki and Fraud Vice President.
Potential tenants lose cash for rental fraud
According to experts, it is not uncommon for individuals to be sacrificed on a fraudulent rental list.
According to the latest Internet criminal report by the Federal Investigation Bureau, about 9,521 real estate fraud was submitted in 2023, causing more than $ 145 million. These numbers have decreased from more than $ 396 million to 11,727 victims in 2022.
The agency defined real estate fraud as a loss of funds due to real estate investment or fraud, including real estate with rental or time share.
It is convenient to find a new rental online, but experts will encourage them to be cautious because they can lose hundreds to thousands of dollars if they are not careful.
For example, suppose you have fallen into a deposit (often equivalent to a monthly rent). The rent of the first month or both. According to the apartment list, the monthly rent was $ 1,373 in December.
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In another report on the Learsing leasing platform, 62 % of the respondents who experienced rental fraud lost more than $ 500 and 48 % lost $ 1,000. According to the report, 8 %, one share (8 %), was deceived from more than $ 5,000.
In this survey, we voted for 500 adults in November when they rented apartments, condominiums, or homes in the past five years to experience rental fraud and scams. did.
According to experts, if you need a new place this year, there are some things to be aware of to determine if the rental list is fraudulent.
The four red flags to be aware of
In general tactics of various kinds of fraud, Breyault said that rental list scammers try to create an emergency to pay money immediately.
To avoid this problem, experts encourage the lessee to open enough time for searching. By doing so, you can reduce the urgency.
Rental scams can also occur in housing markets with fierce competition and low supply, even after natural disasters occur.
“Fraud tends to follow the news and tends to follow natural disasters in many ways,” Breyo said. “Especially when the number of people who need a house suddenly increases.”
1. Unknown message regarding rental
According to Javelin Strategy and Research’s fraud and cyber security director Tracy Kitten Goldberg, personal information such as mobile phone numbers and e -mails can be easily obtained on Dark Web, given the recent amount of data infringement.
She said, for example, if she received an unknown message about a rental apartment, such as “It will be a red flag”.
“Especially if you haven’t contacted someone”, she added her text and cold calls.
If you are contacted by a text message or a rental list, look at the phone number of the phone number. Be careful if you are outside your area.
If you receive an email, please see the sender’s address. Does the address contain multiple characters, such as letters, numbers, various punctures or symbols? Or you come from a personal account like Gmail or Yahoo, can you get it as a company email? If the answer is “yes”, the kitten Goldberg said immediately.
2. Payment of unusual format required
If the so -called landlord or listing agent requests paying an application fee or the rent for the first month via a television, a gift card, or a cryptocurrency, it is a “huge red flag.”
Also note that the Federal Trade Commission requests payments through payment apps such as Apple Pay, Cashapp, PayPal, and Zelle.
“Everything in these payment methods is common is that money will be sent to the recipient almost instantaneously,” Breyo said. Transactions are often irreversible, even if you judge that they are fraudulent payments.
He said that federal laws on compensation under fraudulent losses are often not applied to such transactions. Therefore, if the so -called listing agent or landlord meets these payment options, the track stops the application process.
3. Refuse to show or show your property directly
“You should always meet these people before filling out all kinds of documents,” Kitten Goldberg talks and tours the facility.
Breyo said that if the landlord or listing agent made an excuse to see why they could not meet directly and why you could not see the rental property directly, it should be a red flag.
Experts say that if you are leaving the town, you are moving to a new city and you have no ability to examine your apartment yourself, please request a virtual tour in space. Ask your friend or parent lelative if possible.
“It’s really a litmus test, and we’ll find out if the apartment is genuine,” said Breyo.
4. Unusually low presentation price
BREYAULT said, if the rental list is “abnormally low” compared to the same property in the region.
“The reason the scammers publish such a list is that they know that they will attract many eyeballs and potential casualties,” he said.
Compare listing prices with other people in your cities or regions you are interested in. Breyo said, please be alert to the offer, which may not be true.
“Does bargains exist? Absolutely, but many frauds,” Breyo said.
