Residential Listings Advertised as Rentals on Craigslist and others:
NWMLS encourages all listing brokers to follow the steps below:
- Perform an internet search to find any fraudulent rental ads for your listed properties
- Contact each website to remove the fraudulent ad and report the fraudulent activity
- File a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). IC3 is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), funded in part by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). The IC3 website also offers an FAQ Section with additional information about reporting online crime.
Update April 18, 2012. Alert! Craigslist Rental Scam: NWMLS members are continuing to report that active residential listings are being fraudulently posted on Craigslist as rental properties.
In a recent scam, the scammer used part of the listing broker’s name in the ad’s reply email address, listed a phone number, and responded to potential renters using the listing broker’s name. We encourage all listing brokers to check Craigslist.com to ensure your listings are not being falsely advertised as rental properties. Please contact the website and your local police if your listings are involved in a rental scam.
Update April 8, 2012. Be on alert for residential listings posted as rentals on Craigslist and other websites. In a recent scam, a home was placed on Craigslist by someone claiming to be the homeowner, saying they were out of the county on a mission. Read this example of a Fraudulent Rental Email for details (submitted to NWMLS by a member).
Update March 30, 2012. NWMLS members are continuing to report that their active residential listings are being posted on Craigslist as rental properties. In many scams, the property is listed in Craigslist by a scam artist impersonating the "out of town" seller. The scammers often respond saying they are missionaries in Africa or other similar stories. When someone responds to the ad, they are told by the scam artist to walk by the property and then send the rent or deposit money through the mail to receive the key.
We encourage all listing brokers to check Craigslist.com to ensure your listings are not being falsely advertised as rental properties. Please contact Craigslist and the local police if your listings are involved in a rental scam.
Unfortunately, reports of this scam have been increasing in the last few months. Please read our previous announcements below for more information.
Update: March 3rd, 2012. NWMLS members are continuing to report that their active residential listings are being posted on Craigslist and other legitimate websites as rental properties. The perpetrator posts listing details such as the address, listing photos and verbiage in the false ad. While each scam is slightly different, they often have these similarities:
- The scammer pretends to be the homeowner or listing broker
- The contact email address in the fraudulent ad may include the name(s) of the actual owner or listing broker
- The scammer claims to be out of the area and asks the renter to inspect the property on their own rather than meeting in person
- The scammer claims that the keys will be sent after a rental application, application fee, deposit, or first month’s rent is received
We encourage all listing brokers to check Craigslist.com to ensure your listings are not being falsely advertised as rental properties. Please contact the website and your local police if your listings are involved in a rental scam.
Update: June 27, 2011. We are continuing to receive notifications about residential listings being falsely advertised as rental properties on websites such as Zillow.com, Rentals.com, Rentbits.com, Hotpads.com, Findhomerentals.com, and Craigslist.com. If your listing is being falsely advertised on a rental website, immediately notify the website and the police.
Update: March 11, 2011. An active residential listing has been posted as a rental on Craigslist.com. The contact is "Manuel Bernal" who is telling renters that he and his family are missionaries in Nigeria...
Update: January 18, 2011. We are continuing to receive notifications about residential listings being advertised as rentals on rental websites (Rentals.com, Rentbits.com, Hotpads.com, Findhomerentals.com, and Craigslist.com). The perpetrators have been using the homeowner’s name and/or the listing broker’s name to create false email addresses in the postings to make them appear legitimate. When contacted via email, they ask the potential renter to ignore the For Sale signs, and give information about where to send the funds. If your listing is being advertised, notify the website and the police.
Update: January 17, 2011. Active residential listings are continuing to be posted as rentals on a number of rental websites. In a recent scam, when potential renters inquired about the home, the perpetrator impersonated the listing broker in the reply. Please be careful and notify the police if your listings are involved in a rental scam.
Update: December 20, 2010. NWMLS has been notified that active residential listings are being posted as rentals on a number of legitimate rental websites, including Rentbits.com, Hotpads.com, Findhomerentals.com, and Craigslist.com. The perpetrators have been using the homeowner’s name to create false email addresses in the postings to make them appear legitimate. When contacted via email, they ask the potential renter to ignore the For Sale signs, and give information about where to send the funds. Please contact the local authorities if your listings are involved in a rental scam.
September 16, 2009. NWMLS has been notified of a scam involving the placement of active residential listings on Craigslist as rentals. The perpetrator posted the address, the listing agent’s photos and verbiage in the false ad. The police have been notified of this scam. NWMLS encourages all listing agents to check craigslist.com to ensure listings are not being falsely advertised as rental properties. Please contact the local authorities if your listings are involved in a rental scam.
A scammer on TROVIT (HUGE amount of homes) account was accidentally forwarded to my email box!!!! This happened after I had unquired about a rental in my area. Soon after I sent the EMAIL inquiring about property, I received an email, meant for the CRIMINAL FROM TROVIT including my name and contact info. Reminding them that I had showed interest and to please respond to me. I was shocked and confused when I clicked on a link in an email addressed to scammer but sent to me, I had full access to this guy's account with fake property rentals throughout United States! As I scrolled down through the very professional looking account, I was absolutely horrified I'm not sure where to take this info. As Trovit never responded to my report and the accounts are still being generated. Many in my state Oregon have rejected his listings yet accepted and posted dozens upon dozens of other fake homes. Just last week a middleeastern man called me on at home in Oregon. I was told that if I sent in cash asap, ,I could be sent keys! I played along at first and asked him why I couldn't see inside. Very nervously, he just kept talking over me asking how much and what time that day could I pay towards deposit. Even when I called him out. He kept badgering me! Please email me if you can direct me towards the right law enforcement division please call 9715700689
Posted on Sunday, November 1st, 2015 12:35am.