GAAR has recently received a report about a rental scam involving one of our REALTORS®' sales listing.

The only reason this was discovered is because the potential renter thought the deal was too good to be true and did her research. When she searched the address, it came up as a sales listing. She then called the listing agent who reported the scam to APD.

The scammer used the seller's listing information to create and ad on Craigslist as a rental. They had even researched the ownership of the property and, when called, used their name. Stating that he was out of town, the fake owner told the potential renters to look through the windows to see if they were interested in renting. They would then send the check to him and he would send the keys,

If it were not for a renter that did their research, this person would still be scamming potential renters out of their hard-earned money.

So, when you have a chance, periodically check craigslist rental listings to see if anyone has poached your listing for fake rentals ads. If so, call APD and report them.

If you have any scams that you would like to share with your fellow REALTORS®, list them on our GAAR Members Facebook Group. Just remember to keep specific details of "suspects" names and personal information out of your alert unless they are convicted of the crime.