SCAMMER ALERT

                A “scammer” will obtain the needed information of a house and property where the actual owner is on vacation or away for the winter. The information is usually the address and various photos of the property and house. It appears they get the information and pictures from the website where the real estate agency is advertising the house.

The scammer will post an add on craigslist with a generic Craigslist email address. A renter will send an email to that address and receive information from the scammer from Nigeria including a false name, what appears to be an overseas phone number that does work, a working email address using the false name, and the address and pictures of the house being rented.

                The scammer will explain that he had to leave the country on short notice on a mission trip or business opportunity and that is why the house is being rented for so cheap. It appears to be pretty common that the scammer will bring some religion into the discussions on renting, saying he is looking for someone who believes in God and has good values. All this is an attempt to avoid any suspicion of it being a scam.

The scammer then informs the renter that as soon as they send 2 months rent payment in, then he will send the house and property rental agreement as well as the house key.

When the renters arrive at the house they believe they are renting, they usually see that the house is still for sale. They will try to contact the scammer, and most of the time they are unable to from that point on. In some cases the scammer will remain in contact for some time longer, possibly in hope of getting more money from the renters.

It appears that the actual owner of the home is usually unaware of what is going on until he returns home and finds someone “renting” his house, or in most cases the renters realize they were scammed and never even make entry into the house.