Nigerian scammers are posting fake rentals for landlords they say are doing missionary work abroad. (Photo: iStockphoto.)
Nigerian money scams: They aren’t just for fake deposed royalty anymore.
Now, apparently, they're for fake bad landlords, too. And they’re working through that great clearinghouse of “sensual massages” and missed connections—Craigslist, without Craigslist's knowledge, of course.
According to a recent alert from the Federal Bureau of Investigation in South Carolina, the scammers find homes for sale on the multiple listing service, copy and paste the listing and photos verbatim, and list them as rentals on Craigslist. (We know we’re biased, but we think it’s another good reason to check Cyberhomes’s listings first.)
Though the fraud alert originated in South Carolina, it is apparently being conducted throughout the country.
If you’re a selling your home, check the rental listings in your area to make sure your carefully staged property isn’t being handed off as a rental to some unsuspecting mark.
If you're in the market for a rental, look for these gotcha red flags:
You can’t see the place in person.
We here at Cyberhomes know of landlords so great that they will drive potential tenants to the open house. Not so in this scam. Here, the landlord is out of the country to "do missionary or contract work" in Africa. Fair enough. But if you can’t tour the place, that’s a red flag. And if you drive past and there’s a for-sale sign on the door, that’d be a flashing neon sign.
The landlord asks you to send first and last month’s rent via Western Union.
Wiring money to someone you've never met is bad. But being asked to do it before your application has been approved is terrifying.
The landlord promises to mail you the keys in the mail after you “qualify.”
Especially if he won’t specify when he’ll send them or why you can’t come see the place, be wary.
If you suspect you're being targeted, do us all a favor by reporting the scam to the FBI. —Heather Boerner