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  • Geebo 9:00 am on January 16, 2023 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: real estate, , ,   

    Even with agents, property buyers can still be scammed 

    By Greg Collier

    A Durham, North Carolina man loved his home and loved the trees that loomed over his backyard. He wanted to keep the trees standing, but he didn’t own the property the trees stood on. He always thought that if that property became available, he would love to buy it. Recently, the man received a text from a neighbor of his who saw that the property was being listed for sale. The man contacted his real estate agent to help with the purchasing process.

    The man’s real estate agent dealt with the property’s listing agent, which was in nearby Chapel Hill. The listing agent instructed the man to wire $10,000 to the owner of the property, who just happened to be in Vietnam. The Durham man even questioned the method of payment, but was assured by the listing agent that this was appropriate. They closed on the property after another $20,000 was wired overseas. The closing document stated that the owner was now in South Africa.

    About a month after the deal closed, the man received a phone call from his agent telling him that the deal was a fraud. The people the listing agent were dealing with were not the owners of the property, but scammers. The man’s agent informed him that he would be getting his money back, but only received $19,000. The listing agent ended up paying the remainder back to the man out of their own expenses.

    Even professionals can be taken in by scammers. In this case, the listing agent did not verify if they were talking to the actual owners of the property. That’s not to say there weren’t red flags. Anytime when dealing with real estate, and you’re asked to wire money overseas, it’s time to step back and assess the situation. In this instance, the agent’s insurance was able to cover the man’s loss, but in most situations that money would be gone forever.

    When buying a property, insist on going through the traditional closing methods if you’re asked to wire money. If the sellers refuse, there’s a good chance you’re dealing with a scammer.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on January 10, 2023 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , real estate, , ,   

    Rental scammers get more creative 

    By Greg Collier

    Scams can almost be considered living organisms unto themselves. They constantly adapt and evolve, so they can survive and multiply. Take the rental scam for example. Not too long ago, rental scammers would just claim that they were the landlords to a property but couldn’t be there in person since they were doing missionary work overseas. They would then have their victims send payment through money transfer services. Then consumers started catching on to the scam. From there, the rental scam has branched off into an untold number of scams with different methodologies designed to extract the maximum amount of money from their victims.

    In Blount County, Tennessee, the Sheriff’s Office is warning its residents about a rental scam that took place through Facebook Marketplace. The victim found a home for rent on Marketplace. The victim also saw that the home was listed as for rent on Zillow. Rather than contacting the realtor listed on Zillow, the victim went back to Marketplace and responded to the scammer.

    The scammer even went as far as to set up a walkthrough for their victim using the realtor listed on Zillow. But again, the victim kept going back to the Marketplace scammer where they were instructed to send a $1000 deposit through a Bitcoin ATM.

    The victim probably kept going back to the Marketplace scammer because the Marketplace listing had a lower rent in that listing. If there are two listings for the same property that have differing rent amounts, the listing with the lower amount is almost guaranteed to be a scam listing. Prospective renters should also avoid sending deposits through nontraditional means like cryptocurrency or payment apps like Venmo and Zelle.

    Selecting a new home should never be a rash decision because of what may look like a good deal. When dealing with multiple listings for the same property, the one being shown through a realtor rather than some stranger off the internet is probably the valid one. When in doubt, you can always check with the county’s tax office or website that can provide you the correct information about who owns the property.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 29, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: real estate, ,   

    $200K property almost sold out from under owner 

    $200K property almost sold out from under owner

    By Greg Collier

    A man from Raleigh, North Carolina almost had a $200,000 plot of land he owns sold out from under him. The man has owned the property since the 1980s, so he’s probably not in the market to sell it. You may imagine his surprise when he received a message from a realtor, asking him if he was selling the property.

    The realtor contacted the owner because the realtor had been contacted by someone claiming to be the owner. The impostor was even said to have presented a North Carolina driver’s license in the owner’s name. The reason the realtor contacted the true owner of the property was because the impostor’s story didn’t add up. The impostor allegedly said he was selling the property because he needed quick cash to buy a home in Michigan.

    However, that apparently didn’t stop the scammer, as they were able to convince another realtor to list the property on Zillow. A listing on Zillow with a realtor’s name behind it makes the listing look as legitimate as possible. That realtor even started receiving offers for the property. Thankfully, the owner got the realtor to take down the listing.

    If a fraudulent sale had gone through, it could have been a legal nightmare for the owner. Even though the man can show proof that he is, in fact, the owner of the property, there could have been a long and drawn out legal battle to evict anyone who may have moved on to the property.

    As we have shown previously, this is very similar to the rental scam, where scammers have listed properties for rent they do not own. While Zillow is a great resource to help determine if a real estate listing is a scam, it is not infallible.

    The best way to prevent your home from showing up as for sale or for rent on Zillow is to claim the property on Zillow yourself. This applies to other real estate platforms as well.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on November 30, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: real estate, , ,   

    How to handle multiple rental listings of the same address 

    By Greg Collier

    While most of us have our minds on the holidays, there are still those who are in the market for a new home. Many of them are looking to rent and there are many pitfalls they need to avoid, so they won’t be scammed.

    More often than not, rental scammers will copy the legitimate listing from one platform and post it on another. The only things they’ll usually change are the contact information and the amount of the rent. Scammers will always advertise a much lower rent than the legitimate listing. As you might suspect, this is done to try to attract more attention to their ad than the legitimate ad, even though both ads list the same address.

    Unfortunately, this is a pretty strong strategy for the scammers. Even when the prospective renter has read both ads, they’ll often treat the one with the lower rent price as the legitimate one. When pressed about the multiple listings, the scammers will say something to the effect of they’re no longer renting through that realtor. However, in some instances, the scammers will just imitate the actual owner online.

    That’s what happened to a North Carolina landlord who was renting a property on Zillow. The scammer copied her listing word for word and even used her name in their listing. To lure in victims, the scammers posted a rent price that was $200 lower than the actual price and claimed that the property was friendly for cats and large dogs. The scammers were asking victims to wire them $4500 as a deposit.

    If you come across multiple listings for the same property on different platforms, there are steps you can take to avoid being scammed. In most cases, the listing with the highest rent is going to be the legitimate one, although that’s not a guarantee. If one of the landlords only wants to communicate through text messages, that’s a good indicator they could be a scammer. Also, if you’re being asked to make a deposit through money transfer or a payment app like Zelle, Venmo, or Cash App, it’s likely to be a scam.

    As always, we recommend going to the county’s tax assessor’s office or website. At either, you should be able to find out who the true owner of the property is and hopefully avoid all scammers.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on November 21, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , real estate, , ,   

    The red flags of a rental scam 

    The red flags of a rental scam

    By Greg Collier

    Ever since real estate listings have been available online, there have been real estate scammers. Typically, these scammers pose as landlords who are renting a house. The listings the scammers post are almost always copied from a legitimate real estate listing. A few details such as the rental cost and contact information will be changed. Depending on how far the scammers want to take it, the rental scam could end up costing victims anywhere from a small security deposit, to that plus first and last month’s rent. The scam can also leave victims homeless, as many have moved into homes that weren’t legally rented to them.

    That almost happened to a family from Wichita, Kansas, recently. They found a home for rent that was listed on both Zillow and Facebook Marketplace. The first red flag they encountered was the property was listed for a higher rent price on Zillow than it was on Marketplace. They contacted the seller from Marketplace, hoping they could get a deal.

    The family was asked to pay a $60 application fee to the Marketplace seller through Cash App. They started getting suspicious, but the Marketplace seller assured them this was being done for security reasons.

    After paying the $60, they received an application that was just copied and pasted into an email. The application was lacking important questions that most landlords would need to know. When the family returned the application, the Marketplace seller started hounding them for a $200 security deposit for a property the family hadn’t even seen yet. It was at this point, the family called police, who told them they were being scammed.

    While this incident isn’t a comprehensive detailing of all red flags in a rental scam, it does have the major ones. If you find a rental listing that has two different rental prices, the one with the lower price is more than likely the scam listing. Never make payments to supposed landlords or rental agents using apps like Cash App, Zelle, or Venmo. It’s easy for scammers to take your money and disappear through these apps. Lastly, if a seller is trying to pressure you into making a security payment without seeing the home, there’s a good chance they’re a scammer.

    Moving into a new home is always a big life decision. It should be researched like any other big life moment. Always do a Google search on the home’s address. This could help reveal duplicate listings. If in doubt about who is actually renting the home, check with the county tax assessor’s office or website. The information is free and public and will help you avoid any potential scammers.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on November 7, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , real estate, , ,   

    Family locked out of own home in rental scam 

    Family locked out of own home in rental scam

    By Greg Collier

    A family from Fresno, California, moved to Tennessee earlier this year. While they were living in Tennessee, they were trying to sell their house in California. Even in our always connected world, that must be difficult to do from two time zones away. That’s also what made it easy for scammers to take advantage of an empty home whose owners were thousands of miles away.

    People moved into the California house just a few months after the family moved to Tennessee. The family still has relatives in the Fresno-area who sent pictures of a U-Haul in the driveway, and the for sale sign had been removed. The relatives were provided the access code to one of the electronic locks, but when they got to the house, the keypad had been removed. To make matters worse, all the locks had been changed as well.

    Police were called to the house, but the people who moved in showed police a rental lease agreement. They also claimed that they found the property listed on craigslist, and paid $3000 in cash to move in. The police were unable to do anything at the time.

    The family contacted a local news station in Fresno who looked into the lease agreement and the signature on the lease didn’t match the signature on the home’s deed. This allowed the news station to contact police, who were then able to have the people vacate the house in 48 hours. But the problems didn’t end there.

    The first thing the family had to deal with was the belongings the people left behind. Under California law, the family had to keep the items for two weeks, then they had to pay to have the items taken away. The house had also been vandalized when the people living there allegedly broke the appliances and plumbing. Unfortunately, their homeowner’s insurance wouldn’t cover the damages because the hose had been left vacant for than 60 days.

    If you’re moving to a new area while still trying to sell your home, don’t rely on the realtor to keep the home safe. We’ve seen too many instances where scammers have fooled realtors into giving them access to the home. Instead, consider investing in a security solution where you can monitor the home remotely. While it might be an additional cost, it can prevent you from having to pay even more in the long run.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on October 27, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , open house, real estate, ,   

    Displaced family fall victim to rental scam 

    Displaced family fall victim to rental scam

    By Greg Collier

    A Florid family of three recently moved out of the mobile home they were living in. They needed a larger living space due to medical concerns. They were driving through Jacksonville when they came upon an open house for a home that was for rent. There were other potential renters touring the home, while the event was hosted by a man who appeared to be from a realty agency. That man was professionally dressed while wearing a badge with his name and picture that carried a local realtor’s logo. He was also said to be handing out rental applications.

    The family filled one out, and two weeks later the man visited them at their mobile home. The family was told their application was approved, and they paid a $2300 deposit. The man even had a card reader with him, so he could take the payment from their debit card immediately. They were even given a key to the home. After they moved in, they used their remaining savings to have the power turned on.

    Three weeks later, the family’s nightmare began. A security guard who worked for the realtor told the family they had been scammed and had 72 hours to move out. They couldn’t even go back to the mobile home they were living in previously because it had been damaged by Hurricane Ian. They’re currently having trouble finding a home due to a previous eviction.

    Just about anybody who walked into this situation could have been scammed. The scammer went to extreme lengths to scam families looking for a home. First, the scammer probably toured the home himself through the realtor, which gave him access to the realtor’s lockbox that holds the key to the home. Many realtors do not change the combinations on their lock boxes after a family tours a home.

    Then he held his own open house for the property while posing as one of the realtors. There’s a reason why the ‘con’ in con artist is short for ‘confidence’. Who knows how many other victims this person has allegedly scammed using the same tricks?

    According to local realtors, if you meet a real estate agent away from their office, get their business address and verify they work for the realtor they claim to work for.

    https://youtu.be/Mi30CdH-U0s
     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on October 13, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , , , , real estate,   

    Scam Round Up: Phony Law Firm Scam and more 

    Scam Round Up: Phony Law Firm Scam and more

    By Greg Collier

    This week, in the Scam Round Up, we’ll be reminding our readers of an old scam, a new twist on a familiar scam, and a new and potentially terrifying scam.

    ***

    Lots of scams are designed to swindle people who are looking to make a supplemental income. One of those scams is the car wrap scam. This is where scammers promise to pay you for putting advertising decals on your car and just driving around town. While there are legitimate opportunities to do this, they aren’t as frequent as the scammers would have you believe. They’ll also go to great lengths to try to convince you that they’re the legitimate offer.

    For example, an Arkansas man received what appeared to be a legitimate car wrap offer in the mail. The offer appeared professional in nature, but the closer the man looked, the more he realized it was a scam.

    The offer included a check for $3700. $100 of it was for gas, $600 was supposed to be the man’s payment, and the remaining $3000 was supposed to go to the company that would wrap his car. Except, he was supposed to deposit the check and then pay the company through Venmo or Cash App.

    Thankfully, the man waited before sending any of the money. He waited for his bank to let him know whether the check was legitimate or not, and it turned out to be fraudulent. Just by waiting, he saved himself from being thousands of dollars in debt to his bank.

    ***

    Speaking of fake check scams, one seems to be hitting the real estate market hard. Scammers are sending fraudulent cashier’s checks to realtors and title companies, posing as someone who is interested in buying a house. Once the check is deposited, the scammers claim they’ve changed their mind about the home and want their money back. Now, most knowledgeable realtors won’t move forward with any transaction until the check clears.

    While most realtors wouldn’t fall for this scam, it’s still tying up properties while realtors wait to see if the check is real. Taking a property off the market and putting it back on can not only hurt the home’s value, but it also keeps it out of the hands of people needing to find a home.

    ***

    Lastly, we have a story about a man who received a cal from a law firm trying to collect a debt. The law firm said that he had defaulted on a loan from 2016. The caller said they needed to send someone to his home to receive his signature. The scammers even knew a lot of information about their target, including his Social Security number, and the names of his family members.

    They said he owed $9000 but would be willing to take an immediate payment of $4000. The man was taken aback at first, but once he gathered his composure, he realized this was a scam. After the man hung up on the scammers, the scammers called the man’s adult son to try to intimidate the man further.

    If you receive a call from someone trying to collect a debt, ask them to mail you a debt verification letter that will detail where the debt supposedly came from. If they know way too much information about you than they should, consider putting fraud alerts on all your financial accounts.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 15, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , real estate, , ,   

    Million dollar home lists for $22K 

    Million dollar home lists for $22K

    By Greg Collier

    The online real estate market has been rife with scams and fraud almost since the beginning. It almost seems like you can’t post an online real estate listing without someone copying it. This is what usually leads to the numerous rental scams out there. However, it’s not just rental scams you have to worry about, but there are scams when trying to buy a home too. Except, the scam we’re about to discuss today had so many red flags it could have been part of the Soviet Navy.

    A local realtor in Atlanta found a peculiar listing on Zillow. The home was in an affluent Atlanta neighborhood and was estimated to be worth at least a million dollars. However, the Zillow listing claimed the house was for sale at the low, low price of $22,000. The supposed owner of the house claimed the price was so cheap because they owned a number of properties and this would be a tax write-off for them.

    If those weren’t enough warnings, this listing could be a scam, it also came with plenty of strings attached. The listing specified that this was for first time buyers only, who didn’t have any representation. The listing also stated that the price was non-negotiable and approved applicants would pay a $2,000 payment through Zelle.

    No matter how bad the real estate market may be, no one is going to sell a million dollar home for .02% of its value. The scammer was obviously looking for homebuyers with no experience in the market, so they easily could be taken advantage of. If a listing specifies that you should have no representation, you should assume it’s a scam.

    Lastly, the fact that the listing is asking for payment through Zelle should be a dead giveaway that it’s a scam. As we’ve said previously, Zelle should only be used to pay people you know personally and not to random strangers on the internet.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on August 30, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , real estate, ,   

    A desperate plea for help leads to family getting scammed 

    A desperate plea for help leads to family getting scammed

    By Greg Collier

    There should be no shame in reaching out to your neighbors for help. Today, if we do decide to reach out, we often do it online. Not only out of convenience, but because it helps us reach a wider range of people who could potentially help us. Unfortunately, it’s not just our neighbors who might see our pleas, there are also scammers, as one Virginia family found out.

    In this story, the family consists of a disabled mother with an adult daughter who is pregnant. They were looking for a home to rent and due to the mother’s disabilities, they were limited in their choices. They could not rent any property that required the mother to go up or down stairs. The mother posted her plea online that they were looking for a place to rent. This plea was posted to her area’s Craigslist.

    After she made her post, someone reached out almost immediately. They said that they had a property they were looking to rent out to someone and even gave them an address, so they could drive by the home. When the daughter spoke to the supposed landlord, he said that he needed money right away to have the city turn the water and plumbing right away.

    The landlord asked for $700 to be paid through Cash App under somebody else’s name. The daughter even said that didn’t feel right, as the money should go into a bank account. However, they were so desperate to find a roof over their heads, they ignored the red flags and sent the money anyway. Sadly, they sent their money to a scammer. They are now trying even harder to find a home, along with the financial burden of losing that money.

    I know it’s easier said than done, but even if you’re in dire straits, please do your research before sending any money to rent a home. Scammers are constantly looking for people on the down and out to take advantage of because they know the victim’s emotional state may make them vulnerable. The scammers have no qualms taking from people who have very little.

    As long as you have a working smartphone, which is most phones these days, you can research the property. If you do a quick Google search on the property’s address, you can find a lot of information about the property. That can include the actual rent price and the actual rental agency. And as always, we recommend going to the website or office of the county tax assessor, as they will have the records of who actually owns and rents the property.

    Also, never send money through apps like Cash App, Venmo, Zelle and the like. This makes it incredibly easy for scammers to take your money before blocking you and disappearing with your money.

    Lastly, scammers will always try to pressure you into making a decision right away. If you feel pressured, don’t be afraid to take your time researching and deciding. You may just save yourself the heartache of losing money to a scammer.

     

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