With just about every rental search beginning online these days, it’s a given that con artists will try to take advantage of eager consumers. Combine fake listings with rental brokers looking to pull bait-and-switch operations with rentals of lower quality or higher rent, and you’ll have a hard time believing which listings are real.
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“You’re going about this search, and let’s say half your time is being spent on this type of fake listing,” says Ori Goldman, CEO and co-founder of Loftey, an apartment rental agency in New York City. Goldman and his brothers launched the company in 2015 to combat the number of fake listings online, offer a free service to consumers and help people secure a rent reduction or free move.
The Federal Trade Commission warns consumers about rental listing scams as a common danger on its website, instructing individuals to report suspected scams to the site the listing was posted on, as well as local law enforcement and the FTC.
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Major red flags that can help you identify rental scams include:
— The listing photos have an MLS watermark.
— The listing details are vague.
— They don’t want to show you the place first.
— They’re ready to make a deal with no background info.
— They’re out of the country.
— They want you to sign before seeing anything.
— The asking rent doesn’t match up.
— They instruct you to wire money.
The Listing Photos Have an MLS Watermark
If the rental listing’s…
