TheTrenchcoat Chronicles

Tag: Real Estate Scam

  • Reader sends in scam e-mail for Costa Mesa

    Another rental scam e-mail sent in by reader Rose. This time about a property in the Costa Mesa, California area…

    From: Andre Ulla Jose Uribe [mailto:anrdreulla@yahoo.com]

    Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2008 9:50 PM

    Subject: Re: $1000 / 3br – 2 bath single family home. (Canyon Cir Costa

    Mesa)

    Hello,

    Thanks for your email and interest in renting my house..I am Andre ulla,the

    owner of the house you are making inquiry of…Actually I resided in the

    house with my family, my wife and my only daughter before and presently we

    have moved out due to my transfer from my work now in Warsaw,Poland.

    Presently my house is still available for rent for $1000 USD (rent already

    includes utilities).Moreso Now, I’m currently in Lagos,Nigeria for an

    international Christian follower’s crusade.

    Please i want you to note that,i am a kind, honest and trustworthy man and

    also i spent a lot on my property that i want to give to you for rent,so i

    will solicit for your absolute maintenance of this house and want you to

    treat it as your own, It is not the money that is the main problem but i

    want you to keep it tidy all the time so that i will be glad to see it neat

    when i come for a check up.I also want you to let me have trust in you as i

    always stand on my word.This is the address of the House (**** ****** ***

    Costa Mesa, CA 92627).

    It has a dramatic entry foyer with ceramic floor. Extremely spacious rooms

    throughout with lots of big windows…nice and light! New neutral paint and

    some newer carpet..Very quiet, low traffic area. New fridge (7/07)…I

    believe its absolutely a perfect home for you and your family.Utilities

    include Water,Trash,Sewer,Gas

    SO IF YOU ARE REALLY INTERESTED I WILL WANT YOU TO FILL THE

    RENT APPLICATION FORM BELOW

    RENT APPLICATION FORM.

    FIRST NAME:__________?

    MIDDLE NAME:__________?

    LAST NAME:__________?

    PROFESSION:__________?

    PHONE:

    (CELL)PHONE__________?

    (WORK)PHONE__________?

    (HOME)PHONE__________?

    KIDS _____ (YES/NO), HOW MANY ________

    PRESENT ADDRESS: _____________________

    CITY: _______________

    STATE:______________

    ZIP CODE: ____________

    HOW LONG? ___________IF RENTING

    WHY ARE YOU LEAVING__________?

    IF THIS HOUSE IS BEING GIVEN TO YOU,

    HOW LONG DO YOU INTEND STAYING? ____________?

    WHEN DO YOU INTEND MOVING IN? ______________?

    IF YOU HAVE A PET,

    NAME OF PET: _____________?

    KIND OF PETS: _____________?

    HABITS

    DO YOU SMOKE ______________ ?

    DO YOU DRINK ______________?

    DO YOU WORK LATE NIGHT? ____?

    Looking forward to hearing from you with all this details so that i can

    have it in my file in case of issuing the receipt for you and contacting

    you…Await your urgent reply so that we can discuss on how to get the

    document and the keys to you,please we are giving you all this based on

    trust and again i will want you to stick to your words,you know that we have

    not seen yet and only putting everything into Gods hands,so please do not

    let us down in this our property and God bless you more as you do this…

    The house is available for rent at the moment so you are free to move in as

    soon as you wish to…A Deposit of $1000 (which happens to be the first

    months rent) is required before moving in…Feel free to call me for more

    information and arrangements on how to get the keys and other necessary

    documents delivered to you…my number is (+2347084066248 or

    0112347084066248).The house will be available for rent for a period of 4

    years so you have a choice of deciding how long you intend staying there…

    God Bless,

    Andre Ulla.

    This one is right out of the Nigerian handbook. Warsaw, Nigeria, Christian missionary, all the usual red flags.

    I wonder if scam rental ads outnumber the real ones yet on craigslist.

  • Another reader scam e-mail

    I received this scam e-mail from reader Mike. The ad was on the Nashville craigslist. This one seems like they’re not even trying anymore…

    Michael,

    Thanks for the email. I Brink and my wife Dr. Betty own the Apartment and also want you to know that it was due to my transfer that made i and my wife to leave the house and also want to give it out for rent and we are looking for a responsible person that can take very good care of it as we are not after the money for the rent but want it to be clean at all time and we will appreciate it if the person will take it as if it were his/her own.

    So for now, We are here in west Africa, in our new house and also with the keys of the house, we tried looking for an agent that we can give this documents before we left but could not see and we also don’t want our house to be used improperly in our absence that is why we took it along with us. I and my wife came over to West Africa for a missionary work, so i hope you will promise us to take very good care of the house.

    So get back to me on how you could take care of our house or perhaps experience you have had in renting home. Hope you are okay with the price. I am looking forward to hear from you soon, please call us on how to get the house for rent, 011 then 234-803-923-7268 or + 234-806-330-0979

    RENT APPLICATION FORM

    1)Your Full Name :

    2)Your Full Address & Phone Number :

    3)How old are you?

    4)Are you married?

    5)How many people will be living in the house?

    6)Do you have a pet?

    7)Do you have a car?

    8)Occupation?

    9)What is your religion?

    Looking forward to hear from you with all this details so that i can have it in my file incase of issuing the receipt for you and contacting you. I await your urgent reply so that we can discuss on how to get the document and the key to you, we have not seen you yet but we only put everything into Gods hand, so please do not let us down in this our property and God bless you more as you do this.Please i want you to drive to check the house at the address and let me know if you would like it, the house is locked and i have the keys.

    Thanks and you are welcome

    Brink and wife Dr. betty

    Let’s review for those just joining us. Wanting, clean apartment, bad English (not the band), West Africa, missionary work, can’t see the inside of the house, Nigerian phone number, and finally lame fake names. I mean Brink and Dr. Betty and no last name?

    I’m amazed that the people who fall for these scams can actually operate a computer.

  • Reader sends in apartment scam experience

    I got the following e-mail from Christa who was looking for an apartment on Craigslist…

    I’m 20 years old and this is the first time I began searching for apartments. When I saw an ad that looked too good to be true- I hesitated but gave the guy the benefit of the doubt and emailed him. This was his exact response:

    “Hello. We are so much excited. My name is Mcgrath Garrett the owner of the apartment and also want you to know that it was due to my transfer that makes me and my wife and little daughter to leave the apartment and also want to give it out for rent and looking for a responsible person that can take very good care of it while we are not at the state as we are not after the money for the rent but want it to be clean at the time and the person that will rent it to take it as if it were its own. So for now, we are here in West Africa, our new house and put all my worries off concerning the maintenance of the apartment for, since i am not residing there for now. I left behind some Facilities and electonics which include the rent, DVD player, air conditioning, alarm system. The kitchen is fully equipped with all necessary cooking utensils, refrigerator-freezer, four-hob and oven, microwave, dishwasher and washing machine, my computer connected with Internet access also the keys and document of the apartment are right here with us in West Africa, and the lease document. Which i can send to you after all necessary agreement has been accepted. Also i will like you to know that the rent charges is not really the issue, hope you are okay with the price of $900 per month including utilities like hydro, water, gas, heat laundry facilities, air condition and so on, but your absolute maintenance of my apartment is most important thing, if you are really interested in renting this apartment get back to me so that i can forward you an application form for you to fill so that i can start all necesary arrangement asap.

    Here is the apartment address : (California address)

    …. Pls note that you will be viewing the apartment from outside only and 100 % sure that you would love to stay in the place because it is locatedin a very cool, quiet and safe neigbourhood. There was a man who want to rent my apartment his name was Mr Daniel called me about the apartment, i told him that I can’t give him the apartment because he loves smoking, drinking and dont want him to get drunked and damaged my property one day so If you are still interested, no extra fees. I will like you to give me a call at (foreign number) or (other foreign number) on this effect to know how serious you are. I personally will actually come visiting you sometimes during the year as our new tenant. Looking forward to hear from you with all this details so that i can have it in my file in case of issueing the receipt for you and contacting you. Awaiting your reply so that we can discuss on how to get the document and the keys of the apartment to you. “

    I soon googled the e-mail and the only response was for a rental fraud website. I want to make sure this story gets posted because it might help a stupid person from making an even more stupid decision of sending money.

    Thanks for your time 🙂

    Thank you, Christa, for sending this in. It gives one more fake scammer name to post.

  • Nashville rental scam

    I received an e-mail from Michael who was looking for a condo in Nashville and found one that was too good to be true. When he e-mailed the ‘seller’ this was the response he got.

    Hello,

    Thanks for your response regarding your interest in having my apartment for rent.The apartment is much available for now.I want you to know that I amthe owner of this building .But right now i am in africa on a Christain mission with my wife and we have the keys right here with us.I will like toinform you that it was due to my transfer that makes us to leave the apartment and also want to give it out for rent and looking for a resposible person that can take very good care of it as we are not after the money for the rent but want it to be clean at the time and the person that will rent it to take it as if it were its own.So for now,We are here in West Africa,NIGERIA our new house and also with the keys of the house,we are trying to look for an agent that we can give this document before we left but could not see and we are as well as dont want our house to be used any how in our absent that is why we took it along with us here.We are only willing to give the apartment out to a lovely and caring family only, so if you know you cannot give the apartment the neatness it deserves please don’t contact me.But if you promise to always take good

    care of apartment,get back to me on how you could take care of our house or perhaps experience you have in renting home.Hope you are okay with the price of $650 with hydro,heat laundry facilities,air-condition and so on.i look forward to hearing from you ASAP so that i can forward you an application to fill out and discuss on how to get the apartment for rent,also are you ready to rent it now or when?

    Thanks,

    Marcie anderson.

    So we can add Marcie Anderson to the list of fake scammer names.

    Michael e-mailed Mrs. ‘Anderson’ back and then ‘she’ requested the usual personal information for identity theft purposes. Michael did not e-mail her back of course and he notes that the ad was removed the day after.

    Let’s go over the red flags again…

    • Broken English: The apartment is much available for now.

     

    • Christian Mission: If there were as many Christian missionaries as they claim to be on craigslist the entire continent of Africa would be Christian.

     

     

    • Africa: Especially Nigeria, the birthplace of internet scams.

     

     

    • Asking for money sight unseen: It doesn’t matter how desperate you are for a place, never rent without seeing the inside of the place first.

     

    And remember the old saying applies true even more with craigslist, if it looks too good to be true it probably is.

  • More reader scam mails

    Received an e-mail from reader Hanna with a couple of craigslist scams she encountered.

    Jamie Lescott to me

    Thanks for your email and it is my gladness to hearing from you.I am RevJamie lesscott,the owner of the house you are making enquiry of.Actually I resided in the house with my family,such as my wife and my only daugther before and resently we had packed due to my transfer from my working place and now situated in the Madrid,Spain,and presently my house is still available for rent including the utilities like hydro,washer and security,it is urnised.Moreso Now,i went for a

    Crusade in the West Africa and i will like you to get in touch with my wife in the state for more discussion as She is with the keys and the document to the house.Pls i want you to note that,i am a kind and honest man and also i spent alot on my property that i want to give you for rent,so i will solicit for your absolute mentenance of this house and want you to treat it as your own,is that taken,it is not the money the main problem but want you to keep it tidy all the time so

    that i will be glad to see it neat when i came for a check up.i do that once in a while.I also want you to let me have trust in you as i always stand on my word.Where are you located and where do you see our advert also let us know if you need more pictures.

    Email my wife Elizabeth.(Elizajamie@gmail.com ) and she will attends to you better.

    God bless you

    A crusade? Is he off to find the holy grail? His wife will attends to you better? Unrised? Is the house made of matzoh?

    I’ll bring you more of Hannah’s scam emails in the days to come.

    If you want to share your scam story either send me an e-mail.

  • CU rental scam

    Police warn of Craigslist housing scam:

    A University of Colorado student was partially taken in by a craigslist rental scam.

    The scammer used the old moving out of the country to be a missionary routine and the student bought it because his own family had moved to Africa to be missionaries once. What are the odds of that? This guy should play the lottery soon.

    The scammers weren’t even trying that hard since they asked the student to wire the money to Nigeria. Luckily he didn’t but he had already sent them his personal information.

    The student drove by the house and noticed a for sale sign. He contacted the actual realtor who told him the house was not for rent.

  • NJ real estate scam submitted by reader

    I received the following e-mail from Amber in New Jersey about a scam that someone tried to pull on her while looking for an apartment on craigslist…

    The guy from the UK used this email: “Alan Erickson” alan.ercks@gmail.com. Now when suspicions arose because I’d asked him to call me a number of times or to send his number for me to call and he never answered certain questions, kept pushing the money wires and some bullshit third party parcel service that’s blacklisted from the Better Business Bureau (www.tnt.com) I googled his name and found a broker in New Jersey who dealt in apartments in and around Montclair where our supposed apt was. I thought….hmm, I’ll call him, sort of beat him to the punch and so I left a message. The REAL Alan Erickson called me back and explained that this guy had done this to many people, and he’s tried to track the guy down and get him for identity theft/fraud. The ad has been removed because we reported for abuse by myself and the real Alan…so I wish I’d have saved it. Basically, if it is too good to be true…on Craig’s List, it probably is.

    (more…)

  • You’ve been scammed

    House-for-rent scams turning up online:

    This is just your typical article about the housing scams on craigslist and how one family almost fell for it in Beaverton, Oregon.

    However the seller of the house did a pretty ingenious thing to prevent people from being scammed.

    After taking a second look at the house in person, Sami noticed the house’s real owner had posted a sign out front reading, “private property: if you have seen this home on craigslist you are being scammed.”

    Good thinking on the owner’s part. People don’t get scammed and he doesn’t have to break it to people that they have been scammed.

  • New craigslist scam targets landlords

    FBI Says New Craigslist Scam Preys On Landlords:

    The FBI is warning about a new real estate scam on craigslist. This time instead of targeting would be renters the scam is targeting landlords.

    The scam starts out in the usual way, the landlords who place craigslist ads get poorly written responses from people who claim to be doctors from overseas or some other preposterous story.

    Then eventually they try to hit up the landlords for money. In the case mentioned in the article, the scammer asked for money saying he needed help getting his furniture.

    This time I don’t think the scammers have thought their cunning plan all the way through. But you know eventually, they’ll hit that one person with a trusting heart and take them for all their worth.

  • AZ family taken by scammers

    Family Of Nine Loses Savings Because Of Craigslist Rental Scam:

    Another family has been taken by the craigslist rental scam. A family from Peoria, Arizona was new to the area and found a rental home on craigslist that was too good to be true. As expected it was too good to be true.

    They met a couple who called themselves Jim and Jaime Williams who they forked over $1500 to.

    Then when the family tried to move in they met the actual owner. Luckily the real owners worked something out with the family to let them stay there.

    As far as the “Williamses” go…

    Peoria Arizona police are asking for the public’s help in looking for the scam artists responsible. They are described as “a short heavyset woman and a man with crooked teeth and a heart tattooed on one hand. They were last seen driving a white Chevy Blazer.”

    The article recommends checking with the county first to see who actually owns a rental property.