Warning To Renters - Lots Of Scams on ABQ's Craigslist and Other Places (Albuquerque: house, transfer)

[ABQHome]

My wife and I made a recent inquiry regarding the rental of a home in Albuquerque and we were told the person renting this home was not in the USA, but the UK and this person had no one to show the home in Albuquerque. The person listed as the contact person for this home on Trulia, Zillow, Postlets and hotpads.com asked that a $500 deposit for the home be sent to him in the UK in order for him to send us the keys to the home so we could view the inside of the home prior deciding if we were going to rent the house. The phone number listed in Postlets is a number in Canada, not the UK; go figure!!

We did go to the home at 2000 San Pedro Street NE, Albuquerque, NM 87110 to try to see inside the home, but the blinds were closed shut, the gate was locked and there was no For Rent sign to be found. THIS IS A SCAM!!! WATCH OUT FOR THIS RENTAL LISTING!!!

This is a scam! We have never attempted to rent a place whereby we had to put down a $500 deposit just to get a key to enter a home to view it! We did not send the $500.

[joqua]

Originally Posted by ABQHome

THIS IS A SCAM!!! WATCH OUT FOR THIS RENTAL LISTING!!!

You should report this to the Office of Consumer Protection of the NM State Attorney General.

If you encounter a scam or fraud, please report it to the Consumer Protection Division by calling 800-678-1508 or send an email to comm...(click to show)...@nmag.gov. If you are forwarding a scam email, please be sure to attach the message's Internet headers. Learn how to find Internet headers.


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[Squirl]

Also report it to all sites where its listed.....

[Zoidberg]

By all means, report it if you like, but I'm not convinced this is a scam.

If the keyholder in question has the rightful ownership or control of the property, then there's nothing illegal going on.

One way to be certain is to go on Bernalillo County's property tax page, look up the owners (they don't appear too Canadian/UK-ish to me, but who am I to judge?), and contact them if you can. They'd probably want to know more than anyone else if there's something shady (or just that looks suspicious) going on.

It's always good to be on the lookout for bad deals, but detailed information such as the building address belongs in the hands of professional investigators and not an open forum.

[berncohomes]

How does one appear UK-ish?

[Poncho_NM]

You say cheers a lot?

[berncohomes]

Funnily enough I do.

[Big time bro]

Ive heard about a scam like this on craigslist before, I believe I read it on the Kob site that it happened to a family up in the Ventana area and the house was just some random house. I remember feeling bad for them.

[ApartmentNomad]

I just saw a similar scam via craigslist. The details in the ad were thin, but when I responded I got this bizarre email:

Hi,

I did get your response concerning the AD I posted on craigslist. The house is still available but presently I'm not around.. I did bid for a portion of petroleum land sometimes ago in West Africa and fortunately I won the bidding so I have to move quickly down to Africa to have my company set up because I will still have to rebid for it in the next 10 years. I came over here with my wife, we both built the house when we got married. As soon as we settle down here I had a thought of selling the house so I have to look for an agent, after getting one, we got a deal but later my wife advised against that.. She said we may not be able to win the bidding next time, in other to keep our head when we return that we have to keep the house. I reasoned with her and accepted her advise. So I contacted the agent back and requested for my keys and documents. Later we decided to have the house rent out, we would have give the same agent this job also but the truth of the matter is that the agent would want to handle it professionally and the occupant may not be able to reason along with him later. If you notice, you will discovered that the price we are offering is far below standard price, this is enough for you to know that we are not after the rental fee but the absolute care for the property. I know there is no way I can be sure that you are the right person to live in the house because we won't be able to see physical before sending you the keys and the documents to occupy the space. But I just had a feeling that anyone who knows what it takes to put the kind of structure down should know that maintaining a building is mandatory, so if you belief you can take good care of the house and handle it like yours then I will be more than happy to let you rent the house.

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. Appliances included are washer, dryer, oven,dishwasher, new fridge (7/07)...I believe its absolutely a perfect home for you and your family.Utilities include Water,Trash,Sewer,Gas

House Address:1408 Gold Avenue Albuquerque, NM.

First Month Rent:$550
Refundable Security Deposit Payment:$550

Please if you are ready now to occupy the house kindly provide the information below for record purpose

PLEASE TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF
Full Name______________________________________________ ____ Home Phone ( ) ________________________
Date of Birth_________________________________
Other Phone ( ) ___________________
Current Address_______________________________Apt#________ City__________________ State______ Zip________
Reasons for Leaving____________________________Rent $__________Phone ( ) ____________________________
Are you married____________________________
How many people will be living in the house____________________________
How many people will be living
in the house____________________________
Do you have a pet____________________________
Do you have a car____________________________
Occupation____________________________
Move In Date____________________________
HOW SOON CAN YOU HAVE THE DEPOSIT PAYMENT SENT TO ME___________________________
HOW SOON DO YOU WANT TO RECEIVE THE KEYS AND DOCUMENTS OF THE HOUSE___________________________
You could give me a call as soon as possible so we could proceed asap..

Please note than you will only be able to drive by the house for now but not have a look at the interior until i have sent the keys and documents of the house to you..and the requirement for getting the keys and documents of the house is a fully refundable payment of $550 USD,which is the security deposit.

Please note that the deposit made is fully refundable should in case you finally gain entrance into the house after receiving the keys and documents and feel unsatisfied or uncomfortable with the interior,but i am giving you a benefit of doubt that you will love everything about this lovely home..

I Await your response so that we can discuss on how to get the document and the keys to you.

My cell phone number is: [removing these phone numbers, as I assume posting them would break the rules here-AN]

Best Regards

[Hawknest]

My son sent me one of those emails worded almost exactly for a home in Coral Gables, FL where the average rents are $3-5k/mo.