Does this housing ad look like a scam? (Charlotte: rental, condos)

[BBSLM]

What makes me skeptical is the requirement for a contact number, the sketchy-sounding back story, and the grammatical/spelling errors.

I checked the address and there are newly-built condos there, but Im not sure if the pictures provided are of the actual complex since there are no pictures on it's website.

[DipDog3]

Really depends on how they expect you to pay.

[quixotic22]

generally speaking.. anything off of craigslist is a joke! I know from experience! either crazy people, perverts/pedophiles, scam artists.. I saw a similar thing and got totally screwed over. CRAIGSLIST=JOKE & hotspot for thieves & crooks not to mention con-artists..

[BBSLM]

Originally Posted by quixotic22

generally speaking.. anything off of craigslist is a joke! I know from experience! either crazy people, perverts/pedophiles, scam artists.. I saw a similar thing and got totally screwed over. CRAIGSLIST=JOKE & hotspot for thieves & crooks not to mention con-artists..

there are a lot of scams on craigslist, but plenty of legit ads to. i found my previous and current rental on craigslist (both situations were/are great), and ive sold plenty of stuff as well.

[GCharlotte]

Originally Posted by BBSLM

What makes me skeptical is the requirement for a contact number, the sketchy-sounding back story, and the grammatical/spelling errors.

I checked the address and there are newly-built condos there, but Im not sure if the pictures provided are of the actual complex since there are no pictures on it's website.

The contact number might be a way to Google or somehow verify that someone that replies isn't a serial killer. I'm not letting someone in my non party pad from Craiglist unless I can text my mom their verified phone number in case I disappear

If you DM me the address I can poke around public records to see if anything funny is going on. You fer sher should verify they are the owner and are allowed to lease it.

The thing that concerns me more is the age thing. I don't know if you can discriminate renting based on age or if that's what the intent is.

[Charlottean]

Federal and State Fair Housing Laws must not be something they care much about

[Mellow Bear]

Googling the phrase "I travel a lot and will extend the room" shows a result for the same wording in an Atlanta ad that's now been deleted. Choosing to show omitted search results again shows the same wording, this time in Los Angeles and Miami. Again, the ads are now gone. All of them claim to be looking for a house-sitter. Based on that, I'll say yes, this looks like a scam.

I found a great home for rent on Craigslist several years back that seemed to be too good to be true. Fortunately for me, it turned out to be legit. When I finally moved out last year, I offered to help the landlord list it and filter the replies. For the first few days, I got a serious email or two a day, as well as some spam. About a week in, someone drove up to the house and asked about it. They told me they'd been emailing the person listing it and wanted to rent it since it was only $500. I had listed it for $975 and had never heard from this person. Lo and behold, I went on Craigslist and some spammer/scammer had taken the text and pictures and reposted it with their own contact info. I had the exact same thing happen when I was looking for my next place. I found a great home that was listed at $800, but it turned out to be a scam. I finally found the real listing a few days later. Same text, same pictures, different price - $1600 a month.

[GCharlotte]

Originally Posted by Mellow Bear

Googling the phrase "I travel a lot and will extend the room" shows a result for the same wording in an Atlanta ad that's now been deleted. Choosing to show omitted search results again shows the same wording, this time in Los Angeles and Miami. Again, the ads are now gone. All of them claim to be looking for a house-sitter. Based on that, I'll say yes, this looks like a scam.

I found a great home for rent on Craigslist several years back that seemed to be too good to be true. Fortunately for me, it turned out to be legit. When I finally moved out last year, I offered to help the landlord list it and filter the replies. For the first few days, I got a serious email or two a day, as well as some spam. About a week in, someone drove up to the house and asked about it. They told me they'd been emailing the person listing it and wanted to rent it since it was only $500. I had listed it for $975 and had never heard from this person. Lo and behold, I went on Craigslist and some spammer/scammer had taken the text and pictures and reposted it with their own contact info. I had the exact same thing happen when I was looking for my next place. I found a great home that was listed at $800, but it turned out to be a scam. I finally found the real listing a few days later. Same text, same pictures, different price - $1600 a month.

The Iraq thing is a flag too that I didn't think much of. Basically that's pulling at heartstrings as a way to bypass suspicion. I'm not sure I'd want people to know I was going to be out of the country in a first post.

So ya, I call scam too.

[BBSLM]

Originally Posted by GCharlotte

The contact number might be a way to Google or somehow verify that someone that replies isn't a serial killer. I'm not letting someone in my non party pad from Craiglist unless I can text my mom their verified phone number in case I disappear

If you DM me the address I can poke around public records to see if anything funny is going on. You fer sher should verify they are the owner and are allowed to lease it.

Yea I wouldnt meet anyone without a contact number either, but people will generally answer initial questions you may have through email without requiring a contact number. That just felt shady.

Thanks for the DM offer, but I think the ad was deleted because I can no longer find it. I guess it was spam.

Originally Posted by Mellow Bear

Googling the phrase "I travel a lot and will extend the room" shows a result for the same wording in an Atlanta ad that's now been deleted. Choosing to show omitted search results again shows the same wording, this time in Los Angeles and Miami. Again, the ads are now gone. All of them claim to be looking for a house-sitter. Based on that, I'll say yes, this looks like a scam.

My google-fu is usually pretty strong, I didnt even think to google that, just 'iraq deployment craigslist scam' which returned a bunch of hits for car sales, but nothing related to housing.

But oh well, I guess the ad was flagged for removal because it doesnt seem to be there anymore. Looks like you were right.

[wevie]

Looks like BS to me. Why would this person live here anyway being in the military. There is not even a base near here right?