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Sometimes the town or city will maintain a list of established landlords and property owners with contact numbers. If the town has a website, it may be worth a check.
Good luck. Nowadays, I wouldn't want to be renting either. We sold our rental house because of all the headaches and scams we were beginning to encounter.
So they emailed me again today, this time with a DIFFERENT verification link.... this is one that I plug in my details, pay with a credit card, they'll call my number and "verify that I'm not a bot". All for the low low price of $40. Why would I be a bot? We had been having a conversation for the past day!
I've reported it to Craigslist and just for good measure, I notified Google that a gmail address was being used in a scam.
So they emailed me again today, this time with a DIFFERENT verification link.... this is one that I plug in my details, pay with a credit card, they'll call my number and "verify that I'm not a bot". All for the low low price of $40. Why would I be a bot? We had been having a conversation for the past day!
I've reported it to Craigslist and just for good measure, I notified Google that a gmail address was being used in a scam.
To me these scams are so obvious, but I guess not everybody has been around as long as I have. They must have some successes or they wouldn't keep trying.
I'm glad you reported them, so maybe you can save an unknowing victim out there.
I've relocated to another state. While I really prefer to buy, I'm not finding anything that meets my needs, so I've started to look for an apartment. I really really didn't want to do this. Mainly because I've owned my own place for 15+ years, so suddenly living under someone else's rules is very unsettling to me.
I'm in a college town where rentals at this time of year are really very slim pickings. So I have taken to Craigslist to start looking to see what I can find.
Yesterday, I found an ad describing a place located in a "good neighborhood" that offers a month-to-month lease. To me, this was perfect because I don't want to be stuck in a place for 12 months if I end up finding my dream home in 4. Only drawback - no pictures. Against my better judgement, I emailed and asked where is the apartment, and do they have a pet policy?
I get an email back late last night. I was assured that the property was in a "good neighborhood" (not what I asked) and no restrictions on pets, as long as I pay for any damage they might cause (should have been yet another red flag). Then I responded that I really would like more info. I was sent back a link for a background check, stating that this makes it easier on the landlord financially and I would be required to provide the PDF from the site prior to any additional conversations. I visit the site, and it's a $40 a pop background search that I'm assuming I need to pay. I have no problem paying this, but I don't even know if this is a place I'm interested in renting! The landlord also sent emails talking about how if I have bad credit or a criminal record, no worries. They'll work with me.
Because I'm so rusty at this, I still didn't figure out I should walk away. So I tried one more time - look, I'm not willing to pay for a background check until I see the property. I have no criminal record and my credit rating is nearly 800. I'd be happy to bring income validation to the showing, but that's it. I didn't hear back.
In hindsight, I should have seen so many red flags. But the reason for my lengthy story is this: I still don't have a home and still am going to need to rely on CraigsList to find things. Is it safe to assume anything that is posted without an address or pictures is bad news?
Thanks in advance!
Clay, it is always easy in hindsight to see the red flags but you did the most important thing. You did not part with money or personal information when you were uncomfortable. In this case, before you even saw the place
Location: The Northeast - hoping one day the Northwest!
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rrah
No address or no pictures is not necessarily a scam. Sending you to a website which requires payment before you see any pictures is.
I agree 100%. Also, I think a good rule of thumb is if you are uneasy about it, don't do it. A few years ago I was laid off and looking for jobs. I actually found my job on Craigslist, but another one wanted me to fill out a credit check application because they require all people to use the company vehicle or something like that. Didn't fill it out and marked it as scam.
Where I live, it's normal not to put the address in rental ads, for security.
People post photos, and descriptions of the location, e.g. 'quiet street near 5th and Main' or, for apartments in complexes, they list the name/location of the complex and tell you what floor the vacant unit is on.
As for finding a temporary place, in a college town homeowners often rent out spare rooms, sometimes with a private entrance Might be worth considering.
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