Scheme targets people wanting to rent
JANESVILLE — Andy Quarne nearly fell for a local home rental scam, but he realized something was fishy before losing his money.
He's worried others might not be so lucky.
"The guy is good," the Evansville resident said. "It would be really easy to see how he could prey on the general population, especially if they want a place real bad."
The scam has been happening in Janesville, local realtors said, and it also has occurred in other parts of the state.
Here is how it works:
The scammer places ads on Craigslist, a popular classified ads Web site. The ads are for homes to rent in Janesville, using information and addresses of homes listed for sale.
The scammer poses as the home's owner, claiming he has moved overseas for a new job. He provides an application to rent the home. He communicates via e-mail or telephone.
He tells people they can view the house from the outside, but they can't see the inside because the keys are with him. He tells people to ignore the sale sign in the yard because it is off the market.
He then asks them to send a rent deposit in exchange for the keys.
Mary Alonso, a realtor with Century 21 Affiliated in Janesville, said she caught on to the scam after receiving two calls about a home she has listed for sale.
In both cases, people wanted to see the home after noticing the sign in the yard, but they said they had talked to the owner about renting it.
Surprised, Alonso contacted the homeowner. She learned the conversations never took place. She then realized the people asking to see the house were being scammed.
"I would want to meet a real person before giving my money to anyone," Alonso said.
In Quarne's case, he called Ray Hartje, also a realtor with Century 21 Affiliated, after seeing Hartje's name on the sign at the home he thought he was going to rent.
"I said, 'It's a good thing you called me first. That's a scam,'" Hartje said. "Don't send any money to these people."
Oct 12, 2009 at 6:46 p.m.
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We have bought several things off of craigslist.. only two of our purchases actually ended up being good purchases. We have bought two used vehicles and two boats.. The two vehicles and one of the boats were nothing but pretty junk. The outsides were immaculate, but the engines and or motors were shot and made to look and sound alright when started. Be careful and if things seem to good to be true.. then go with your gut feeling and WALK AWAY!! Its virtually impossible to recover any money as the things are sold "as is"... BEWARE
Oct 12, 2009 at 5:01 p.m.
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krsmith01, I think the scammers are banking on people wanting to rent without seeing the inside of the house. I don't think I'd ever rent without first seeing what it is I'm renting, but I guess some people are desperate enough to do so.
Oct 12, 2009 at 4:51 p.m.
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Craigslist is great, I've posted a car and electronics for sale on there and everything has sold within 3 days. Can't beat free classifieds with thousands of viewers. People just need to be smart and recognize when something just isn't right.
Oct 12, 2009 at 4:12 p.m.
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Dummies
Oct 12, 2009 at 2:29 p.m.
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i have found the same things about Craigslist, it is awesome if you deal locally, otherwise you are probably getting scammed just like Ebay is now.
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Plus Craigslist is basically a free classifieds list. The only ones who wouldn't like anything about it would be Gazette Execs.
Oct 12, 2009 at 2:14 p.m.
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krsmith01, unfortunately there are more "stupid" consumers out there than "smart" ones. Besides this is nothing compared to the billions being raked in by predatory lenders and life insurance sales people.
Oct 12, 2009 at 1:53 p.m.
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I absolutely LOVE Craigslist! I've been able to find things I'm looking for easily and ended up with some rather nice deals.
One day I wanted to make a rhubarb cake. I found rhubarb for sale on craigslist and picked some up on my way to work in Madison. The sellers left if for me on their porch and I placed the money under a rock next to their door. You can't get any better than that!
Oct 12, 2009 at 1:31 p.m.
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I haven't heard anything good about Craigslist.
Oct 12, 2009 at 12:26 p.m.
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Isn't "SEEING" the inside of a house and paying for a "RENT DEPOSIT" two completely different things here? First of all, if you never wanted to RENT the house, why would you send a stranger money for a RENT DEPOSIT (as the article said)? Second, if all you wanted to do is SEE the inside of the house, why would ANYONE be stupid enough to send a complete stranger money to do that? C'mon people, you should be able to see the red flags on this one from a mile away! This isn't a "good" scam, it's nothing more than a stupid consumer thats not even smart enough to pay attention.
Oct 12, 2009 at 12:23 p.m.
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Sorry, but this sounds like a pretty easy to spot scam. And craigslist even puts warnings on its site, and in its emails, such as
"** CRAIGSLIST ADVISORY --- AVOID SCAMS BY DEALING LOCALLY
** Avoid: wiring money, cross-border deals, work-at-home
** Beware: cashier checks, money orders, escrow, shipping
** More Info: http://www.craigslist.org/about/scams.ht...
This guy claims he has "moved overseas", and yet he's renting out his house via CL? Yeah, sure. People! DO NOT SEND MONEY TO TOTAL STRANGERS!
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