Real Estate Rental Scams
Beware of Offers that Seem Too Good to Be True
Q: Marsha, I desperately need a larger rental. Twice I’ve almost been duped by rental scams on Craigslist. Why is this so prevalent?
A: The internet seems to have ratcheted up the fraudsters. All renters need to be wary of offers that seem too good to be true.
Santa Barbara rents have always been high and rentals tight. When I was looking for a rental in the 1970s, the rental scam was “home finders.” These were agencies that advertised in the paper and for a $20 monthly fee they would let you know of the “latest rentals” on the market. Many gullible people, including me, paid the fee and discovered the only service these agencies provided was to search the newspapers and provide a dated print-out of homes for rent. It was a low-tech scam, but they raked in money from desperate rental applicants. The scams today are more sophisticated but still prey on the disheartened.
