I recently listed a home for lease. My next blog, will feature the home, so stay tuned so that you can get the info!!
The home had been on the market only 5 days, and the owner called me stating that people had been showing up at his door, wanting to take a look at the house, as it had been posted on Craigslist for $700.00 per month.
The scam artist had lifted photos from a legitimate real estate website, as well as copied my description word for word. The problem is this property will lease for $1295.00 per month, not $700.00 I sent an email to the “thief” asking for additional information about the house, as well as for an appointment to see the home. A week later he responded with this email:
Hello,
Thanks for your email and interest in renting my house...I am the owner of the house which you are making enquiry of...Actually I resided in the house with my family, my wife and my only daughter before and presently we have moved out due to a missionary calling for a period of 5-7 years. Presently my house is still available for rent (rent already includes utilities).
I attended a course in theology at the South London Christian College. Presently i am in the ministry working for God as a missionary in West Africa, due to the mass decision by U.S churches to promote the gospel to reach people in the West Africa region (http://www.christiantelegraph.com/issue1630.html).
The house was previously listed with a Realtor but we decided to handle it on our own in order to know who we are renting to. Also, due to the fact that a Realtor agent would want to handle it professionally and the occupant may not be able to reason along with him/her later. This is one reason the price we are offering is far below standard rental price and this is enough for you to know that we are not after the rental fee but the utmost care and maintenance for the property. I know there may be no way we can be sure of the right person to live in the house because we won't be able to meet before hand regarding sending you the keys and the documents to occupy the space and since we don't run credit checks. So if you believe you can take good care of the house and handle it like yours then I will be more than willing to let you rent the house..The monthly rent is $700 including utilities and the security deposit (refundable) is $600 making the total of $1300 to move in as soon as you are ready.
Because of my penchant for pets also, there is no pet restriction but pets must generally be well behaved.
Property Address : (6519 Gray Road, Indianapolis, IN)
SO IF YOU ARE REALLY INTERESTED I WILL WANT YOU TO FILL THE RENT APPLICATION FORM BELOW
RENT APPLICATION FORM.
Name ( Surname/First name/ Last name ) : __________?
Phone # : __________?
E-mail : __________?
Best time to call : __________?
How many proposed occupants : __________?
List all in addition to yourself including approx age : __________?
Present Address : __________?
City/State : __________?
Will You Have Pets : __________?
Please Describe Breed, size : __________?
Personality of Pet : __________?
Preferred Move in Date : __________?
Length of Previous Tenancy : __________?
Present Occupation : __________?
Are You A Section 8 Applicant : __________?
Do You Run A Business From Home : __________?
If So What Kind Of Business : __________?
Do You Work Late Night : __________?
Do You Smoke : __________?
Do You Drink : __________?
After filling in the rental form, i will really appreciate it if you could just drive by and take a look at my property
Looking forward to hearing from you with all this details so that i can have it in my file in case of issuing the receipt for you, contacting you and to discuss on how to get the document and the keys to you.
The house is available for rent at the moment so you are free to move in as soon as you wish to...The deposit is refundable if at the end of the day you don't like the House but i am giving you the benefit of doubt that you would definitely like it. The keys and Documents have already been packaged and as soon as we reach an agreement, i would be sending them over to your present address for you to move in. The house will be available for rent for a period of 4 years so you have a choice of deciding how long you intend staying there...Feel free to call me for more information and arrangements on how to get the keys and other necessary documents delivered to you...You can reach me on +234-704-405-4580 OR 011-234-704-405-4580.
If you wish to speak to me please don't hesitate to call me.
This person signed it, using the home owners name. Which, property tax records are a matter of public record & are easily accessible online, or one can call the assessors' office to find out who the owner of record is on a property.
So my reason for posting this is to advise potential buyers and renters to beware of the Craigslist scams. Even if a home is for sale by owner it can’t hurt to contact a Realtor to ask them to help you thru the process. You want to be protected in any purchase and it’s always wise to review any lease or purchase agreement with a Realtor or an attorney, or both!
If you or anyone you know is looking to make a move, or has questions in general about real estate, feel free to contact me.
Dawn Whalen, Realtor
RE/MAX Select
317-807-1568
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