Regional real estate brokerage Coldwell Banker Premier wants to alert the public to a surge in scams involving vacant properties. Scammers are searching the internet for unoccupied homes, then posing as property owners or real estate agents to “lease” these properties and defraud prospective tenants out of thousands of dollars.
Steve DuBrueler, Premier’s Founder and CEO, notes that we used to encounter this just a few times a year, but now this week alone our company has experienced several of these crimes in multiple states. Sadly this results in police having to remove the “tenants”, who sometimes don’t have enough funds to get another home. This scam is not only harmful to those directly involved, but also creates broader dangers for the public and the housing market.
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I can attest to the fact this does happen. My husband and I suffered through weeks of angry and desperate people showing up at his mother’s house which we were trying to sell after she died. The scam they set in place through Craig’s List was complex, well planned and almost worked. The FBI was notified in our case, but I am not aware they were ever able to catch the criminals involved. Be very alert to your properties and what you post on line about them.
The FBI was too busy going after Trump.