Craigs List Housing Scam

Craigs List Housing Scam

For the past couple of years I have been posting my listings on Craigslist.  About a year ago I got a call from a frantic woman who wanted to know if one of my listings was for rent.  I told her no, the home is for sale only.  She immediately replied that she had been scammed and had fallen for an offer that was “too good to be true”

My for sale listing had been “cloned” by scammers:

1. The address was exactly the same as my for sale listing

2. The text was copied from my listing

3. The photos were copied from my listing

4. The house was vacant

5. The scammers listed the house “for rent” at a below market monthly rental rate.

The lady I talked too had already given the scammers her credit information and social security number.  She had not given them any money but suspected identity theft was in process.

This has happened to me a couple of times this year.  I have reported the scams to Craigs List.  Each time the scam listing was immediately removed.