{"id":8556,"date":"2020-08-18T09:40:59","date_gmt":"2020-08-18T16:40:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/socialcatfish.com\/blog\/?p=8556"},"modified":"2020-11-06T14:54:48","modified_gmt":"2020-11-06T22:54:48","slug":"the-coronavirus-rental-scam-fake-rental-properties-posted-on-craigslist-and-other-sites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.socialcatfish.cloud\/scamfish\/the-coronavirus-rental-scam-fake-rental-properties-posted-on-craigslist-and-other-sites\/","title":{"rendered":"The Coronavirus Rental Scam: Fake Rental Properties Posted on Craigslist and Other Sites"},"content":{"rendered":"

During the pandemic, there have been restrictions that have not allowed people to go to certain stores, parks, or houses due to the safety of the public. But what exactly is the rule when you are trying to move during the pandemic<\/a>? There are some people that think that you aren’t allowed to view the properties to protect the landlords or current owners of the home. However, scammers are taking advantage of this situation and are saying this as an excuse to sell or rent out a property that really isn’t theirs. They are sneaky when tricking people into the coronavirus rental scam and will do anything they can to steal your money.<\/p>\n

How the Coronavirus Rental Scam Works<\/h2>\n[aesop_image img=”https:\/\/socialcatfish.com\/scamfish\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Cute-companions-398570-scaled.jpg” panorama=”off” imgwidth=”100%” align=”center” lightbox=”off” captionsrc=”custom” captionposition=”left” revealfx=”off” overlay_revealfx=”off”]\n

A person who is interested in renting a property looks at websites, such as Craigslist<\/a>, to find themselves a perfect home to rent. The scammer posts pictures of a property to rent and usually steals pictures of a house from another legit listing. They post them on a website for the renter to see, and the victim messages the scammer saying they are interested.<\/p>\n

The scammer<\/a> tells the victim that due to the coronavirus, they can not see the property before committing to rent the place. The renter understands these conditions and doesn’t question them since they know how serious the pandemic is. They give the scammer first month’s rent and a down payment to purchase the property and get a date to move in. Once they try to move in on a specific date, they realize they have been scammed as they see that someone else lives in the property they wanted to move in to.<\/p>\n

How to Avoid The Coronavirus Rental Scam<\/h2>\n[aesop_image img=”https:\/\/socialcatfish.com\/scamfish\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Helping-husband-398566-scaled.jpg” panorama=”off” imgwidth=”100%” align=”center” lightbox=”off” captionsrc=”custom” captionposition=”left” revealfx=”off” overlay_revealfx=”off”]\n