How to tell a stolen listing from a real one

The most common rental scam does not invent a property. It copies one — real photographs, a real address, often lifted from a for-sale listing or another rental site — and prices it slightly below the market to generate volume. The pattern is consistent enough to name. The "owner" is out of the country, or a missionary, or relocated for work, and cannot show the unit. Communication moves off the platform quickly. There is pressure to act today because others are interested. And the request is for a deposit, an application fee or first month by wire transfer, payment app or gift card — methods with no recourse once sent. Four checks defeat almost all of it. Search the address: if the same unit appears for sale, or at a different price with a different contact, something is wrong. Reverse-search the photographs. Check the county property appraiser for who owns the parcel, and see whether that name matches who is asking for money. And insist on seeing the inside of the unit, in person or on a live video call where the person walks through it and answers questions in real time. Never send money before a signed lease and a viewing, and never by an irreversible method. Two adjacent frauds worth knowing: someone who shows a unit they do not control, using a lockbox code obtained by other means; and a sublet from a tenant who has no right to sublet, which ends with the real landlord at the door. A listing that is real survives every one of these checks without the person getting annoyed. This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules change and every deal is different — check your own case with a licensed professional. Alberto Zaltzberg — Adonait · adonait.com