Is this a scam?

By joining our community you will have the ability to post topics and access other forums reserved for members. Registration is quick, simple and absolutely free. Join our community today by clicking here.

Hello I'm New here! Joined: 19 May 2008 Posts: 2

Hi everyone,

I've been looking for places to rent in Seattle on Craigslist, and received this email today (attached below) and am wondering if anyone can help me figure out if this is a scam or not.

The reasons I believe it's a scam is because 1) Africa: need I say more? and 2) While I did contact a few people about renting, I don't remember seeing this apartment (pics were attached) and I never sent an email to his email address (this email wasn't a RE:, and there's nothing in my Sent folder).

Quote:

Hello,

Thanks for your response,My name is Reverend Bruce Walter, I own the apartment you are interested in and I lived there with my wife and my only daugther before we relocated to West Africa.

I work with the CHRISTIAN AID and due to my work transfer,I came here with my family and It was due to my transfer thats we left the apartment and also want to give it out for rent. We are looking for a resposible person that can take very good care of it as we are not after the money for the rent but want it to be clean at the time, and the person that will rent it to take it as if it were its own.

This 1 Bedroom apartment. located at:2015 Terry Avenue,Seattle, WA 98121,which goes for $600 monthly.has the folowing features: Air conditioning, Walk-in closet, Hardwoodfloor, Tile floor, Living room,Breakfast nook, Refrigerator,Stove/Oven,garage, Balcony, Deck, or Patio, Cable-ready, High-speed internet ,Garage parking.

This apartment is not furnished and We want to give them it for rent and looking for a resposible person that can take very good care of the apt. for us.

So for now,We are here in Lagos,and our house and the keys/documents of the house are with me here,we tried to look for an agent that we can give this document before we left but could not see and we are as well as dont want our house to be used any how in our absence that is why we took it along with us here.

I hope you will promise us to take very good care of the house. If you are comfortable with the price and really need this apartment, Contact my wife immediately with the following details.

Your Full names............
Current address.........
Age...............
Marital status.............
Occupation...........
How long are you able to pay for? ..................
Phone number:.............................

Name: Serah Walter
Email: [email protected]

You can also call me asap: +234 808 584 1476.and she will attends to you better.

The pictures are attached and you can also go see the building, though you cant view the inside because we have the keys here.

Thanks and you are welcome

Regards

Reverend Walter

Thanks everyone.

Additional info:
- I live thousands of miles away from Seattle so I can't just go see the apartment.
- I can't dial out of the country.

Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 7:33 am

Welcome to Eater. Very Happy

The address does exist, and it looks like condos, but this is definitely a scam. The kind of condos those are would rent for much more than $600 per month. His English and grammar is that of a lad, and his description is written as if he picked it up out of an ad, which he probably did.

Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 10:42 am

Welcome, Mimasu. Smile

This is pure scam. If he were really the owner and really wanted to rent the place whilst he was overseas, he'd have been able to find an agent in Seattle, and he'd have left the keys with them. No legitimate landlord seriously expects to rent a place without someone seeing the inside. And more proof is your astute observation that he emailed you blind, pretending that you'd contacted him first. He'll have culled your email along with many others and tried the same trick with them too. Hopefully, they'll all be as smart as you and the lad will fail. Twisted Evil

A similar description has been used for a property in Los Angeles listed on Craigslist, which has been flagged for removal. It may well be a listing by the same lad. It was also going for $600, and a site pointing to craigslist still has some of the details up, including the pic showing a wardrobe - just the thing that a legitimate landlord chooses to show his/her property to its best advantage Rolling Eyes

It's here: http://redtram.com/go/106526816/

Hello I'm New here! Joined: 19 May 2008 Posts: 2

Thank you so much for the help, Sheboppe and Eight. The "wife" contacted me today and said I'd have to wire the payment each month via Western Union, and the keys would be FedEx'd over. Laughing

I just feel sorry for the people that do fall for these kind of things Sad