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Comics/Illustrations

I almost fell for a Craigslist housing scam... (2022)

My experience almost being scammed off a Craigslist housing post and what I learned...

Lydia C

Lydia C

— 2 min read
I almost fell for a Craigslist housing scam... (2022)

Originally published February 2022

I almost got scammed on a craigslist housing listing... girl with a thought bubble saying "omg i cannot believe it! he spelled my name correctly! amazing attention to detail! I can definitely trust him!"
He told me that he moved to Hawaii in a rush for a temporary position... white guy in a hawaii shirt saying "i came in a rush for work! i'll be here for 6-21 months. i did not have time to find a subletter in person because I AM that busy!" me with a thought bubble "hmm...sounds plausible"
And that the landlord had cancer and was in a nursing home so no one could show me the apartment. thought bubble showing me visualizing the landlord saying "i am too sick to show you my apartment that is already rented out"
He told me I can drive around the apartment unit to "check out the place" and that he would fedex the keys after I pay my deposit. me with a thought bubble of me in a car with binoculars "ah yes, I can totally see the apartment and how legit it is!" then another thought bubble thinking "wait a minute..."
I had already sent an email explaining my reliability and was about to fill out the rental application when... i realized "wait! i'm totally getting scammed!"
my desperation had totally clouded my judgment. i looked up the address and found an existing listing on apartments.com and messaged them about the scam
when i learned that the listing was fake, I immediately reported the listing and angrily emailed "rob back". me angrily calculating the deposit and rent 1650+1650 = 3300. if they successfully scammed even 5 people, that's 16,500!! then me writing an email to the scammer "shame on you!"
Lesson learned! 1) do not trust people on the internet (just via writing) 2) always ask for proof. like phone call or video call. and duh, for housing -- in person showing. 3) if there is an elaborate backstory -- then it's likely an excuse. RUN or FIGHT ! Scam them back!

Be careful of Craigslist Scams! This particular one was a Craigslist Housing Scam. Since finding housing on Craigslist really is just you communicating with another person...it is not difficult to be scammed.

At this time, I was truly so desperate to find something that met my requirements in the Bay Area with a very specific lease length requirements. I knew when I found the posting, it was too good to be true. I had a hard time detecting at first it was a scam because it was a real person on the other end e-mailing me. They personalized their notes and everything. Looking back now though, the scam alert should have gone off immediately after they said I wouldn't be able to view the apartment in person. I had moved into a room before without seeing the room in person but I DID video call at the time and did talk to a real person.

When doing the housing search, it's good to first google the address to see if the listing is up elsewhere and to message the original listing first to see if it all adds up.

Frustrating experience, but overall, an important lesson learned.

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