Scammer Beware: Don't Let Fake Ads Happen To You

It’s a sad but true fact that more than few Brooklyn dwellers fall victim to craigslist ads boasting of low priced apartments with seemingly “too good to be true” rental propositions. If you’re looking at an ad for a one bedroom apartment in Greenpoint with a dishwasher for 1200 dollars a month - you’re probably staring a scam right in the face. We like our clients to be informed about what they want, optimistic about the outcome, but ultimately realistic about their budgets and credit scores. 

Avoid the Bait and Switch method with phony ads that seem to be independently produced. If a company logo isn’t on any picture, or a working office number isn’t provided, you may want to rethink the legitimacy of the ad. Many rental scam artists across the internet disguise themselves as brokers usually seeking one thing: a non refundable application or deposit fee, after which they vanish forever into the depths of the unknown internet.

We recommend fact checking any ads you run across, because if it seems too good to be true - it probably is. If an apartment has been vacant for awhile, you should ask yourself why. 

Familiarize yourself with typical rental data in your desired neighborhood and stay informed to what a fair price may be. If the price is suspiciously low, it’s reasonable to believe that more than a few details have been falsified.

At StayBK, we recommend having your apartment search personally tailored for you by in-house professionals. Having a real estate agent you trust can go a long way! We encourage clients to call or email our office, or any reputable office for that matter, and find your ideal apartment through an agency with current listings on the market. Maintaining a positive relationship with your rental agency will definitely serve its purpose.