B.C. woman cautions against online scammers amid search for rental housing

A woman from Prince George, B.C., is ringing the alarm about online scammers, after receiving what she described as several fraudulent messages while she and her husband were looking for a home to rent in Kamloops.

On Oct. 5,Rita Wiebe and her husband, Bill, posted on the classified ad site Kijiji, stating they were looking for a two-bedroom home to rent starting Dec. 1.Wiebesaid she included her phone number in the ad.

To hersurprise, she said,she was immediatelyinundated with messages through theplatform, as well as calls and text messages directly to her number, from people saying they have a place she could rent.

"I come from an area where I just believe in trusting people and you know Prince George and Kamloops are very similar," Wiebetoldhost Shelley JoyceonCBC's Daybreak Kamloops.

Speakingto the people reaching out to her, Wiebe said she quickly realized many of them were trying to scam her.

Daybreak Kamloops7:25B.C. woman says she was targeted by several scammers while looking for rental home

Rita Wiebe wants to move from Prince George to Kamloops. But when she posted online that she was looking for rental housing, she said she was inundated with messages from scammers.

"I spent so much time on a wild goose chase," she said, adding most of the calls came from numbers with U.S. area codes.

Rental scams ranked seventh on a list of theriskiest scams in Canada inBetter Business Bureau's 2022 Scam Tracker Risk Report,costing people amedian amount of $1,600.

The 2022 list also marks the first time rental scamsmade the top 10ranking, according to the bureau.

'I don't have anybody to show the place'

Wiebe said one person asked her to send some money tofill out an application.

Another person sent a photo of his passport, including personal information and what he described as aproperty title.

The manincluded photos of the home's interiorand an application form.

In email correspondence between Wiebe and the man,shared with CBCNews, the man mentioned he had just relocated to Florida for a new job.

Wiebe asked if she couldtalk to someone in person to visit the property.

"I don't have anybody to show the place at all, the new job I got here came as an emergency so I had to take the keys and all documents along with me," the man replied over email.

Wiebesaid she eventually discovered the home had beenlisted for sale by a Kamloops-based real estate agent.

'In most cases, fraudsters say they are out of the country'

According to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC),fraudsters often create classified ads for property rentals in highly sought-out locations.

"In most cases, fraudsters say they are out of the country. As a result they are looking to rent the propertyquickly and to a good person," said spokesperson Jeff Horncastle.

The fraudsters then saythey are unable to show the home in person, Horncastle said.

Wiebe said she has become more assertive about asking for local phone numbers and people she couldmeet to show her the homes in person but when she does, people would stop replying.

On its website, Kijiji asks users to report a sender's email address and any related information to their customer service team if they receive a seemingly suspicious or fraudulent message through the platform.

Wiebe said she has not reported those user accounts after they stopped responding. She and her husband are still lookingfor a place to rent in Kamloops.

CBC News has reached out to Kijiji for this story.

To avoid getting scammed, the CAFCrecommendsrenters to:

• Be wary of lower-than-average rental prices in an area.
• See a place in person before renting it out.
• Be alert for financial and personal information being requested prior to viewing a home.
• Request and thoroughly review a lease agreement from a landlord.

The CAFCalso recommendsreporting potential scams to theCanadian Anti-Fraud Centre(1-888-495-8501), theRCMPor your local police.