A TREB Member has reported that a tenant has scammed her landlord client. The Member stated that the scam affecting her client is the fourth occurrence of the same tenant scamming landlords.
The female tenant approaches a REALTOR® and says she comes from Florida and would like to rent a condo in the King Street West area of downtown Toronto. She provides a fraudulent credit check and a job letter that states she works for a charity. The charity does not exist.
Once she obtains keys from the landlord, she immediately posts the unit on Airbnb. Her rent checks will bounce in the first month, but she will continue to rent the unit out while the landlord is going through eviction proceedings. The tenant has even launched a lawsuit against the landlord for trying to evict her.
This is a reminder to all Members that they take the proper precautions to confirm a tenant's identity before leasing or selling a property.
Did you know? The following are all accessible from the Stratus home page via the Your Resource Centre button.
- Member Alerts (including archived items);
- A Fraud Red Flag Checklist;
- CREA’s ‘The Safe Side - REALTOR® Safety Issues’ brochure; and,
- REALTOR® Safety Tips.