Rental scam costs apartment hunter $1500; FTC issues warning signs to watch for – KHOU

Scammers increasingly target apartment hunters with fake listings on Facebook Marketplace. HOUSTON — With spring rental season heating up, scammers are finding new ways to target apartment hunters, and one man says he lost $1,500 to a fake listing on Facebook Marketplace. Kevin Hines, who was searching for an affordable apartment, said he found a one-bedroom unit online for $650 a month. The listing featured attractive photos of curved archways and an updated kitchen. “I was even thinking of what I was going to put on the walls,” Hines said. After contacting the supposed landlord, Hines was told the man was out of town but would accept payment electronically. Hines sent a $1,500 deposit and the first month’s rent through PayPal. It was the last time he heard from the landlord. “I should have known better. He wanted me to pay through PayPal first. I thought that was odd,” Hines said. The ad, it turns out, was a fake. A similar scam targeted Victoria Wells last year. She also found what appeared to be a perfect home on Facebook Marketplace and sent a $400 deposit through Cash App. “It was perfect, the most beautiful one I had seen in a
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