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Poor real estate market blamed for increase in scams

April 12, 2010 - As the apartment market continues to struggle, industry experts say that scammers are taking advantage of vulnerable renters.

The Associated Press reports that many con artists are posing as landlords to lure would-be tenants into fraudulent rental agreements. The scammers typically ask these individuals for a deposit and then disappear.

Because many of the properties these impersonators claim to own are abandoned or foreclosed, some renters have moved in and been kicked out by the real property managers. Furthermore, these criminals often ask for their deposits in cash, which makes them difficult to trace.

"What you have is primarily young, unsuspecting victims who truly believe they're entering into a legitimate rental agreement," Adam Christianson, sheriff of Stanislaus County, California, told the news source.

This problem could be especially troublesome to low-income renters, as many of these individuals are having trouble finding housing they can afford, according to the Denver Business Journal.

For example, a new report from the Colorado Division of Housing revealed that renters who earn less than 30 percent of the area's median income have a 50 percent chance of finding an apartment within their price range, according to the news source. As a result, desperate individuals may be more likely to fall victim to similar scams.

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