Grand Junction Police Warn Of Rental Home Scams

The Grand Junction Police Department is warning the public about a scam that is currently targeting potential home renters.

The Grand Junction Police Department has received information about area homes fraudulently being listed for rent on Craigslist.

In two separate cases, someone placed Craigslist ads and actually corresponded with potential renters. The potential renters were told that the alleged owners live out of state and needed to rent the property.

In reality, the scammers are not the real owners, and because they claim they are out of state, they are unable to show people the inside of the properties. Grand Junction Police believe potential renters are wiring money to the scammers to cover security deposits, as well as first and last month’s rent.

Grand Junction Police is providing the following information to protect oneself from scammers:

1. Insist on meeting the landlord at the house, even if they send a key in advance.
2. People who are out of state often use property management companies. Check with local management companies to see if they have any information about the home.
3. Never send any money until you have had the opportunity to thoroughly look inside the home.
4. Tell the landlord you want the transaction to go through an attorney or property management agency and see how the landlord responds.
5. Look for poor grammar in the ads or in correspondence from the landlord.
6. Look for small inconsistencies with how the address is listed. Does the ad say Ave. when it should be St.?
7. Ask the landlord to give you directions to the home. Often the scammers have never even been to or seen the area.
8. NEVER give money to anyone unless you are certain who the person is and what they will do with your money.
9. Craigslist has links on their ads with information about protecting yourself.

Unfortunately, many of these types of scammers are in foreign countries, even if they claim to live in another state. Because of that, there is little to nothing police can do to stop them from targeting people in the Grand Junction area, and police are encouraging citizens to do what they can to prevent themselves from becoming victims.

For more information on various scams circulating in the Grand Junction area, visit www.gjcity.org/Fraud.