Craigslists Seller Scam

[Kelly P.]

I automate Craigslist leads for specific properties I'm interested in buying. Lately I noticed a new Craigslist "scam" and I wanted to make everyone aware.

After seeing a duplex ad, I sent an email reply requesting more information (there was no phone number). I never heard back from the seller. Then I noticed I was beginning to get tons of "leads" for duplexes, but one in particular caught my eye. It was immaculate inside which I found odd since it was in a war zone. Also, the pics in the ad had a MLS watermark. So I copied and pasted those images into Google Images and found those pictures were from a property listed by a realtor in another part of my state, not in the city advertised. This was the first of many that I checked and all were using pics from other properties.

Lesson learned: screen Craigslist ads for authenticity so you don't waste time.