ATTENTION LANDLORDS – Rental Scam ALERT!

Please be aware that a number of institutions in other cities have reported that individuals have been contacting people with listings on their off-campus housing registries and offering to pay the entire years rent with a cheque or money order.

Typically what happens is that an individual sends several month’s worth of rent and then almost immediately asks for all but one or two month’s rent (deposit) to be returned. They do this in the hope that your bank will not recognize the forgery until the normal clearing process has happened. If you send them the money, you are then out that money when the bank discovers the cheque or money order is a forgery.  Remember if it seems too good to be true (person want s to pay the entire year’s rent up front, they are willing to pay more than your asking price, etc.) it probably is. If you find yourself in this situation please call the police to deal with the situation.