by sarahmattar
Wed Sep 23, 2015 2:49 pm
I just had an interaction with someone about an apartment in Vancouver in the Kitsilano area with identical verbiage. The post was found on Craigslist:
Problem #1: CL title is "Nice One Bedroom Close to UBC". Kitsilano, while on the way to UBC, is at least 5+ kms away.
Problem #2: The map location did not match the address given in the subsequent address disclosed by the scammer. 2277 W 2nd Ave would be about 4 blocks north of the map pin, located at W 6th Ave and Yew.
The email addresses used were [email protected] for the first email sent via the Craigslist reply function, and then subsequent emails came from [email protected]. Of course, initially I am coming at this as though I am an actual prospective tenant, so I do take the opportunity to tell him a bit about myself, as any landlord would want to know.
At this point he attached 17(!?) photos of the apartment to the email, as he is "certain I will rent it on the spot".
At this point I'm still thinking it's legit, so I'm still talking to him as though he is a civil engineer who really has been posted to London (stranger things are known to happen). I didn't attempt to call the number he listed, as I dind't want to incur the long distance charges, which I'm sure they were banking on.
At this point I begin to realize something is up - no one would move 10K+ miles away and not have a single person in the city with access to the property.
AND THEN HE ATTACHES SOME POOR SOD'S PASSPORT PHOTO. Canadian passport for Larry Dennis Nier, born in Dawson Creek in 1952, passport issued in 2011 with an issuing office of... Bangkok? Fortunately I have a colleague who is Singaporean but has a Canadian passport, and also spent time in Bangkok, so I ask him if a passport issued through the Canadian consulate in Bangkok would have Bangkok as an issuing office, or Ottawa. He says he isn't sure but it looks like it could be real. Either way, $1300 CAD for the privilege of looking at the place was a large enough red flag to make me investigate and I'm glad I did!
Problem #1: CL title is "Nice One Bedroom Close to UBC". Kitsilano, while on the way to UBC, is at least 5+ kms away.
Problem #2: The map location did not match the address given in the subsequent address disclosed by the scammer. 2277 W 2nd Ave would be about 4 blocks north of the map pin, located at W 6th Ave and Yew.
The email addresses used were [email protected] for the first email sent via the Craigslist reply function, and then subsequent emails came from [email protected]. Of course, initially I am coming at this as though I am an actual prospective tenant, so I do take the opportunity to tell him a bit about myself, as any landlord would want to know.
Hi! Is the one bedroom apartment on W 6th and Yew still available? If so I would like to see it.
Thank you,
Sarah
http://vancouver.craigslist.ca/van/apa/5214348419.html
Hey,
Thank you for your interest in my apartment located in 2277 West 2nd Avenue,
V6K 3G2. The apartment is in excellent condition and it's just
like in the pictures, very clean and very well taken. Honestly from
point of view I'm sure that you will rent it on spot. I'm not looking
to make a business or a profit with the apartment, I'm just trying to
find a good and trust person to take good care of the place. It is
furnished but if you want you can use your furniture and deposit mine
in the storage unit that is located near the building not far away. The
rent is 1100 CAD/month with everything included (heat, hydro, water,
electricity, cable and internet-full package, 2 parking
spots, laundry in-suite, washer and dryer). You will have full access
to all the amenities of the building. Pets are allowed. I stayed in
the apartment with my wife for 3 months. I'm a civil engineer and I
work for a company that has an auction for a project in construction
in London, United Kingdom, so my accommodation period in England will
be about 4 years. Everything in the apartment is new so there will be
no need for repairs.
Thank you and look forward hearing from you!
Dennis
PS: I attached you all the pictures that I have with the apartment (as
you can see everything is in absolutely perfect condition).
At this point he attached 17(!?) photos of the apartment to the email, as he is "certain I will rent it on the spot".
Hi Dennis,
Thank you for getting back to me. I see the building is on W 2nd Ave - I must’ve misread the Craigslist map the first time. I am familiar with the area as when I moved to Vancouver in January, I was initially staying at a vacation rental on W 2nd and Trafalgar, and I have stayed in Kitsilano before when I visited Vancouver last summer. I love the neighborhood and miss it’s charm.
I am a graphic designer by trade, but I am currently working in financial services. Prior to moving to Vancouver I was living in Sarasota, Florida for 5 years (4 of which were in same apartment), and I have been renting a microunit since late January. As much as I love my current co-op style living space now, I am feeling the cramped nature of the accommodations when it comes to managing my professional obligations. I understand your need for a reliable tenant so that you will be comfortable that your property will be maintained in good condition while you are overseas. I am very quiet and respectful. I have allergies and therefore no pets.
I would love to set up an appointment to view your place. Could we perhaps have an initial meeting at the Starbucks on 4th and Vine, and then proceed from there? I am available to meet on Monday evening, or Tuesday afternoon after 2 pm. Would either of those times work for you?
Thank you,
Sarah
Hello,
Thank you for your reply. Unfortunately there is a problem showing you the apartment, because I already left with my job in United Kingdom, and the keys are with me. Before I had to leave for United Kingdom I had someone interested in the apartment, he said that he will take the apartment, I waited for him, but unfortunately he didn't managed to get the money to rent it, I had to leave and I was unable to rent the apartment when I was still there. Obviously this brought me financial loss. So I can tell that I have a bitter experience of making reservation, for this reason I decided to use an specialized company in this kind of transactions.
As I told you before the rent for 1 month will be 1100CAD with no extra fees and you will have full access to all the amenities of the building. The price will not increase for the whole period that you will stay there. I would also like to know how many people will live in the apartment and also which rental contract do you prefer- 6 months or 1 year rental contract with option of renewal. The monthly payments can be wired to my Canadian Bank Account (TD Bank) or we can setup a payment method that is suitable for both of us.
The apartment is in excellent condition, you only need to receive the keys and the contract so you could check it out, and see if you like it. Since at this moment I'm in London, United Kingdom and obviously we need a safe way to complete this deal.The solution is a worldwide third party company called Airbnb (http://www.airbnb.com) ,they will provide assistance in handling the payment and delivery of the rental package.
We use this company to see that you are an trusting and serious person. They will provide assistance in handling the payment and delivery of the rental package. With this procedure you will be able to check the apartment before I receive the payment. Please be aware that is NOT necessary for you to register with Airbnb for this transaction, I've made over 5 transactions with them so far. They are really professional and they have great services.
My phone number is +4420 32 89 94 98. You can call me or e-mail anytime you wish.
Let me know if you are interested so I can provide with all the steps of this transaction. You need to know everything about this process before we get this started. I think is right for both of us.
Thank you and hope to hear from you soon!
Dennis
At this point I'm still thinking it's legit, so I'm still talking to him as though he is a civil engineer who really has been posted to London (stranger things are known to happen). I didn't attempt to call the number he listed, as I dind't want to incur the long distance charges, which I'm sure they were banking on.
Hi Dennis,
I completely understand the hassle of what you just explained - my parents have a condo that they rent, so we understand the frustration and financial burden it can bear if it is unoccupied or if tenants do not pay their rent on time.
AirBNB is a wonderful resource. My parents have used the service for the two times we rented in Kitsilano. I, at one point, created my own AirBNB account when I was considering doing a sublet of my Sarasota apartment, although I have had need to use the account since then. I would be the only one living in the apartment, and my parents may come to visit and stay with me for a few weeks during the Christmas season. A 1 year lease would be best, and we could set up a standing order for rental deposits into your TD account, or use Interac e-transfer.
That being said, I do have some questions about the place: is this your condo that you are renting out, or is a a sublet of an existing rental agreement? If it is a condo, does the homeowners association allow rentals? Presumably they would have access to the unit. Could you authorize me to see the place if I were able to meet with them and give them appropriate identification? Alternately, how would AirBNB authorize me to view the unit? From my understanding, they broker the financial transaction for rentals, but have fees associated with doing so. They have no physical presence, therefore any access to the unit would still have to be facilitated by someone local. I would like to see it and get a feel for it’s size when inside, if you could arrange that with your local contact.
I have looked at the logistics and I would have to give 30 days notice to vacate my current spot, which would end my tenancy as of October 31st. Are you an iPhone or Android user? If you have an iPhone or other iDevice we could do a FaceTime Audio call and avoid any long distance charges. Alternatively, if you have Skype, we could contact each other using an audio or video call through their service.
Thank you,
Sarah
At this point I begin to realize something is up - no one would move 10K+ miles away and not have a single person in the city with access to the property.
Hi again Sarah,
This transaction is not made face to face, this is the whole reason for using Airbnb, for both of us to be 100% protected. For security and for your peace of mind I had attached an copy of my PASSPORT to build up some confidence. Also please read this email carefully.
Regarding the process, you will only have to deposit to Airbnb the first month rent + damage deposit, an total of 1300$CAD (1100+200) so they can proceed with the shipping, and you can receive the rental package (keys and documents). I will pay for a 2 days delivery so you will receive the keys and the contract signed by me right away. I will explain you step by step how this process will work:
1 - To start the process all I need is your full info (full name, address and a cell phone number).
2 - I will go at Airbnb to deposit the keys and the contract on your name as the intended receiver.
3 - Airbnb will check the package to see if everything is in order and also the legal papers that will come along with the keys and proof of ownership with their Real Estate Professional Department in London. They will also confirm that I'm the legal owner of the apartment I'm renting to you.
4 - Airbnb will send you a delivery notification to let you know they have the keys and the papers in their custody. They will also send you all the payment instructions to complete the rental transaction.
5 - At this point you will have to make a money deposit on the Airbnb account for the amount we agreed, the total amount you shall deposit for the first month of rent. The payment needs to be sent within 24 hours after you receive the transaction details or else they will charge me an additional fee.
6 - After you make the deposit you will have to send the payment details to Airbnb .
7 - Airbnb will verify the transfer and if everything is in order they will start the shipping procedures using UPS Next Day Shipping Service.
8 - After you receive the package, you will go by yourself and check the apartment and in 5 days (inspection time) you must contact Airbnb to inform them if you keep the apt or not and if everything is in order you will instruct Airbnb to send me the information about the money deposit and I will be able to receive the funds. If you don`t like the apartment they will be sending the money back to you and you will send back the keys and contract. Airbnb can't release the funds without your approval.
Let me know if you have the funds available (1300CAD$) so we can move forward and e-mail me your full information I requested. Any further questions regarding the transaction you can call or e-mail me.
Thanks
Dennis
AND THEN HE ATTACHES SOME POOR SOD'S PASSPORT PHOTO. Canadian passport for Larry Dennis Nier, born in Dawson Creek in 1952, passport issued in 2011 with an issuing office of... Bangkok? Fortunately I have a colleague who is Singaporean but has a Canadian passport, and also spent time in Bangkok, so I ask him if a passport issued through the Canadian consulate in Bangkok would have Bangkok as an issuing office, or Ottawa. He says he isn't sure but it looks like it could be real. Either way, $1300 CAD for the privilege of looking at the place was a large enough red flag to make me investigate and I'm glad I did!