Rental Scammer - [email protected]

Dear Michelle

thanks for the interest you have in my flat, my flat is fully furnished and finished to a high standard.Below are the things you should know about my flat.You can stay in my flat as long as you can pay your rent as at when due.
Rent
The rent is 100 pounds per week and Utility bills inclusive ( water, gas, council tax, TV license,electricity and wireless Internet)

Security deposit
The security deposit is 400 pounds

At this point that you want to rent my flat, i have a few questions for you:


1. Can you take good care of my flat?
2. How long do you intend to rent my flat for?
3. Can you provide a reference in Brighton?
4. Where are you coming from to rent my flat?


I require answers to my questions before we can proceed with the rental processes.

Hope to hearing from you soon.
Regards,

Mr/Mrs Adamson.

From: [email protected]
To: Michelle Banks
Subject: RE: Reply to your ad: A Spacious 1 double bed first floor flat to rent in Brighton. BN1 1EA
Date: Fri, 28 Jan 2011 20:39:17 +0000

Dear Michelle.

thanks for your response and i must say that i like the manner in which you have managed to answer all my questions.i can make a reservation for you.

However, owing to my past unpleasant experience by inviting intending tenant to come over in order to view my flat without confirming if they are actually capable of pay their rent at the right time has brought about a great discomfort for me.And as such i do not want to experience it anymore,due to the fact that i have to travel all the way from Scotland to take interested candidate round my flat because that is where i work as a Medical consultant,and i do hope you understand my point of view?

In view of the previous occurrences, I do not want to collect any money from you as long as i have not taken you round my flat and signed your contract with my solicitor,but i have been strongly advised to confirm that you can pay your rent as at when due, so before we can proceed for viewing, I will like to confirm that you can afford your rent. All you need to do now is to make transfer of 1 month rent and security deposit of £400 to your friend or partner within the UK through western union or money gram close to you.The reason for using western union or Money gram is that it is faster and my solicitor can easily confirm the transfer almost immediately she receives the scanned copy of the transfer receipt or the details of the transfer. Once you are done with the transfer, get back to me with the scanned copy of the transfer receipt as i forward it to my solicitor to confirm if the transfer is valid and available for pick-up by your friend or partner.Once my solicitor confirms the transaction is valid, i will then ask you to tell your friend or partner to pick up the money for you, then we can proceed immediately for viewing. I shall refund the cost of transfer to you when we meet for the viewing. After the viewing, if you like my flat, we can then proceed with the signing of the necessary contract papers.you can also pay your rent and security deposit to me directly.

Kindly proceed with the transfer and get back to me as soon as possible,as there are lots of other interested tenants which i have placed on hold for you.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Regards,

Mr/Mrs Adamson

The thief will tell you that you can rent his accommodation only if you can prove that you have genuine interest. He will ask you send money by wire transfer (normally Western Union) to yourself or a member of the family to show that you have sufficient finances and that you are not a "time waster".

Another variation of this scam is that you need to send (by Western Union) money in order that the keys and other documents can be couriered to you

He will ask you to send him the transfer details.

Make no mistake ! Western Union Transfers can be picked up virtually anywhere in the world and with the minimum of identification. They are almost impossible to trace once the money has been collected. You will never get to see the accommodation or your money again.

If you are reading this because you are looking for property to rent, and you are in contact with this thief you are probably searching Gumtree or similar listing sites. If you receive any requests from 'Landlords' asking for some kind of payment by Western Union before viewing, then it will also be a scam. Please forward the mail to me at the address in my signature line and I will investigate and list them if necessary.

This scammer is using the e-mail address [email protected] as his fake lawyer.