CAPE CORAL, Fla. — The FBI says Americans lost more than $170 million to real estate scams last year, and a Cape Coral realtor has a warning for people when they search rental properties.
Fox 4's Bella Line shows us the city's website Wilson suggests people use:
As of Friday, Zillow showed more than 1,000 homes available for rent in Cape Coral, but realtor Tim Wilson with Real Brokerage says you shouldn't trust every listing.
"You got to trust your gut," Wilson said.
He says he's seen scammers take pictures and information from legitimate listings and relist them with their contact information.
"Once somebody makes contact and wants to rent it, they'll go through this song and dance about why they can't get into the property, or maybe sometimes they will even meet them there, but they usually want money up front or a large deposit," Wilson said.
Wilson says the city has a website — the Citizen Self Service page — that can help you avoid being scammed.
"You should just be able to get on there and find out who this person is, and make sure that the person you're talking to is actually allowed to be renting out that property," Wilson said.
Wilson says if the price seems too low, it probably is.
"Don't give up any money until you see the property and verify ownership," said Wilson. "At the end of the day, if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is."
Cape Coral police say this is a scam they have been seeing as well. They say scammers have even gone as far as putting fake signs on people's properties. Cape Coral Police say you can also check the Lee County Property Appraiser website for owner information.
The Federal Trade Commission says if you see a fake listing, report it to them.
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