Local renters have to navigate a competitive rental market, and that is only worsened by online rental scams.
"It seems like there's more scams than real posts these days," said Hanna Ehrlich, a San Luis Obispo renter.
She has been a renter for almost 10 years and says it's difficult to find a place.
"If it looks to good to be true, it probably is," Ehrlich adds.
Other local renters shared that sentiment.
They said while they haven't personally fallen for any scams, they have had to get good at navigating what's legit and what isn't.
"With all the college students and everything it's a difficult process, but as long as you stick with it, I feel like you can find a good solid house and a good solid landlord," said Jack Crinella, a San Luis Obispo renter.
Rick Copelan of the Better Business Bureau says online housing scams can impact anyone, but they are seeing a trend.
"It's that 25 to 34 age range, they are far more likely to be scammed than anyone else," Copelan said.
In a study done by the Better Business Bureau in 2019, they found that 27% of the reported rental scam victims were in that age range.
They add that rental scammers typically have one of the following goals:
- Obtaining money upfront, as a fake security deposit or first months rent
- Getting people to buy online directories of homes supposedly for rent
- Tricking victims into signing up for credit monitoring
So how can you spot a scam or avoid them all together?
"Watch out for crazy spelling errors, I mean, believe it or not a scam artist especially those originating from overseas, they don't use spell check. And being pressured into something that's a red flag. If someone's really pressuring you you should be cautious of that," said Copelan.
He also recommends using sites that are known to be legitimate, like Zillow, Apartments.com, Homes.com, and others.
For a full look at the study done by the Better Business Bureau, and other tips on how to avoid rental scams, click here.
