One common scam is people pretending to rent out a property online often advertise a low rate, then ask for application fees, even security deposits or the first month's rent with no claim to. How do i avoid craigslist rental scams? The best way to avoid falling victim to a rental scam on craigslist is to look for an apartment or home on a different website, such as realtor. com or zillow. com. Louis has been our worst market in terms of the scam. I found 6 of our homes on craigslist yesterday alone, and we only have about 13 homes on the market in st. Louis at the moment. I will check out socialserve though, thanks for the tip. Rent smart avoid craigslist scams and find legit houses in st louis. The website, a site for classified ads, has fundamentally transformed the way people interact within their neighborhoods. Here are ways to spot and avoid rental scams. Folks in the lgbtq+ community often use community groups on social media to find housing rentals, and people often assume that what’s posted is vetted and safe for community members. Scammers can steal legitimate rental listings for real places and pretend to be the landlord. According to national rental home council (nrhc) members, who are owners of rental homes, scammers use a variety of tactics to get people’s money. The scammy listings are often for completely fictional homes and the sole intent of the posting is to either steal your identity or swindle you out of a “fee” for a credit check that will never. Here are my tips to avoid craigslist scams and real estate scams so that you can stay safe. Over the past few weeks, we have been searching for the perfect rental home for us to move into, but sadly we have come across many craigslist rental scams. Avoid rental scams on craigslist and other sites when looking for a house to rent. Here are the top rental scams and how to spot them.