search

The Real Deal Logo

Trending

Housing deal finally passes; here are the detailsHousing deal finally passes; here are the detailsMusklandia: Tesla divorces gigafactory land from city of AustinMusklandia: Tesla divorces gigafactory land from city of AustinHow Hochul played the “good cause eviction” game, and wonHow Hochul played the “good cause eviction” game, and wonYellowstone drops approximately $200M on 1740 Broadway debtYellowstone drops approximately $200M on 1740 Broadway debt
Residential
Chicago

Pandemic increased rental scams in Chicago area

Scammers are breaking into vacant and foreclosed buildings, replacing the locks and renting out the homes before the real owners notice.

(iStock/Photo Illustration by Steven Dilakian for The Real Deal)
(iStock/Photo Illustration by Steven Dilakian for The Real Deal)

The Chicago area is facing an increase in scams that cheat renters out of their money and property owners out of rental income.

Scammers are breaking into vacant and foreclosed buildings, replacing the locks and renting out the homes before the real owners notice, according to a report in the Chicago Sun Times.

Matthew White, a process server in Chicago, uploaded a video of a local woman who learned she was the victim of a scam. White, who blurred the woman’s face, said he uploaded the video to Tik Tok to raise awareness of the practice. The apartment was owned by a bank rather than the fake landlord she’d been dealing with. The woman was evicted.

This type of rental scam is a product of the pandemic, with an increase in vacant properties, many of which weren’t being watched. A fake landlord will break into an empty home or apartment building, switch the locks and advertise the property online under a fake business name. A tenant will move in, sign a lease and begin payments only to find out their money had not gone toward rent. Those tenants then often face eviction and the scammer is gone.

White told the Sun Times that he encounters this type of fraud eight to 10 times a week in this work.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

When such scams are revealed, ideally a deal can be worked out, since the real landlord now has an available tenant in the building if they want one, Chicago attorney Richard Magnone, who represents property owners in court and writes a blog for landlords, told the Sun Times.

“Working with them to make them a tenant is not a horrible idea, because they, too, are victims,” he said.

Sam Clendenning, a community organizer with the Metropolitan Tenants Organization, recommended a citywide rental registry that would enable tenants to easily check who owns a building before signing a lease. He said more landlords need to better secure their buildings as well.

[Chicago Sun Times] — Miranda Davis

Read more

Tags
Affordable HousingHousing Market