I-Team: Scammers use families as hoax - 13abc.com Toledo (OH) News, Weather and Sports

Authorities say some scammers are working hard to steal your money, trying to lure people into renting a home that was never theirs to being with.  It's something the 13abc I-team has been following for several months.  Now the president of the board of realtors says there's a new twist. 

The scam has been happening for months, even years around here.  People find an ad renting a home for a very low price.  People show up after sending money and the home's not actually for rent. 

The newest twist is that not only do the scammers say they are missionaries outside of the country but they are sending pictures of their family doing that missionary work.      

"It's another level of people trying to take advantage of people when they're down," said Barb Stout, President of the Toledo Board of Realtors. 

Stout says the scam is old but the family angle is new.

"I'm surprised but people want some place to rent and it sounds really good," says Stout. 

Scammers have always tried to be convincing.  They'll show gorgeous shots of the interior and exterior of the home, a home they have no business even talking to you about because it's probably for sale and it's not theirs.  Some people show up with moving trucks packed, ready to move in only to realize they've been scammed and their money is gone. 

"It's a beautiful place and people want to move to a nice neighborhood.  They see these gorgeous pictures and they send their money in and it's too bad that people are being taken in that way," said Stout. 

The old adage "too good to be true" certainly applies here.  Also check the grammar in the email you receive from the "seller."  If it's disjointed and broken, that's a sign that it's probably a scammer.