Dallas leads the nation in the percentage of people losing money in apartment rental scams.
So says a report issued Thursday by real estate website ApartmentList.com. According to the report, 11 percent of would-be renters in Dallas lost money in June. That’s nearly twice the national average of just over 6 percent.
Sydney Bennet, senior research associate with ApartmentList, says Dallas tops the list because it draws a lot of younger people from other cities and states.
"People who are moving to a new area are more likely to fall for a scam because they may be trying to rent an apartment without visiting those apartments," she says. "Or they may be just unfamiliar with the local market and how much an apartment should cost."
Bennet says she’s seen similar problems show up in cities like Denver, another fast-growing metro that draws young renters. She says those are the most likely to be victimized by listings for apartments that don’t exist, or real listings hijacked by scammers.
