{"id":21909,"date":"2019-11-08T11:07:46","date_gmt":"2019-11-07T22:07:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/propertynoise.co.nz\/au\/?p=21909"},"modified":"2019-11-08T11:07:46","modified_gmt":"2019-11-07T22:07:46","slug":"scam-real-estate-gumtree-ad-sees-couple-lose-2000-bond-on-replicated-property","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/propertynoise.co.nz\/au\/scam-real-estate-gumtree-ad-sees-couple-lose-2000-bond-on-replicated-property\/","title":{"rendered":"Scam real estate Gumtree ad sees couple lose $2,000 bond on ‘replicated’ property"},"content":{"rendered":"

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PHOTO:\u00a0The scammer claimed to be away in the Defence Force but was renting a property out. Supplied<\/strong><\/p>\n

A couple looking to make a fresh start in Tasmania have fallen victim to a scam leaving them $2,000 out of pocket, a real estate agent says.<\/p>\n

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Key points:<\/h2>\n
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  • A Launceston real estate agent says scammers have used a property his firm handles to rip off renters<\/li>\n
  • The scammers used a fake lease to extract bond money from the victims, for whom English is a second language<\/li>\n
  • The Tenants’ Union of Tasmania says a bond should never be paid to a property owner<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

    Scammers posing as Australian Defence Force officers contacted the couple on popular buy-and-sell site Gumtree, offering them a property for rent and asking for $2,000 as a bond to secure the property.<\/p>\n

    Launceston real estate agent Tim Saunders said the scammers replicated a property his agency had for rent, but at a cheaper price.<\/p>\n

    “They ghost properties and put them on sites that are outside the regular real estate portals,” Mr Saunders told Leon Compton on\u00a0ABC Radio Hobart<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    READ MORE VIA ABC\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n