Kari Calder
By Carrie Brodi
Realtor Kari Calder has done everything right. An agent with Century 21 Fusion in Saskatoon, she created an attractive and searchable website and built a solid reputation in her community.
But last month her credibility was jeopardized when someone operating from across the world attempted to illegally offer one of her listed properties for rent. Posing as Calder, and armed with little more than a fake Hotmail account and a Kijiji ad, the individual cut and paste text and photos from a syndicated website and posted the home for rent on Saskatoon’s Kijiji website. The offer was too good to be true from the start.
“A large three-bedroom, three-bathroom double-attached-garage home for $1,000 per month including utilities is an unheard of deal in Saskatoon’s tight rental market,” says Calder.
Call it wishful thinking, but many hopefuls still called and some even visited the property, wanting to be shown the interior.
The ad caught up with Calder a few days after it was posted when she received a call from an interested renter who claimed to have been corresponding with Calder for three days prior.
“I am a busy Realtor, but not that busy that I wouldn’t remember having emailed this woman,” she says. Calder asked to see the emails. The return address was her first and last name at yahoo.com. It wasn’t unheard of to see one of her listings posted for rent on Kijiji, but the crime had been taken to a new level through the use of her name.
Shaking and livid, Calder’s immediate concern was for those who may have sent the requested wire transfer of a $1,000 deposit in exchange for – they promised – keys to the home. Her next thought was how this could damage her reputation.
“I said, ‘That’s it. We’re shutting them down. They aren’t going to gain momentum with my name because if they get away with it with me, how many other Realtors are they going to start impersonating?’” she says.
Calder took decisive action, posting a notice about the scam on her website and advising the homeowner to put a notice on her front door. She had the ad removed from Kijiji and notified the local police and the media. Still, people continued to call and visit.
One was Mike Bloomquist, a father who was excited at the prospect of moving his growing family into a bigger home. “I thought it was the break we were looking for,” he says. But as he began to correspond with the crooks, his suspicions grew. “As I read further into their responses, the alarm bells started to go off. For example, they said the owners were in Africa doing ‘God’s work’ and kept talking about needing someone to trust with their home. They also said they had the keys with them overseas and I thought that was really strange.”
Luckily, Bloomquist went the extra step to find Calder’s phone number and verify the authenticity of the ad before going any further. He managed to stay safe, but it isn’t known how many did not.
Calder says this kind of scam is a serious threat to the public and to Realtors across Canada and urges agents to act quickly if this happens to them – or risk serious reputation damage.
“If somebody has sent money and they don’t have a house to go to, they are going to start turning to us as agents, saying, ‘You did this to me’. People always need someone to blame,” she says.
It isn’t much use going to the police after the fact.
“In a situation like this, the police are pretty powerless to do anything,” says Sgt. Brian Trainor, retired fraud detective with the Saskatoon Police Service. “Fraud is a difficult crime to investigate because the perpetrator may be anywhere in the world. Many international frauds are unsolved because of this jurisdictional nightmare.”
Calder says technology is a double-edged sword: both helpful to the process of buying and selling homes and also a breeding ground for identify theft. She suggests watermarking photographs and even keeping the street address private.
“Ultimately, these criminals are only getting more creative and it is up to all of us to be vigilant,” she says. “We need to be good cyber citizens and alert people when we see these frauds. The honest people need to take care of the honest people.”
Maybe someone should take a picture of Melanie Aitken's abode, post it on Craigslist et al as a below market value rent rental unit, quoting the very same bullshit excuses vis a vis being out of the country etc., with Melanie's direct line office phone number as a contact source between 9:00 and 10:00 A.M., weekdays only.
Talk about a wake up call Mel!
Brian
Holy Pre-Alzheimer-Onset-Memory-Banks Bat Man!
I just thought of something re my forty years of real estate related experiences, as I re read my foregoing comments above .
When I was taking the real estate courses in Toronto during 1980, after having quit the trades work (I was a licensed Steamfitter), due to my strong-back-weak-mind syndrome having been upset by an evolving weakening-back-strengthening-mind syndrome, I began to go out with a fellow student, a very nice young lady who lived on "Dunvegan Road" in a swanky part of Toronto's elite district.. Her father was then the chief surgeon at the Mount Sinai Hospital…really nice family.
They lived amongst folks like the Bassetts (across the road), Liberal P.M. John Turner (just up the road…a neighbour), Donald MacDonald (Liberal Finance Minister, who I almost ran over one day with my 1961 Corvette while he went jogging past my girl's driveway as I pulled in…could've been a disaster…fiberglass doesn't stand up well when impacted by hefty pissed-off Liberal Finance Ministers), as well as other big-shot, high-profile lawyers.
I can't say for sure who lives on that street these days though.
Brian
What ever happenned to "the nice young lady who lived on Dunvegan Road" Brian? Could very well be that I know her.
I live very close to Dunvegan Road.
Hi John M:
The "very nice lady" got to talking marriage after only going out together for a few weeks, inviting me to escort her to an upscale Jewish wedding. I knew what that meant. I had just come off of a bad marriage break-up. I was in no mood to jump back into another marriage at that time. We went our ways after phase three. I don't know what became of her life. I'm sure that she would have done well though.
From what I have heard, you might very well live very close to Larry as well.
Brian
Brian,
I thought you were playing a game with us, and going to tell us the mystery woman was actually Ms.A, in your past. LOL
Cordially as always,
Carolyne L http://www.Carolyne.com
Rather unusual that a woman would request marriage after such short period of dating.
When I was in my early 20's, 3-4 young beautiful ladies that I dated wanted to get married to me. Got as far as going to City Hall, got the marriage license, but no marriage with either one of them ever took place and frankly, no regrets. I love women and had a great time with pretty well all I dated.
I live in the St Clair and Avenue Road area of Toronto. Not far from Dunvegan. I don't know who Larry is, but possible that we live close by each other.
Take care Brian. Enjoy the long holiday weekend.
HAPPY EASTER!!
John M
Hi Carolyne:
No, I wasn't playing games with you all re the "Mystery Lady" possibly being Ms Aitken…she would only have been about, oh, let's say…hhmmmm…32 years ago?….hhmmmmm…about 16?
I definitely could have been brought up before the Competition Bureau for 'Abuse of Dominant Position', if you get my drift.
Hi John M:
I think the "Mystery Lady" thought that I was rich. I did have a lot of money then, drove the fancy collector 'Vette etc., and I was a nice guy to boot; still am, though not so well off financially these days.
Yes, you do live close to Larry, from what I know. His last name begins with a "D", and thereafter rhymes with the last part of my name.
You should drop over and visit with him one day; invite me along!
Don't you just love brain teasers?
Happy Easter to you too!
Brian
I am currently going through this situation with one of my listings in Vancouver. The fraudsters a couple Cheryl & Ramiro Quijada obtained all the details and photos from my website and posted on Craigslist for rent. The rent is way below market & all utilities are included. They are telling people that the just got transfer to London and the keys of the place is when them and that this is why the can physically see the unit,and this is why the have provided them with photos and the details of place. The are requesting the potential tenant to send a deposit of$1900 and a signed lease agreement. We have had people knocking on the door demanding to se the place.
Will the passing of Bill C-30 help this situation, in this feed? Will the sites that advertise on behalf of the (offer for rent) posters (imposters) be required to give up the papertrail contact information of the posters?
The talk of i.p. numbers being traceable begs the question, that (if I understand correctly), the average user's i.p. number changes with each use? (is that correct?) so how does it become traceable? I was led to believe that unless you have your own server, there is no way to trace an i.p. number. Anyone know?
And how will the passing of Bill C-30 coincide with the existing Privacy Act, vis a vis the public searching real estate sites per se. Those who have counters and tracers that already provide the i.p. number (but itself not relateable to the inquiry) for the searcher are not able to tie it to anyone in particular, unless the inquiring person chooses to id themselves, although sometimes the source corporation name does appear.
And will those who do have a stable (static?) i.p. number, using their own servers – be required to provide it for FinTrac use.
I agree with the other forum post that says the person providing the information should be required to sign the forms, stating that they have reviewed the information, or have filled in the form themselves. Having the REALTOR(r) filling in the form leaves plenty of room for error, does it not?
At the moment, only the REALTOR(r) is responsible for getting the information taken down correctly. What if the REALTOR(r) makes a writing error or transposes a numeric i.d. code? There are a lot of holes in the system that sadly the REALTOR(r) seems responsible for. Just askin'
Carolyne L http://www.Carolyne.com
I AGREE THAT ALLOWIUNG OUR INFORMATION TO BE PUBLISHED TO EVERYONE HAS HURT US! I TOO HAD A LISTING WITH THE SAME THING, THE OWNER IN AFRICA, I'M IN ONTARIO. LUCKILY ONE OF MY CLIENTS NOTICED THE LISTING AND CALLED ME IMMEDIATLY WHICH ENDED IN ME CONTACTING "MYSELF" AND THEN DEALING WITH IT THAT WAY. VERY INTERESTING EXPERIENCE IF I MAY ADD. KUDOS TO YOU KARI AND LET'S KEEP AT THESE TROUBLE MAKERS.
This just happened on one of my listings in Regina, at the beginning of March, so they are still at it. Exactly the same thing my name used with a yahoo address on Kijiji. Again the house was vacant and the landlords in Africa! Many phone calls and disappointed prospective tenants!
This fraud is a direct result of the Competition Bureau and their wonderful actions of forcing Realtors to give up their Data Base to every
Tom Dick and Harry, including the multinationals like Rogers Communicatins who own Zoocassa to advertise Real Estate for Sale. They never were interested in actually selling the home or taking on Agency but simply want the advertising dollars.
The adverse publicity against the organized Real Estate Industry by the provocative and vindictive Melanie Aitken at the Competiton Bureau needs to be put on notice for what she has done. This was a very out of line public servant doing some empire building for her department and herself.
As I have said before in my postings, it's time for 100,000 Real Estate Registrants to each put up $1,000.00 and hire the best Litigation Lawyer money can buy and take on the Federal Government regarding both Fintrac and the Competition Bureau for the damages they have caused our Industry. Ten Million Dollars will get some corrections made with the Draconian Fintrac legislation along with a very badly misinformed Competition Bureau who understands little about the mechanics of our Industry. All Provincial Governments should participate and help our Industry because the Federal Government has trodden upon an Industry that is completely and totally "licensed and regulated" by our Provincial Governments. Don't ever under estimate the fact that some five million clients of ours, if called upon to help us, will step up to the plate and offer their assistance as well.
This has been happening a lot. I had other realtors advertising my listings on kijiji. This was public but imagine your own community members doing this. I really have high regard for you taking extra step to inform everyone. "WOW" You are right we have to monitor our own name.
Quick thinking on Carri's part.
This scam's been around for a while surprisingly then it must be lucrative for the scammers. Whenever I advertise a property on these sites I watermark every photo with my brokerage's name right across the middle. Granted watermarking only helps a bit since pictures on realtor.ca aren't allowed to be watermarked and can be lifted from there.
PED,
Who made the rule regarding no watermarks on photos posted at realtor.ca ?
Is that not an infringement of a member's rights and freedoms re: copyright and ownership rights?
You have given realtor.ca the right to "use" the photo, not to "own" it… (or have you/we?)
Since we, as professional REALTORS(r), are forbidden to take illegal instruction – where does this rule fit in the order of things?
Copyright law, to the best of my knowledge is an International topic.
If you took the photo and thereby automatically own the rights to it, who is to say you cannot protect it with a watermark?
Any good copyright legal people in the GTA known to members? I have a good copyright legal contact but he is stateside.
Perhaps Jim Adair can speak to this, at REM?
Carolyne L http://www.Carolyne.com
Hi Carolyne:
I don't know who made the rule, I am presuming it's origin lies within CREA's MLS rules to the boards where TREB for example has the rule that photographs may not contain wordings or embellishments not related to the property.
I suspect one of the reasons was to maintain the integrity of the system being a co-operative in that the public wasn't given the impression they had to go through the listing brokerage/REALTOR whose name may be emblazoned on the photos. Considering that I've seen all manner of links to off colour magazines and such attached to virtual tours, I think it beneficial in that regard.
However, when it was made I doubt anyone expected that anonymous internet users would lift them for the purpose of defrauding the public. No more so than could have been anticipated that users would create sites to ridicule buyers, sellers and the properties they choose to buy, or publish all sales information as though these buyers and sellers are nothing more than a street address or MLS no. without any right to their privacy.
PED is correct from a historical perspective. The rule has been outdated for over 5 years and could arguably be deemed anti-competitive.
Unfortunately, the webheads who are attacking you already have software that removes the watermarks from the photos to that will no longer work.
CREA thinks its new MLS CERTIFIED program will work but it has no built in infrastructure to support its effective use by consumers
Luckily for some of us, someone else has started looking after the online component of our profession, without being negatively impacted by the CB.
A timely publication – The Little Black Book of Scams
A booklet put out by the Competition Bureau according to this article in Digital Journal. http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/322157.
It covers 12 scams but not a mention of scams leading to real estate or mortgage fraud it’s as if these don’t exist.
I would provide the link but as per the booklet, copyright privileges are attached and:
“For permission to reproduce the information in this publication for commercial redistribution, please e-mail roitdauteur.copyright@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca.”
Thank heavens that you are a Realtor and know what action to take.. just think of a private sale and what would happen to them.. thanks for letting us all know and be aware.. like the Google thing…
Wow, what a scary story. I agree use Google Alerts. It is not perfect, but it helps. Have an alert for your name. business name and business industry
Explanation from google what the Alerts are:
Monitor the Web for interesting new content
Google Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your queries.
Enter a search query you wish to monitor. You will see a preview of the type of results you'll receive. Some handy uses of Google Alerts include:
•monitoring a developing news story
•keeping current on a competitor or industry
•getting the latest on a celebrity or event
•keeping tabs on your favorite sports teams
My two sons were nearly victims of the scam just two weeks ago. They had given notice to thier current landlord and were ready to fork over the $600 damage deposit via wire transfer to someone in England. I'm glad they called me first. With just a little digging i discovered this scam has been around for a while.
Gary, back in the 50's did you live in Cabbagetown?
Better than putting your name in Google Alerts would be to put the address of each property you have listed there. That way if the address is used in any way you will get the alert. Sorry to hear we are being targeted but not surprised. Kudos to Keri for jumping all over it!
I've had this happen on Craigslist several times. We need to put signs on our listings "not for rent"!
This happened to me in Whistler and one smart renter phoned me up. Maybe we need to put stickers on our signs that say "not for rent"! The google alerts suggestion is a good idea! This happens a lot on Craigslist!
Thanks for the heads up Kari…I will register with Google ALerts also. Cheers From Red Deer
Ralph Wiber
Royal Lepage Netwok Realty Corp.
Red Deer, Alberta
To help avoid this type of scam register your name with Google Allerts. It's free and it will allert you every time your name appears on the internet. Of course, you'll get allerts when someone with the same name has an article but you just ignore those. At least then you can see if you are affiliated with an artcle such as an ad. Good luck and stay safe.
Unbelievable how the brain of a "thief" works…Low-life criminals deserve to get caught, but they will probably get away with it, or maybe just a slap on the wrist with the justice system here in Canada :(
Precisely the scenario you've describe here happened to me in Barrie, Ontario in February. The house was brand new and vacant so those drawn in by the scam were walking around the property peering in the windows.
One couple drove two hours to have a look before wiring the money and thankfully, realizing it was too good to be true called me directly.
I spent a considerable amount of time talking to many people that had become suspiscious and called or emailed me (not at the bogus yahoo address) to confirm things.
I took the same action that you did. I'm not aware of anyone having actually sent them money. I stopped them on this property but would feel a lot better to have been able to stop them altogether.
Wow ! this is the 1st I've ever heard of this particular scam. I'm in the Niagara Falls area, thx for the heads up.
Lenny, at C21
Kari…this is one crazy situation. It just goes to show you that not everyone can be trusted and just because Canada is a relatively safe country, we aren't immune to problems. Kudos to you for taking the bull by the horns. And, by the way, glad to be a part of the Century 21 team with you! :)
Great article. This same scam happened to me on 1 of my Listings for sale in Kingston, Ontario. The exact details you mentioned is the same scam using kijiji to rent out a home for $1000. Unfortunately we did find out there was atleast 1 victim who fell for the scam and sent the money. We also contacted police.
Regards,
Anselmo of RE/MAX Realty in Kingston
Same thing happened to me in Cambridge, ON! We did the same thing called the police, put a notice up on the property and put an ad on KIJIJI about the fraudster. In this case he didn't use my name – but unfortunately before it was brought to my attention many people fell for it and sent the wire transfer to the guy for the insanely low rent.
Hi Kari:
I like your "That's it, we're shutting them down." attitude…my kind'a person.
Your industry needs more like you vs the voiceless shrinking violets who seem to be in the majority.
Go get 'em!
Brian
So sorry to hear this Kari but kudos for taking such swift action to not only protect yourself and your client (and their property), but also to raise some awareness. It never ceases to amaze me how many different ways there are for fraudsters to dupe consumers. I shudder to think what could have resulted had you not been so engaged and alert.
This just happed to me as last week. One of my listings was offered for rent on Craig's list for $500 inclusive per month in Oshawa. It a legal duplex with 4+1 bedrooms, 2 furnaces, 2 electrical panels,,, etc.. They used my wording and my pictures from my website to go on this site. The lady who finally called me went to the house and looked in the windows and was quite upset when she could not get that property for such an unheard of price. She had e-mailed me a few times inquiring about this rental without giving me a phone number to call or her name. SHe had inquired about my rental listing for this property and even went so far as to visit my office as I had not returned her calls. I thought she was trying to scam me and we finally met to talk in person and get to the bottom of what went on.
I did not go to the police, maybe I should have.