March 01st, 2015

Looking through Craigslist, Ana Sales, 26, of Denver, Colorado, thought she had found the perfect house for herself, her 2 daughters, her brother, and her mother Ramona Sales. When they did a walk-through with the Realtor, Ramona ended up putting a $2,000 deposit down. In return, she got a hand-written receipt signed and dated February 5, 2015. After they came up with $4,200 altogether, and signed a 12-page lease, the Realtor, Lance Davis, working for American Homes 4 Rent, gave them a key and two garage door openers. After spending several hundred dollars more for moving fees, the Sales family finally moved in. They were so happy!
But their joy came crashing down a few days later on February 13 when they were told by police that they had 2 days to move out! Ramona tried to contact Lance Davis by calling and texting the numbers provided. Nothing! She sent an email to the email address provided. Nothing. Finally, Ramona contacted American Homes 4 Rent directly and realized her dream was a nightmare. It was all a scam! The "Realtor" wasn't a Realtor at all, just a scammer! "Lance Davis" was not his real name. The lease and all the contact information was just a hoax. None of it was true! The only thing that was true was the money the Sales family had lost!
They spent the last of their money renting a Uhaul and for storage costs. With only $30 left, they found themselves homeless, not knowing what to do. That is when a viewer watching the news decided to let the Sales family stay in a house that would have been vacant for 6 months. Now they have a chance to save up to find another house for rent. And this time, they will not look on Craigslist! And if they do, they will contact the company on the sign directly. According to police, this scam happens much too often on Craigslist.  Beware!

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