THUNDER BAY — Prospective renters are being warned about a fake posting for a property in the city that doesn’t actually exist.
Valena Provenzano, project manager with Red River Holdings, said she received a phone call earlier this week from someone asking about an apartment for rent at one of their properties on Red River Road after seeing an advertisement on the online platform, Rent Panda.
“The prospective tenant was inquiring whether the advertisement posted was an accurate description of the unit in the building,” she said. “We determined we did not have any vacancies at 844 Red River Road and we didn’t have any current ads on Rent Panda for that specific address. That was when we received a copy of the advertisement and we determined the advertisement was indeed fake.”
The photos in the ad did not match the actual units at Red River Towers. Provenzano said she does not know how long the ad was visible on the website and was unsure what kind of account on Rent Panda the poster was using.
When she and her co-workers contacted the phone number listed on the ad, she spoke with the person about the apartment.
They were told by the man on the phone that the unit was still available, but a viewing could not be arranged because he was out of town. He asked that they email an application instead.
“I contacted Thunder Bay police right away, as well as Rent Panda, to have the advertisement removed and they took it down right away,” Provenzano said. “Thunder Bay police are investigating but they did ask that the victims contact Thunder Bay police themselves and explain what happened and the money that was stolen from them.”
Provenzano said she believes one or two people may have sent a first month rent deposit to the poster of the fake ad, including an international student at Lakehead University.
“The student had arrived with nowhere to live and she had paid her first month rent deposit,” she said. “I do know she is now out of a place to live, which is very unfortunate.”
A spokesperson with the Thunder Bay Police Service said the incident will be investigated. While rental scams are uncommon in the city, they have been reported before.
“We would urge any victim who has been targeted by the rental scam to come forward and formally make a report with the police,” the Thunder Bay Police spokesperson said in a statement. “Also, if a person becomes aware that their property is being fraudulently used as a lure for a scam, please come forward.”
Provenzano said she felt it was important to advise the public about what is happening to prevent more people from falling victim to fake rental postings.
At Red River Holdings, prospective tenants are always shown the rental unit prior to making any kind of deposit or payment and Provenzano warns renters to never send any type of first or last month deposit without first viewing the property.
“We always meet our potential tenants on site and show them the apartment before we ask them for anything, even a rental application,” she said.
