Ottawa family discovers ad for rental home was a fake
An Ottawa family is out thousands of dollars after a townhouse they were set to move into turned out to have already been rented.
- Sign up now for daily CTV News Ottawa newsletters
- The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App
Jordan Zaid was supposed to get the keys for his in-laws new house this weekend, but the rental fell through after the person who he thought was the Realtor told him it was a scam.
"It was just a complete shock to me and the first thing I thought of was, 'how can we get our deposit back?'" he said.
It started when he responded to a listing on Facebook Marketplace for a four bedroom, four bathroom townhouse in Barrhaven listed by Bsv Liberty.
His mother-in-law went to view the property on June 12.
"The real estate agent looked exactly like they did on the sign outside the home, already had the door open for us and when we went into tour the house, they gave us a tour. Everything seemed fine," said Zaid.
A neighbour down the street says she wasn’t the only one to tour the property that day.
"We did see a lot of traffic," said Kristin Delahunty, who lives nearby. "There were probably about ten families in and out through the whole course of the day."
As it turns out, the person who was showing the home wasn’t the legitimate real estate agent on the listing and it was a fake showing.
Zaid says when he spoke to a neighbour, he was told they saw a locksmith truck earlier that day.
Jordan Zaid was supposed to get the keys for his in-law's new house this weekend, but the rental fell through after the person who he thought was a Realtor told him it was a scam. (Katelyn Wilson/CTV News Ottawa)
"They assumed the locksmith that was called was the one who ended up opening the door for them and they showed the house as if they had the key," said Zaid.
The property was originally listed on Realtor.ca by an agent with Details Realty in Stittsville, but the brokerage says that agent only showed the property once. The agent who Zaid believed he was speaking with also used the same name.
"Our brokerage has been running for 19 years. We have close to 100 salespeople. We’ve never had anything like this, so this was totally foreign and an absolute shock," said Richard Keirans, broker-of-record with Details Realty Inc.
CTV News reached out to three other realtors with properties listed by Bsv Liberty, including one in the Greater Toronto Area. The properties have since been deleted and all three say they’ve never heard of that name.
"It’s really hard to find a rental property and competition is very stiff, so that does make people more vulnerable," said Debra Wright, owner of Details Realty Inc.
Zaid says his in-laws are out $5,300 after the alleged agent requested an e-transfer to the landlord for the first and last months of rent.
Details Realty confirms the home is already legitimately rented.
"Her mom is a single mom. She works three jobs on her own and she supports her whole family and we just feel really bad because it’s a lot of money to put away for her," said Zaid.
The family has since started a GoFundMe in order to recoup the money to find a new place by July 1.
CTV News reached out to Bsv Liberty and the landlord listed on the fake lease agreement, but did not hear back. CTV also reached out to police, who did not respond before deadline.
Keirans says when it comes to protecting yourself, always ask for identification when you’re working with a Realtor.
He says an agent will never ask you to send money directly to a landlord or property manager. The money goes directly to the brokerage.
"You need to proceed with caution. We are warning our salespeople and our friends to be careful and never provide a deposit before viewing the property," Keirans said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.5346613.1719853464!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
If you qualify for this tax credit, you can expect a payment in your bank account this week
The next quarterly GST/HST tax credit payment is expected to go out this week, according to the Canada Revenue Agency.
Fire at gas metering station sparks grass fire that shut Alberta highway
Yellowhead County in west-central Alberta says a fire that prompted the closure of a major highway west of Edmonton involved a gas metering station.
These ultraprocessed foods may shorten your life, study says
Eating higher levels of ultraprocessed food may shorten lifespans by more than 10 per cent, according to a new, unpublished study of over 500,000 people whom researchers followed for nearly three decades.
U.S. Supreme Court rules Trump has immunity for official, not private acts
The U.S. Supreme Court found on Monday that Donald Trump cannot be prosecuted for any actions that were within his constitutional powers as president, but can for private acts, in a landmark ruling recognizing for the first time any form of presidential immunity from prosecution.
WATCH: Ode to Newfoundland rings out at emotional internment of Unknown Soldier
As part of the emotional ceremony honouring Newfoundland and Labrador's Unknown Soldier, the province's national anthem, The Ode to Newfoundland, was sung. Military members received special permission from defence officials to salute the Ode.
Eddie Murphy is still stung by that David Spade joke on 'Saturday Night Live'
Eddie Murphy is reflecting on some of the “cheap shots” he feels he’s taken over the years.
Judge calls Jeffrey Epstein 'most infamous pedophile in American history' as he releases transcripts
A Florida judge released Monday afternoon the transcripts of a 2006 grand jury investigation that looked into sex trafficking and rape allegations made against the late millionaire and financier Jeffrey Epstein.
This 12-year-old memorized the periodic table at age two. He's heading to NYU after finishing high school in just two years
Recent high school graduate Suborno Isaac Bari, 12, plans to start studying math and physics at New York University in the fall, but he’s already got his ambitious sights set on beginning a doctoral program.
Possible indecent gesture at Euro 2024 game under investigation
England star Jude Bellingham is being investigated by UEFA over a potentially offensive gesture made during a European Championship win against Slovakia.