Woman claims someone posted a fake ad for her Maryvale rental home

An online rental posting is asking people for money and personal information from potential renters. Sounds normal, but the only problem is the home is not on the market.

Days after the ad for the rental home was taken down from Zillow, after it was successfully rented out, the house's owner started receiving calls from people saying they saw the ad on craigslist, and came to find out someone stole the owners photos, and posted a fake ad.

Unfortunately, some people have been a victim of this, and gave their information and possibly money.

Kayla with AGM Properties posted the ad on Zillow, in an effort to advertise her rental home in Maryvale. She was confused when days after the home was rented out, at least three people called about the home.

"She said I'm talking to someone right now, and claims they're the owner," said Kayla.

After doing some digging, Kayla found out someone had posted a fake ad on craigslist for her home. A man was sending applications to interested renters, and banking information for them to send a deposit.

"He sent the application asking for their Social Security Number, their current address, their emergency contact information, how much they make a month, where they work," said Kayla.

One woman sent the man a completed application with all of her information. The man on the ad even sent people an email, saying he was trying to move out of the home because his wife has cancer.

"That's the worst part because he had a sob story and made people feel bad for him," said Kayla.

As a professional renter, Kayla said there are some things to look out for to avoid a potential scam.

"You can always find the address and the owner on the Assessor's page," said Kayla. "It will give you if it is the person that they say they are. If it's not a major company and you're not going to an office, I would say call and talk to them on the phone. This guy said text only, so that kind of throws us a red flag."

Kayla has contacted police and the Attorney Generals office. She said for the most part, she's gotten no help because she wasn't directly affected by the fake ad. She's hoping someone will look into this person and find them so no one else falls victim.