NAR is involved in property scam

This was unbelievable once upon a time but now it’s a reality. The National Association of Realtors or the renowned United States association of real estate agents which follows a strict code of ethics has been involved and its name is used as part of a property rental scam. What is the true nature of this scam? Well, in this transaction rental property is being offered to consumers and the name of NAR is used rampantly to make clientele believe that the organization is functioning as an intercessor to receive rental deposits from prospective tenants.

The case is both highly precarious and imperative at the same time. Bear in mind that the National Association of Realtors (NAR) is no trivial organization and the largest trade association of North America representing over 1.2 million members that includes NAR’s institutes, societies, and councils, involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries. In addition, NAR functions as a Self Regulatory Organization for real estate brokerage.

Speaking on this, NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth stated, “NAR is not involved in this business and has contacted law enforcement officials to request that the matter be investigated. We encourage any consumers who may be affected to file a complaint.” You may not know, the scam even claims that on receipt of a deposit, NAR will deliver the keys to the property to the tenant! For that reason the potential tenants are apprized to send money via Western Union to NAR’s purported agent in the United Kingdom.

What is the response of NAR therefore? Well, the trade association is leaving no stone unturned to find out the masterminds behind the entire strategy and a definite portion of listings have been posted on Craigslist, which allegedly has had difficulty in tracing the original listings. What’s more, clients who have already encountered this scam are being encouraged to file a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center, sponsored by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National White Collar Crime Center.