A member just notified us of an incident that occurred last week during a showing and asked that we share this alert…
The listing in question required all buyers be pre-approved before showings, and the listing agent to be present. The buyer’s agent received a pre-approval letter and scheduled the showing with the listing agent. During the appointment, the buyer’s story began to change as to what they were looking to purchase, but still asked to take pictures of the property for review later. Both agents became concerned and stopped the showing, later finding out the pre-approval letter was fake. Thankfully, no one was harmed and no property was taken or damaged. Regardless, the listing agent wanted to make others aware of the incident and asked us to pass along two reminders:
First, REALTORS® should have a process in place to vet prospective clients, buyers or sellers, prior to any showings or meetings. Note: To avoid any fair housing violations, document that you have used this vetting process consistently with everyone.
Second, as part of that vetting process, independently verify pre-approval letters with the lender listed, using contact information from the company website, not from the pre-approval letter itself.
For more information on safety best practices, visit nar.realtor/safety or boirealtors.com/realtor-safety-resources. If you have a safety concern to share, please email me directly or call us at 208-376-0363. To receive text message alerts from BRR, including safety alerts, please opt-in to text messages here.
Thank you and take care.
NOTE: Please understand the association cannot file a police report on someone’s behalf, cannot run background checks on individuals, nor can we share information about any individual with others, per the advice of legal counsel. We do encourage members to report any suspicious or criminal behavior to local authorities immediately, and to use these alerts as a reminder to assess your personal safety habits and practices.
