This page has our compiled safety alerts from 2017-2019. Do you have a safety alert to share? Please contact BRR Director of Communications, Cassie Zimmerman, or call 208.947.7226.
Read more safety tips and find more resources in our blog post, Help Your Sellers Keep Their Homes Safe When Listed.
September 2019
9/27/19: BRR was informed of another instance in which real estate agents were asked to purchase gift cards and share the codes via text message. A member reported that multiple people in their office received text messages of someone pretending to be their broker or other agents in their office and asking them to pick up hundreds of dollars in gift cards for them. DO NOT DO THIS! Pick up the phone and call your broker or the other agent if you are in doubt. The texts were coming from 208 area code numbers and some even appeared to be from the actual agent or broker’s contact, likely masking the number.
9/20/19: There is a new scam targeting listing agents in which a scammer requests payment of a power bill from the listing agent. A member reported getting calls and text messages from someone pretending to be a representative of Idaho Power. The caller claimed that they were not able to get ahold of the seller and that their listing’s power bill required payment immediately or power to the property would be cut off. The calls and messages came from 208 area codes and 800 numbers.
This is a known Idaho Power scam that listing agents should be aware of. If you are contacted by someone from Idaho Power asking for payment, DO NOT provide any personal information. Hang up and contact your seller if necessary.
August 2019
8/26/19: There is a new, very convincing scam targeting real estate agents asking them to purchase gift cards and share the codes via text message. A member reported that multiple people in their office received text messages of someone pretending to be another agent in the office and asking them to pick up hundreds of dollars in gift cards for them, using specific reasons such as “for closing gifts for my buyer’s kids.” DO NOT DO THIS! Pick up the phone and call your broker or the other agent if you are in doubt. The texts were coming from 208 area code numbers and some even appeared to be from the actual agent or broker’s contact, likely masking the number.
8/1/19: BRR was informed of another instance in which a scammer, claiming to be the seller of a listed property, asked a painting contractor to provide a bid. They said “they weren’t able to meet in person,” however, they said they would mail a check for the deposit and would need change back from that check. The painting contractor contacted the listing agent’s brokerage to confirm, since it seemed like such an odd request. Sure enough, it was a scam, similar to what we shared with you back in February 2018.
June 2019
6/3/19: Two members from the same brokerage have reported that they received emails from a fraudulent sender pretending to be their broker, asking a seemly innocent question about whether they were at the office. Ironically, agents at this brokerage work remotely so this question prompted immediate suspicion. The email showed their broker’s name as the sender but the email address it was sent from was not correct. One of the members noted that “in Gmail on the phone app, it does not show the email address of the person sending the email” unless you click on their name, so at first glance the email seemed legitimate.
This is not an isolated incident as we have heard similar stories from numerous members now. Some agents have have communicated back and forth with the impostors who eventually ask them to buy gift cards, scratch off the back, and send them photos. DO NOT DO THIS! Pick up the phone and call your broker if you are in doubt.
If an email feels or looks “odd,” check the email address of the sender. If you don’t recognize it, it’s likely not legitimate. Do not respond to or click on links in suspicious emails. If you have any doubts about an email from a colleague and you feel you need to respond, start a new email using an email address you have on file for them or found independently.
You can learn more about how to recognize and avoid phishing scams in this article from the Federal Trade Commission. You can also test your knowledge on identifying phishing scams with this online quiz created by Google.
May 2019
5/8/19: We received a report from a fellow REALTOR® about some suspicious phone calls received by a number of agents in their office. A man is calling “claiming to be from various wealthy families and trying to spend his inheritance” on a home. The caller is possibly trying to setup showings or get information about properties.
Please be aware of the situation and keep safety top-of-mind when interacting with clients either in-person or over the phone. For more information on safety best practices, visit www.nar.realtor/safety.
October 2018
10/18/19: A REALTOR® member received an email that appeared to be from her broker, asking her to purchase some iTunes gift cards (possibly as a closing gift?) to give to a client of theirs that was under contract. The scammer said they were “too busy to talk by phone today” so to reply to the email with any questions. Please always be wary of any requests to purchase gift cards, as this is a common way for scammers to keep funds untraceable.
It’s also good practice to change your password if you think your email account has been compromised. For more information about email and wire fraud issues, please check out the following resources:
- Hackers Pose as Real Estate Agents, Lenders, Title Reps to Commit Devastating Wire Fraud on the BRR blog
- Share this Wire Fraud Alert video from NAR with buyers
- Protecting Your Business and Your Clients from Cyber Fraud Brochure from NAR
February 2018
2/12/18: Another case of a scammer targeting a company, this time a roofing company, was reported to BRR. The scammer originally reached out with texts and a call but resorted to communicating via email when they couldn’t text the office phone. These emails indicate how the scammer was going to commit the fraud. The scammer asks for the bid for work or contract on a home and then asks for the contractor/company to make a payment, with the promise they will pay them back. Here is a shortened transcript of the emails, with names, emails, telephone numbers, and locations changed.
2/5/18: BRR was made aware of another local instance of this scam in which a painting contractor was asked to provide a bid. Similar to the last report, the scammer asked for the contractor’s banking information and/or credit card information in order to “coordinate payment.”
2/2/18: Please be aware, this is the THIRD local report we’ve had of a scammer contacting a contractor for a bid to have work done to a property. In this latest report, there were no phone calls — only text messages sent to the contractor asking him to provide a quote for pressure washing. The contractor went to the house, provided the bid via text message, but felt like something was off since there was a listing sign in the front yard. He notified the listing agent of the situation, who confirmed the request was not legitimate. This situation was different than the previously reported instances, because after providing the bid, the scammer asked for the contractor’s credit card and banking information, presumably to coordinate “payment”.
January 2018
UPDATED 1/26/18: Another member reported that a painting contractor received a suspicious call requesting that he provide a bid for a vacant home. When he arrived at the property, he tried to call the number back, however, no one would answer. Instead, they responded via text, saying they couldn’t communicate over the phone due to a disability (although they had called earlier). Over text, the calling party asked the contractor to look in the windows of the vacant home for them. The contractor wisely refused.
This is clearly not an isolated event, please notify the contractors that you work with that this could happen to them, and advise them to ask the listing agent to find out if the bid request is legitimate.
A member notified us of suspicious phone calls being made to concrete/driveway contractors (in this case), where a male caller asks the contractors to visit a listed property and provide a quote for work to be done on the home. The caller then says he works out of state so all future communication should be done via text. The contractors were suspicious and felt like someone was baiting them to come out to the property, so they called the listing agent of the property in question, asking if this was a legitimate request from a seller or maybe a buyer. The listing agent confirmed that no work was being requested. For those of you with contractor contacts, please pass this alert on to them. If they feel a request sounds suspect, their best bet is to contact the listing agent first for confirmation.
December 2017
A local agent recently found themselves in a suspicious and possibly dangerous situation while showing a home. A potential buyer that the agent hadn’t met before contacted her by text and asked to be shown a vacant home with acreage in Middleton. The agent called the phone number but there was no answer or voicemail option. To err on the side of caution, she asked a friend join her to the showing.
The potential buyer texted to inform the agent they were running late and didn’t arrive at the home until after dark. When the buyer did arrive, it was in a large, white cargo van that they blocked the driveway with by parking directly in front of it. The buyer texted that they were outside, and the agent texted back, asking them to come inside. A few minutes later, the van drove off, with the potential buyer never entering the home.
Thankfully, nothing more happened. Please be aware of the situation and keep safety top-of-mind when interacting with clients.
