Rent offer too good to be true? Probably is, says expert

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Rent in Houston is climbing to levels never seen before. If you want a two-bedroom apartment or home inside the The Loop, expect to spend thousands a month.

With three bedrooms and one bath, there is a lot to love about a Galleria-area home and you can lease it for $2,200 a month, but it turns out scammers are listing this very same home. There offer? Only $900 a month. But if you take that offer, it's going to cause you a lot of trouble.

"Nearly fell for it. It seemed like a really good deal," Melissa Hunter said.

You can't blame Hunter for wanting to save money on rent. When she found a Galleria-area home listed for lease for just $900 a month on Craigslist, she responded immediately.

"They said they were out of town and needed to lease it," Hunter said.

Hunter was told she would need to wire the rent money out of town. Hunter says she thought the $900 a month rent was too low so she drove by the home and found out it was listed by Realtor Tim Surratt, whose name did not appear in the online ad.

"I called him and he said the rent is $2,200 a month," Hunter said.

Hunter is not the only person calling Surratt about the home.

"Probably three to five times a day, easy," Surratt said.

So many have called Surratt about the home he posted a sign, telling those who found the home on Craigslist the ad was a scam. The only way a person can lease the home is through HAR.com or Surratt's real estate office.

"Of course there are no $900 a month, three-bedroom houses in the Galleria. It does not exist," Surratt said.

Because the housing market is so tight in our area, the best advice if you are looking to lease a home, don't mess around. Use a professional web site either a real estate agent or HAR.com.