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Woman using phone and computer at her kitchen table in the kitchen of her rental house.

Signs of a rental scam

The #1 sign that a rental scammer is targeting you is if you are asked to apply for one of our homes somewhere other than our website. We only accept applications and leasing funds through invitationhomes.com.  

Here are a few more common signs of a rental scam:  

  • Few to no photographs in ads or photos have another company’s watermark 

  • Listing and/or rental application looks unprofessional, is too vague or has typos 

  • Abnormally high security deposits and/or no background checks required 

  • The point of contact uses “pushy” sales methods like contacting you repeatedly and creating a sense of urgency 

  • Payment is requested via wire transfer, gift cards, cash, cash apps or services like Zelle, Venmo, PayPal, or Apple/Google Pay 

  • You feel like you’re being rushed to pay 

  • The rent is $500 - $1,500 less than similar homes, or the deal is "too good to be true" 

  • Your point of contact doesn’t offer to show you the house 

  • The door is left unlocked for you when you come for a tour 

  • You’re told Invitation Homes no longer owns the home or is no longer the property manager 

During the tour, you’re asked to leave the key outside of the lockbox 

fraud-prevention-precautions-customer-service

Precautions we ask you to take against rental scams

  • Only send money to lease to invitationhomes.com. 

  • Never send money to us by wire transfer or person-to-person payment apps like Zelle, PayPal or Cash App. 

  • Never give anyone your username or password. Invitation Homes employees will never request that information. If anyone is trying to convince you otherwise, it is a rental scam. 

  • Only apply for one of our homes through our website. We do not lease our homes through Facebook, Craigslist or other classified advertising services. 

  • Only look for approved Invitation Homes listings on our website and reliable 3rd party listing services, like Zillow, Trulia, Hotpads and Realtor.com.


Woman on the phone in front of monitor sitting at a desk

3 quick steps to shut down a rental scam:

  1. Please report the scam to local law enforcement.

  2. Inform the website where you found the fraudulent ad.

  3. Inform Invitation Homes by submitting a Contact Us  Form.


2 men, 3 women, laptop, coffee cup, plant

We don’t hire people through Facebook. 

  • Do not apply for a “job” opportunity to post our homes on social media. Invitation Homes does not recruit independent contractors to advertise our homes on Facebook, Instagram or Craigslist. If anyone is trying to convince you otherwise, it is a scam.