Apartment Hunting on Craigslist: A Cautionary Tale

My husband and I love living in Hollywood, but we just got jobs in Santa Monica. The total distance between the two places is approximately 10 miles. Not such a bad commute, you might think. Maybe not in most cities, but when you factor in the diabolical LA traffic, a trip during rush hour can take up to an hour and a half. Nothing puts us in a bad mood faster than sitting in traffic, so the only logical solution is to move apartments. 

The dog is the only member of the family who enjoys LA traffic

Now, one of the most popular methods of finding a new apartment in LA is to sign up to Westside Rentals. A fine company, I'm sure, but the fact that they charge $60 just for the privilege of accessing information about potential apartments is quite frankly appalling. So we turned to a cheaper option: Craigslist. For any Brits who haven't encountered Craigslist yet, it's a wonderful site that enables you to find everything from a secondhand washing machine to a lifelong partner. You could probably sell your kids on it if you were so inclined. The disadvantage to Craigslist is that you get what you pay for. And sometimes, you encounter... less than salubrious types. I should have guessed that something was up when I saw an advert for a 2-bedroom apartment with ocean views for less than a third of the average price, but I couldn't resist making enquiries. Here is the response I received:

Hello  It is a great pleasure that you are interested in my flat.Thanks for your email and it is my gladness to hearing from you.I am Mr.Daniel Lee,the owner of the apartment you are making enquiery of.Actually I resided in the apartment with my family,such as my wife and my only daughter before and presently we had packed due to my transfer from my working place and now situated in the (Abuja,Nigeria) and presently my apartment is  still available for right now and I'm giving out the property with such a reasonable amount of $1200 a month,$700 for security deposit and pets acceptance of $100 Total for you to move in is $2,000, all the utilities  are included because I am only paying God back for his kindness and mercy over me and my family with what I have, that's why I asked for such a reasonable amount.More so Now, i went for a Crusade in the Abuja.Pls i want you to note that,i am a kind and honest man and also i spent a lot on my property that i want to give you for rent,so i will solicit for your absolute maintenance of this apartment and want you to treat it as your own,is that taken,it is not the money the main problem  but want you to keep it tidy all the time so that i will be glad  to see it neat when i come for a check up.I do that once in a while.I also want you to let me have trust in you as i always stand on my word.Here is my cell phone # +2348174426199 or 0112348174426199 i am available any time. SO IF YOU ARE REALLY INTERESTED I WILL WANT YOU TO FILL THE RENT APPLICATIONS FORMS BELOW. TENANT'S PERSONAL INFORMATION ============================ FIRST NAME:__________________ MIDDLE NAME:__________________ LAST NAME:__________________ PROFESSION:________________ PHONE (____)__________ (WORK) PHONE (____)__________ (HOME) PHONE(____)__________ (CELL) MARITAL  STATUS:_________ HOW OLD ARE YOU NOW?________ KIDS_____ (YES/NO), HOW MANY________ ATTACH YOU OR YOUR FAMILY PICTURE PRESENT ADDRESS:______________________ _____ CITY:_______________ STATE:______________ ZIP CODE:____________ HOW LONG?___________ CURRENT RENT:$_______ WHY ARE YOU LEAVING?______________________ ________  ============================== ============================= WORK ADDRESS:______________________ _____ CITY:________________ STATE:_______________ ZIPCODE: _____________ HOW LONG HAVE BEEN WORKING THERE?____________ ============================== ==================== IF THIS HOME  IS BEING GIVEN TO YOU, HOW LONG DO YOU INTEND STAYING?____________ WHEN DO YOU INTEND MOVING IN?______________ DO YOU HAVE THE MONEY FIRST MONTH RENT AND THE DEPOSIT NOW?_____________ ============================== =====================  PERSONAL REFERENCES (LIST 1 PERSONS, OTHER THAN YOUR RELATIVES, THAT WE CAN CONTACT TO VERIFY YOUR CHARACTER.) ============================== ============== FIRST PERSON  FIRST NAME:_______________  MIDDLE NAME:______________  LAST NAME:________________ RELATIONSHIP______________ PHONE (___)_______________ ============================== ============  *PETS* IF YOU HAVE A PET, --------------------------- NAME OF PET:______________ KIND OF PETS: :______________ WEIGHT:______________ ============================== ================  HABITS DO YOU SMOKE?:__ DO YOU DRINK?:___ DO YOU WORK LATE NIGHT?:___ I'm sure that this gentleman was exactly who he claimed to be, but on the unlikely off-chance that he was a Nigerian conman trying to obtain my personal information in order to commit identity theft, I decided not to complete the application...