Buying a new house should be an exciting chapter in one’s life. However, it’s not as smooth sailing as we anticipate, especially if it involves the original seller. One Ohio man shares the recent hiccup he encountered in his recently purchased home.
“I just closed on the house a couple of days ago,” Northeast Ohio homebuyer Naepfeorst (@naepfeorst), strolling outside. “I just pulled up to meet my contractor out here to run over some things and look what’s in the driveway.”
When he pans the camera behind him, there’s a small U-Haul truck next to the house. The problem? It’s not his, and the house was vacant once he purchased it. As proof, the content creator takes 1.2 million viewers on a tour of the inside.
What is wrong with this house?
Once Naepfeorst steps onto the patio, a small pile of belongings sits by the enclosure, foreshadowing what’s to expect. After he unlocks the door, mountains of a stranger’s possessions are scattered throughout the house, in every nook and cranny.
“It looks like someone’s moving into the house I just bought,” he notes. “None of this stuff was here when I bought it. I think we’re gonna change the locks and try to figure out what the hell’s going on here.”
Viewers offer advice
In the comments section, many chimed in with their theories of how this could’ve possibly happened.
“Someone rented out your house. It’s a big scam [on] FB,” one viewer suggested.
“Immediately get that stuff out of there and don’t leave that house until there’s new locks,” another proposed.
“Do not leave. If they get inside, you’re toast,” a third urged.
“Do a search of the address on various social media platforms to see if there has been an advertisement for it for rent or for sale,” a fourth advised.
Because others were hooked, they demanded an update.
“I’m so [nosy.] I have to know what happened next,” one commenter stated.
“Imma need the algorithm to bring me back for the full story on this one,” a second remarked.
Did he find out what happened?
Since many viewers demanded it, Naepfeorst obliged and began by debunking the scam claims going around.
“This one was never listed for sale. Most of the properties I buy are never actually listed for sale,” he explains. “Either me or my team tracks down the people and basically asks them to sell their house.”
Then, he dove into the meat and potatoes of how this happened.
“Long story short, I was able to track down the old sellers after a little while,” the content creator recalls.
Once he connected with them, their response?
“‘I’m just storing my stuff here,’” he remembers the seller saying.
However, this left Naepfeorst to give an ultimatum: “‘You got two hours to get your sh– out. I’m gonna change the locks. If your stuff is still here after that, I will get the police involved and we’ll get this handled.’”
Luckily, he fixed the issue. “I came back a couple of hours [later and] the stuff was all gone. No sign of him being here,” Naepfeorst says.
What are the social media rental scams?
Nowadays, the wrong person with internet access can turn anything into a scam: phone calls, job offers, charities, investments, and so forth. Even impersonations of loved ones and government agencies are quite common. Of course, fake rental scams aren’t off the table. If you’ve heard of the fake Airbnb scams, this rental property one is pretty similar.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, scammers use real rental listings to claim as their own, including photos, descriptions, and visual tours, by replacing the agent’s name and information with their own to create fake ads. Once they connect with their victim, they will do whatever they can to collect the person’s personal information and money. The social media rental listings that viewers mentioned are no different.
In February, Idaho News warned that Facebook Marketplace has become a hotbed for scammers posing as landlords or property managers, demanding payment to show a property, and bail once they have it. This is usually a telltale sign of fraudulent activity. To prevent falling prey, put on your detective hat and investigate everything about the property.
Don’t hesitate to poke and prod the alleged lister with questions and read the reviews. Above all, if the listing feels too good to be true, chances are it is.
Subplot reached out to Naepfeorst via TikTok direct message.
