Sounds like a new scam

ccassaday · ‎10-21-2010

Have any of you had this happen. My dads father passed away over Christmas. His will and estate I guess is in probate. He is waiting on the courts so he can sell his house. Well today my mom and I get a text. It is from a guy that says he is a real estate investor and was going through probate records and wanted to know if their would be a estate sale or the house was up for sale. My mom text my dad to see if he got the message and he hadn't. So he told my mom to reply and give this person my dads name and cell phone so he could talk to him and see if it is legit. My grandfathers house is a run down slum so whoever buys it will end up being a investor and want to rent it out. Anyway the person texts back still insisting on the address of the property and never contacted my dad. My dad thinks they are trying to rob houses that are unoccupied or possibly have valuables for a estate sale in them. So have any of you gotten a scam like this. Be careful. We are just going to ignore anymore texts. If it was legit this person would of called.

Kachina624 · ‎03-10-2010

Ignoring it seems like a safe solution. Was the address in the court records? I would guess it was or your grandfather's name which may have a listed phone number, so this guy could still locate the house. It's a shame but we have to be suspicious of everyone nowadays. It's a jungle out there and we are the prey.

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millieshops · ‎03-09-2010

@ccassadayI'm not even sure a phone call would be any more legit than a text. I wouldn't give the address to either. If the will is in probate, I assume there's a lawyer involved. I'd be looking to that firm for guidance, to know if legit investors in your area do follow the probate listings.

ccassaday · ‎10-21-2010

@Kachina624 wrote:
Ignoring it seems like a safe solution. Was the address in the court records? I would guess it was or your grandfather's name which may have a listed phone number, so this guy could still locate the house. It's a shame but we have to be suspicious of everyone nowadays. It's a jungle out there and we are the prey.

Your exactly right. That's why it is a scam. If it was legit they would already know the address. Law firms will sometimes look through bankruptcy records and stuff to try and get business. So this didn't seem to weird at first. But since he never called my dad it is for sure a scam.

Carmie · ‎10-25-2010

Many years ago when I worked full time as a Real Estate Agent, I would check out the homes of deceased when the house would probably be put on the market for sale.

It would be to my advantage to list the house for sale to get a,commission and I would be doing the surviving family members a good service. I even had a few attorneys who would list the homes of their deceased clients with me. I would always try to get them a fair price.

i have never heard of real estate investors who do this. I used to sell many lower priced home to those investors for a quick sale..they had cash, but they had to buy through a Realtor.

i would never give out any information to any stranger who says they want to buy or look at a house. Ask for their name and phone number and have your dad call them, if he wants to.., or refer them to your attorney or RE agent.

i have to admit, your situation is quite wierd. There are crazy people out there always looking for an angle to scam someone. There is no shame when you try to scam the deceased or their family when they are at their lowest.

ccassaday · ‎10-21-2010

I know it's so weird. After I thought about it I told my mom no invester would send out a text like that. My dad had a attorney that has been handling all of this. I don't know if his name would of been on the probate records. In the one text he asked my mom if the name she told him to call was the executor and to please give him the address. I don't even know how he got my moms and my cell phone number. The text to both of us came at the same time. Really scary what people will try to do. I live in Indiana. The area code was out of a suburb of Indianapolis. It did not come up as a business when I googled it.

sissel · ‎08-13-2010

I worked at a bank and when anyone would put an obit in the newspaper scammers would look up their name & know the time of the funeral & rob the house knowing they would be at the funeral. Now so many people die and most would not put it in the newspaper. At the bank we froze all accounts until we had a death certificate. You never know. Why some strange guy very interested in your Dad's property seems odd. You know he is a scammer don't even talk to him.

Desertdi · ‎03-13-2010

When my husband died.......some woman came out of the woods and claimed to be his "secret daughter". People will try anything.

♥Surface of the Sun♥

CelticCrafter · ‎03-09-2010

You and your mother need to stop replying to the text messages from this person...

Your father needs to call him and refer him to the attorney handling the estate or the real estate broker handling the sale of the house...

Big Sister · ‎05-15-2010

Don't give the caller your phone numbers. It would be different if you had called him, but the fact that he made the call or text would make me be suspicious.

He may be legitimate but my motto is" when in doubt, don't."