With rental scams on the rise, here's how to spot red flags

With rental prices increasing and competition for units growing more fierce, the number of scam listings are also on the rise. Experts advise on red flags to look for in scam listings and what to do next if you fall victim.

“The increase in rental scams has coincided with the increase in rental costs across the country. Certainly, it's tied to the affordable housing crisis and we often see it more in the late summer months because it's usually targeted to students, international students, people who are coming here from locations outside of Canada or other provinces for work,” said Douglas Kwan, the director of advocacy and legal services at the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario (ATCO), by phone.

“It usually sort of heats up at the end of the summer.”

ATCO operates dozens of legal clinics across Ontario with a focus on providing legal guidance to low-income renters.