New scam targets Central Texas contractors looking for work
Scam targeting contractors
There's a new scam targeting Central Texas contractors looking for work. Scammers are pretending to be homeowners, tricking contractors into doing a job, then leaving them and the real owner holding the bag. In most cases, the scammer is trying to get their hands on the contractor's bank information.
TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas - There's a new scam targeting Central Texas contractors looking for work.
Scammers are pretending to be homeowners, tricking contractors into doing a job, then leaving them and the real owner holding the bag.
In most cases, the scammer is trying to get their hands on the contractor's bank information.
Contractor scam in Travis County
Local perspective:
Chris Tovar bought an East Travis County home last summer.
"Spent a few months redoing it, spending money, investing into it," said Tovar.
He put it on the market, but in January when his realtor Jamie Church went to show the home to a potential buyer, she was in for a surprise.
"We showed up to find that windows were sealed off, doors were sealed off," said Church.
"Paint swabs, they started caulking a little bit—just enough to mess up the whole house," said Tovar's actual house painter, Donald Alaniz.
The home had clearly been prepped to be painted.
"The neighbor said that there were four or five of them that were out here that were working on the house," said Church.
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The potential buyer bailed out. Church called Tovar, who lives out of town.
"It was a shock when we found out," said Tovar.
It was especially shocking because Tovar had just had his house painted.
"Maybe a month before I had done it all," said Alaniz.
It turns out the crew who showed up had been hired by a scammer.
"They are targeting vacant homes. They're going out and hiring painters, roofers," said Church.
Scammers are posing as homeowners, soliciting contractors looking for work on social media sites like Facebook and Nextdoor. The fake owner will often say they're out of state and will need to pay using a bank transfer.
"You give them the routing number, you give them the bank account number, they hack into your account," said Church.
Sometimes they'll use a fraudulent cashier's check.
"So they're sending over the amount. And then when the construction company sends the refund, then the scammers already have the refund money, and then the check bounces," said Church.
Church says these types of scams have spiked recently. In fact, in the last four months she says she's gotten 20 calls from contractors who showed up at Tovar's house to do work, but saw her sign on the lawn.
"They said 'we were hired to rip the roof off, but the roof looks new,'" said Church. "'We were hired to rip the siding off, but the siding looks fine.'"
John Skoczen was among the contractors that scammers tried to hire for Tovar's house.
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"I saw this job. 'I need my house painted right away.' So I put my website on there," said Skoczen. "He messaged me later in the day."
Skoczen says he got a weird vibe.
"He's out of town," said Skoczen. "He was talking about a certified check. His niece would meet me there with the certified check."
Skoczen declined the job and notified Church, but the scammer apparently didn't give up.
In a bizarre twist, Donald Alaniz, the painter who was legitimately hired to paint this house, also got an offer from the same profile to paint a house in Hutto.
"'How quick can you paint it? Just paint the outside. Nobody lives there', that kind of thing," said Alaniz.
Church and the contractors have reported these scams to local law enforcement.
"The police officer we talked to, said this is his third case that he had dealt with. So it's out there," said Alaniz.
Why you should care:
Contractors should be especially vigilant, since they could unknowingly face vandalism or trespassing charges, as well as be out a lot of money. They should watch out for red flags.
"If somebody says they're out of town, they can't be there, but they'll give you a check or certified check, make real sure that they own the house in the first place," said Skoczen. "Just cover all your bases."
As for homeowners?
"Drive by, inspect it, maybe check with the neighbors, to where they can contact you if they see something that doesn't look right," said Tovar.
Local perspective:
While Tovar is out about $2,000 to get the home repainted, he's glad the damage wasn't worse, and recently got some good news.
"Thankfully, we've got a buyer, and he'll be moving in soon, we hope," said Tovar.
The Source: Information from interviews conducted by FOX 7 Austin's John Krinjak