Deschutes County District Attorney Patrick Flaherty issued a warning about scammers taking advantage of people wanting to rent property.

Lester Friedman with Coldwell Banker Morris Real Estate says it's primarily scammers posting bogus rentals on "Craigslist" of houses for sale.  "And then they go to a website that shows the listing information and photographs for a property.  And they scrape off the photos, they scrape off the address and they scrape off the description of the property listed for sale and they put it up on "Craigslist" as a rental property."

Friedman says the scammer will require a security deposit from you, that probably will never be returned, and when you get to the house, usually the homeowner and you are surprised.

He says one tip to look for is: these scammers usually advertise unusually low rents; so buyer beware.

He says if you encounter a scammed property, to notify the realtor listed on the house sign or the Central Oregon Realtors Association and the District Attorney's Office.