u/ColloquialCloaca

I came across this listing for a house on Craigslist that seemed a little too good to be true but just believable enough that I thought it was at least worth an email. Based on the wording and weird paragraph spacing I thought it was about 50/50 either a scammer or just some old guy who isn't good at using technology.

The email was a firstlast at gmail with a profile picture of an older man, and the personality in his email seemed to match.

I kept waiting for him to send me a link for a credit check "for a fee" but he only asked to see a screenshot of my credit score.

He said he was going to be out of state for work for several years and wanted someone who would take care of the house as if it was their own, to keep it maintained while he was gone. It made sense to me.

But we still haven't met or even spoken on the phone, and I have not sent him any money.

This feels very off! Is this a known scam? What is he attempting here?

Yesterday was Mother's Day. It was my only day off after an incredibly stressful week at work, and all I wanted to do was relax and spend some time with my son.

My son got me a beautiful card and wrote a long, heartfelt note in it that made me cry happy tears. He handcrafted me a rose out of cotton pads. He even asked my boyfriend to take him out the day before so he could also buy me a present (it was a sparkly bath scrub that smelled really good!) So the day started out really special, because my son put a lot of effort into making it special for me.

We had plans to all go to the beach and grill burgers, but then my boyfriend started complaining that it was going to be too busy and we wouldn't be able to find a grill. So I said ok, thats fine, we'll just get In N Out on the way there instead. He has the tendency to make any kind of outing way more stressful than it needs to be, every step of the way has to be a critically important decision and if he's not happy he will complain the entire time. Like when we drive anywhere he complains about the other drivers. It's just like a constant stream of conscious coming out of his mouth and he never stops talking no matter how gently or harshly I ask for quiet. I saw the impending train wreck and was very clear before we went anywhere that all I wanted for Mother's Day was to relax--like FULLY relax, to not have to manage his emotions or spend the day appeasing him just to get through it.

Well. He did the opposite of what I asked. We started fighting in the car and didnt even make it to the beach. When we got home I said I wanted to take my son out somewhere just the two of us, and he started arguing that I was excluding him and how HE was hoping to go somewhere fun, and why do I always seem to want to go do things without him? (Gee I wonder) I yelled "because it's fucking Mother's Day and I just want to spend time with my son, this is not about you!"

Then he said "well I'm just gonna go to the beach by myself then" and i said fine, please go, I just want to not be near you right now. It was still early enough that if he had gone out i would have been able to take the car and go somewhere with my son when he got back. But just to spite me and prevent me from being able to use the car, he decided that instead of going to the beach he was going to spend the day working on the car, so he had the wheels blocked off so it couldnt roll anywhere... and then instead of even working on the car he spent all day moving his desk from the living room to the bedroom.

While moving things around, he stepped on the rose my son had made for me and squashed it.

I spent basically the entire day sobbing because I was so angry with my boyfriend for ruining everything my son had tried to do for me. The worst part is, he still doesnt even think he did anything wrong. He blames me for being emotional and getting upset. I told him I would never forgive him for ruining what was supposed to be a special day.

Unfortunately we are both on the lease so I can't just kick him out. I have been trying to find a new apartment for months but it's been difficult to find something I can afford. He claims he is also looking but still refuses to leave even though it would be exponentially easier for him to find a studio than for me to find another 2 bedroom. It seems like he's just making this whole process as difficult as possible just to spite me.

Pictured is a chorizo burrito. Comfort food.

Edit to add: because several people have accused me of not caring about the rose because I put it on the floor, I feel I should clarify. I put it on the floor right in front of the fan to dry because it was still wet. The fan is right by the couch in a spot that never sees foot traffic because it's next to a wall. I did not expect him to walk through that area because no one ever does.