Hi calgary people we need help
Subject: Scammed, verbally abused, and illegally kicked out by main tenants at BLVD Condos Calgary - Need Advice / Warning to others
Hi everyone,
My partner and I are Working Holiday participants from South Korea who arrived in Calgary less than a month ago. We are writing this to warn others and seek advice regarding a rental scam/illegal eviction we just experienced at BLVD Condos.
On July 8th, we moved into a room at BLVD Condos as roommates. The main tenants are an Indian couple. We paid $1,100 for the rent to the previous roommate as instructed.
Within a week, they started harassing us about utilities (which we agreed to split 50/50), constantly complaining about us using the laundry, taking showers, and turning on lights. Soon after, the Wi-Fi cut off. Since our eSIMs don't get data/signal in high-rise buildings, we asked when it would be fixed. They said it would take 2 weeks. Realizing we couldn't live like this, we politely told them we would move out at the end of the month.
Their attitude flipped instantly. They aggressively demanded our passport photos and forced us to register as roommates. However, the registration link they sent showed a fraudulent start date of July 2025 instead of July 2026, so we refused to sign. The next day, they demanded $55 based on an "estimated" Wi-Fi bill, not an official one. When we said we would pay once the official bill arrived, they screamed at us to get out the next day.
Yesterday, they promised they would calculate the remaining days and e-transfer us $680 if we handed over the keys and left. Today, we moved all our luggage down to the 1st floor. When we asked for the money before handing over the keys, they started screaming, swearing at us ("M*rfer"), and intimidating us. Being new to Canada, completely terrified, and feeling utterly helpless, we handed over the keys.
Once they got the keys, they shorted us $250 and only sent the rest. They then deleted the WhatsApp messages where they promised to give us $680 and blocked us.
We went to Calgary Police and the 1st-floor leasing manager, but both said they couldn't help because we weren't officially registered on the lease. It turns out the main tenants never registered us even though they took our work permits earlier.
We are absolutely devastated and disgusted. We noticed they are deeply religious and pray often, which makes this even more sickening. What kind of God are they even praying to? Is there truly a God out there that allows people to sell their souls and conscience for a measly $250? How can someone pray to a higher power while actively scamming and destroying the lives of young, helpless students who just arrived in a new country?
This whole situation feels like a living nightmare. Having gone through this nightmare only a month after arriving in Canada, I am overwhelmed with feelings of incompetence and stupidity. I feel so broken and hopeless that I just want to die.
We lost $250, were verbally abused, and got thrown onto the street. Is there any way we can hold them accountable? We have all the e-transfer receipts (sent to the previous roommate and received from them) and chat logs. Please beware of renting a room at BLVD from these people. Any advice would be highly appreciated