A scam on the popular website Kijiji is luring potential renters to a home in Saskatoon that isn't for rent.

The scammers are posing as a local real estate agent Kari Calder and pretending to rent out houses that are actually for sale.

Calder knew something was wrong when she started getting phone calls from people who thought they exchanged emails with her. She has notified police after discovering that her name is being used by fraudsters in Nigeria.

The posting on Kijiji claims Calder is in Africa doing missionary work and asks people to send $1,000 in exchange for keys to the advertised home.

Calder did her own type of investigation by emailing the fake accounts under her name and she got a reply.

"All that it said was stupid Kari," she explained.

Most people Calder has spoken with were able to spot the fraud after getting emails that were suspiciously vague and filled with spelling and grammatical mistakes.

"But if English was not your first language, they're not going to necessarily understand that this isn't the way that we do stuff here."

Calder pointed out that she isn't the only one affected by this scam, because would-be renters could have potentially given notice where they currently live.

"They could be homeless and showing up with a U-haul truck," she said.

She isn't aware of this happening yet, but one woman told her she was very close to sealing the deal.

When News Talk Radio reporter Bre McAdam called a long-distance phone number provided in one of the correspondence emails, a man answered and told her that he was still trying to rent the house before hanging up when she identified herself as a reporter.

The Saskatoon Police Service's fraud unit wouldn't confirm whether it's investigating this scam but say they have been involved in similar cases.

Edited by News Talk Radio’s Adriana Christianson