If you’re uncertain whether you’ve received a fake bank statement or not, one way to get answers is to reach out to a bank representative. If the bank statement contains multiple rounded numbers, that could be a red flag. Whether we’re talking about a paycheck amount or a rent payment, a rounded number is unlikely. People who create fake bank statements will often use round numbers.

When running over the numbers, keep one thing in mind. And when considering their current rent, since most people pay rent by check, the amount on their bank statement should be consistent with the rent they listed in their rental application. If they deposit their paychecks themselves, compare their take home pay with their check deposits. Once you have the applicant’s bank statements from the previous 30 to 90 days, compare the pay amount and employer on their direct deposits with the details on their bank stubs. The increase in the number of undetected fraudulent applications can partly be attributed to the difficulty in detecting fraud when documents are uploaded via online applications. One in 10 fraudulent applications used to go undetected. In fact, it’s worsened during the pandemic, according to Snappt’s “2020 Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Residential Rentals Survey.” The percentage of fraudulently altered applications has increased from 15% before the pandemic to 29% in September 2020. Unfortunately, the problem of fake bank stubs being submitted with rental applications hasn’t gone away. How to fight fraudulent rental applications We are going to offer some tips on how you catch these fraudsters before they become an issue.

Prospective tenants can use fake bank stubs to misrepresent their finances on rental applications, costing property managers thousands in losses.

Create fake bank account statement