Real estate fraud hasn’t died, it’s just shifted gears a little. A brazen scammer working in Round Rock, north of Texas showed his "customers" several properties before renting out a home- that wasn’t for rent:

Timothy Alonzo Nero did everything he could to convince customers he was a legitimate real estate agent, Round Rock police say.

The 25-year-old had business cards, a convincing company name — BGN Management— and two office addresses. In at least one case, he had a key to the home he was trying to rent out.

But after Nero collected $25 for an application fee and $499 for a discounted first month’s rent, his potential renters found that the key he’d given them to 1008 Howell Terrace Place home didn’t work, police say.

They’d been scammed, police say. Nero’s story worked on at least five people between May 24 and Tuesday, Round Rock police officer Eric Poteet said.

"He would walk each victim through the process just as if he was a real estate agent leasing a house to somebody," Poteet said. "He took care of every detail."

 After the deal was cut, his victims started noticing the holes in his story-

The wrong key, Poteet said, "was the first indication of a problem."

They then found that the home was for sale, not for lease. And Nero wasn’t selling it.

The phone number on Nero’s business card was for a disposable phone that was turned off, Poteet said. The addresses on his card were for the San Marcos City Hall and the Hays County landfill.

Nero has never been licensed as a real estate agent by the Texas Real Estate Commission, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

 So how did he lure his victims in?

The alleged victims had responded to a posting on the Web site Craig’s List for a four-bedroom home with hardwood floors, a large kitchen pantry and fenced-in backyard for $800 a month without a credit check, the affidavit said.

Nero, who went by the last name of Hero, showed several homes in Round Rock to the potential renters before convincing them that the house on Howell Terrace Place was the best buy, Poteet said.

Most of the victims were convinced after looking at the home from the outside, Poteet said. At least one person saw the home’s interior, he said.

Poteet said investigators do not know how Nero obtained a key to the home.

"He aroused not a single suspicion," Poteet said.

Moral of the story-

You might want to make sure your agent has better credentials than a business card and a listing on Craigslist!