Atlanta is at the center of the fraudulent rental application world. According to The Wall Street Journal, as many as half of rental applications contain fraudulent data, and social media is a major catalyst in providing or selling information and application "packages" with falsified financials and fake employer documents, among other items.

The WSJ linked fraud to "unbalanced housing market[s]," and that if it's too good to be true, it likely is just that. Prospective residents searching for quick move-ins in a day or less are likely to be fraudulent applications, according to an apartment manager in the article.

The Journal cites data from the National Multifamily Housing Council to show that nearly 75% of owners reported witnessing a 40% increase, on average, of application and payment fraud in 2024 compared to 2023.

Learn more about fraud and some of the solutions to help combat it.