Sylmar Man Sentenced in Rental List Scam

A man accused of operating a fraudulent rental listing service that charged clients $150 for a bogus list of apartments and homes pleaded no contest Monday to several misdemeanor counts of grand theft and business code violations.

Michael Rodriguez, 30, of Sylmar, was sentenced by Los Angeles Municipal Judge Craig Veals to 150 days in jail and ordered to pay up to $15,000 in restitution to victims of the scam.

Los Angeles Deputy City Atty. Mark Lambert said Rodriguez sold clients a list of properties that did not exist, were not available or rented for a higher price than listed. He and a partner had offices in North Hollywood, Van Nuys and Pasadena under several names.

Rodriguez promised to return clients’ money if they were not able to find a rental they liked. But when they asked for a refund, he would point to a clause in the contract requiring them to try the service for three months before refunds would be issued, according to the charges. The operation violated several state regulations of rental listing services--including one that allows the service to keep only a $25 fee if it is unable to find a rental for the client, Lambert said.

Rodriguez’s business partner, John Paul Begini, 33, of Toluca Lake, has pleaded not guilty to similar charges and is awaiting trial.

Lambert said many of the rental listings that Rodriguez provided were taken from the Recycler, the Pennysaver and other classified advertisements, and in many cases the owner of the property had never heard of the listing service.

Rodriguez was among the first of about half a dozen people targeted in a recent probe by the city attorney’s office and the state Department of Real Estate into rental listing scams in the San Fernando Valley and the Silver Lake-Atwater area.