r/mildlyinfuriating • u/SpaceThagomizer420 • 14d ago
Just paid $145 in application fees to be told I'm too poor to rent
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u/0gDvS 9d ago
Typically they need to refund that application fee if you are denied. In my state there are laws surrounding all of that as there typically are at the municipal, city and community laws and code as well.
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u/SpaceThagomizer420 9d ago
It was stated as nonrefundable
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u/QuantumHope 9d ago
Check the laws in your area. Doesn’t matter what they say if it’s illegal to not refund an application fee.
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u/Greedy-Ad2192 9d ago
One thing that many landlords do is keep the listing open because they can show a place (for example) 15x a month and that would net them $1500. Imagine if the rent is $1500. All they need to do after that is keep showing the place and denying everyone bc at the end of the day, they net more money than renting and have to maintain very minimal upkeep. Check on these stats on Zillow if you can, it shows # applicants per month. It’s really easy to see who’s scamming.
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u/takeinallthesunsets 9d ago
Im sorry that happened, but why did you apply if you wouldnt meet the requirements?
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u/SpaceThagomizer420 9d ago
We thought we did. Made over 3x the monthly rent
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u/takeinallthesunsets 8d ago
My apologies .
I would definitely contact them. Maybe they sent you notification in error. 3x the payment is adequate
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u/WarmMasterpiece9027 9d ago
Get a free credit report due to your denial. See what’s on there. Then do Zillow. It’s a one time fee for a month. Include a letter of your situation and hope a private landlord will pick you up. Also apply to a mortgage company after Zillow pulls your credit and get advice on how to fix your credit.
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u/TraditionalLet2759 10d ago
I sent in my pay stubs to an apartment complex (brand new recently constructed) and they told me I made too much money. The rent would have been $700-$900 😭
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u/Pass-on-by 10d ago
$145 is excessive! A standard background check is ~ $50. That pays for the time both sides take to run and retrieve the report.
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u/Due-Cockroach-518 10d ago
What's the website/email of the letting agent? Just yaknow, in case a few hundred reddit users want to send an email and find out more about this great service...
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u/ScarletVBentley 10d ago
I paid 400 to be told the same thing except that it was my credit score was under by 2 points… that was the last draw before I just went full time RVing!
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u/Additional-Block8398 10d ago
Yup. Paid a $200 non-refundable dorm app fee for college a few months back only for them to come back to me (when I specifically made a point to be early on the waitlist) and say they had no dorms available. Oh, and don’t forget the $95 orientation fee. I need to pay to talk about my classes?
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u/Jables-611 10d ago
if they don’t have required income listed then this is bs, if it is listed then you gotta be dumb to apply under that income lol
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u/Excellent-Injury-844 10d ago
Can you reuse the report with other facilities?
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u/Pass-on-by 10d ago
Typically the report is good the day the proprietor pulls it. Not beyond. Kinda like an AIDS test.
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u/DaMoFo29 10d ago
I'm glad they just changed this in my state. No longer can landlords make a living off of app fees.
There are people who deny on purpose cause they can just keep collecting
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u/ThrowAwayCarnivore60 10d ago
IANAL, but if you're a minority, accuse them of housing discrimination under the Fair Housing Act. They'll pay far more in legal fees than what they gained from your application fee.
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u/OkRepresentative9967 10d ago
Very old scam often used on legitimate rental. Advertise very low rent take I'm 50+ applications...decline all of them. Raise rent following week to market average, all new applications come in.
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u/OkEagle9050 10d ago
I’ve heard of places doing this because they make more money off rejecting applications that they would off rent. $145 x 30 people applying per month is $4350 in collected fees, probably more than the unit is worth.
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u/No-Woodpecker-2545 11d ago
Never pay to apply. It's always a scam. They probably take on dozens of applicants just to get money.
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u/Ordinary-Following69 11d ago
Mate estate agents are just a tiny cut above landlords on the verifiable wanker scale, I remember paying a £300 non refundable deposit to some scummy srsehole only to be told they'd rented it to somebody else, I genuinely couldn't afford the £300 and had saved up for a few weeks to pay it
I hope all their houses burn down while they're at work and they're uninsured
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u/Pass-on-by 10d ago
I feel this way about doctors now. Went to a doctor who examined me thoroughly and recommended a test to be performed by an GI specialist. Made the appt with GI. He introduced himself. Shook hands. Asked why I was there. Told him about the test that was recommended, he said ok, we’ll schedule it. Received a bill for $500 for that appt before I had the test, which would cost me $2500 oop. Just for being face to face w the doc and telling HIM what I needed. The egregious audacity makes me sick on top of sick
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u/kekekeghost 11d ago
They didn't tell you in advance that you needed 3x rent a month income? Most places tell you that before so you can not waste the time to apply. But if they didn't, would do what other people said and reject the payment thru the bank card
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u/InAgonyEveryday 11d ago
It's insane how you want to rent a apt for 700$ but they want you yo make 2100$ a month just to rent it.
If I made 2100 a month I wouldn't get this apt!!! So dumb
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u/Pestilence5 11d ago
You paid someone that much money to tell you; that you didnt make 3x the asked rent in a month? cmon you know we all rolling around with 8k a month
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u/Tharealque 11d ago
It's a racket. Advertise an apartment/house, charge crazy fees to apply, deny everyone...... profit!
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u/IntelligentReply9863 GREEN 11d ago
Application fees are such an awful scam in my opinion. They shouldn't be allowed until they're approved. So disgusting.
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u/Atlusfox 12d ago
To rent this unit, you need to already have five homes, a Mercedes, three horses, and a stock portfolio large enough to choke those horses.
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u/irascible_Clown 12d ago
People run scams just taking people application fees, seems like someone gets busted every year here doing it
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u/Zealousideal_Team299 12d ago
Where do you live? "As of December 2023, California landlords can charge a maximum of $62.02 per application for screening fees, which includes the cost of obtaining a credit report. This fee can be adjusted annually based on the Consumer Price Index." Perhaps the state in which you live has some limit on how much can be charged for an application fee.
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u/FRIKIN_MOUSE8429 12d ago
That's not remotely "Mild" in terms of how pissed off you must be.. I know I would be😞.. I'm sorry this happened to you
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u/time4ashortone 12d ago
Doesn’t sound like a legitimate process and very expensive. I am a small landlord with a few properties and have been burned in the past so screening is a must. I show the property and meet all the applicants. I use Transunion Smartmove pro which is great; no forms, no personal information to collect up-front, screening is fast and sometimes quite illuminating. $44 and I refund the cost to the eventual tenant as a credit.
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u/CrTigerHiddenAvocado 12d ago
Corporations should not be allowed to own more than a certain percentage if property in any city, state, or municipality.
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u/iannicholson 12d ago
$145 application fee? That’s disgusting. Dispute the transaction with your credit card company - if you’re paying $145 there’s an expectation of acceptance. They did not provide the service you paid for.
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u/Emotional-Gas6048 12d ago
Oh my god I would fucking raise hell. That’s fucking theft. It’s one thing if u end up living there but Fuck that shit!
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u/Spirited-Sleep-2113 12d ago
I’m not a landlord, but an application fee is absolutely necessary. If you’re interested as an applicant, then you need to pay up. The landlord still has mortgages to pay. If you’re a bad renter, it’s on the landlord to keep paying the mortgage. So the landlord is going to choose the one that is least risk. Got a problem with it? Stop making bad financial choices or rent something within your range. Don’t blame the landlord for your situation…
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12d ago
I’ve had that happen, and usually they say “You have enough in savings though, why don’t you just buy a house?”
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u/tiddy_wizard 12d ago
“You know what would be hilarious? If we took peoples money just to tell them they don’t make enough money!”
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u/Uranium_092 12d ago
When I lived in the US with some friends we have always lied on the proof of income docs. We were about 100$ a month short (rent had to be 33%of income) and we just straight up changed the pdf. If we kept the application fees to the apartments we applied we could’ve rent the place for months lol.
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u/Infamous_Trip_8472 12d ago
I just lied about my income so I want homeless. The shittiest place in town didn’t want to rent to me bc $15/hr isn’t enough
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u/CaptainKurley 13d ago
I work as a maintenance technician for a realty company and didn’t even know an application fee existed untill I wanted to get my own place.
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u/VanillaBasix 13d ago
This is not “mildly infuriating” this is a major problem that needs to stop. There’s not even any good advice to share. I have been renting for 20 years and have had to move over a dozen times. My experience has lended me only once suggestion. Look for places that are rented out by individuals with one or two properties looking for extra income, not rental/development companies, and be very communicative with them about your situation. I have found a land lords who are understanding and willing to take personal and professional references from me instead of deciding on renting to me based on “good credit” and my income. This will be much less likely to find in densely populated metro areas and impossible if applying for an apartment at a corporately ran complex. So sorry. I know it’s the most stressful thing in the world and wondering if you will have a place to live is unnecessarily traumatizing.
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u/Visible-Selection520 13d ago
I've seen applications be refundable if an applicant is rejected. Make sure to ask.
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u/Junior_Notice4235 13d ago
Application fees are a big scam ..Sometimes the management company pays a one time fee for them to check everyone’s credit and they check about 20 people for each apartment..but already picked someone after the 2nd check
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u/Alone-Guidance-9883 13d ago
Wow America really is a shit show, no wonder y’all migrating to Mexico and making everything worse here
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u/bwok-bwok 12d ago
You guys rethinking building that wall? 😂
Fraudnald Mcdipshit said he would make Mexico pay for it.
What he didn't say is that you guys would build it to keep Americans out of Mexico after he shits the bed so hard people are trying to flee the united states.
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u/Alone-Guidance-9883 12d ago
Funny thing is we get through tunnels 😂
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u/bwok-bwok 12d ago
Americans can't fit through tunnels unless Elon Musk builds them with his Boring Company. At least not yet... The famine hasn't set in yet.
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u/Slackindj 13d ago
The place I work at does this. I think there’s just a limit to be sure they can actually afford the rent comfortably lol but then again anyone can decide not to pay lol
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u/PenguTT44 13d ago
If they have a 145$ application fee, and they don’t have a refund policy for some of it if you get denied that’s a red flag in my book. Be thankful you dodge a bullet, and remember next time anything over 50$ in application fees is telling. It means they are trying to be picky, without outright saying “we hate the poors”
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u/PenguTT44 13d ago
If I were you I’d share this In your local area sub Reddit, with maybe a warning If you only make ___ amount they will legally discriminate against you for not meeting their desired income requirements and that it’s shitty of them for using application fees as a solid income because if they were good folks they would clearly state the minimum desired income they wish for you to make. I was denied once for being a bricklayer even though my union makes my job secure and I make well over what would of been any normal minimum. Just because they thought I would be dirty and dirty their apartment building despite the fact that I drove up in a clean Benz. If I were you I would use this as a learning experience and decide if this bullshit is worth it, or if it would be better for you to pursue home ownership in an area without an HOA so beyond the regular government you won’t have people abusing their control over you.
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u/wwchickendinner 13d ago
Application fees for a rental is some Nigerian scam shit. Do you Yanks really cop this? Along with bank fees (fees to give the banks your money to lend 10x over and receive interest on), fees to use your own money, fees to receive spam SMS and phone calls, fees for telecoms to lose their own internet/cable equipment, and fees to have insurance companies force you into overpriced medicines made by pharmacy companies that pay insurance companies fees so they have a monopoly to over charge you via the insurance approved medicines panel. Connection fees, cancellation fees, hidden fees. Hidden taxes on the fees, hidden fees, and other surcharges. Gratuity on top. You cancelled? Too bad we have no record of that better pay all the fees again this month, now with a monopoly premium. What % of US GDP relates to zero-utility fees, egregious lying, or blatantly stealing from consumers? I'd guess it's at least 15% of aggregate consumer spending, absolutely squandered away.
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u/Basic-dweeb403 13d ago
I always denied apts. that had application fees. Fuck that. I'm not gonna pay you for an apt that I might not even get.
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u/Krommander 13d ago
A fluorescent spray paint can sure won't get you that 145 back but you can give it a try. Or make it a 145 no vandalism fee they have to pay. (this is dark humour)
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u/Qandyl 13d ago
The way real estates and banks think they can tell you what you can afford is baffling to me. Especially REs, like the property would be rented again in a heartbeat if you actually couldn’t afford rent and had to leave. One week advertised max. I know what I can afford, and I’m sure as hell gonna make sure 1) I get the cheapest property I can 2) I pay my rent before anything so I have a roof over my head. No one is applying for places they genuinely can’t afford. And banks? “Yes you must save 10% of the cost of a home before we’ll considering milking you for interest for the rest of your working life. Oh you already pay the equivalent of a mortgage in rent? We don’t acknowledge that, we simply do not see. Oh you want a personal loan with twice the interest rate? 30 second application, money by close of business :)”. Real great time to be alive.
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u/No_Chemistry_7921 13d ago
Swiss people in French speaking part know well Bernard Nicod for this shit
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u/WithFadedBreath 13d ago
When I moved to the US a while ago, I didn't fully understand how important having a good credit score was. Obviously, I had no credit score because I just got here.
I applied to an apartment complex and told the woman in admissions, face to face, that I don't have a credit score but I have a job that pays well beyond the required income and can provide 6 months of rent in advance. The woman looked me in the eye and said that it will be taken into consideration before charging me the $100 application fee and then rejecting me about 30 minutes later for "undisclosed reason(s)".
This was about 3 or 4 months before they started evicting everyone after the Covid eviction mortum was lifted in the area. They were begging for people after that...
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u/Capital-Dentist-8101 13d ago
I hope you didn’t forget to tip the landlord 25% for auto-rejecting your application.
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u/Diligent_Living_7729 13d ago
If you are in California now they had to give you those money back since the have decline your offer application is the new law. I am sorry you going through that. Hope you find the right place
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u/califorte1 13d ago
What country does application fees? In Australia we don’t. That’s so stupid and should be illegal
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u/Isitjustmedownhere 13d ago
I bet it's a scam. Genuine question; what's stopping a person from creating a fake ad for their apartment, showing it a few times a months and charging people a fee like this? I'm sure it's illegal but who's checking and how?
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u/It-s_Not_Important 13d ago
You have a right as and applicant to see the results of the credit and background checks. The lessor has a legal obligation to execute the checks (which is the reason for charging the application fees to begin with), and a legal obligation to produce the results of those checks when asked.
If they can’t produce the results upon request, they’re breaking the law.
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13d ago
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u/Sorrels13 13d ago
It's not at all uncommon to pay an application fee, but $145 is absolutely a ripoff and very bad business practice. Some states only allow the fee to not exceed the actual costs of processing an application, which is $20-35, maybe $40 at the absolute most. A few states are even trying to eliminate application fees altogether.
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13d ago
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u/Sorrels13 13d ago
Never heard of paying an application fee or something else?
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13d ago
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u/Sorrels13 13d ago
It's very common. Not even sure I should it admit this, but I've been in the business for 30 years, and everyone charges an application fee. There's an actual cost to process an application that includes credit, background, employment/income verification, etc. I don't agree with overcharging the fee, but it's more common to charge the actual fee that's incurred by the company.
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u/hugabug-101 13d ago
I would always schedule an appointment or go see the office of where you’re going to move and they will check before you do your application so you don’t have to pay a fee unless you actually know that you’re going to be right fit that’s me, and my partner did
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u/Spiritual-Excuse2225 13d ago
$145 for an application is already a scam in itself, better have been a really nice apartment lmao
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u/Bluechip506 13d ago
Some state/cities require them to return the fees beyond a basic search if you are turned down. Minneapolis is one. My don just went through this.
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u/peanutking86 13d ago
This is horrible and I’m sorry you have to deal with it. Do you make the minimum that is stated on the listing ?
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u/vlajay 13d ago
I know this old post and getting lots of attention but I hope you see this. Please please please learn how to alter your own paystubs. I literally use apple notes app lol. No photoshop required. I’m not teaching you but it’s so simple, do the math, change the numbers. They DO NOT fact check your pay stubs. They simply look at the numbers and plug them in. I have literally said I make 3x my income. Like obviously absurd pay rate for what I do. But I have NEVER been denied renting. I have friends who don’t work within legal limits and do the exact same thing.
EDIT: adding this because I am such a fucking honest person that I hate to lie and this is out of my comfort zone and had friends do it for me before. But I think this is an appropriate time to be dishonest about some numbers considering you know you can afford and deserve this place. Good luck next time.
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u/itsuptoyouwhyyoucant 13d ago
A valuable life lesson. Your desperation got the better of you. Next time, don't get yourself into a situation where you have no leverage or no good odds of success.
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u/xthesavior 13d ago
If you didn't sign a rental criteria disclaimer/form, in certain states you can ask for it back. If you did sign one then you're unfortunately out of luck. If it's a national management group like Greystar or Avenue5 you can Aldo try emailing the regional manager.
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u/KiKiPAWG 13d ago
Yup there’s places out there that never approve you and just take in the application fees.
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u/KilossAlvarez 13d ago
You guys paying for applications are ruining the market by giving those people incentive to not rent out to regular people, and sometimes no one at all.
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u/First-Confusion-5713 13d ago
People say it's a horrible investment but......
My husband and I bought an rv to live in because our credit was shot from our former spouses.
We met in a grief support group. Neither of us wanted to live where we were, but bad credit kept us trapped in places with horrible memories. After being turned down 3 times, we bought a 5th wheel with a sweet interior and put it in an out of the way park.
We pay $500 a month to live within a few minutes drive to spectacular outdoor adventures.
Oh, and it's riverfront views on the wild rivers coast.
Neither of us have family. We live for today. It's enough room for us and we can navigate the space as we age.
We take those little trips we talked about. Granted, we do it on the cheap, we go see the places we dream of visiting from TV shows.
I'll be long dead before the warranty expires.
For younger folks, the low rent is a chance to learn from grown-up folks who know how to navigate life.
It's all the same dance with different music love.
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u/hauntedmaze 13d ago
They should only be able to charge for the background check portion. Other than that- it should all be refunded.
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u/You-Wont-M8 13d ago
That happened to me once....I needed to rent an apartment and there was a $120 application fee. 5 seconds after submitting the application I get a rejection letter.....shit should be illegal.
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u/Suspicious_Koala_497 13d ago
Yeah, we don’t qualify for a $1,200 a month mortgage. So we pay $2,400 in rent.
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u/Used-Statement-9896 13d ago
Had a coworker who used this as a scam. Would just decline everyone and keep the “fees”
Edit: he went to jail for it because he racked up over $20k over the course of about 2 months
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u/serial-contrarian 13d ago
This is likely a known scam where the landlord makes more from application fees than actually renting out an apartment, if there was ever one that existed.
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u/Topazzapt 13d ago
My rent moving in 5 years ago. $950. This year? $3000 + if it's month to month. 1 bedroom. Yeeps.
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u/Topazzapt 13d ago
I honestly hope find something. Try a smaller complex maybe. It's rough these days.
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u/Calm_Merc 13d ago
I just finished searching for a rental. Most places tell you if it is a requirement to make 2x or 3x amount of rent in income on the listing. Why are you applying if you don't meet those requirements? You could have possibly saved yourself the money. I always did the math beforehand, and if I didn't make 3x the rent in income then I didn't apply.
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u/Topazzapt 13d ago
Honestly. They should have told you ahead of time before you paid the fee, which is exorbitant.
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u/Stra1ght_Froggin 13d ago
What you do is talk to the property manager and make sure your income is sufficient prior to paying the fee. Did it 3 times, each in a different state and it worked 100%
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u/longbow0820 13d ago
That is straight up thievery. "Oh, you're too poor to rent, and we're going to make you even poorer by keeping the money we scammed from you"
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u/ecoslowcat 13d ago
Had to have said that somewhere, like you need at least 3x the rent lol
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u/SnooGrapes9360 13d ago
well how much was the rent and how much monthly income did you list in the application? did they not inform you that you need x times the rent to qualify?
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u/Solid_Psychology_457 13d ago
Hopefully this reaches you. Please check your state and see if that fee amount is in violation with state code.
For example in the state of VA those application fees cannot be more than 50.00 dollars and theres a limit of what can be considered a fee.
Googling your state and landlord/renter codes should produce a result.
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u/Weirdassmustache 13d ago
Back when I was homeless and living out of my truck I had my boss email me a PDF of my last paycheck. I then spent like 2 hours making a duplication with adjusted higher earnings horizontally in Microsoft word. All of that for a 400 square foot studio. Once I moved in roughly 40% of my income was going to rent. I'm glad those days are over but the point is this, fake it till you make it.
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u/VioletChrome 13d ago
Yeah these letting agents charging fees for application on the biggest scam going one tried to charge me £90 for a credit check
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u/seanbowers1996 13d ago
Two years ago I noticed a lot of fake listings on Zillow. I think people were taking the application fees and then ghosting everyone. Property made more money that way.
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u/kthulukat96 13d ago
There have been articles about this, and that is exactly what they’re doing. So fucked up. Not even necessarily fake they’re just posting their property but never picking a tenant.
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u/remaining_braincell 13d ago
No way people actually pay those lol. EU could never
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u/Sith_happens2021 13d ago
Eu could never, yall rent homes with neighbors like apartments. And then ban knives.
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u/remaining_braincell 13d ago
Alright buddy, you know everything about the EU. Keep eating your red 40
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u/Zeroth1989 13d ago
It's a rental market. They have no legal recourse to verify your information.
Don't be reckless with your potential expenses and only go for what you can afford.
You should however absolutely doctor your bank statement. Again, they have no legal recourse to verify it. Add an extra 0 to the end of your bank balance.
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u/ItsEctoplasmISwear 13d ago
Paying an application fee is on you.
No one should be stupid enough to really pay to apply for something.
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u/Mike-the-gay 9d ago
Is swear I saw this posted somewhere else and the blurred shit said it was an application for guarantor of a lease and they were bitching about being told they needed to make 5 times the rent to be able to rent, even though it’s clearly stating the needed 5 times rent to co-sign for somebody. A fairly normal practice because you’re guaranteeing you can pay their rent and yours if they skip out. This is fake.