• @Venat0r@lemmy.world
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      4 days ago

      if they had had an apartment to rent out it would’ve been totally OK and not fraud and a very normal thing to expect a landlord to do though 😅

    • @Demonmariner@lemmy.world
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      -18 days ago

      It’s not fraud if you tell the applicant what the rental criteria are and what happens to the money if they are turned down.

      In ancient times, I was a small time landlord. On a couple of occasions I asked for an application fee. I followed these rules, which I explained to the applicant:

      1. The application fee was refunded if I turned down the applicant, provided the background check did not disclose a lie on the application.
      2. The application fee was applied to the security deposit if I granted the rental.
      3. The application fee was not refunded if the background check found a lie on the application, or if I granted the rental and the applicant changed their mind and declined to rent.

      It costs money to do background checks. I wasn’t going to be out of pocket if an applicant was dishonest with me.

        • @Demonmariner@lemmy.world
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          15 days ago

          Of course, it’s often a scam. But application fees can be legit. The key is how they are administered.

          The fee should not be non refundable, just not refunded under certain specific circumstances.