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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
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    Default Landlord Won't Refund an Application Fee Despite Agent's Misrepresentation

    A prospective tenant spoke with a leasing agent about a specific apartment listing. The leasing agent took an application fee for the landlord, and submitted the fee to the landlord. The landlord approved the application, but it turns out that the specific apartment had been rented four days before the agent took the fee, and the agent knew that the apartment was not available. The landlord says that the fee is nonrefundable, and won't return any money. How can the prospective tenant get a refund of the fee under Virginia law?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Default Re: Landlord Won't Refund an Application Fee Despite Agent's Misrepresentation

    The answer will depend on the facts, with the most likely factual issues relating to the specific terms of the application and the specific relationship between the landlord and the agent. I'm assuming that the application was for a rental property with multiple units, as if the landlord had no units available then the landlord should not be taking applications that require application fees from tenants for whom he has no space. There's also an issue of what the tenant can prove -- for example, if the agent denies that the application was for a specific unit, can the tenant convince a court that the agent is not being truthful?

    If the agent works directly for the landlord, the agent's misrepresentations will generally be attributable to the landlord, so if the agent told the tenant that the apartment was available and that the fee was for the application for a specific apartment, it may be possible to seek a refund on that basis. If this is an independent agent who is simply connecting tenants with landlords for properties listed for rent (e.g., on the MLS), then the agent's misrepresentations will generally not be attributable to the landlord -- but the tenant can try to pursue the agent for the money.

    The contract is also important. If the application contract states that the tenant is applying to live in a specific apartment, then the application should not have been accepted after the unit was rented. If the contract is for any unit in the building, then the contract terms of itself won't justify a refund based upon the unavailability of a specific unit within the rental property.

    The tenant can consider that information, and what the tenant may be able to prove in court, then consider pursuing the matter in small claims court.

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