I and two prospective roommates (we are not related) have been in search of a 3 bedroom house to rent in Florida. We've applied for a 3 bedroom townhouse, paid the application fee, and are waiting on the response of the owner to see if we will be able to rent the house. The landowner seems to be dragging their feet, and it wasn't until several days (4-5) after we had submitted our application that we got this text from the realtor who had shown us the property.

"The landlord is hesitating your application due to you are not family. But still considering. sorry for waiting."

As it stands, we absolutely qualify in terms of income, passed the background check, and were likely the first to apply. When we applied, we were told that since we were not related, we each would have to fill out our own form and pay an application fee each. The form itself had a section titled "List others who will reside in this house on a permanent basis" with a field for each persons income.

I know the text from the realtor isn't necessarily the exact words of the property owner, but at the very least, wouldn't that mean we could reasonably request a refund of the application fee as the format of applying (each person filling out a form) already made us unlikely to get the house?

P.s. the townhouse is part of a larger building. Only that one unit is owned by the property owner, the whole remaining building is part of a vacation rental company which is not affiliated with our prospective landlord.

Thank you ahead of time for your consideration and suggestions.