Myself and two roomates just found our dream apt in NYC. We met with the realtor who had me pay $50 for a credit check and had us pay the full deposit for the apt of $1,700. I asked her if there was ANY possible way we would not get this apartment because we wanted to make sure it was safe to end our search and she replaied with "No, this management company is great, and the apt. is yours"

We then keep trying to call the realter to see when we meet the management company to pay our first month's rent and sign the official lease. About three days go by and finally she tells us that another person offerec $1,800 a month so they gave the apt. to them instead.

Is this legal if we already had our deposit down?

:(
We now have a few days to find a new place to live and still have to fight with them to get our deposit back.

Did you get a receipt for the deposit? If so what did it say. Generally a deposit means that you have been accepted pending a credit check.

However, if they refuse to give you the apartment, then you would have to file suit. You might have a lawsuit against the realtor and landlord and you can sue for costs in finding a new place.