Refund of so-called admin/lease fees

After taking almost a R1000 to process your application (why they have to, I don’t know because hardly any one other agency dies)they refuse to refund it if you don’t take the property. They only disclose the other costs involved once you need to sign the contract, if you decline….. we’ll wave your money goodbuy. They don’t even have to rent properties, they just have to advertise like this. From rent of R12500, it escalates to almost R16000. As a single mother how can I afford that? Took ages to get to sign the contract and then gets blamed for timing! Appalling!!!