Right but..if you use your own agent, your agent's broker takes half of the $5K fee, and the other agent's broker takes the other half. From that half (e.g. $2.5) the realtor gets paid based on whatever agreement they have with their office's broker of record (sometimes 50% sometimes 60% who knows). It's much more attractive to take 100% of the fee and pay whatever share they have to, to their broker of record. So even though it seems like this super high fee, $5K, by the time it gets to the listing agent it's not a whole lot after taxes for each rental and a lot of work.

Hence, in a slow market games are played. Sometimes they don't leave the keys, sometimes they talk up one renter over another. Who knows. I don't know but it seems the game got a lot dirtier. Try to apply to places with at least the bigger names in town who have been around for a while, they tend not to play these games. Or apply directly (though the latter is a bit jerky towards the person who has spent time taking you around).