Well, the system prevails. My problem with dealing with the property management company yesterday was my concept of "they". When I switched from talking with the person I was dealing with to the department's manager, my situation was completely different. The manager, after my explanation of the situation, was extremely helpful and said that she would return a portion of the fee for the application and said the remainder was for their efforts in setting me up and contacts to the landlord and that she would look into checking my U.S. credit and that most likely she could wave the need for a Guarantor. Cool huh. You have to be speaking with the right person to get things done properly. Live and learn.