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Signed in as:
filler@godaddy.com
Louie joined Social Earth in the winter of 2024, bringing years of customer service and property management experience to our team. She knows Austin and our rental market well and is a powerful professional advocate to have in your journey finding your next home. You're in good hands with Louie!
We use a powerful search database only available to licensed real estate agents to begin building a long list of potential apartments that are in your preferred area of town and may have pricing within your desired budget.
We then call/email each property to confirm availability, pricing, check on current move-in specials, and also confirm any other details you may have asked us to obtain for you. As we go down your preliminary list and confirm details with each place, we remove the ones that don't end up having units that match your criteria.
We are calling and emailing with properties every single day of the year, collecting notes along the way. Our team is constantly working to stay up-to-date on the latest pricing, availabilities, and move-in specials.
As we continue working on your list of top options, we take your criteria to filter our notes for all relevant property matches. We review team communication, admin notes, leasing agent+apartment locator social media groups, and the many email blasts we receive from leasing teams - all to make sure we haven't missed anything in our searches for you.
After your agent has built a solid list of apartment contenders and gathered the pertinent information on each, we'll then compare them to your criteria to see which are the best matches.
Keeping your desired criteria in mind, we'll compare the remaining options to each other, using our professional discernment to remove the weakest options.
Then we will compile and condense the information into a detailed yet easy-to-read email for your review.
Don't worry about any back-and-forth between properties trying to align your schedule with theirs! We'll handle all of that for you.
Simply let your agent know when you're available to check out a property, and we'll work to make it happen. Running late or need to reschedule? Just shoot your agent a quick text, and we'll handle the rest.
We also send them your guest card information so you don't have to fill out all of your contact info, moving criteria, and pet information at each property you visit. We'll already have that taken care of for you, and we'll make sure the property is expecting you (and us being able to do this is what helps us be acknowledged as your referral source--a nice win-win).
Making your decision from out-of-state or not able to physically tour?
We'll make whatever you need happen. Whether we head to your favorite properties and FaceTime you from them or setup a virtual tour between you and the leasing office, we are here to help.
Specifics about how certain move-in specials work, tips on making sure you don't accidentally disqualify yourself from Look-and-Lease specials, obtaining fee sheets and site maps, questions about accepted dog breeds, different lease lengths and how that may affect pricing, how long a property will hold an available unit without the price changing, how package deliveries are handled at the property, how strict they may be with their approval process, information about using a guarantor/co-signor, figuring out the estimated driving times to your workplace or favorite spots around town, navigating through the application process; and recommendations for things like moving companies, coffee shops, and restaurants in your new area of Austin--we've got your back! That was a long sentence!
As a thank you for trusting us to help you find your next space here in Austin, we would love to send you a $50 gift card to one of the locally-owned businesses we're committed to promoting.
Remember, we can only offer this if we are successfully acknowledged as your referral source. This involves both allowing us to make first contact with the property and also noting us as your referral on your apartment application.
About 30-60 days after you're moved in, expect your gift card to be e-mailed (and sometimes physically mailed) your way.
Check out our list of Social Local Businesses, and let your agent know which spot you'd like your gift card from.
Thank you for choosing to use our qualified team of real estate agents to find your next apartment. It means a lot to us.
If the apartment's application allows you to type in your referral source, please note:
Louie Shortt/Social Earth Locating
⬆️ This is a huge help in getting the property to acknowledge us as your referral source, which is the only way we're able to offer this free service.
I grew up on Tex-Mex, live music, and Barton Springs night swims in the one and only Austin, Texas.
I’ve lived in Austin my whole life—back when Mopac could actually get you anywhere in under 15 minutes and Cedar Park was considered the boonies.
I’ve moved around almost every corner of the city, (if you were to tell me 10 years ago I would at one point live in Liberty Hill I would have responded, “Where?”) and every neighborhood has its own energy and surprises.
You could say I’ve tried to get away a few times (AKA my time in Liberty Hill). but Austin has a way of getting into your bones and staying with you.
Even as the city evolves, it’s a place that feels like home and where I have chosen to raise my family.
I am an avid reader and could spend hours reading my books. Yes, plural. I do not believe in finishing one book before you start a new one. I usually choose a fiction for the required use of my imagination and then either a history or philosophy book of sorts for something educational—and there is nothing more fun than the serendipity of a coincidental connection between your fictional book and your educational book! Those moments are what my dreams are made of.
When I’m not reading, you’ll probably find me baking or working on a Lego set. I make a mean gluten free pumpkin bread and you should definitely see my Animal Crossing Lego Island.
I’m also a huge fan of anything that lets me be outside in nature. Whether it’s playing baseball with my son, swimming in the nearest body of water (because if there’s water nearby, I will be in it!), or just sitting on the porch with a glass of full proof bourbon; spending time outside brings me a sense of peace and connection.
One of the things I truly appreciate about Austin is its deep-rooted belief in the importance of the arts.
From the murals on the walls to the live performances on every corner, Austin has always been a city where creativity thrives. It’s a place where art isn’t just something you look at or listen to—it’s a part of daily life. That makes Austin feel alive in a way that’s hard to describe but easy to feel.
For me, real estate is more than just finding someone a place to live—it's about helping them discover a space where they can truly thrive.
I’ve always had a fascination with homes. As a kid, I loved going to the Parade of Homes and marveling at how each house seemed to tell its own unique story. That interest in architecture and design stuck with me.
Then while working in property management during the onset of unprecedented times in 2020-2021, I noticed a shift in how we viewed our homes. Before, homes were just places where we ate, slept, and kept our things. But during a time where we were encouraged to stay home, they became so much more.
Our homes transformed into our place of solace from an uncertain world—they became places where we could dream, create, and imagine new possibilities for the future. I saw how the right space could inspire hope, spark creativity, and nurture personal growth in a way that was more profound than ever before.
There is nothing better than witnessing how someone shifts when they walk into a home that genuinely speaks to them. I believe that’s what makes real estate so powerful and I feel honored to be a fascinator in the creation of someone else’s story.
If you ever find a googly eye in an obscure location around Austin, 8.17 times out of 10, I probably put it there.
Apartments lose big chunks of money when their units sit empty. It makes much more sense for them to pay us a finder’s fee out of their marketing budget each time we bring them a new lease. And this is how we keep our lights on and our dogs fed!
Helping you find the best available apartment that meets your needs is a win-win-win for you, your new apartment community, and us - a local Austin company!
Our locators work hard to satisfy our peeps, and it isn't always easy! Did you know apartments don't pay their finder's fee to your locator until 30 to 90 days *after* you move in?! The two most important things you can do to help ensure your Apartment Locator gets compensated for their time and efforts are:
1) making sure they are able to send a quick email to any property of interest before you make any contact with the property
2) listing their name or their office name (Social Earth Locating) as the referral on your application--or if there's no place to type that in, you'll select the "Locator/Real Estate Agent" option in the referral section!
It is our honor to assist you in finding your next space to call home.
We work tirelessly to locate the best properties and deals around town. Our expertise and tools are great help to both apartments and residents.
We simplify your searching by applying your criteria to what is currently available on the market. After presenting you with your top matches, we’ll double check fine details, schedule tours, stay on top of leasing agents to ensure your application’s approval, and much more. It doesn't cost you anything, you find the apartment you're looking for and enjoy a simplified search process, and you're helping a small and locally-owned business.
Thank you for trusting us to help you in your apartment search. We know first hand how important and impactful of a decision choosing where to live is, and we're honored to work hard for you to find what you're looking for.
Most apartments run on a 60-day notice with their current tenants, so we won't see most properties' full availability until within 60 days of your desired move date.
However! There are exceptions to this "rule." Some properties run on 90 day notices, some tenants give notice very early, and we're regularly seeing new properties under construction popping up. Brand new apartments that are finishing up construction can often see multiple months in advance since they don't have any existing tenants and are working to pre-lease their soon to be completed units. New construction apartments are also where we'll most often see better rates and move-in specials (because their occupancy rate is at 0%, and they need to get to as close to 100% as quickly as possible.)
So with all of that in mind, get connected with us as early as you'd like! Even if your move is a year away, we'll put together a "snap list" for you to review just so you can get an idea of the market and what to expect.
When you're about 90 days out from your desired move date, we'll begin to get more active with our searches for you (this way we can be early to catch any units at brand new spots with solid rates and specials. Once you're within 60-days, that's when we really start to party and begin deep dive searches to find you the best apartment options that match what you're looking for.
What an exciting question! The very first step is getting in contact with a good home loan officer to see how much you're pre-approved for. If you're ready for it, the pre-approval process is actually pretty simple! Most of the documents you'll email to the loan officer are the same documents (bank statements, tax return, copy of your ID) you'd have to send leasing agents to get approved for an apartment.
After you've sent those basic documents to the loan officer, they'll need just a few days to run your credit, crunch some numbers, and let you know how much you've been pre-approved for. Once you have your pre-approval letter, you'll send that to your Realtor so they know what price of homes to find for you, and y'all are good to start house shopping!
If you already know of a good home loan lender, that is key. And if you don't, that's a-okay; we can get you in contact with one of our trusted lenders who will have some great tips for boosting your credit, readying pre-approval documents, and securing the best interest rate available.
From the day your offer on a house gets accepted by the seller, the standard closing process takes at least 30 days. Anywhere between 60-120 days before you're wanting to be moved into your new house is a great time to get pre-approved and start shopping. If you're not working under a certain timeframe, then one of the smartest things to do is passively peruse until you find what you're looking for. This is all the more reason to hire a good Realtor that can use their tools and resources to constantly watch the market for you.
Ask us for our Home Buying 101 Checklist.
Check out our Careers page for more information!
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