# Is an Apartment Locator Free? How Texas Locators Get Paid > Communities pay the brokerage, and your rent is the same either way. How commissions work and why they never affect our score. URL: https://newapartmentsaustin.com/guides/is-an-apartment-locator-free/ Last-Modified: 2026-10-25 Guide · Guides # Is an Apartment Locator Free in Texas? How Locators Get Paid Communities pay the brokerage, and your rent is the same either way. How locator commissions work in Texas and why they never affect our score. Written by New Austin Apartment Team [/about/#new-austin-apartment-team →](/about/#new-austin-apartment-team) · Reviewed by the team, Spirit Real Estate Group, LLC · Updated October 25, 2026 · 5 min read - Free to you, and your rent is the same either way - 144 new communities tracked (as of Oct 25, 2026) - Prices pulled every morning ![Bright leasing lounge in a new Austin apartment building with a limestone wall and oak desk](/images/featured/bright-leasing-lounge-in-a-new-austin-apartment-bu.webp) - Licensed Texas brokerage Spirit Real Estate Group, LLC, TREC #562021 - Free to renters Communities pay the brokerage. Your rent is the same either way. - Prices pulled every morning Every card shows the date and time it was pulled - Score can't be bought Commission rates never affect score, sort, placement, or picks ## Do you pay anything to use an apartment locator in Texas? No. In Texas, apartment locators are licensed real estate brokerages or their agents, and the apartment community pays the brokerage a commission when a renter it referred signs a lease. You pay nothing, and your rent is the same either way. On Oct 25, 2026, our board tracked 144 new communities across the Austin metro, and that arrangement applies to every one we work with. ![Printed TREC brokerage disclosure form and a pen on an oak table](/images/content/editorial-flat-lay-of-a-printed-trec-brokerage-dis.webp) That’s the short answer. Here’s how it works in more detail, and how we keep the money from shaping what we recommend. If you want to see the service itself first, read how our free shortlist works [/ →](/) on the homepage. > **The one-line version** > > Communities pay Spirit Real Estate Group, LLC (TREC #562021). You pay $0. Your rent is the same either way. ## How do apartment locators get paid? New buildings budget for leasing costs while they fill. A lease-up building pays for marketing, leasing staff, and broker commissions because empty units cost more than any of those. When a renter we referred signs, the community pays the brokerage a commission set by the community. The commission comes out of the community’s leasing budget, not from your rent or deposit. Two things follow from that: | Question | Answer | | --- | --- | | Who pays the locator? | The apartment community pays the brokerage | | Does your rent change? | No, it’s the same either way | | Do you sign a fee agreement? | No fee to renters | | Who sets the commission? | The community | | Does it affect our picks? | No; commission rates never affect score, sort, placement, picks, or alerts | For you, the practical point is that the leasing office quotes us and you the same rent and the same special. When we ask for a deeper special or a waived fee, the saving goes to you. ## Why commissions never affect our score The obvious risk in a commission model is a locator steering you toward whichever building pays most. We handle that with a written commission policy: commission rates never affect the Austin New Build Score, the sort order on the board, placement, recommendations, or alerts. It’s enforced in the code that ranks every new building we track [/new-construction-apartments/ →](/new-construction-apartments/) , not left to judgment. The score itself is built from six parts that come from the feed: deal depth (30 points), price vs. nearby new builds (20), year-two risk (15), lease-up stage (15), fee disclosure (10), and build completion (10). None of those inputs is a commission rate, and the score never covers location, schools, reviews, or people. We also disclose relationships. Any affiliation between a listed community and Spirit Real Estate Group, LLC or the team is disclosed in writing before a tour. ## What is the TREC Information About Brokerage Services notice? Texas requires every real estate brokerage to give consumers the TREC Information About Brokerage Services (IABS) form. In plain terms, it explains: - What a broker is and who a broker can represent - The duties a broker owes to the people it works with - How to reach the brokerage and its designated broker We link the IABS and the TREC Consumer Protection Notice in the footer of every page. Reading them doesn’t commit you to anything. They’re there so you know who you’re dealing with and how to check a license. ## What do you get for free? A locator should save you time and money, or there’s no reason to use one. Here’s what our free service includes: 1. **We make the calls.** You don’t have time to call 20 leasing offices. We do, and confirm the unit, the special, and the written fee sheet the same day during hours. 2. **The math.** Net effective, true monthly with required fees, and year two at 0% and +3% for every building on your list. Our guide to required monthly fees [/guides/required-monthly-fees-new-apartments/ →](/guides/required-monthly-fees-new-apartments/) explains why fees matter so much. 3. **Tours.** Up to four in one routed afternoon, or a live video walk of the actual unit. 4. **Approval pre-check.** We check the income multiple and documents before any application fee. 5. **After move-in.** Day 7 and day 30 ledger checks, and a month-10 Renewal Check with current comps. ## When does a locator not help? If you already know the one building you want and you’ve confirmed its special and fees in writing, a locator adds less. We’d still suggest asking how its year two compares with two or three nearby new builds, because renewals price from base rent and the jump can be large: about 26% at the board’s 10.8-week median special (Oct 25, 2026). If you’d like us to run that comparison, send your move date and all-in budget and we’ll get my shortlist [/contact/ →](/contact/) back to you the same day during hours. It costs you nothing, and your rent is the same either way. See it on the board Every new building priced on net effective, required fees, and year two, pulled every morning. Open the New Build Board [/new-construction-apartments/ →](/new-construction-apartments/) Why it goes wrong ## Why the advertised price isn't what you'll pay Problem 1 ### Specials don't compare 10.8 weeks free was the board median on Oct 25, 2026. On 12 months that is about 21% off base, spread across the year. Problem 2 ### Fees sit outside the rent Required fees ran $78-$228 a month at 12 board buildings (median $120.50), about $1,446 a year outside headline rent. Problem 3 ### Year two jumps Renewals price from base rent. At the median special, year two is about 26% higher at the same base. So we show net effective, true monthly, and year two on every building before you tour. Straight answers ## Questions about this topic Direct answer first, then the source and date. If your question isn't here, ask us on the form or by text. ### Does my rent go up if I use a locator? No. The community pays the brokerage and your rent is the same either way. You'd see the same rent and special if you walked into the leasing office on your own. ### Can a community pay to rank higher on your board? No. Commission rates never affect the score, sort, placement, recommendations, or alerts. That policy is written down and enforced in the code that ranks the board. ### Do I have to sign anything with you? Texas law requires us to give you the TREC Information About Brokerage Services notice. It explains how brokerages work and who they represent. Reading it doesn't commit you to anything. ### Can you guarantee a price or approval? No. The community sets both price and approval. We confirm them in writing before you sign. Keep reading ## More guides on this topic ![Hands with a calculator and notebook at a sunlit desk in a new apartment](/images/featured/hands-with-a-calculator-and-notebook-at-a-sunlit-d.webp) ### How to Set an All-In Budget for a New Apartment Turn a monthly budget into net effective plus fees plus utilities, then check move-in cash, 24-month totals, and year two before you tour. [How to Set an All-In Budget for a New Apartment →](/guides/all-in-apartment-budget/) ![Electric meter bank on the limestone wall of a new Central Texas apartment building](/images/featured/electric-meter-bank-on-the-limestone-exterior-wall.webp) ### Austin Energy vs. PEC vs. Bluebonnet: Electric at New Apartments Electric depends on the address. Across 144 new Austin-area buildings: Austin Energy 83, PEC 28, Bluebonnet 13, Georgetown 3, Oncor 16 (Oct 25, 2026). [Austin Energy vs. PEC vs. Bluebonnet: Electric at New Apartments →](/guides/austin-energy-vs-pec-vs-bluebonnet/) The 60-second form ## Tell us what you need. We make the calls. You don't have time to call 20 leasing offices. We do, and confirm the unit, the special, and the written fee sheet the same day during hours. 1. 1 Same day We call or text during hours with a shortlist plan. 2. 2 In writing Unit, special, end date, and fee sheet confirmed before you tour. 3. 3 Year two shown Every pick shows year two at 0% and +3%, plus a 24-month total. Prefer to talk? Call or text 512-000-000 [tel:+1512000000 →](tel:+1512000000) , Mon-Fri 8 AM-8 PM · Sat 9 AM-6 PM · Sun 12-5 PM. Free, same day during hours ## Get my shortlist Step 1 of 3 ### Thanks, we have your details. We'll call or text the same day during hours with your shortlist plan. Related pages ## Related board views Board view ### New Build Board Every in-scope community on one map, with base rent, the special, net effective, true monthly, and year two pulled every morning. Open New Build Board→ [/new-construction-apartments/ →](/new-construction-apartments/) Board view ### Specials Specials confirmed within the last 7 days, each decoded to net effective and year two, with base rent shown beside every discount. Open Specials→ [/apartment-specials/ →](/apartment-specials/) Board view ### Lease-Ups Buildings already open and filling, sorted by stage and fill estimate, with what's finished and what the special does to your monthly cost. Open Lease-Ups→ [/lease-up-apartments/ →](/lease-up-apartments/) ![](/images/misc/dusk-view-of-new-limestone-and-glass-apartment-tow.webp) Free to you, and your rent is the same either way ## You don't have time to call 20 leasing offices. We do. Send us your move date and all-in budget. We confirm the unit, the special, and the written fee sheet the same day during hours, then show you year two before you tour. Get my shortlist → [/contact/ →](/contact/) See the New Build Board [/new-construction-apartments/ →](/new-construction-apartments/) Call or text 512-000-000 [tel:+1512000000 →](tel:+1512000000) We don't guarantee pricing or approval. The community sets both, and we confirm them before you sign.