512 Realty Review

****continued****

I also want to include the list of concerns and maintenance request upon move-in which I have provided to Corbin, Jaime, Christine, and Kevyn.
*motorcycle covered in front of my apartment taking up a parking space that has not moved in 26 days.
*no light cover or fixture in bedroom closet, exposed bulb
*sink light doesn t work
*outside porch lights do not work (upstairs apartment this is a potential safety hazard)
*live roaches
*online portal doesn t work
*broken toilet seat
*flooring in living room window nook is coming up, needs to be glued back down or replaced
*toilet water pressure so low it is constantly not flushing which is wasting water.
*shower temperature is extremely hot or extremely cold. You can barely move the right knob which takes multiple minutes wasting water just trying to get a normal temp,
*bathroom towel rack and toilet paper holder both coming off loose.

The maintenance men Miguel and another is very nice and tries his best I will say that. He does not know what answers to give me most times, but he is trying to make everyone happy and tat is a blessing.

If you have any sense, you will not move here, the management does not care about you and cannot keep employees long enough to train them to show respect and quality in what they do. Treating your tenants with respect and communication is what keeps good tenant around, paying their rent on time and keeping their dwellling in pristine condition. This is something 512living most definitely does not care about.

One of if not the most incompetent property management companies in the city. Avoid at all costs.

Horrible Company. We first put in a work order on July, 18th 2014 to fix a leaking and caving ceiling and a leak above our cabinets. We were under the impression that it had been repaired until the night of Sept. 13th 2014 when we arrived home after it had been raining and again, the same spot above the cabinets had started leaking, flooding the floor, filling our drawers with brown water, ruining everything in the cabinets and making our kitchen unusable. After submitting the work order again on Sept. 13th , with the old and new leaks listed and smell of mold we did not get a response until the 15th. We had to take our own initiative and go to the office our selves. By this time visible black mold had begun to grow in the cabinets, our kitchen was still leaking and unusable, the bedroom was unusable, and hot water was not working.
The night of the 16th the stench of mold had gotten so bad that we slept outside on the pavement for fear of our health which is completely unacceptable. We had been feeling very congested since the rain and the mold, We requested a safer dwelling and eventually received keys to a new unit on Sept. 17th a wednesday night and were only given until Friday/ Thursday night to move all of our things out and clean the apartment and we did all this between working our full time jobs.

Short answer. Don't rent from a property managed by 512 Realty if you want to enjoy the last 6 months of your lease. You may be introduced to the lovely concept of pre-leasing which means your unit will be available 7 days a week for realtors to tour for up to 6 months of your last term. We were told that pre-leasing was necessary and acceptable in the Hyde Park area as it was an owner's market and rentals were in such high demand. We had prospective tenants tour the 2 bedroom single family home we rented on a weekly basis -- sometimes several times a week. They were accompanied by real estate agents -- usually strangers to us every time -- not even employees of 512 Realty. They would show up while we were at work and during the evenings and weekends when we were relaxing. In one case my wife was ill and we told the realtor that it was not a good day for touring the house. They continued to pressure us until we finally informed them that we were latching the doors and there would be no possible way to enter even with their key. It can be difficult to tell somebody they can't enter when they have a key to your premise. On another occasion, our dog just had a surgery and was resting in her crate while we were at work. We advised that it wouldn't be a good day for a stranger to enter the home while we were gone in case our stitched-up dog became excited. They insisted on coming despite this until I threatened to contact their management.

Additionally, I would receive several phone calls each week with realtors asking for details about the property "Does it have a fence", "How large is the garage". I would usually advise them to contact 512 and hang up. It was not fun being an information line for 512 Realty's pre-leasing program. My phone number was apparently made available to a local real estate website for any realtor to view. They are not required to contact 512 Realty to get your information. Because of the openness of our information, our phone numbers were used for marketing purposes by some of the these real estate agents to try to sell us homes as they knew our lease was due. Not cool that my personal information was shared with random realtors.

Despite the claims that pre-leasing is used due to the high demand for properties, our unit was not leased until weeks before our lease terminated. It seemed that listing a unit 3-6 months before it was available attracts people that were just "shopping" and not really interested in signing a contract yet. Therefore the process was a big inconvenience to us without any benefit to the management company. But 512 Realty has nothing to lose by pre-leasing your unit -- only the tenant does.

First few months, not a fan..but now, I love them!

After a fiasco with maintenance and a leaking tub faucet, things have very much improved. Customer service is much better, maintenance is much faster (they hired more people, I think), and they have been better about warnings for emergency shut offs/etc.

Machelle Ralls and Ryan have gone above and beyond to help me find a new apartment with my roommate. They have been amazing and are 100% the reason why I stayed with 512 instead of going to a different complex/realty company. Without them and the complete 180 change from 2014, I would not be here.

I highly recommend Machelle, and 512 apartments. They have done so much for their units lately, and their people will do the utmost to help you out, so long as you're nice, too!!

My roommates and I have not yet moved into our apartment so there's not much I can say about the complex or 512 Realty in general, but our realtor, Ric Howard, was pretty good. He was nice and very patient and prompt when answering all of our questions (we had so many questions). He made the apartment hunting process much easier for us.

Julie Levy helped me buy a house in North / Central Austin. She was a great help in guiding me through the home buying process and navigate a very aggressive real estate market. Now I have an amazing house! Thanks, Julie.

This company is absolutely hot garbage. First they take forever to fix whatever is wrong with your apartment, when I first moved in you can tell that there was already a brooch infestation. It was only a one bedroom one bathroom that was barely enough room to move your elbow for almost $1000 a month. When I moved out they nickeled and dime to every single little thing that they possibly thought was wrong in order to not give me back my deposit. If you ever sign this lease you are a complete idiot. I am sorry but that is the truth.

PLEASE READ -- Clearly all of these most recent reviews are a sad attempt to rebuild their image in the ATX real estate scene. Whether paid by 512 to write bogus reviews or the reviewers are relatives of the owners, please do not be deceived by 5 stars. After finally being let out of my lease in early 2014, other companies asked me about my horror story and simply said, "I'm guessing this was with 512 Realty?"

During my stay with 512 Realty, I experienced the following:

My ceiling collapsed in my bathroom 3 times
My kitchen flooded
My power outlets in the kitchen were broken and "unable to be repaired"
My fridge broke, costing me over $100 in rotten, fresh food while the fridge took nearly a week to be fixed
MY AC unit broke
Cockroaches littered the bathroom
Mold grew on the popcorn ceiling - which 512 refused to fix
The dishwasher broke
RATS infested the entire unit, eating their way through my food and giving me RINGWORM

... The list goes on and on.

Additionally, 512 IGNORED my explicit requests to please NOT allow random repair crews to enter my property WITHOUT my permission (this is something I not only emailed my apartment manager, but would mark in the box provided through their "tenant portal" when submitting a request). You can imagine my surprise to come out of the shower to find an old man in my living space, unannounced, who clearly heard the shower running and decided to stay.

After threatening to sue 512 and gaining legal representation for my horrible living conditions (rats and live rat traps LITTERED my living room, kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. I was expected to simply sleep in bed, and ignore the sounds of rat's heads being smooched in the adjacent room), 512 finally let me out of my lease.

I was left with copious amounts of ridiculous fees and "microwave removal cost -- $75". Indeed I did purchase my own microwave (it was not provided), and I had forgotten to take it with me upon my exit. Out of curiosity, when I revisited my old apartment later, I saw my unit became the show apartment for the complex. Through the window, in the exact same location, I saw my microwave - complete with its off-white color, askew buttons, and red stain from nail polish on the front door. You're welcome for the free microwave, assholes.

HONESTLY PEOPLE, I know that you're looking for an apartment and you're desperate and you think , "hey, the new reviews look good maybe they changed management", I promise you: they didn't.

See through a bad PR attempt to improve their image: 512 is run by a bunch of arrogant, morons.

I recently had an appointment with Ric, and he was great! The properties he showed were nice, and I did not feel pressured or disrespected while in his company. He was approachable and easy to talk to. 10/10 would recommend Ric.

They just don't really know what they're doing and don't care. Save yourself the trouble and avoid them at all costs.

If you are considering using 512Living please read all of the awful reviews... they are true.

For starters the apartment was not ready when my lease started. The AC leaked, the washer and dryer was not set up and only 1 power outlet worked. The maintenance gentleman I corresponded with to finally get this fixed was nice, but it took over a month for them to get the apartment in the shape that it should have been when I moved in.

The staff also seems to have zero systems in place, as you will be told one thing by one staff member and then the opposite by another.

Like many other reviews, I was also cheated out of my deposit without any proof. Was just told that I had to pay or else I was going to be turned over to collections.

Overall an awful experience I would not even wish on my enemy.

Worst properties in town. Do NOT move in! Management sucks, especially at Parker Flats and Soco Alpine. Refurbished section 8 housing.

A company full of lies. Don't ever rent a place from them. I was told that my unit should be viewed no more than a few times in total before I signed the lease, instead it is viewed around 3 times a week. This has been going on ever since I moved in, and my unit has been viewed nonstop for 6 months so far. Random strangers/agents get to view my place whenever they want (including weekends and early mornings).

I had previously worked with two different apartment locators, and pretty much gave up on finding a nice and affordable apartment in Austin. I was referred to Ric Howard with 512 Realty, and he was able to find my new place in less than 24 hours. I was very impressed with his professionalism and promptness. Ric, thank you so much for all your help.

Ric Howard was sooooo sweet and he was able to put aside time for me and my friend last minute to help us find a place to live next year. He even drove us around campus in his car so we didn't have to walk!!! Definitely recommend contacting him if you need any help!

Oh my God where to start....

This place just reems students. They have terrible fees and no customer service!

I have never seen a company with less concern for customer satisfaction, less sensible business practices, or less overall human decency.

If there is ever any dispute over an unreasonable fee, you, the renter will lose:

Trash bag fee (left out for one hour) $75 (used to be $100), late check when they don't check their mail $60 (I actually called and complained, they checked their mailbox and found it post dated for the correct date....IDIOTS!!!)

Is there a rating for negative stars?

What is the opposite of a five star rating?

5 poops....I give 512 realty 5 poops

I hired a professional maid and cleaning service and left the apartment in much better shape than I found it. Despite that, my roommate and I were charged over $800 in move out charges ranging between carpet damage and floor stains that existed before we got there, damaged oven pans, and utility charges that accrued after our move out.

It's clear their business model is to scalp college students and charge them excessively to maintain their apartments. This might work if they did a half decent job of maintaining the units, but they don't.

HARD PASS. Will never recommend them.

I just started renting with 512 Realty but so far I have no complaints. They have been professional and constantly available to answer any questions I may have.

We had heard a lot of negative things about 512 but we were willing to look past them. Big mistake. The main office is always in a sour mood when we go in and our apartment has been having problems since we moved in. My big issue is that it took them forever to fix our heater (which didn't get fixed until mid February when it's disgustingly cold outside) along with many other issues we didn't notice until after a month of moving in. Also, before we moved in, it took them weeks to reply to my emails regarding getting a parking spot at our place. Something I wanted to be taken care of in a timely manner. I'm so happy I'm moving.

I'm too exhausted by having to deal with terrible service to recount the multitude of ways I've been disappointed by 512 realty. Every single time I have interacted with them has been a negative experience. They are expensive and simply do not have their act together. I suspected this from day one, even before we signed our lease. I sincerely wish that I had followed my gut, and that we had backed out.

I cannot think of a more poorly run company. Stay away.

Worst company ever. Roaches in every building. They actually told me, 'Roaches can be in one unit, but not another. Roaches in one unit doesn't mean the building is infested.' Either stupid or a liar.

They are terrible company. They charged me to replace a carpet that was already freaking nasty when I moved in! They charge a sky high deposit so they can use the money to fix up the places! It was so gross. I can t wait to call about the black mold in my AC. Never go with them awful people.

Revising my 1 star review to 3 stars because they did respond to my AC failing in a prompt manner.

Rick Howard was very helpful during our search for the perfect first home. He showed us many options within our price range and in the locations we were interested in. He answered all of our questions and made us feel very comfortable with the process that can be overwhelming sometimes. Rick was very flexible working with our schedules and necessities. He showed professionalism and knowledge at all times. I highly recommend Rick Howard!

I had Julie Levy as my Realtor and she was very patient, through, and helpful. She followed up with us during the leasing process, and got back to all us in a very timely manner. Me and my roommates had issues finding a fourth person to room with us and Julie helped us find the last person. She also set up an email thread so myself, my roommates, and Julie could all communicate efficiently. I was able to do all of my paperwork online, so if you're out of the state or country it makes completing the paperwork a lot easier.

Jillian Verret, the manager at 512 and was also SO helpful and knowledgeable with my leasing questions. Me and my roommates had some confusion in the beginning, but Jillian explained things and made the process that much easier. I really appreciated Julie and Jillian's help with this leasing process.

The only reason I gave it a four star and not a five is because other employee's at 512 would give me different responses to my questions. I would have to confirm my questions with Julie or Jillian, but other then that I'm satisfied with 512 Realty.

I contacted 512 Realty about a property I was interested in leasing. The person I worked with Mark Kolbe was very knowledgeable about the property and the area. He gave me several other properties to choose from and I ended up with a great place to live at a better price.

This is the worst group of people imaginable. They will look you in the eyes and lie to you. They are in the business of exploiting naive students. All they care about is that you pay rent every month (and all the hidden fees you never agree to). They actually charge you money to accept your rent payment. They will not maintain the property. I lived in a unit for almost 2 years and never once saw my property manager. DO NOT RENT WITH 512

Worst management company EVER do not listen to anything said orally. Read your lease 5 times before signing. If you have pets do not get an apartment with them. They charge $300 deposit and an additional $15 on rent. Your pets will not have anything recreational to do, there are not any amenities for their St.John'St . John's Square Apartments property. For the same price you pay a month to live in the crappy run down facility you could live somewhere else that offers alot more. The appliances are out dated. The kitchens are small and the laundry area has the smallest washers and dryers. The parking is ridiculous and the apartment manager is lazy!!!! Lol you better pay attention to your utility bills and stop believing these fake post with 5 stars. They will rape your pockets and pretend like nothing happened. If 512 realty has ever done you wrong I suggest contacting Austin Tenants Council and Public Utility Commission.

There has been an issue with water leaking into our unit. Specifically, it is leaking in the already mold infested bathroom. (mold+water+humidity=more mold) It has been over a week and there has been a lot of finger pointing at who is supposed to pay for the repairs, either 512 Realty or the HOA. At the end of the day, mold is a health concern and 512 should step up. I can't be in my apartment longer than a few minutes without feeling nauseous from the overwhelming smell of mold. The best part is we can't use the air conditioning unit because the leak is right over the unit, so we are currently living in a swamp. The lack of communication and lack of responsibility is unacceptable. Avoid Centennial Condo unit 209 until they tear down the mold infested walls.

Vito is great. Has been very helpful in find and getting my niece in to her new apartment.

I think they payed people to come on here and rate them more than 1 star. I wish I could rate them zero stars. The only good reviews are for Ric Howard, not sure who that is, he probably left 512 Reality to work at a reputable company with more competent coworkers.

The property managers have no respect for privacy, they send realtors and maintenance staff in without warning you ahead of time. Seems like we pay rent to have people bombard us weekly.
Also the properties have roaches...The show unit will NOT look like the unit you are getting. 101% promise you will regret signing with them. It is unfortunate that they have saturated so much of Austin, try your best to find someone else. Also read the Yelp reviews - they are more helpful.

512 realty is absolutely terrible. Staff is rude, and they took the majority of our deposit by falsly charging us for damage at lonestar lofts. We were charged $150 to replace a ceiling fan we did not break! They take advantage of students whenever given the chance. Worst realtors in west campus. Do not make our mistake by leasing with them with them knowing their terrible reviews.

Maintenance was quick to fix repairs, which is why I would give them two stars. Last time they fixed something though they left my apartment a mess, with drywall all over the floor and dip spit on the tolite seat. 512 reality does a good job fixing up properties well. Of course they use this to justify higher rents, but there are high rents everywhere. I don't like that they show my apartment while I was living there, and on short notice. I notice that if I left it dirty they didn't show it as often. The staff I worked with were fine. I didn't like the company though. I didn't get the idea I was valued.

Ric was an awesome realtor and gave us everything we needed to make a great choice for housing next year!

I am currently moving out of Lone Star Lofts, a 512 Realty property. I just want to say this is the worst realty company I have ever dealt with. Their contract is FULL of little traps that will cost you a LOT of money for a property that is not even worth it. The realtors walk into your apartment anytime they please to show your apartment to other people and don't even call in advance, which is funny, since they have a model unit for that purpose on the 3rd floor. Maintenance is absolutely horrible, the elevator feels like it's about to fall and the door barely opens. It has also never been cleaned so it smells like a mixture of vomit, pee, and rotting food. The walls in the apartment are made out of cardboard, literally. Anything you hang in the wall WILL fall out, including all the light fixtures and towel bars they hang there for you and will later charge you for when they have fallen out on its own. I have changed every light bulb in this place probably like 9 times over the course of the year, cause their electrical setup is so bad and old, light bulbs literally burn out every month. Not to mention I currently have no electricity in my room or bathroom cause a fuse went out and I STILL can't get anyone to come over to fix it, even though I can't even spend the night at my own apartment cause I have no electricity whatsoever. They also force you to get a "Full Make Ready Cleaning Service" when you move out and show them the $160 receipt when you move out. Of course, when signing the lease the realtor said we could clean most of it and then have someone come to get the small things we can't get on our own cause its a "hectic time of the year", but what you really have to do is pay for the full $160 service. I will NEVER sign a lease with 512 ever again.

This review is for Chris V., the guy that came by to fix the washing machine, he was extremely professional, efficient and nice. The service has been one of the better aspects of living here, and I always mention it when people ask how I like my apartment.

DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY. I moved into a complex on the east side- there is apparently gentrification occurring within the Riverside area.. None the less- I first had to deal with bed bugs. It took them over 2 weeks to clear the space and that was with multiple attempts to communicate as to when it was going to be finally done with. Then there was a german cockroach issue. Next- ironically enough the utility bill that is run by a meter for a 500 sq ft STUDIO is just a hair under $200 a month. Take a look at Craigslist and you will find that quite a few tenants are already offering to sub-let their apartments. I wonder why. This is by far the WORST living situation I have ever been in in the city of Austin and I am beside myself. This being said - I have also attempted to contact both the "landlord" (Which has also changed 3 times in the 4-5 months of residing in the area) and multiple members of 512 to resolve the larger issues at hand and it takes weeks for a response and yet still no answers. If you're going to take the risk, do your research and don't set high expectations.

512 Realty hooked it up for me. I had an unexpected move out date with my old place and needed to find a place and move within a few days. I called 512 Realty and got linked up with Rick. He was able to meet with me within just a few hours, found the place I liked, put in an application, got approved that same day and got the keys and moved in the next day. Great overall experience.

The best place in Austin with the most amazing realtors. I worked with Ric Howard. He was wonderful. He showed me several places in the area I requested. He did not try to push me to rent in other areas like other realtors attempted to do. He was extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Most importantly, he was patient when I was not sure what I wanted to do. He discussed all the alternatives available to me and helped me see what I wanted in a community and home. From these discussions I was able to figure out my must-haves and then find the perfect place for me. I love my new place! Ric even checked in with me after my move to make sure everything went according to plan and I was satisfied with my new place. I will definitely go back to Ric in the future and I recommend him to anyone looking for a place to rent or buy.

I left the place spic-and-span and am due my entire deposit of 600.00, instead they came up with 640.00 worth of made-up charges just to keep my deposit. For example: 100.00 to "repaint because it smelled like smoke" when I am not a smoker and smoking was never allowed in my place. The list goes on and just gets sillier and sillier.

Ryan Spencer was a invaluable resource in helping me secure a place for my son. I live in Dallas and my son currently goes to UT. I couldn't have done this without his help! I would recommend Ryan without any hesitation. Thanks Again!

Claudia Bennett, License# 699490, the Rude Real Estate Agent of Austin. These people are nuts; they employ one realtor named Claudia Bennett who is on some crazed power trip, came knocking on my door demanding entry and shouting/insulting me in front of her clients. Where do they find these people? Looney Bin Realty Group

Rude, unfriendly people that will squeeze everything that they can out of you. If you do business with them you are not going to have a pleasant experience.

Horrible leasing company. Continually surprised me with more fees, higher rent, and awful treatment. Would NEVER lease with them again.

Put in a service request to have my disposal drain in the kitchen unclogged, they came out the next day and took care of it.

I asked for Machelle upon the recommendation of a friend. She contacted me back promptly and started sending me a link or two with options, to which I replied, trying to start the process. Then she just dropped off, not a word from her. This show of unprofessional apathy coupled with 512's we-control-most-of-the-North-Campus-market-so-we'll-overcharge-you presence made me tuck tail and run. Way better off working with 24th Street or someone else.

The management for my apartment actively ignored me and several other tenants about a noxious fumes from a pest control treatment they did to one of the apartments. It caused headaches and vomiting for at least a day.

On top of that, they ignored many maintenance requests, forced us to pay out of pock for the move-out cleaning while stating that if you don't use their recommended services, you will likely be charged by them on top of your out-of-pocket costs. When they provided the contact list for the approved maid and carpet cleaners, only 2 out of the 6 or 7 contacts even worked anymore.

All in all, avoid this company like the plague. You are just a source of money to them, not a human being.

They stole $3k from me
DO NOT USE THEM

I lived on one of 512 Realty's properties and while the property was ok they were horrible at managing it. It seems they mostly get students so they get away with a lot. When we first moved in we had to get them to add things to our contract they said they were included but didnt put it on the lease which is how some of our neighbors were missing some amenities we had. They also dont really know their properties that well; I asked if I we needed to connect the gas and they said it was all electric, when we moved in we discovered otherwise. They would go months without clearing out the overflowing doggie poop trash can and would take long periods of time to fix anything that needed to be fixed. We had mold growing in the bath tub which took forever for them to remove and the air ducks were so dirty no air came out of them, they never fixed that. The washer/dryers they supplied for the property were horrible and despite many maintenance request to fix the broken ones they never worked well. I will never live at a 512 Realty property again and I would advise anyone considering living in one of their properties against it.

I have never taken the time to write a review before, but what this property management company put us through cannot go unsaid. BE WARNED DO NOT LIVE HERE! My roommate and I just moved out last weekend after only one year with 512Living and from the get go we had nothing but problems dealing with them. Here's a list of all of the issues that we had and that I want any prospective renters to be warned and weary of.
1) Moved in in August and our AC was broken the first two weeks we lived there. It legitimately took them two weeks to fix our AC with temperatures surpassing 90 degrees in the upper part of our unit.
2) We had a leak in our living room window and drywall that created a flood every time it rained in our living room. I turned in over 10 service requests over the course of 4-months and called multiple times and they never fixed the issue.
3) They took over half of our security deposit upon move out for damaged walls. There was nothing more than picture hanging holes remaining in the apartment that we took the time to fill with putty, and I've never had an issue with any other apartment i've lived in getting back my money for leaving the unit in the same, and frankly near perfect condition.
4) They wouldn't allow us to do a walk-through with them after moving out claiming we had to let them know 48 hours in advance of a walk through even though they didn't provide any of that information in their move out packet.
5) We overpaid rent by $1,000 one month and were told by 2 people that worked there that they didn't owe us money, 1 person that it would take 30-45 days to receive a refund, and then finally after over a week of calling that we could magically get our money back.
6) There were 6 units in our courtyard of the 6 units only 1 person renewed their lease for the same or similar reasons listed above.

There are honestly too many more other issues that we had to even list, but I just sincerely hope that this review will serve to steer any prospective lessee away. The majority of the staff is unprofessional, rude, and frankly the way they operate business is down right criminal.

To 512Living management, your other reviews on here speak for themselves and you should really consider a complete restructuring of the way your business is run. I have never had a living experience this negative and will be sure to never recommend you to anyone looking for an apartment in the future.

CONGRATULATIONS on yet another terrible review on here!

My boyfriend and I are moving to Austin and we had 3 weeks to find a place to live. Finding a place to live in a that city you've only been to once can be a daunting task. We worked with Jessi Timmons, who was super awesome! She listened to the things we needed and found homes in our price range. She a also made recommendations on which neighborhoods to live in based on our needs. Jessi also went out of her way to reply to us quickly and connect with us after business hours and on weekends. We found the home we wanted and it was processed very quickly.

A lot of people that work here are rude and can't answer simple questions correctly. You get redirected on the phone constantly about things or told that they'll call back and they don't, so that must mean that their stuff is not educated well enough about the subject matter of their business. They're don't give a discount for "show apartments" and there are people in our apartment several times a week with very short notice. These people overcharge you (once they overcharged my roommate $100) and make informational or financial mistakes that are really inconvenient for their residents and when you try to correct them and not pay $100 extra dollars (which is A LOT for poor college students like us), they tell you that you're wrong and they're right. The boilers at our apartments just went out and 512 has taken more than 6 days to fix the problem. I'm a little bitter about having to take an ice cold shower for about a week now. Anyways - the problems that you encounter with 512 realty are frequent and annoying to have to deal with when you have other things in your life to focus on like passing your midterms.

Worst realtors I could have ever imagined dealing with. Our apartment bathroom at Centennial had a leak in one of the bathrooms in August 2014 when we moved in. We put in a maintenance request for the leak to be fixed, but it never was because it wasn't a "problem." It was a small leak at the time that didn't seem to be too bad, so we were somewhat ok with the decision to do nothing. Our AC broke in January, and we put in a request for it to be fixed. It was not fixed until halfway through the month of March. Next, the leak that we had requested be fixed back in August began to leak again in May during finals week. The leak was determined to be related to the AC, which should have been fixed at this point. Instead of fixing the problem right away, 512 blamed the homeowners' association and claimed that it was not their problem because it was a building pipe. Of course the homeowners' association pointed their finger at 512. Meanwhile we had no AC for several weeks while we (college undergrads) were trying to study for our finals. Finally, after about 5 days of finger-pointing people showed up to fix the leak. Dehumidifiers that made so much noise (in addition to not having a working AC in 100+ degree weather) I could not sleep were placed all around the apartment. Throughout this time the AC and bathroom were still not able to be used because the leak was still in the process of being fixed. After all of this, 512 didn't want to even give us our full security deposit back because we didn't hire an "approved" cleaner to clean the carpets, even though we did in fact hire a cleaner, just not one from their "special list." Not only that, but we were not given any compensation for the black mold that had been growing in the bathroom or the non-functioning AC that forced one of the tenants to move out for 5 days (he had to stay with a friend because his room was over 100 degrees hot). Even after the leak was fixed there was still black mold in the bathroom that had not been removed. I just can't believe that 512 didn't do their job and just fix the simple leak problem 9 months before it became a huge mess. I understand this sounds like a rant, but I am not the type of person to complain about trivial matters. The worst part about all of this is that we have been treated so poorly as well by 512 management because we are college students with limited finances and no lawyers. When we tried to go to the 512 offices to discuss our grievances after our numerous emails were either ignored or side-stepped, we were told that they don't do in-person meetings about these issues and that we should email them.

I also had Ric as my realtor and he was great! He stayed within our budget and found us nice rooms to match what we were looking for. In addition to all that, he was very prompt with everything he did, despite this being a very busy season for realtors. It was a great experience, and I definitely recommend Ric to anyone who is looking around for apartments but doesn't know where to begin!

This company is awful. The gentleman who is assigned to our home and we have to work with is so unknowledgeable and no help. He couldn't figure out how to send a simple contract to us & couldn't answer any of our questions. He wrote up the contract incorrectly & when I addressed the issue he said he had matched our old contract, which was completely false. I had to correct him by showing my copy of the old contract. This is information he should have taken the time to check & make sure it was correct. If you're going to tell the customer they are wrong, you better be sure your right. During this time he also mentioned my phone number was listed on a website for agents to contact about tours of our home. 1 - I never gave 512 permission to do this 2 - When I asked what website it was and to explain why my number was listed there, you better be able to answer those questions. Of course he was clueless and couldn't explain this issue. We re-signed our lease since we loved our home so much (it is not a 512 home, just leased out by them - Thank God) and 512 continued to allow people to tour our home. 512 even provided an agent with the key to our home to tour it without letting us know & he let himself in without contacting us, knocking or ringing the doorbell. My cousin also used 512 and her home flooded during one of the nasty Austin storms & 512 would not let them out of their contract to a home that was completely destroyed and unlivable!!! They are an awful company to work with and I would suggest to anyone to avoid them at all costs.

POOR MANAGEMENT. My apartment was full of gas when I first moved in and all the bugs were dead on the floor. AC was moldy and they never came to fix it.
They just don't care

They're trash, if you find a property listed with them, keep looking for other flats

Just walked into this office trying to get help with a rental place. The initial experience was great he showed us two properties in Hyde Park and I turned in the application for it and got the message from him others are interested in that property so if we may not get it and application fee is not refundable. So I asked him to find another property for me and my roommates and all I got was hopes and some listings and they can only be visited during the lunch hours which is pretty hard for someone with a full time job.

Terrible! Would give one star if I could. My boyfriend lived here and we had a broken stove for over 8 months. When asked for a credit to offset the inconvenience (he only asked for about $120 off his last month's rent), he was told this was "not warranted". This is just the tip of the iceberg with the way this company works.

Every single time we made a maintenance request, the problem was "fixed" (aka put off for a few more weeks) and something else in his apartment got destroyed. Our shower caddy was stomped to bits, our floor was scraped to high hell, our toilet and bath mat were covered in mud, the list goes on and on.

For $1k a month for this shoebox, our power went out every storm, the water main broke regularly, maintenance took months to fix simple tasks, and management was purely absent. I know they own tons of properties around Austin, but if you value your money you will stay away!!

Oh, and when they refinish other apartments, beware of the toxic fumes from the concrete refinishing. There was no warning and the smell was so strong we had to vacate the premise. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY OR TRUST ANYONE WHO RECOMMENDS IT!

I had Ric as a real estate agent and he was so helpful and made the apartment search so much easier! I was under a budget and a time crunch and he really made life simpler. I can't wait to live there next year! Definitely recommend 512 Realty for the future!

This company manages a property in my neighborhood and has done NOTHING enforce our neighborhoods rules on noise, yard upkeep and occupancy.

I was very satisfied with 512 Realty just recently when we were looking for an apartment for my son who will be attending UT in the fall. All the staff at 512 Realty were very friendly and made us feel appreciated. Ric Howard was our agent from 512 Realty. He was a very friendly and very informative agent. We never felt pressured after he showed us several different apts. He stuck to our price range and was very patient with us in making a decision. He answered all of our questions and made us feel very comfortable with our decision of the apt my son decided to lease. I would definitely recommend this realty company and Ric Howard to any parents and/or students looking for housing in or near UT campus. A big "thank you" to Ric Howard and 512 Realty. We feel very confident about the location we recently leased for our son.

I've been sitting on this review for a few years now, thinking that my AWFUL experience with 512 Realty (now 512 Living) was just how apartment rental went in Austin. From the beginning, there were nothing but issues. After signing a lease for an apartment with a specific move in date allowing for overlap between my old and new place, I got a phone call saying that they had overlooked a lease extension on the unit I wanted to live in. I told them I needed to move in that date as I had not set up anything for storage or living arrangements in between places, that I specifically signed a lease for the unit based on the move in date. I was treated as though this was somehow my fault, and really was passively ignored until I threatened to have a lawyer brought in. They found a different unit in the same building, and told me the rent would be more. Mind you my roommate and I had already signed a lease with an agreed upon price. Once again, no real response until I threatened to involve a lawyer.

After moving in, it was clear the apartment had issues, nothing unmanageable though. They present the apartments as clean, newly remodeled, etc. when often it's just the one you walk through that's had any actual update besides a fresh coat of paint. One night my roommate called me into the living room to show me water literally pouring down from the ceiling where the light fixture hung onto the kitchen table. I spent hours trying to get into contact with anyone, which is a hassle after hours. I got through to someone and was told this wasn't considered an emergency..... uhhhhhh okay. After months of more and more leaks, more and more maintenance requests and calls to the office, management brought in a de-humidifier and a fan. Lol. It took 7 months before any repairs were made to the leaky roof and once again no progress was made until I threatened to hire a lawyer. Going into the office doesn't even help, as they often stick poor college kids up front who can't help you while the management hides in the upstairs office.

It's not just me, every single person I know that has leased with them has some similar issue, whether it be a ridiculous rat infestation to insane repairs to nickel and diming you in as much as possible so they can keep your deposit.

Long story short, 512 Living/Realty only cares about you for you money. They're somewhat unavoidable in the campus area, so just be prepared and have a lawyer (or pretend to have one) ready to go when something goes South.

512 Realty has been managing my apartment complex for a few months now and I am very satisfied with their work. They are a large company with many properties in the Austin area but still manage to pay individual attention to their tenants and their issues. All of my maintenance requests have been handled very quickly (usually the same day or within 24 hours).

In my complex specifically (an older building) there were many serious problems, largely ignored by the previous managers, that 512 addressed immediately to repair. Recently, our heater and water heater stopped working at the same time. The maintenance team was here within hours to correct the problem, and worked round the clock to repair and replace everything as quickly as possible. After the work in my apartment was done, 512 even hired a maid to clean the entire unit and provided a large rent credit to all the residents to compensate for the inconvenience.

Overall, I feel 512 couldn't be doing a better job. Jillian and the rest of the team are inarguably the best property managers I have had in Austin in 5 years.

These jerks will nickel and dime you to no end! A terrible company that takes advantage of students by tacking on multitudes of unnecessary fees.

It isn't worth the money to live here plain and simple. Had problems from the start and things just kept going down hill.

Sewage from the ceiling lied about the cause and refused to clean it up until we called the state code enforcement board on them.

Lease with any other management company. We live at Studio 45 and things are great until maintenance is required, then it is like pulling teeth. We have been without AC for nearly a week, they brought a temporary unit which is hanging out our window with a piece of plywood leaving our apartment unsecured. When I requested a copy of my lease Loren Lafayette (property manager) sent me a lease for another resident which is appalling and makes me worry about the security of my information. I am floored by their incompetence, I do not currently feel safe or comfortable in my home. We have found syringes in the laundry room as the door does not lock and we have a homeless man who sleeps in there. Neighbors complain of mold and roaches which fortunately are not issues we have encountered. Customer service is non existent.

DO NOT LIVE IN ANY 512 REALTY PROPERTIES~! I cannot stress this enough. My partner and I saw the bad reviews before moving into our apartment and ignored them. They will stick you with additional fees AFTER you have signed a contract with them. They will have sales agents showing your apartment starting 6 MONTHS before your lease ends! I have 2 dogs so having people coming and going for HALF OF MY LEASE is insane.

Overall, it's a terrible company and I would not want even my worst enemy to live in any of their properties.

The ONLY good department is their maintenance. They get things done when you ask. Most of their buildings are old and falling apart so this is a must.

DON'T LIVE IN ANY OF THEIR PROPERTIES

Ric Howard was great! My roommates and I were looking for places in West Campus, and we had procrastinated, so there wasn't much left. But Ric did a great job about finding us several places in our price range, and we found one that was perfect! He was easy to work with and always available when we had questions. 512 Realty is great!

SO RUDE !!! I called to inquire about a property they had listed on the Zillow App. Not only did the agent I spoke to have no knowledge of what I was talking about but hung up on me because she could not do her job!

They are so terrible and cheap. Cheap as in they get by with paying the bare minimum in operations costs so they can make the most money possible. Every month when rent was due their website would crash from so many people trying to pay. They couldn't even bear to buy more server space apparently. When I moved in I had mold growing all around my windows. When I told them, the just told my how to clean it. Great. Thanks. Do anything else but rent from the these glorified slum lords. I have rented from Ranier management in the past and recommend them as an alternative.

These people basically act like slum lords. Tell me why in Winter during near freezing temperatures we rarely have access to heat. Their staff is grossly incompetent and they refuse to take ANY accountability. I'm counting down the days for this lease to end.

Do not lease through 512. My rent checks were lost twice, we were locked out of our payment portal- we were charged extra fees for "not paying on time" for both of these reasons. They refunded about $100 of our $1000 deposit for damages that were completely made up. They will take as much money from you as they can.

Review of Julie Levy:
I live in Houston and my daughter attends UT. As a parent I needed someone professional to be my eyes and ears in renting an apartment with roommates for my daughter. Julie did an excellent job at roommate matching. I found Julie to be very professional extremely knowledgeable and easy to work with! Julie is committed to meeting all of the needs and wants of future tenants. I have never had the pleasure to meet Julie in person, but via the phone Julie comes across as honest and sticks to her word. I never felt deceived or mislead by her. Even when things did not turned out the way I expected Julie was quick to offer options and ways to resolve the issue at hand. In my book Julie is on top her of her game. I strongly recommend Julie to handle anyone s realty needs. In all honesty I find her to be truly outstanding. It has been my absolute pleasure to have someone looking out for my daughter's apartment needs away from home.

Sincerely,
Sandra I. Luna

I have lived in a 512 property for five months. While one might complain about elements of 512's policies or protocols, what I want to say is that some of the 512 people that I have worked with have gone above and beyond. Specifically, Loren Lafayette and Rachel Hernandez have both been very professional and helpful. For example, Rachel took the initiative to call me to see just to see how I was doing and to see if there was anything 512 could do. Likewise, Loren--the maintenance manager--has been accessible by phone and responded promptly when a serious maintenance concern arose that affected my health. Also, the maintenance professionals who have come have always been incredibly kind and professional.

These kind of experiences make me want to continue being a 512 tenant.

Ric was very friendly and helpful and found us wonderful deals and great spots in West Campus to choose from! Thank you!!

I was coming from San Antonio when I first moved into my 512 Living apartment. It was my move-in date and I showed up at their office around 10am to retrieve the keys. They looked confused and flustered and told me no one has been in to look at it recently so I couldn't move in that day. I had all my stuff packed and ready to go in my car, so this obviously wasn't an option. They then told me if I was okay with the condition it was in, they would give me the keys-- well obviously I didn't have a choice and the place clearly hadn't been cleaned. It was DISGUSTING and I had to clean before moving any of my stuff in.

Fast forward a few months later, and after a long day I came home to take a bath. It was great until the bathtub wouldn't turn off. Cool. Rightfully so, I was in a panic, called the emergency maintenance line and he yelled at me because I was in tears when he told me he couldn't get there for another 45 minutes. Thanks. Exactly what I needed; to be yelled at.

Moving out: It's in the lease that you have to hire cleaning people (definitely wasn't there when I moved in!) so I did. I even looked over how the cleaners did and it was immaculate! Definitely looked 10x better from when I moved in. So I sent 512 the receipt for the cleaners. I received my deposit check the other day and they took out $100 for cleaners?! WHY DID I PAY FOR MY CLEANERS THEN?!

Don't live here. Not worth the miles of frustrations.

I have lived in a number of apartments since living in Austin for the last 20 so years and I have to say that 512 Livings options of apartments is the worst. The only thing they have going for them is decent pricing. And boy do you get what you pay for. Slow maintaince response, rude staff, outdated software to pay rent, trash always over flowing (and all the bugs associated with it). I d you don t mind a dirty apartment with leaks every time it rains and staff that doesn t seem to care about your problems then this place is perfect!!!

Ric was very helpful to my roommate and I when we were looking for an apartment. We only made an appointment to see one place, but he kindly took us to a second location that was similar to what we wanted in an even better location. He was helpful and polite and made our apartment search that much easier!

Jermey Claimed some how it was a burden to them to move their furniture "worth 2,400" and then kept the 3k deposit even after we DID NOT SIGN the lease (( that's illegal )) they have only one star on every single site because they will SCAM YOU!!!

Living in a 512 Living property was the worst decision of my life. If you are reading this DO NOT MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE I DID! Not only is the staff rude and the properties run down, but they also try to screw you out of your deposit. There were cockroaches in the apartment and the walls were so thin you could hear your neighbor sneeze They are currently attempted to make me pay close to $1,000 worth of damages that the run down unit already had! Advoid at all costs!

I have lived in my unit for about a year now and other than water issues, 512 was actually pretty good. Management has been great and maintenance has been really quick in taking care of the problems that occur. Just recently I had Philip help take care of an issue in my unit and he was done fixing it within an hour. Everything has been great given this is the first time I have lived off campus from UT.

Ric Howard was a huge help to me when I was in a bit of a pickle! I had deposited and applied to a really sketchy place with incompetent office people, and called 512 Realty on Thursday afternoon. I explained that I needed a place for $800 or under by the 1st. He found two of their properties available, and made an appointment to show the place I was most interested in on Friday. After seeing it and my other options, I applied and brought in my application/deposit money on Saturday. By Saturday afternoon, I had a lease to sign! Ric was available and helpful to me when I texted him on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and I couldn't have asked for an easier, less stressful moving process than Ric and all the others at 512 Realty have given me! And so quickly! It is now Tuesday and I am moving in this afternoon....thank you, Ric Howard and 512 Realty! You rescued me from an awful situation, and I am excited for my adorable new apartment in an amazing location! :-)

Had a great experience talking to Ric Howard, a realtor with 512 Realty. He was very helpful in answering all my questions about a 512-managed property I was interested in, and I appreciated the personal attention I received and the follow-up call the next day.

I look forward to moving to Austin, and Ric was a big help in my decision to apply for a lease at a 512-managed property.

512 Realty is a bad realty company. period. I would say the worst, but I don't know about every realty company in Austin. I'm a current tenant of a property they manage and the hot water has been out FOR THE ENTIRE PROPERTY since Friday. Which makes that day 5 now. Besides this small issue, requesting maintenance is always a hassle, and their office staff is perpetually "not at the office at the moment". Bad company. Only good thing about 512 is one of their reps Vito. Vito is cool and helpful.

Maintenance requests are not addressed adequately. Construction materials in the apartment are very cheap and degrade even with regular cleaning and light use. Agents schedule apartment tours without informing the tenant at all, which is a violation of the lease. Lease renewal info isn't well communicated.

Leasing agents are unhelpful and somewhat rude if you come to them with any of the issues mentioned above.

Avoid renting from this company if at all possible.

edit: upon moving out, I used their preferred vendor to clean the apartment as stipulated in the lease, with the terms that if it was not cleaned to satisfaction, the vendor would return to complete the cleaning. After cleaning with the vendor and move out, 512 still deducted from my security deposit for cleaning fees which should have been covered by the vendor.

I was also charged $28 to replace up to two light bulbs, which isn't technically a cleaning fee so I think they got me there.

I, like many other reviewers, read the bad reviews and leased with 512 anyway. They seem to have a huge number of properties in Austin, so this may do no good, but I STRONGLY advise anyone reading this to rent with someone else.
I have no issues with my apartment itself nor with the maintenance staff.
I have MANY issues with the office workers and overall management. At the beginning, I had to sign my lease three times, both online and on paper, because apparently nobody in the office knows how to talk to each other.
The lack of privacy that many others have mentioned is insane. They enter my apartment all the time, sometimes with warning, sometimes without. From October-December 2017 they were entering my apartment multiple times a week most weeks. A few days ago I was leaving for work, didn't feel like picking up any so I checked my email and there was nothing (surprisingly) from 512 saying they'd be entering apartments. I checked my email again that afternoon and found that at 9:13 am they sent an email that said they would be entering every apartment in my building checking the HVAC systems starting at 10am. So that's a 47 minute warning sent after anyone with a 9-5 (for instance, me) was already gone and couldn't do anything about it. And sometimes they just show up with no warning at all.
Recently they emailed to see if I would be renewing my lease (and by the way they'd be raising my rent $35/month if I did). Then this month they switched rent services from a website that charged a $2 service fee to one that charges a $36 fee just for the privilege of paying my rent. I wouldn't re-sign with 512 if my life depended on it.

A good company that responded to my calls to fix the landscaping and the trash. I've lived in Austin for 20 years and this is the first company that has listened to my requests and helped me move into a new place.

512 Realty really came through when I procrastinated finding a place to live for next year. Ric was extremely helpful and approachable when I was looking for an apartment. He followed up with me consistently over a few days, answered all of our questions thoroughly, and got us signed on a lease very quickly in an apartment that I am extremely happy about. Easiest renting/leasing experience I've had.

Thefts and lazy. Do NOT rent here, you re better off buying! Our apartment was a show room that s what we were told before we moved across Texas to this apartment; when we moved in the apartment was in horrible condition. Despite us reporting the damages in our inventory, we were blamed and were not able to fight the claims because we did not have any pictures of the apartment when we moved in.

They have charged us for normal wear and tear damages and AC services which is against Texas Renters rights. I was told we owed one amount, which we agreed on. They then lied they sent our security deposit in the mail, which they hadn t and sent a move out statement instead; so they kept out $450 deposit in addition to what we owed in damages .

I would not recommend these apartment at all. We paid SO MUCH for a one bedroom apartment that we were constantly harassed by our downstairs neighbor, when reported they said they couldn t do anything about it. Also, when we asked to move out a month early due to constant break-ins and people refusing to close the gate; we were denied. There s no care, only money hunger owners. I hope it doesn t take something as serious as someone getting hurt for management to set up.

Our truck was broken into SIX times in one year and twice in one week. Again, management wasn t able to do anything about that either, despite us having police reports. They said they d have security but there was NEVER any security. Seriously the worst apartments ever.

If you are looking for a Realtor who responds fast and shows he cares Ryan's Spencer is the guy to go to.. I saw his ad on Craigslist, emailed him a he got back to me really quick. We set upan appt and went from the there. He made the process super easy and within a day we got approved for our place. I never write reviews but I feel he deserves some appreciation because its not everyday you meet someone who is top notch!!!!! Thank you Ryan!