How Our Free Income Restricted Apartment Locator Works
Qualification, pre-screening, waitlist coordination, and fee rebate. Communities pay us, never you. Your rent stays the same.
The Skeptic’s Question
“How is this free?” is usually the first thing people ask. The short version: apartment communities pay us referral fees from their marketing budgets. Every leasing office already spends money to fill vacancies (listing platforms, ads, staff time). When we place a qualified resident, they pay us instead. Your rent doesn’t change and you owe us nothing.
The Five-Step Path
1. Intake. You submit a 5-minute form with metro, household size, income, voucher status, and any screening context. Free.
2. Qualification check. We match your numbers to current HUD/TDHCA AMI limits and tell you which tiers and programs fit.
3. Pre-screening. We compare your credit, background, and rental history to each candidate community’s tenant selection plan before you spend a non-refundable application fee.
4. Matching. Within 24-48 hours you get a shortlist of open, qualifying communities. We coordinate applications and follow up.
5. Lease-up and fee rebate. When you’re approved and sign a lease through our service, we rebate your application fee.
What We Handle That You’d Otherwise Do Yourself
- Cross-checking AMI limits against your metro and household
- Reading each community’s tenant selection plan
- Calling leasing offices to confirm which are actually open
- Filtering out closed waitlists and communities that quietly decline vouchers
- Coordinating Request for Tenancy Approval (RFTA) for voucher holders
- Following up on stalled applications
- Tracking Housing Quality Standards (HQS) inspections
- Managing multiple parallel applications so you’re not stuck on one waitlist
What This Doesn’t Change
- Your rent is identical to applying directly
- Program rules apply the same way (income cap, program eligibility, screening)
- The community’s final decision on your application
Why Licensed Matters
We hold TREC License #679806, brokered under Spirit Real Estate Group, LLC. That means TREC regulates our conduct, and if we ever mistreat you there’s a state agency with jurisdiction. Unlicensed lead-gen sites and directories don’t have that accountability.
Verify us any time: How to Verify Our TREC License.
