We worked with Kelvin Glover and his assistant Teresa Stampler, to get into a rental property that our own realtor found, b/c it was Kelvin's office that listed the location on MLS. From the start, the process was rocky and very unorganized. Fortunately for us, our realtor was the one that dealt with Kelvin & Teresa the most. But even with the limited contact we had with Kelvin & Teresa, it has been anything but satisfactory grading. It started with the paperwork to get approved for the rental home. B/c Kelvin's office stated that our handwriting on the rental forms was not readable, they sent us more paperwork to fill out which asked the same questions. Our realtor was able to read our handwriting so I'm not sure why they couldn't. And for being a part of a big realty firm as Realty Austin, why don't you have an online process for these things? We paid an admin fee to have our background & credit check, the fee should be inclusive of the leg work for getting the employment check & renter's history. The forms (employment check & renter's history) were 1st emailed to us. This confused us b/c we were trying to be the renters and didn't understand why those papers were sent to us. After questioning this, our realtor went back to Teresa to ask her to send them to the proper individuals instead. When it was resent, we realized that each form was sent to the wrong person b/c our managers reached out to us personally about them. How unprofessional! Not only should they limit any business disruptions to get their confirmation but sending incorrect forms to the wrong person just doesn't sit well. Why couldn't they pick up the phone to get those questions answered immediately? After going round and round w/ Kelvin's office on the approvals, we ended up getting those forms filled our ourselves by our managers. The only thing that Kelvin's office did was ask us when there were going to receive the forms. Then there's the mess of moving into the rental. On MLS, the rental was listed ready for move in on 12/1 (Thurs). We turned the paperwork in earlier that week. We wanted to move in on that weekend (12/3 Saturday), but told our realtor that if it wasn't going to give the landlord the proper amount of time to turn the property around (deep cleaning, maintenance, etc) then we would move in the following weekend. Kelvin's office confirmed our move in for 12/3, the day before (Friday afternoon). We were hesitant to move in b/c it was unclear of what was already done to the home. We agreed anyway. On 12/3, I met with Kelvin himself and the landlord. I assumed I was only there to get the keys and to sign the final paperwork. One, the paperwork did not have our correct info. It looked like the forms were copied and pasted w/ other (previous) info and wasn't being cleared off the forms. Then we walked through the place for a little b/c Kelvin wanted to point out some things that did not get fixed before the move in. Patches of mended holes on the wall left by the last resident was not painted over. This threw red flags b/c it told me the house was not maintenanced before our move in. But it was already too late, we had movers coming in a couple of hours! As we walked through parts of the house, I noticed that the home was not cleaned. There was dust all over the air vents and I asked Kelvin if the house was deep cleaned. His response was that maids do not clean that kind of stuff, that made me even more upset. I signed the paperwork, took the keys, and left. The whole situation has left me uneasy. I don't think I will every use Realty Austin for any housing solutions. During move in, we did our own walk through and came up w/ a list of items that needed to be remedied in the home. We were even doing our own deep cleaning b/c it was apparent the house was not dealt with before move in. We were so upset b/c we felt like we had one pulled over on us. I tried calling the landlord that same day but did not get a response. I finally reached out to our realtor and she began to mitigate the situation. Turns out that the landlord's info on the original paperwork wasn't correct! It was the only copy we had b/c the signed final copy was not emailed to us until the following Monday. My realtor was able to give us the landlord's info and we started working w/ the landlord directly to correct the situation. Turns out, the landlord wasn't clear on our move in date either. He thought the move in was for the following weekend after 12/3, so he felt like it was short notice to move in earlier. Poor communication to key players. Kelvin was rude to my realtor during the mitigation process and even tried calling us, but given the tension I left it w/ my realtor to work things out. I know that this is only a rental, but these kind of things may lead to bigger purchases in the future. Business & Individuals should be professional and honest at all times. Things should be agreed upon that benefits both sides. This is one for the books! read more

My wife and I relocated to Austin from Chicago and, as you can imagine, relocating from out-of-state into a hot market was overwhelming. We put offers on multiple houses and ended up purchasing our home as one of five bidders in a very competitive, fast-paced scenario. Tammy Young from Realty Austin was with us every step of the way. My wife and I took very different approaches to selecting our house. * I was analyzing cost per square foot metrics, neighborhood comps, opportunities for appreciation, etc. * My wife was focused on the "feel" of the houses. She wanted to make sure that the house could become a home where we could raise our young and growing family. Surprisingly (and much to our delight), Tammy was able to speak both languages! She would work through numbers with me without breaking a sweat (considering comps, renovation costs, etc.) and, as a mother herself, she was able to help my wife create a filter for envisioning family life. Rare as it was to find someone with both (very different) skill sets, what we found to be unbelievably rare and, in our opinion, priceless, was that Tammy offered advice, input, and opportunity without being pushy. She was patient with us and let us explore at our own pace. We never felt judged or rushed, just supported and guided. It was an incredible experience and one that we would recommend to others looking to buy a home. A few notes about our experience with Tammy: * Tammy supported us through pre-approval, which was convenient and personal. * Our multiple offers all received Tammy's full attention and thought leadership as we strategized on the best approach for each --- no cookie cutter solutions from Tammy! * We looked in multiple neighborhoods and found that Tammy had incredible depth of knowledge throughout the entire Austin area. * When we finally went under contract on our house, we were required to close at breakneck speed. Tammy helped us push process to meet our closing schedule, but somehow we never felt rushed to make decisions. * We felt that we had the best of both worlds - the resources and support of a major real estate company and the personal and customized attention from a top notch advisor. I am a commercial real estate consultant as my profession, but I must admit that buying my first home came with its own set of anxieties. Tammy offered calming relief, provided thorough options for our consideration, and ultimately became a trusted advisor who I would use again and have recommended to my closest friends. Thank you Tammy!!! read more

As a first-time homebuyer, and moving from another state, our first home purchase could have been a stressful and intimidating experience. Because we found Marcia Kim at Realty Austin, it was the opposite. I cannot say enough good things about my experience, but I will try and explain some of the reasons it was so great for us. We first began communication with Realty Austin before we moved to Austin from Los Angeles. I knew that buying a home would be a very personal and potentially stressful situation, so I wanted to make sure we found an agent that truly understood us and could help match-make us with our dream home. I submitted a contact form on Realty Austin's website with some information about who we are and what we were looking for. We were connected with Marcia as a possible realtor, and hit it off immediately. Before we even made our first house-hunting visit, Marcia was amazing with prompt and efficient communication, teaching us about what to realistically expect in the house hunting process, and guiding us in the right direction to find what we wanted. When we made our first visit, even though it would be months before we would be in a position to buy, Marcia took us to see our favorite properties from the searches she set up for us. We could tell immediately by the way she "got" who we are and what we wanted, and the way she dealt with the other realtors, that we could trust her and that she would have our back. When we were ready to move, Marcia kicked it into high gear for us, doing everything in her power to get us into the house we wanted as soon as possible, so we would not have to live out of a hotel for long. She even took the stress out of the process for us by negotiating the best possible scenarios for us and our current situation with ease. She was a true advocate for us, and would proactively seek out the best scenarios for us (which was great, since it was all new to us!). One of the best things I can say is that Marcia made us feel like her only clients, even though I know for a fact that she had other clients with budgets 5x that of ours at the same time. Yet she always made us feel important, always responded promptly, and always fought for us like it was for herself. She truly recognized how significant of a purchase and moment in our lives this was, and made it as easy and painless as possible. If we ever decide to leave our house, we will use Marcia again in a heartbeat, and whole-heartedly recommend her for first time homebuyers or experienced buyers alike. read more

Michaela Hatchel with Realty Austin was amazing! After our first meeting, my husband and I felt so comfortable around her and we trusted that she had our best interest in mind. She was even able to show us some homes the same day! She was extremely knowledgeable about the different Austin neighborhoods, and she worked with us as our vision for our future home evolved. This was our first experience buying a house, so Michaela's expertise really helped ease our anxiety. She wasn't afraid to tell it like it is with the condition of houses we saw, and she made us feel a lot more confident in our ability to make an informed decision. With the market in Austin being so crazy, we were feeling a little down about how quickly homes we liked on the portal were going under contract. Michaela took the initiative to find several listings that were off market or coming soon. In fact, we ended up purchasing a house that wasn't even on the market yet. Michaela was showing us a house on the same street, and she saw the coming soon sign. She contacted the realtor, who sent us photos of the interior of the house. We made an offer, sight unseen, and we were able to get under contract before the house ever hit the market. Michaela was so helpful every step of the way. The seller wanted a shortened option period, and Michaela made sure we knew everything that needed to be done in the shortened timeline. She walked us through hiring an inspector, negotiations, and was always available to answer our questions. Even as everything unfolded with Covid-19 in Austin, we felt supported by Michaela. We ended up having to have a mobile notary sent to our apartment to close on the house. Even though Michaela wasn't able to be there in person due to social distancing, she was on speaker phone to help guide us through the whole thing. When we were finally able to go over to the house after closing, we were greeted with a bottle of champagne from Michaela to celebrate! We absolutely recommend Michaela to anyone wishing to buy a home in this crazy Austin market! read more

I have to gush about my heretofore secret weapon at Realty Austin, realtor Stephanie Nick. Stephanie Nick is the first real estate agent I have met who really understands money. I was tired of buying and selling with realtors that we just kind of bumbled into through friends of friends. By the end of the deals, we always felt we were being bullied by our own realtor into selling low or felt powerless in negotiations with unreasonable sellers. I just wanted to poke them in the eye. So when it was time to sell again, my neighbor gave me Stephanie's number. My neighbor's praise was high. Stephanie had brought my neighbor a buyer for her property even after my neighbor had given up hope -- the listing had expired after the property had languished on the market for months but Stephanie remembered it and called up my neighbor when she had the perfect buyer for the property. Stephanie got the deal closed fast and everyone involved was happy. I thought that sounded pretty good so I gave Stephanie a call. I about fell out of my chair as I could hear the sound of an actual calculator with the roll of paper tape snap-clicking like crazy in the background as she spoke. Finally! Someone who can discuss the math fluently! She doesn't let us waste our time; she keeps us focused on the money. She has saved me from myself more than once -- she is an expert listener but she keeps tempers/emotions out of the conversations with the rest of the parties involved, as far as I can tell. Its hard to really know what magic she is using in negotiations since I suspect she shields me from the annoying parts after making sure she is clear about what I want. I don't know that I'll ever really know what actually gets said behind the curtain to get the deal done but I don't care because it gets me to the closing happy. I never feel the urge to inflict harm against anyone when its all over. She is the best negotiator ever and a delightful person to work with all at the same time. read more

My husband and I had an amazing experience with our realtor, Jen Mehis. She is very knowledgeable and professional, yet so easygoing and friendly! We were looking for a home in Central or North Austin, and had sticker shock at how much home prices had increased. Jen was very patient, never pushy, while she looked for a home we would truly love. She listened to all our concerns and answered our questions thoroughly, offering options we hadn't previously considered. Throughout the process, Jen treated us like family and made sure we had everything we needed to make an informed decision. We changed our minds about what we wanted several times, and she was happy to adjust her search to find the perfect property. She knows the Austin market inside and out, and is very experienced in dealing with building and repair issues. Jen was on a trip out-of-state when the right home came up for sale, but she called us right away, and arranged for a showing with her assistant, Wendy. We loved it and Jen worked hard (throughout her trip) to help us get the house. She is an excellent negotiator, and made sure our requests were met. We purchased our new home in late August, 2015, and sold our original house in early December, 2015. Both closings went quickly and smoothly, and Jen spoiled us with a beautiful gift each time. Jen also helped us get our original home ready for sale; thanks to her expertise, we had an offer in ten hours, and we sold our home for $20,000 more than we anticipated! Our new home is in North Shoal Creek and we couldn't be happier with the house, the location, the neighborhood, everything! Jen did an outstanding job finding us a great home in our budget in an area we love. We are now walking and biking distance from Alamo, The Goodnight, tons of fun shops, restaurants and a great park. If you are looking to buy or sell a home in Austin, don't hesitate to call Jen, she's the real deal; she makes the whole process easy and enjoyable! read more

We first came into contact with Elliott Sanchez several years ago when he helped my wife's mother locate an apartment in central Austin. We expressed an interest in relocating from San Antonio in the near future and exchanged contact information. Long story short, our plans to move were put on hold with some family health issues that we were faced with. All the while, Elliott stayed in close contact with us, always expressing genuine interest in our family and our future goals. Elliott never sent out mass-messages, bugged us, or was pushy about our situation. Instead, he was always sincere, personable, patient, and helpful. After several years of a well-maintained relationship with Elliott (all on his part), despite little evidence that our move to Austin was ever going to be fulfilled, I knew we were going to go with him as our agent when the time was right. Fast forward more than 5 years after we initially met him, Elliott recently helped us finally see our goal fulfilled. Throughout the entire process, including one contract that fell through due to a unsatisfactory inspection and the seller's unwillingness to negotiate, we felt Elliott had our backs 100%. He always kept our desires first and foremost and went to bat for us when needed. I honestly feel like Elliott is an old friend at this point, and one that we will be contacting again for any real estate ventures in the future. He is knowledgable, confident, listens, and offers sound advice. We even had a miscommunication about an inspection that Elliott ended up paying for out of his own pocket without hesitation - we didn't ask him to do it, he took the initiative to take care of it on his own. That spoke volumes to me. I can go on and on about this guy but bottom line, if you want someone who is going to go to work for you, contact Elliott Sanchez. All around, a class act guy who knows what he's doing. Thank you again Elliott, you know how much we appreciate everything. read more

Working with MJ Moran was a wonderful experience! We recently decided to relocate from the east coast to Austin, TX. My husband and I had never been to Austin and were very unfamiliar with the different neighborhoods, so finding a knowledgeable realtor was very important to our situation. MJ did a wonderful job of understanding what was important to both my husband and I. Before visiting the city to house hunt, we spent a lot of time speaking with MJ over the phone and looking through listing together so that she could best determine which neighborhoods would be right for us. Once we arrived in Austin, MJ spent virtually the entire weekend house hunting with us. She brought us to multiple neighborhoods around the Austin area and made sure that we gained a full perspective of what each area had to offer us in the short 2-day time frame that we had in Austin. One of the things that I appreciated most was MJ offering us a third perspective on the houses we were seeing. She did a very good job of allowing us to form our own opinions on the different houses/neighborhoods we toured while also pointing out things that otherwise we may not have noticed -- such as a neighbor that has a home car washing business set up in their driveway. Two days and about 25 houses later, we found the house we wanted! The sellers in our situation really put us through the ringer. MJ did a fabulous job of keeping the line of communication open and not rushing any questions that we had throughout the process. She even worked on Mother's Day to negotiate with the sellers and took our late night calls to make sure our contract stayed on track. We recently closed on our house and are very excited to relocate to Austin. We are very thankful to have found such a knowledgeable and dedicated realtor to help us find our first home. MJ and Realty Austin exceeded our expectations and I would highly recommend to anyone in need of a realtor. read more

As a schmuck who was recently swindled by this bunch, I thought I should share my warning with you. Realty Austin is all about superlatives. They want to be able to brag that they are the TOP and the BEST and on and on (what Realtor doesn't?). Don't be fooled by this smoke screen like this sucker. Give me 5 minutes and I'll find you 700 other firms & agents who are the TOP and BEST in Austin. If they'd spend as much time manipulating statistics as they did helping people sell houses... These places are popping up like Walmarts all over town. Follow them on Facebook for 5 minutes and they'll open 20 more cookie-cutter generic "real estate shops". Walmart is exactly what you get with Realty Austin. There's one on every corner, they'll get you in and out the door, and all you get is this stupid, cut-and-paste SPAM list. The thing is, with Walmart, I pay less for the crappy service and "People of Walmart" experience. At Realty Austin, you pay the same damn amount for completely crappy service. I was a sucker for the flashy talk and long list of artfully crafted superlatives, but I'm a true Austinite. I'd rather give my money to someone who wants to send their kid to T-ball than show off to their neighbors. They are probably too busy opening up shops in front of every Tom, Dick, & Walmart to sell houses. Here's the image in a nutshell as I see it... Realty Austin is a hulked-up, big, green, out-of-control monster. I get the feeling that our agent was lost in the sea of Realty Austin and had no idea how to get the job done (although props on TELLING us about how great a job you do without backing it up). After talking with friends, it sounds like more and more people are getting turned off to Realty Walmart the longer they are in business. The "BEST WEBSITE IN TOWN" only get people to their homepage - not out in the real world selling my damn house. read more

I cannot say this enough: use this company and ask for Shawn Rooker. Awesome. You don't even know how much of a favor just trusting me on this is going to do for you. That's all you need to know but my story is below anyway. I started working with Shawn Rooker from realty Austin before I moved to Texas almost 3 years ago, when I was first looking for an apartment. Once I moved down he was one of the first people I met (not just the first realtor) and he stayed in touch with me for the next 2 years before I was even ready to look at a house - just politely checking in, not badgering, no pressure whatsoever. When it came time to find my first house, he was one of the first I called but not my only call - my bank had a few recommendations and offered us a cash rebate to use them instead. We went on 3 viewings over a few different days with one of the agents (from a much bigger National firm) and called Shawn back the next week. No. Contest. No one else even came close to his knowledge, attention, or personal involvement in our business. He knew everything about the part of town we liked, found us exactly what we were looking for, and even got the price down for my AND my brothers new houses (when that like never happens in the neighborhood we bought in). He was super helpful through every part of the process, I never felt like I had to manage everything on my own (not even the people who measured for our window treatments, he offered to meet them for us because I was so swamped at work!) In Austin's real estate market you need someone who knows the area and the players. As a buyer, you want someone who cares about your business and gets involved. Shawn is both. Honestly I'm not sure I knew what customer service was until I met him. For those of you who choose to call him after this review, I know you're going to love your new home! Congrats and enjoy! read more

My husband and I recently purchased our first home and we worked with Chad Proctor, from Realty Austin. Chad was outstanding to work with (I will get to that more later.) For everyone else that we interacted with at Realty Austin, we were also impressed. The staff at Realty Austin always attended to us promptly, courteously, and thoroughly, and I got the impression that they work well together as a team. Anyhow, back to Chad. We were very happy with our experience with Chad as our realtor. Chad listened to what we wanted and always demonstrated a willingness to share the pros and cons of every situation. We relied heavily on Chad for advice during the process and he helped navigate us through some tricky situations. Ultimately, we submitted two offers on a house (both were accepted) and both times, Chad's advice on how to proceed for the offer were spot on. Additionally, Chad took care of so many things and reminded us about everything required along the way, which made it easier for us to go through this process while working demanding, full-time jobs. We developed a lot of respect for Chad because he never failed to remain professional, honest, and ethical. In several instances, we witnessed Chad's character, and while he could have acted or said something different, his integrity never wavered. Chad was extremely responsive to us through the process, and he always made himself available to us, even during times when he was with his family. We could speak to so many of Chad's positive attributes, but to say one last thing-- Chad's lack of pretension and honest demeanor made it very easy and enjoyable to talk to Chad. This worked very well for us, and we were so glad that we could work with a realtor that we genuinely liked. We will certainly work with Chad again in the future, and will definitely recommend him to our friends! read more

After an absolute horrific experience with an agent who screamed at me in a voice mail to me to get another agent. (The name of this agent is removed at the request of the title company's lawyer). I called up Kevin McCarthy around the end of April and I closed on a home the first of June. I am very pleased with his outstanding assistance and care for me, the client. The other agent refused to handle any foreclosures or short sales and was obviously upset when I decided to not buy from a builder in Manor. He did not even assist me to get my check back from the builder. The other agent constantly instructed me to talk very little to the loan officer, just him. I even found out that an instruction was not provided to me. In the end, he did not put in a bid for a place that I really liked and asked him to and then six months later he sent me threatening letters and e-mails to remove his name from this review. Kevin had no problem with a foreclosure and concentrated on the side of town I wanted to live in only. He found a place that was on the market the whole time and It was even remodeled and ready to move in. Kevin worked very closely with my mortgage loan officer and sent me to his office to sit down face to face. The officer explained things clearly and spend a lot of time on the phone and with the underwriter to get an issue resolved. The whole time I felt that they both truly represented me. With Kevin I closed very quickly. His web site to find homes was easy to use too! The home is great and I could handle the payments. Kevin is still there for me for questions even after the sale. Thanks to Kevin I am no longer living in a travel trailer and I learned there are still some real estate agents out there that care about their clients. read more

Lily Clason is an outstanding real estate agent! Competent and trustworthy! Her hard work and professionalism resulted in a house for us, that is exactly within our budget and 100% according to the requirements spec we sent her. Moreover, it is in Brushy Creek, which is, as every single local will tell you - a great neighborhood! So thanks to Lily we found a house exactly according to our needs in a great neighborhood, got our offer accepted and closed in time - all remotely, from a different state with a different time zone, under time pressure and while real estate market keeps rising. How crazy is that? She had 100% our interests in mind and saved us quite some money! We are very grateful to her! She also has the best home inspector, foundation inspector and all the home improvement professionals you would need. I wholeheartedly recommend her! Her assistant Michelle Cherry has also been wonderful (Lilly knows to choose the best people to work with). They are both very responsive and are there for you when you need them. Oh, and another important thing I remembered! Lily is local, born and raised in Texas, but has worked as a real estate agent in California for a few years (that's where we met her: she worked in a realty for the sellers, that sold us our house in Cali and already back then we understood she is trustworthy and professional and remembered her years later when we needed to relocate to Austin). So, Lily has real estate agent license in both states: Texas and California. Therefore if you are in a similar situation to ours: relocating from Cali to Austin, she is the best person to work with, since she knows similarities and differences between the 2 states and can understand you and advise you better. read more

Jen Berbas and her team at Realty Austin are simply amazing! From beginning to end, every step of the way, they were consummate professionals and they treated us like we were guest executives. Her entire group were all so focused and driven, yet so calm and reassuring throughout a rather daunting process. We contacted Jen months before we were ready to put our home on the market and she held a brief meeting with us to discuss our plans and needs. She offered us some initial information and then sent us weekly updates for our area so that we could keep tabs on the current market. Jen is very data-driven and methodical in her approach to selling your home, and she can break down trends and current conditions, and explain it all in terms you can easily understand. When we were ready to list, Jen and Kristin went over strategy with us and gave us guidance on timelines and what to expect. It was obvious that they had a well thought out game plan and were leaving nothing to chance. Amadora came in to evaluate the presentation of our home and helped to ensure it was shown in the very best possible light. The photographers they used took some absolutely amazing photos of the house and yard that had us just stunned! Everything all the way down to the yard sign spoke to the quality and commitment they put forth to sell our home and made it a first rate production! We quickly went under contract and again they were there every step of the way to coach us through the process all the way through the closing. If you are in the market to sell or buy a home, THIS is the team that you want helping you, and you will know it from the moment you meet them! Thank you Jen, Kristin, and Amadora! read more

I've been trying to buy various types of properties in Austin for several years. I've worked with several agents. Hands down Aaron Nann is the best. I've bought and sold probably 25 times in my life (mostly in DC.... see www.CapitolHillStay.com), but was new to the nuances of the Austin market. I can honestly say Aaron has been the most honest agent I've ever met. As you know your profession (and mine) get a reputation for over-selling and puffing things up a bit. Aaron NEVER presented anything in overly-rosy terms. He was matter-of-fact, laying out the pros of a property but also being honest about things that others may have chosen to just not tell me or to answer coyly in a manner that didn't really give me a full picture In the long term this was extraordinarily useful to me. I learned pretty quick I could trust Aaron. And that made all the difference. Beyond that, Aaron's been unusually patient. My criteria for purchase changed several times, and I drug Aaron on more than one wild goose chase. He never complained, and he always cheerfully provided me whatever information I sought, no matter how silly it probably seemed to him. I consider him a fantastic asset, rather than just a guy trying to make a commission off of a quick sale. And that's how you get an agent for life, instead of just a one time sale that you may regret later. Incidentally, Aaron has found very good tenants for two of our Austin properties now. He handled that quickly, professionally, and he kept me in the loop very nicely. In short, I hope to use Aaron for all of our transactions going forward. Assuming he has the patience to put up with me. read more