How a Free Apartment Locator for Evictions Works, Step by Step

A lot of renters with an eviction ask the same thing when they hear “free”: what’s the catch? There isn’t one. Here’s how our free apartment locator for evictions works, how we get paid, and what happens at each step.

The five steps

Step 1: Tell us about your situation (about two minutes)

You fill out the short form on our Start Your Free Search page. We ask for:

• The city and neighborhoods you want
• How old the eviction is, whether there’s a balance, and how the case ended
• Monthly income
• Your budget and when you want to move in

We usually reply during weekday business hours, often with a question or two. We never ask for your Social Security number or date of birth.

Step 2: We look at your file (usually the same day)

We go through your screening details with you and double check the eviction facts. Then we figure out which properties and management companies may fit. If you’ve been denied before, we look at those denial letters (adverse action notices) too. That way we don’t send you back to management companies that already turned you down.

Open balance, multiple evictions, or a recent filing? Then your file may need a guarantor, and we look for properties that work with guarantor services like OneApp or Liberty Rent.

Step 3: Your short list (usually 24 to 48 hours on weekdays after you reach out)

We go through our notes on properties in the city you want, including their eviction policies. That means the age cutoff, balance requirements, whether they take guarantors, and what deposit to expect. Then we send you a short list of 3 to 6 properties that look like the best fit for your file. It shows the expected deposit, risk fee, and any conditions attached.

Step 4: Help with your applications (often 2 to 7 days)

Before you tour, we send each property a guest card, a short form that registers you as our client. It has your name, contact info and what you’re looking for, and we normally leave your eviction history off it. You apply with each property yourself, and we coach you on:

• How to bring up the eviction in person
• The letter of explanation
• Pulling all your paperwork together
• Turning in the application

After your applications go out, we stay in touch with you. If a problem comes up, we help you sort it out.

Step 5: Sign the lease and move in (usually 10 to 21 days after you reach out)

Once you’re approved, we help you go over the lease and work through any last minute conditions before you get your keys.

Why it’s actually free (how we get paid)

Texas apartment communities pay a referral commission to the brokerage of the licensed agent who brings them a renter. Each property sets the amount, often a share of the first month’s rent. It isn’t added to your rent, deposit, or fees.

When you sign a lease through us, the property pays the commission to our broker, Spirit Real Estate Group. If you never sign, we get nothing. So we want the same thing you do: you, approved and moved in.

Why we focus on eviction cases

From what we’ve seen, a lot of apartment locators avoid eviction cases. They’re harder to place. They mean longer conversations, more back and forth, more paperwork, and bigger deposits to plan around. Plenty stick to easy corporate relocations instead.

Here’s why we built our business around eviction placements:

1. A lot of Texas renters have an eviction on their record and need this help
2. Referral commissions are the same no matter how hard the case is
3. Renters we’ve placed often tell friends and family about us
4. Doing it well can really help renters who don’t have many options

What we don’t do

• Legal representation (we’re not attorneys)
• Credit repair
• Negotiating your debt with a former landlord (for that, we point you to free legal aid)
• Sell your information to third parties
• Guarantee approval (no one honest can)

How we’re different from stale “eviction friendly apartments” lists

A lot of the lists you find online were put together once and never checked again. A property’s eviction policy can change from one month to the next:

• The management company changes its policy
• A new manager takes over
• The property switches screening companies
• The property fills up or empties out (from what we see, properties loosen up when they have empty units and tighten when they’re full)
• The property adds or drops a guarantor partner

We keep notes on which properties take which situations, and we update them when we hear about a change. You get our latest notes, not an old list nobody keeps up.

Who we can help

• Renters with any eviction status (recent, old, paid, unpaid, dismissed, multiple)
• Any Texas metro (Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, Fort Worth, Arlington)
• Any budget from $800 to $4,000 or more a month
• Any kind of income (W-2, working for yourself, gig, mixed)

Who we can’t help

• Renters with a criminal record that many properties automatically screen out (background check issues are separate from evictions)
• Renters moving to another state (we’re only licensed in Texas)
• Renters who need a lawyer (we point them to TexasLawHelp.org (opens in new tab), which lets you look up legal aid groups by county)

The team

We’re a team of licensed Texas real estate agents (brokered by Spirit Real Estate Group, TREC #562021). Our team has 5+ combined years placing renters with evictions across all major Texas metros. In January 2025, CBS Austin interviewed our team lead, Ross Quade, for a story on rising Austin rents. The images on this page are illustrations, not photos of our team.

No strings attached

There’s no contract, no obligation, no cost. If you don’t like the properties we recommend, walk away, and if you find something on your own, use it. And if we don’t get you placed within a few weeks, you’re free to try something else. Either way, you owe us nothing.

Ready to start?

Fill out the form on our home page or call 888-846-7541. We usually reply during weekday business hours.