First Call Properties

Working with Doug was fantastic and easy. He has great local knowledge of Austin and found apartments I hadn’t known existed. It made the apartment hunting process completely painless; I didn’t have to do anything but show up and look.

If you’ve wondered if there’s such a thing as an honest, reputable and caring apartment locator in Austin, well, wonder no longer, because I’ve found her for you. Judy Willey will truly listen to your criteria and then proceed to place your needs right up front. You can tell she takes genuine pride in helping you find a place you can truly love. Her longevity in the competitive and ever-​changing Austin market for the past decade+ is a true testament to work she does. Do yourself a favor and all Judy before you go apartment shopping again!

Judy Willey was a big help these past few days — she knows Austin very well! I instantly got the impression that she is very well connected with apartment owners and is always aiming to get you the best possible deal. Actually, of all the places I looked online before calling her, she offered a 2 bedroom 1 bathroom that was the best deal per square footage and in a nice spot. Though rooms in the apartment building were already listed online, that particular deal wasn’t listed yet!
I really appreciate Judy’s honesty and desire to give you all the up-​front details of any place, including details of pets allowed or not, washer/​dryer, nearby locations, etc. I would recommend you give her a call if you’re moving in or to Austin.

Judy Willey is fantastic. She is honest and up front and always willing to work in your best interest. We couldn’t have made the move to Austin without her.

I have only very positive things to say about Louie Devino, I think he goes above and beyond the actual job, I had a terrible experience in Orlando Florida and I’m very cautious of real estate agents Louie restored my trust. He took me to several properties in my price range and helped me secure an apartment, I feel his expertise in the field and his knowledge of Austin demographics is par none. Thumbs up !!! Patrick M Bauman

I was moving to Austin and I found this company online. I was a little hesitant at first because it sounded to good to be true. I told Louie what I was looking for and he took down my info. About a week later I called back and he sat down and went back over everything and told me everything I needed to have ready and what to expect upfront. I had done some research myself and we compared notes. We kept in contact and I called him between flights to make sure my flight was on time and he was very friendly and remembered me every time I called. (Which later I found surprising because of how busy he was on the phone the entire time, ringing off the hook!) He picked me up from the airport and had all the files ready and researched with a bottle of water even! Every place had some kind of discount or something he got waved or free for us. We went back to his office and went through what I liked and didn’t like. From there, we went and looked at apartment properties. From what I liked or didn’t like we’d go to more to suit what I was wanting. I finally picked a place that I really liked and the application fee was waved. He waited the entire time and took me back to my hotel afterwards. He even called and got me a rent-​a-​car across the street really cheap. He called the rent-​a-​car place to follow up and make sure they came and got us and to take care of us, and they were really nice. Louie even called and followed up later that day to make sure we got everything ok and said if we needed anything to save his number and call anytime. Very smooth, easy, service that was free to us and he did all the work! Made my life easier and less stressful for sure! Nice guy and highly recommend to anyone who’s moving!

Louie was a godsend in helping me locate apartments. Moving to Austin to attend UT only allowed me to be here apartment shopping for three fast days in the middle of June, after almost all 2 bedroom apartments were impossible to find. After a day of exhausting driving around and getting turned away, an apartment owner recommended Louie to us.
We called Louie, and were immediately set up with an appointment an hour later; something unheard of with other companies we called. In the 40 minutes we sat in Louie’s office, he probably called 30 apartment complexes (to which he knew 99% of the owners/​office managers) asking to find any availability for us. He not only called these complexes, but used all resources available to help us. We ended up with four fantastic options, and chose the best one to suit us. Louie accompanied us to all the apartment complexes, knew the staff personally, and had «insider tips» on what was great or needed work at each one.
Myself not being from the area at all, Louie was a master in helping us pick the right area of the city. He gave me an honest opinion about where to locate. He knows Austin like the back of his hand, and was the most genuine business professional I have worked with. We will definitely be using Louie in the future and referring him to friends!

Judy Willey has been my apartment locator since 2004 when I was leaving a disappointing apartment I had found on my own and vowed not to do the apartment search thing alone again. I found her through serendipitous luck on the internet and I’m so thankful at my good fortune!
One of the things I like most about Judy as my apartment locator is that she’s incredibly honest. I still remember walking up to the front of an apartment complex long ago and her asking the employee if they were going to do something about the dead foliage out front because it wasn’t attractive. I thought this was great because this complex is home for a lot of people and it should look nice! This honesty moves into the apartments themselves as well… if SHE wouldn’t live there, she’ll tell you (or won’t even take you to a place she wouldn’t live if she knows she wouldn’t live there ahead of time). No amount of commission from any apartment complex would compromise her integrity nor her commitment to her clients.
She knows what’s a good deal because of the length of time she has been in this business. If a 1 – 1 with detached garage at such-​and-​such apartment is currently on special for $ 699, girl you better take that because it hasn’t been that low in ages!
Working with Judy takes the stress out of apartment hunting. I send her an email with the specs I’m looking for, such as number of bedrooms, bathrooms, pets, washer/​dryer connections or in unit, if I have a floor preference, garage or covered parking, etc (it could go on and on if you want to get really specific); the location parameters, like between I-​35/​Mopac and ¹⁸³⁄₂₂₂₂; the date I’d like to move in by; and the amount of money I’m willing to pay. She does all of the legwork by making the calls to apartments to get prices, availability, and amenities. We meet up to take tours of the apartments I’ve selected from her list, I make a decision, and that’s it! Or, she goes back to the drawing board if I don’t like any of them. But I don’t owe her a penny because the service is free.
I will continue to use Judy for all of my future apartment-​locating needs, although here’s hoping I won’t need her services anytime soon because the most recent apartment she found for us has been awesome thus far.

Judy Willey w/​First Call Properties is THE BEST! She’s very knowledgable about Austin & all the different apartment complexes all over town. When I came to town to find a place to live, I was lost. Judy was so friendly & kind on the phone so I felt at ease (she’s even nicer in person!) I don’t think I could have made the decision about the area to live in without her help.
Thanks SO much, Judy!!!

My husband and I are moving to Austin from out of state, and Louie has been an invaluable resource. He introduced us to properties within our price range that we never would of considered. He actually helped us tour several properties last minute and had great insights on the Austin job market. I highly recommend him if you are apartment searching in Austin!

When I met Louie at a central location and he drove up in his gold SUV, opening the door for me with his many gold rings, I have to admit, I was skeptical. but I could not have been more wrong.
I used Louie’s services when I went apartment searching about a year ago. He drove me around from complex to complex and having 30 years of experience, knew exactly what he was doing. I was impressed that the easing agents from every complex we visited knew exactly who he was and smiled and happily greeted him when we walked up.
I appreciated his honesty with me about each complex as well– told me to avoid one since their new management was not good and also mentioned I might not want to live at another place since I’d be a single female living alone. This differed greatly from other locators who were trying to set me up in the ghetto.
Louie was one of the sweetest and most personable people I’ve ever met and I was very glad I had him as my locator. I’ll likely be using him again and recommend him to everyone I know who’s looking for a new place to live.

I was referred to Louie when I moved here in 2004. He did a fantastic job taking us around Austin, explained what traffic was like from different areas during the different times of the day in relation to where we were going to be working. I learned quickly that no matter how good an apartment looked, I wasn’t going to sit in an hour of traffic to get to work, so we identified the areas that were the best fit. I highly recommend him to anyone who needs an EXPERT on the Austin area. He’s very knowledgeable, and he knows all the office staff at the different apartment complexes across town. He does a great job qualifying what you want in order to match you up to certain complexes. I’ve sent him others to help in their apartment search, and the feedback from them has been equally as fantastic.

Was so sketched out by the time we had finished my app that we just walked out. This all started with being told to just visit the property, no one would be there but it was open. Ok. Place wasn’t clean but nothing I couldn’t do myself. When first discussing on the phone, I asked point blank if there was an application fees and anything out of the ordinary with the application process. Needless to say I was surprised to hear the that it was $ 35 per person app fee plus the entire deposit had to be paid in advance of the application using a money order. Still, we wanted the place and asked when we could stop in. (louie even refused to email app form in advance and had to meet us in person, check in hand) We show up during to described time but even though he said he would be there, he was gone. The place also serves as one of those tax prep rip off joints. He would be back soon, but by the time we completed the apps, no louie. He called and asked to us to leave everything there. Don’t think so, we walked. My scam meter was going off 100%. Plus they keep placing the same add even though they always had other tenants in line. Be very careful.

This is a wonderful company run by Louie Divino. He has nearly 30 years of apartment locating experience (he probably started when he was 10), and everyone who knows him and his staff, know that they really not only know Austin WELL, but can tell if they can help you right to away find a new apartment home (translation=they are not going to hem-​haw you around).
Louie helped my friend when she was relocating from Oklahoma to Austin, and thanks to Louie, the whole process went beautifully. He drove her around Austin, found her the best place, closest to her job, and she and I both were ecstatic!
PURE SUCCESS!
If you need his cell phone number, I know it, so please hit me up on here, and I can give you his info should you or anyone need an apartment and would like for someone with tact, honesty, and experience to help you out. You will not be sorry!
I could never say enough good about this man! He also helped give me and my better half great advice on apartments when we first moved here, too.
Louie truly knows no strangers and absolutely cares about everything he does, which is why this is the perfect business for him!
With so many of us relocating to and from Austin, this really is a wise thing to do for yourself!