I am very picky about which real estate agents I work with. After some difficult and costly experiences trying to buy a house on my own, I doubted I could find anyone who would be experienced enough to meet my standards. Fortunately, through a friend's recommendation, I found the GoodLife Team and was thrilled with the experience I had in having them help me find my dream home. Scott Wiley, my buyer's agent, was dependable, knowledgeable and a lot of fun to work with. When I needed a lot of information about any of the properties we saw, he diligently went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure that my questions were answered. It was great how he and the team kept the process on track and made it all a lot less stressful. I felt very fortunate that we found my dream home in the first week after looking at a small handful of properties! All in all, a great experience. read more

My first impression of the Goodlife Team wasn't the best. I was recommended a specific person to email and he never got back to me. I did email him about a month before I was planning on moving to Austin and wasn't in the area at the time so maybe that had a part to play in it. However I decided to email the company in general when it was close to my moving date and got a quick reply from Ashley. She asked me to call her and asked a few questions about what kind of apartment I was looking for. The next day I had an online list of a good amount of properties to limit down to some favorites. She was really good at communicating with me through email, calls, and texts. On the day we met up she picked me up and took me around the few properties I had selected. She was pretty awesome, really energetic and excited to find me a new place. When I called her later after deciding on the one of the listings she showed me, she drove over to meet me within 20 minutes! Later when I changed my mind and asked to switch to a different property, she was understanding and quick to get everything sorted out even though I had already filled out an application. I recommend contacting the Goodlife Team if you are looking for a place in Austin. I'm really happy with the apartment I got and how helpful and quick Ashley was in finding it for me! read more

Oh, where to start? Wendy Jansky was amazing to work with. Luke and I had decided to start shopping for our first home in March or so and walked into the office about a half hour before they closed (bad form), but Wendy was still working and sat down to talk with us!! We loved her from day 1 and she made the whole process amazing. We sat down and talked about our wants in our home and set up all the perimeters we wanted. We then met with Gena and Lance where it didn't feel like a meeting, but more like friends getting to know each other. Once we started looking at houses, Wendy was so accommodating about what times and days she was available to meet to see the houses. Very rarely she was unable to meet within 24 hours, which is completely amazing! She was always prepared and gave honest opinions about houses and neighborhoods and we all had some laughs at some of the houses. Finally, getting to close was a bit of a headache, but probably not as much as I even know about. Issues with the appraisal and the seller's agent caused many delays in closing, but somehow this team worked together and made the MOST AMAZING deal ever. Now Luke and I are waiting to get our keys (tomorrow hopefully) and start moving in! I cannot praise this group of incredible people enough. They made the home buying process not scary and continued to provide updates often to explain anything I had questions about. Having everyone under the same roof was a blessing and I would recommend this amazing company to anyone! Thanks Wendy, Gena, Lance, Abby, and the entire team at Goodlife Realty. I cannot wait to move home! read more

I was recently rummaging through some old papers and came across my Good Life Team "marketing and sales proposal," and it reminded me of the stressful experience I had with the company. Enough to give me the impetus to write a review... In the Fall of 2009 I was looking at urban properties, and saw an opportunity to go on one of Good Life's tours. I was actually pleased with the tour and its results. It really gave a great overview of the downtown/urbanscape of Austin. We even had the chance to go up to the top of the Austonian prior to its completion. This experience is what lead me to sign a non-compete contract with the company, because I was looking for this same professional experience going forward. DO NOT sign one of these as it will lock you into contract with them if you are unhappy with their services (i.e. you cannot choose another realtor company). Unbeknownst to me, this document changed my entire experience. Here's how it played out: 1. I thought I was going to work with a tenured realtor who had been with the company for quite some time. He was the one who took me on the tour, and "sold" me on the idea of using Good Life to sell my house and buy a new condo. I had met with him personally in my home no less. 2. Turns out that he left the company (after I had signed the non-compete contract), and I was left with a junior mentee to said realtor. 3. This "new" realtor was NOT professional when engaging me. I later found out that he had personal issues that were interferring with his job. That is not acceptable in the business world when you engage a client. If I hadn't signed the contract (and I do accept responsibility for that), I would have fired him immediately. 4. To summarize, his negoiating skills left me feeling like I was having to sell the house myself. He was just the middle man running back and forth between decision makers. Also, it did not help that neither of the realtors involved (buyer & seller) knew enough about FHA loan limitations regarding amendments and closing cost requests. 5. Nearing the end of the sale of my home, I felt so drained and did not want to have to deal with anymore BS - I had to settle (in my mind) for something lower than what I felt I could have gotten. But there was no way I was going to hold anyone's hand any longer. I've dealt with better realtors in the past. And perhaps this was just a "one off." I know that personal lives can interfere with professional business, which is why I am not giving names of the realtors involved, but I would only hope that the Good Life Team has made improvements over the last 12 months. The fact that they did not give me an option to work with another realtor really left a bad taste in my mouth. If they were so confident in their own skills, they wouldn't have to have clients sign non-compete contracts. Follow up (1/1/11): What a day for new beginnings. Over the holiday I was contacted by one of the co-owners, Gary Wise, to discuss my above review. While I wish it would have come sooner, as a traditional follow up to the sale of my home as opposed to after I gave a poor review, it's better now than never. Gary and I were able to discuss the above faults from my point of view. I suggested to him that if there were ever any new "bait and switches" that he personally manage and handle those clients. Without a sense of trust in the company and the employee's abilities, the experience will be less than satisfactory in any cases. Note: It turned out that the original realtor was fired from the company for less than ethical practicies. If this information was given to me upfront, it would have been helpful in making future decisions. Also, Gary stated that I could have terminated my contract with his company upon request, but somehow I doubt that any legal action could be taken without a lot more work or a lawyer readily available. Regardless, when I asked I was lead to believe that I was locked in, so I didn't press that subject further. I do appreciate the professional approach by Gary to try to find out what the Goodlife Team could have done better, which shows that they are open to changing for the better. I'll bump my original 2 star rating to 3 stars for effort. Bottom line, I did sell my house. read more

Beware - Do not have Goodlife sell your home unless you want to sell it for significantly less than it is worth. We interviewed 4 realtors. Shelly from the Goodlife was the first we interviewed. She showed up at our house with a slick "looking" iPad presentation. The presentation touted how the Goodlife sells homes faster than any other realtor and closer to asking price. Included in the presentation was a market analysis and recommended selling price which she developed before ever seeing the house, conditions, features, etc. The comps selected were terrible and irrelevant. She recommended an asking price of $750K. We nearly fell out of our chair as we know this market (she clearly did not) and knew the house was worth much more. When we challenged the $750K, she said I sorry to inform you that your house is just not worth more and redirected us to her flashy iPad presentation with silly graphs, etc. She went on to to say the tax assessment was below $750K. Anyone who knows the Austin market knows tax values are poor indicator of current value. She then went on to say "well I bet you paid a lot less than $750K for the house...". Again, what we paid to build the home several years ago is irrelevant when determining the current value. The 3 other realtors we interviewed recommended a asking price between $900K and $965K. we sold the house in a day for $990K. We would have sold the house for $240K less if we choose the not-so-good Goodlife. There is a reason the Goodlife sells home faster and closer to list. They convince clients to list the house for less than it is worth. read more

I am going to Austin, TX in a month to begin law school at UT Austin. There is nothing more stressful than trying to find a place to live when you are not there to actually see the places for yourself. When I say stressful, I mean that I spoke to over 5 agents from 5 different real estate companies.. Each one of them was either slow to respond, uninterested in me because I was out-of-state, or simply confused to my expectations even though I repeatedly gave them point by point lists. At my wits end, I was almost about to give up the search when John Voss from the Goodlife Team gave me a call. John was professional, friendly, courteous, and most importantly, fast and efficient. Every single time he told me he was going to "call me back," "follow up," " let me know" etc. he kept his promise. The search was not easy. We followed up on 2 apartments that fell through - the Austin real estate is much more aggressive than I had originally thought - but John was upbeat and positive the entire time. His confidence in navigating the Austin market is truly an asset to a newcomer. Eventually, I settled on an apartment after he had sent me 3 separate property reports - 3! Then, he communicated for me with the Landlord agency and helped me get everything that I wanted. I had assumed that I would have to go through the headache of getting completely new furniture. Instead, John made sure the apartment that I chose was furnished and he NEVER assumed that I could go beyond my stated price range - something that I can't say for the other couple of brokers that I dealt with. I couldn't ask for a better experience. John comes highly recommended and I will definitely use him for all of my real estate needs in Austin. read more

I have two honest views of this company. One view is what you see when you sell a house that is worth $600k, and the other? What you see when you sell a house worth $125k. On the 1 to 5 star rating system, I'd give them 3.5 if I could. But, since their marketing and social media tactics are extremely effective, we'll bump that up to a 4. ;) Overall, the company does some GREAT stuff, is very innovative and cutting edge for the Real Estate industry. I really, really like the stuff that they do to sell their listings. Its simple, effective, with the times, and very progressive. When you get a marketing proposal from The Goodlife Team, they will tell you that as a client, you will get a lot of personal attention, weekly mailer updates on the status of your home sale, conference calls, sales talks, and constant communication. With the Bouldin Creek house that was worth ~$600k, they did an AMAZING job with the personal attention and sales piece. Seriously, Garry and team spent a lot of time with Kyle, helping him come to the right decisions on how to list it, where to price, creating property tour videos that really conveyed The South House (as we called it) in all of its awesomeness. That house sold in four days. No kidding. It was one of the most amazing turnarounds I've ever personally seen with real estate in Austin. We were quite impressed, and when it was time to put The Canadian House (aka my little condo in Round Rock), we decided to see if we'd have the same luck with the team and went with them over my old Realtor. So, The Condo. Truth be told, anything in Round Rock that is that size is pretty hard to move. They did it in five months after we lowered the price to keep it competitive. I think that's actually fantastic for the area - especially since its basically the type of place that someone would want to have as an investment or temporary property (like myself). I was expecting it to take a little bit longer than that, so when Kelly called me saying we got an offer, I was over the moon happy. The downside of it was, that I didn't get nearly as much personal attention from the team on the Round Rock condo as Kyle did on the South House. I had to do a lot more chasing to get status on my own. I suppose that is to be expected given the difference in the values of each home, but it still came as a surprise to me. The transition from going from the Realtors to the Closing Agent was seamless, and I actually got tons of personal attention from Lisa. She made the process way easier and helped me understand what to expect. In fact, I'd say it was probably the best part of my experience. The bummer of it all is that the last piece went very much unexplained - and I know I come across as I know what I'm reading with an excel spreadsheet (and I do, being a PM ensures that), but I never had anyone break down to me exactly what I was seeing in the cost and profits piece. I'm still trying to understand that on my own - but hey! We are DONE with our Texas residences in short time! I'm choosing to look at the positives here.:) read more

I am so lucky to have the Goodlife Team on my side. I listed my home remotely (living in Chicago) and the experience was seamless and simple. Less than a week after putting it on the market, it was under contract. Krisstina, Kelly, Garry and the team were incredibly thorough, professional and (best of all) effective. They know how to get a property list-ready and have super-powered marketing mechanisms designed to make real estate move. I could not be happier with the experience. read more

I have worked with a few of the realtors at the Goodlife Team (GLT) and have been extremely pleased with my experience. This team of Austin Realtors is professional, business savvy and driven to provide excellent client service. I had about one month to find a place and move in which is a pretty tight deadline. The GLT listened to my needs and made it happen! They have also followed up with me a few times to make sure I was satisfied with my new home. And they have provided valuable and complimentary support and advice after the transaction was complete. Finally, the GLT team is very cohesive and team-oriented; even if you use one realtor from this company you are getting the advice and support of all the realtors on the team. I would use them again and recommend them to others. read more

My boyfriend, Joseph Mattingly, and I just went through the buying process under the tutelage of Carlos and Josh, and I have to tell you what an absolutely phenomenal experience we had. I had worked with Josh for the past few years in securing places to rent, and I felt like I'd have to 'cheat' on him since Joseph and I always knew we'd use Carlos as our buying representative. It was such a perfect surprise when we found out that not only had Josh been hired on by the GoodLife Team, but that he'd be working alongside Carlos to help us find our new place! Of course you all work with buyers every day, but a first time home purchase is, as you know, a huge decision, and it wasn't one that Joseph and I entered into lightly. Having these two sharp, incredibly knowledgable, eager agents at our beck-and-call made all the difference in the world. We never once felt out of the loop or like we needed more information. If we had a question, they were there. If I wanted to go by a place last minute just to show my mom (the interior designer), they were there. Josh's sharp memory, keen eye for detail, and uncanny ability to see potential in a place is unmatched, and Carlos's personable professionalism and ability to make us at ease despite such a large decision cannot be overstated. Josh remembered the condo that we ended up purchasing while we were looking at a different property; he knew we weren't satisfied with what we'd seen, so he made a quick call and on a complete whim we went by what turned out to be our new home. He sensed a little bit of discouragement in us and had that discouragement gone within fifteen minutes. When we added Carlos into the conversation about said condo, Carlos led us seamlessly through making our offer and our option period details, all while giving us crucial information about property values and appreciation, as well as practical advice (us: 'But can we fit a baby in here if we need to in a few years?' Carlos: 'Yes, and let me tell you how and why, etc.'). Being on a budget and looking for a non-fixer-upper in central Austin seemed like a near impossibility, but I can honestly say (even though I despise the cliché and accidental rhyming) that Carlos and Josh were our own personal dream team. When our appraisal came in low, Josh worked his skinny little tail off pulling recent comps and neighborhood research to ensure we got it adjusted to get our correct loan amount covered. Oh, and we didn't even find out about that until we closed today and Gena brought it up (Gena was also fabulous, helpful, and irreplaceable, by the way). I have literally never heard of a home buying process going as smoothly as ours did (we're even spending less money than we had budgeted), and I could gush about Carlos and Josh for at least a few more pages. Saying 'thank you' is such an understatement, but nonetheless: thank you, thank you, for creating an outstanding team that was able to lead us into the next stage of our lives with such patience, ease, and ability. I think...I think we love you. read more

These guys are the most aggressive junk mailers in town. We never did business with them, but it seems like they have bought our name and address from some seedy address seller. Every other week we get their obnoxious junk mail. I always write "refused / rejected" on it and return it to the sender, but that does not stop Eli Blackburn, the king of realtor junk mail. At this point I'd even reject a potential buyer or seller that works with Goodlife Realty. WORST JUNK MAILER EVER. read more

I have been extremely pleased working with The GoodLife Team. We bought our first home from Garry, and have worked with him and the GLT on buying a condo for my mother as well as purchasing investment property. Garry and the others at the GLT are professionals who obviously make continuing education part of their business. They know Austin and are very good at listening to thier clients' needs. I would highly recommend the GLT. read more

Easy to work with and efficient. That is the best way I can describe the GoodLife team. My locator's name was Sumina and she did a great job of finding a place that fit within my budget and location preferences. read more

Yes, The GoodLife Team (GLT) is as good as it gets. Shawn Rooker and the GLT assisted us in finding our dream home. My husband and I wanted different things in a home and they helped us find everything on our wish list. We didn't want to have to compromise since we have spent years saving and planning for this purchase and we didn't have to. It took us a while to find it, but Shawn was patient with us and offered us great advice. Even after closing, I still ask questions and get timely responses. I definitely recommend Shawn and the GLT to everyone I know. read more

Deborah Brickens was a great agent to work with. She is experienced and thorough and knows the Austin area very well. I was a first time homebuyer when I started looking so I was very apprehensive and new to the whole process. Deborah was able to walk me through the process step by step which was very helpful in relieving any first time anxiety. Deborah also listens and we were able to work together to find exactly what I wanted. Don't let the location in southern Austin location fool you, she was able to find me a place in the area I wanted just north of the city. She is very friendly and amicable but also knows how to take care of business! Deborah and Goodlife will not disappoint! read more

I had a very negative experience with this realtor. I had to do all of the work to find my home. I ended up with something I didn't love, and a mortgage broker I was promised was "great" who turned out to be terrible. No quotation marks on terrible. I basically gave them fees and a percentage to do my own home search. You can do so much better. read more

Alisha was fantastic to work with on the sale of our Cedar Park home. She communicated with us a minimum of once a week so we felt totally in the loop at all times. The marketing plan was excellent and effective, we received an offer within the first week that our house was on the market. Alisha and the GoodLife Team handled everything, all we had to do was show up for the closing! I would highly recommend Alisha Rosse and the rest of the GoodLife Team! read more

Barret Raven and the Goodlife Team were wonderful to work with. As a first-time buyer only recently relocated to Austin, I felt very comfortable talking with Barret about what I was looking for and trusted him to show me only the properties that fit my needs. Once I was ready to make an offer, the entire process was amazingly smooth and efficient. Goodlife Realty has a wonderful office with a team of people ready to make what can be a nerve wracking process easy and enjoyable. read more

The Goodlife Realty team did an outstanding job for us, especially, Jennifer Goodman. Our transaction was handled remotely and was done so electronically and with minimal effort. Communications were thorough, succinct, and efficient throughout the entire purchase process. I highly commend the level of service we received, both during and after the sale. We really appreciated the professionalism we received from Gary Wise and team. read more

I tried to get Myrna to do the most simple transaction in the world but what an absolute waste of time. Her market knowledge is so limited that you're better off just listing your home yourself, that way you don't have to deal with her negativity. read more

Ashley from the GoodLife Team is the best relator I've ever had the pleasure of working with. My best friend and I are from out of state, visiting and looking into moving to Austin. Thank god I stumble across the GoodLife Team on Yelp who directed me to Ashley. Not only is she so professional and sweet, she really knows all the best spots in town. She showed us multiple apartments but also continued to show us around the city and suggested all the best bars, restaurants and activities. She really wanted to get to know us, in order to better find exactly what we were looking for. I would recommend Ashley to anyone looking to buy or rent in the Austin area. She is truly amazing!! Thank you so much for an unforgettable experience! read more

We recently closed on a house we had built in a new subdivision. The Good Life Team served as the sales agent and the experience was very pleasant. They were friendly and easy to work with. From initial contact to closing was about 9 months we found their agents to be knowledgeable, responsive and quite helpful every step of the way. Now, if they could just find a way to "beam" all of our stuff to our new house! Thanks to everyone! read more

Lora Kaasch was my realtor for a first-time home purchase. She is very knowledgeable in her field, has the patience of a saint, and an upbeat and friendly personality. She is always there for you whether you have important questions or just need a little support through the rough patches. She stuck with me while we looked at funky, far away, and foundation problem homes, never pushing me outside my budget. Her colleague, Gena Caudle at Good Life Loans, took over the reins of the loan and did a spectacular job behind the scenes. If you want a nice home-buying experience - hire Lora! I will use her when I am ready to sell and have recommended her to all my friends. read more

I couldn't have asked for a better experience working with Deborah Brickens when searching for a new place to live. Not only was she knowledgeable of the market and able to work within my budget, she was extremely attentive and kind. My roommate and I found the place of our dreams! I will definitely be calling Deborah the next time I decide to relocate. Thanks!! read more

I was living outside Austin, but wanted to move in closer and buy rather than rent. Shelley Cartier responded to my email about a property, and from there I had an excellent and engaged realtor helping me every step of the way. By the end of the following month I was closing on my own condo in a great area and with more upgrades and style than I had ever expected. Shelley even helped me negotiate on the sellers furniture which I fell in love with. Shelley Cartier and the GoodLife Team made the whole process not only smooth but exciting! I am a happy and grateful owner! read more

About three months ago and my husband and I sat down with Kevin from Good Life Realty. We were nervous, first time home buyers who considered the entire process overwhelming and intimidating. However, Kevin immediately put our fears at ease and explained to us that with Good Life you do not just get one Realtor, you get an entire team of professionals that will help guide you through the process. The best part about the experience was, Kevin. I think the thing that we appreciated the most, was his honestly. He did not walk into each house and try to sell it to us. He gave us time and never pushed us in any one direction. We viewed a lot of homes and made offers on houses that we did not get. But Kevin kept us hopeful and continued to recommend houses that met all of our criteria. Also, throughout the process, he was there explaining everything to us in a way that we understood. He showed us our now home and it is perfect. I cannot even begin to express how wonderful our experience was. Kevin was the perfect realtor for us and I cannot imagine what would have happened had we gone with someone else. Not only that, but we gained a friend. If you want someone who can relate to you, will always be there to answer questions, will not try to just sell you something, and most importantly will help you find that dream home, then go with Kevin at Good Life. You will not be disappointed! read more

We chose the GoodLife Team to help us sell our small first house and upgrade to a larger house in a quiet neighborhood to accommodate our growing family. From the very beginning we experienced excellent guidance and service. Our agent Wendy Jansky was so helpful, especially in advising us on the perfect time to list our house for sale. Sarah was very helpful in getting us names of contractors to prepare our house for sale and the periodic check-ins never felt pushy, no matter how much pushing I really needed to get my house listed. After our house sold in two days for over asking price, we began the search for our new home. Wendy really showed us her dedication and the meaning of the word "rockstar" when we went looking. On the first and rainy day, she got rear ended, but met us an hour later to continue the search after waiting for the tow truck and running home to switch vehicles. Anyone else would have called it a day, right? Once we found the house that was meant for us, the closing process went quickly and smoothly. Abby was awesome, always friendly and the two times out of 27 that she didn't answer the phone right away, she called me back before I even had time to leave a message. My only suggestion would be to make a mobile rooster that clients can ring when they close anywhere other than the GoodLife Team office. Ringing that rooster to celebrate closing on the sale of our house was so satisfying and I would have loved to have done it at the fancy title company office when we closed on the purchase of our new home. Of course, that doesn't change the fact that I will gladly recommend GoodLife Team to anyone who needs a realtor and should I need one ever again, I know who to call. read more