Los Portales de Lena Guerrero Apartments Austin Review: Tax Credit Pricing in a 2022 Building

A studio apartment in East Austin for $557 a month. In a building built in 2022. With a pool, elevator access, and no breed restrictions on pets up to 175 pounds.

If that sounds too good to be true, you’re half right.

Los Portales de Lena Guerrero is an income-restricted tax credit property, which means those low rents come with income caps. Make too much money and you don’t qualify. I track 1,000+ Austin communities through my database, and this property stands out in the 78721 corridor for a simple reason: it’s one of the only newer affordable housing options on this side of town. Broadstone East End is 0.09 miles away. Studios there start at $1,085. Four of the 97 units here are reserved for young adults aging out of foster care through a partnership with LifeWorks, an Austin nonprofit. The property also accepts Section 8 vouchers.

Here’s what listing sites won’t tell you: this property has a documented pest problem, 70% occupancy, and an office that residents can’t seem to reach. Those details matter just as much as the $500/month you’d save over the building next door.

Quick Facts

That 3.8 Google rating comes from just 30 reviews, and Google is the only platform with any resident feedback at all. No reviews on ApartmentRatings, Yelp, Apartments.com, or Facebook. With a small sample like this, individual reviews carry more weight than usual. The pest complaints buried in those 30 reviews tell a story the rating alone doesn’t. I’ll break those down below.

Best For / Skip If

This property makes sense if:

Your household income falls within LIHTC limits and you want newer construction. Los Portales offers 30%, 50%, and 60% AMI units. Qualify at the 30% tier? You’re looking at a studio for $557. That’s $400–$500 less per month than the market rate neighbors a tenth of a mile away. Run the math over a 12-month lease and you’re saving $4,800–$6,000 compared to Broadstone East End next door.

You have a large dog or multiple pets. The 175-pound weight limit with no breed restrictions puts Los Portales in rare company. Most Austin apartments cap weight at 50–75 pounds. If you have a Rottweiler, a Great Dane, or two medium-sized dogs, good luck finding affordable housing that’ll take them. This guide covers other Austin communities with generous pet policies.

You need a three bedroom unit under $1,500. The Grand Guerrero floor plan offers 1,005 square feet at $1,202–$1,459 depending on your AMI tier. The market rate buildings within a third of a mile start at $1,270 (Trailhead) and $1,295 (Trailhead East). Those are their cheapest units. A three bedroom at market rate in this corridor will run well over $2,000.

You want a low barrier to entry. A $16 application fee and $0 admin fee means you’re barely paying anything to apply. Most Austin apartments charge $50–$75 per application and $150–$400 in admin fees.

Skip this property if:

You earn above the income limits. Tax credit properties have income maximums. For a one bedroom at the 60% AMI tier, the cap is $56,460 per year for a single-person household ($64,560 for two people). If your income exceeds the limit for your household size, you won’t qualify. Credit and rental history don’t matter at that point.

Pest issues are a hard dealbreaker. At least 4 of 30 Google reviews specifically mention roaches. One reviewer said roaches were so bad they had to leave their furniture behind. Another said the place should be torn down. For a property built in 2022, this is a red flag worth taking seriously.

You need regular access to the leasing office. Three separate reviewers describe the same problem: the office is frequently closed during posted hours, phone calls go unanswered, and management is hard to reach. If you need to actually talk to someone about your lease or a payment, this should worry you.

You rely on walking or public transit. Walk Score is 23. Transit Score is 42. You need a car here. The closest grocery store requires driving. There’s some bus service, but it’s limited.

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Location Deep Dive

What’s Actually Nearby

Los Portales sits on Jain Lane in the Johnston Terrace neighborhood of East Austin’s 78721 zip code. This area is changing fast. Realtor.com ranked 78721 among the fastest-gentrifying zip codes in the country, and the construction around Jain Lane reflects that. Broadstone East End is literally next door. Trailhead and Trailhead East are within a third of a mile.

Daily errands require a car. The nearest H-E-B (East 7th Street) is about 1.5 miles away. Govalle Park and its playground are within a short walk. The Govalle pool and Boggy Creek Greenbelt are nearby too. Little Loaf Roasting Co. and Mr. Catfish are your closest food spots. Convenience stores are within walking distance per reviewers, but a full grocery run means driving.

The East Austin corridor along Springdale Road and Airport Boulevard has picked up more retail and restaurants over the past few years. Thinkeast, the creative complex at Shady Lane, is 0.15 miles away.

Commute Math

The 78721 location works well for anyone commuting east or southeast. Getting to the airport is easier from here than most places in Austin. Downtown is manageable off-peak but gets heavy on I-35 during rush hour. Consider taking MLK or 7th Street as alternatives.

Neighborhood Vibe

Johnston Terrace is still in transition. Newer construction like Los Portales sits next to older single-family homes and vacant lots. This isn’t a walkable neighborhood packed with restaurants and coffee shops yet, though Thinkeast next door has a coffee roaster and event spaces that give the block more life than it had three years ago.

It’s quiet here. Multiple reviewers mention this as a positive.

But quiet here also means isolated if you don’t have reliable transportation. My East Austin area guide goes deeper on pricing and each sub-neighborhood.

Pricing & True Cost

Floor Plan Breakdown

Los Portales uses an AMI tier system. Your rent is tied to how much your household earns compared to Austin’s median income. Two renters in identical units can pay different rents depending on which income tier they qualify for.

*Net effective rent reflects 1 month free on a 12-month lease.

Net Effective Rent Calculation

Here’s the math on the most popular floor plan, The Oak (1BR) at the 50% AMI rate of $874:

• Base rent: $874/month
• Current special: 1 month free on a 12-month lease
• Daily multiplier: (365 − 30) ÷ 365 = 0.9178
• Net effective rent: $874 × 0.9178 = $802/month
• Monthly savings vs. base rent: $72/month ($864 over the full lease)

Now compare that to the nearest market rate competitor. Broadstone East End is 0.09 miles away. Their one bedrooms start at $1,085. Even without any special at Los Portales, you’re saving $211/month. With the concession, you’re saving $283/month. Over a year, that’s $3,396.

The new construction pipeline in Austin has added thousands of units to the market, but almost none of that supply targets the sub-$1,000 price range. That’s what makes LIHTC properties like this one worth paying attention to.

Fee Table

Required Fees (everyone pays):

Optional Fees:

That $16 application fee is the lowest I’ve seen in the Austin market. Most communities charge $50–$75. The $0 admin fee is unusual too. On the pet side, $250/month pet rent is steep — if you have two pets, that’s $500/month added to your rent, which eats into the affordable housing savings fast.

True Monthly Cost Scenario

A renter qualifying at 50% AMI, leasing a 1BR with one dog:

Without the pet, that same unit runs about $947/month all-in. Water, trash, sewer, and AC are covered by the property.

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Screening Criteria

Los Portales is a LIHTC tax credit property. That adds a layer to the screening process you won’t find at market rate apartments.

The Income Cap System

Tax credit properties have both an income minimum and an income maximum. You need to earn enough to afford rent, but not so much that you go over the income cap for your unit type.

Los Portales has units at 30%, 50%, and 60% AMI. Here are the current income caps, updated as of June 2026. Your income has to be at or below the cap for your household size and your unit’s AMI tier:

These numbers come from the City of Austin’s Income & Rent Limits page. The state housing agency (TDHCA) publishes its own version of these limits for tax credit properties, and they can differ slightly. Confirm with the property before applying.

Income Verification

Tax credit properties require documentation that market rate apartments don’t. Expect to provide:

• Last 2–3 months of paystubs
• W-2s or tax returns
• Social Security or disability award letters (if applicable)
• Verification of all household income sources
• Annual recertification (your income is checked every year at renewal)

Here’s something most renters don’t know about tax credit properties: if your income rises above the cap after you move in, you don’t automatically lose your apartment.

Under LIHTC rules, the “Available Unit Rule” kicks in. You can stay as long as the property rents the next open unit of that size to someone who qualifies. Your income is recertified annually. If you exceed 140% of the original income limit, your rent could go up. But you won’t be evicted for earning a raise.

Credit and Background Screening

Los Portales doesn’t publish a credit minimum or specific background screening criteria. That’s common with nonprofit-managed LIHTC properties. They tend to have more flexibility on credit and background than corporate management companies because the emphasis is on income qualification, not credit score.

If you have screening challenges like a broken lease, eviction history, or credit concerns, contact me before applying. I can help you understand where you stand at this specific property.

Application Process

1. Contact the leasing office at (737) 304-6554 or email plgmail@chavezfoundation.org
2. Submit application with $16 fee and income documentation
3. They verify your income against the caps (this takes longer than regular apartment screening)
4. Approval and lease signing

What I bring to this property: I can check your income against the caps before you apply, so you’re not wasting time if you don’t qualify. I can also confirm what’s actually available right now, since the property may have openings at 60% AMI but not at 30% AMI. My service is free.

Resident Reviews Decoded

Review Pattern Analysis

Los Portales has 30 Google reviews and a 3.8 rating. I searched ApartmentRatings, Yelp, Apartments.com, Facebook, ModernMsg, Birdeye, ForRent, and ApartmentHomeLiving. None of them have resident reviews for this property. That’s not unusual for a 97-unit LIHTC property that opened in 2022, but it means we’re working with a smaller sample than I’d prefer. Thirty reviews is enough to spot patterns. It’s not enough to call those patterns definitive.

Here’s what the Google data shows:

The Good

Monica and Tiyan get called out by name repeatedly. One reviewer gave them more than five stars. Another said they were “very attentive when I do need anything.” Maintenance gets handled quickly when requests come in.

Residents like the natural lighting and open floor plans. And several reviewers mention something you won’t find at most market rate apartments in this corridor: volunteer community events and after-school programs run through Cesar Chavez Foundation’s Si Se Puede Learning Center on site.

The Concerning

Roach complaints are serious here. One reviewer said roaches infested their furniture so badly they had to leave it behind when they moved out. Another said a building from 2022 should not have this level of infestation within four years. Pest control is mentioned in reviews, but residents say the treatments either don’t come or don’t work.

Office availability is the other consistent problem. One reviewer described visiting multiple times and never finding the manager. Another couldn’t confirm whether a rent payment was received because nobody answered calls or was in the office. A third said management is “NEVER” in the office.

Management Response

I didn’t find a single management reply to any Google review, positive or negative. When a property ignores public complaints about roaches and an unreachable office, that tells you something about how they handle resident communication.

The Uncomfortable Truth

No listing site will write this section.

The Pest Problem Is Real and Documented

A building from 2022 should not have the cockroach complaints this property has. At least 4 of 30 reviewers specifically mention roaches, and these aren’t isolated mentions. One resident said their furniture was so infested they had to throw it out when they moved. Another flat out told people not to move in.

Pest control is offered, but residents say the treatments either don’t show up or don’t work when they do. This is the single biggest risk factor at Los Portales.

Fair warning: before signing, ask the leasing office directly about their current pest control schedule, what company performs the treatments, and how often units receive preventive spraying.

70% Occupancy Is a Number Worth Understanding

A 97-unit property at 70% occupancy means roughly 29 units are empty. Austin’s overall vacancy rate runs 10–14% depending on the submarket. 30% vacancy is well above that.

Why? A few possibilities. The aggressive specials tell you they’re trying to fill units. Income restrictions automatically shrink who can qualify. And some of those empty units could be renters choosing to leave. The 1 month free special is almost certainly a response to this vacancy. That’s good for you right now. But high vacancy can also mean tighter maintenance budgets and fewer resources for upkeep.

Office Accessibility May Test Your Patience

This isn’t one bad review from someone who visited at the wrong time. Three independent reviewers describe an office that’s hard to reach. Posted hours vary by source (the property website lists Monday through Friday 9–6, Saturday and Sunday 10–6; other listings show Monday through Friday 8–5, Saturday 10–2). The inconsistency itself is a tell. Reviews suggest the office is frequently unstaffed no matter what hours are listed. If you need to drop off a payment, ask a lease question, or report an issue in person, expect to try more than once. Email at plgmail@chavezfoundation.org may be more reliable.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is Los Portales de Lena Guerrero income restricted?

Yes. This is a LIHTC tax credit property with income maximums based on AMI tiers (30%, 50%, and 60%). You have to earn below the cap for your household size and unit type to qualify. Contact (737) 304-6554 for current thresholds.

What’s the cheapest unit at Los Portales?

The Elm studio at the 30% AMI tier starts at $557/month for 504 square feet. With the current 1 month free special, net effective rent drops to about $511/month.

Does Los Portales accept large dogs?

Yes. The weight limit is 175 pounds with no breed restrictions. Two pets maximum. Pet deposit is $500 per pet and monthly pet rent is $250 per pet.

What utilities are included in rent?

Water, trash, sewer, and air conditioning are included. You’ll pay for electricity and internet separately.

Does Los Portales have washer and dryer hookups?

Units have stackable washer/dryer connections. You’ll need to supply your own machines or arrange for rental units.

What’s the application fee?

$16 per applicant, which is one of the lowest in the Austin market. There is no admin fee.

Does Los Portales accept Section 8 vouchers?

Yes. LIHTC properties are required by federal law to accept Section 8 vouchers. Austin’s housing authority has sent voucher holders here directly. If you have a voucher, contact the property at (737) 304-6554 to confirm current availability in your bedroom size.

Is there a waitlist?

With 70% occupancy and available units across all floor plans, there’s no waitlist right now. That could change as the property fills.

What school district serves Los Portales?

Austin ISD. Assigned schools are Ortega Elementary, Martin Middle School, and Eastside Memorial High School.

How far is Los Portales from downtown Austin?

About 5 miles. Off-peak drive time is roughly 15 minutes. Rush hour can push that to 25–35 minutes depending on your route.

The Bottom Line

Los Portales de Lena Guerrero offers something that barely exists in Austin’s 78721 zip code: new construction at below-market rents. A one bedroom at $802/month net effective in a 2022 building, with included utilities and a $16 application fee. Those numbers are real.

But so is a documented pest problem that multiple residents confirm. So is an office that’s hard to reach during posted hours. And a 70% occupancy rate says something about whether residents are staying.

This property makes sense if you qualify under the income caps, you prioritize rent savings over everything else, you have a large dog that limits your options elsewhere, or you need the lowest possible barrier to entry on application costs.

This property doesn’t make sense if your income exceeds LIHTC limits, you can’t tolerate pest issues, you need a walkable neighborhood, or you need to be able to reach the leasing office when you have a problem.

My verdict: Los Portales does something almost nobody else in East Austin does right now. The rent savings over market rate neighbors are real, and they’re big. But go in with open eyes about the pest situation and the office problems. On your tour, ask to see the pest control schedule, request a specific unit walk (not just a model), and try calling the office before you visit to see if anyone picks up. If the answers don’t satisfy you, I have other affordable options across Austin that might fit better.

Need Help?

Work With Me

I’m Ross Quade, a licensed Texas REALTOR® (License #679806) who helps people find apartments across the Austin area. My service is free. I’m paid by the apartment community, not by you, and your rent is the same whether you use me or apply on your own.

For a property like Los Portales, I can check your income against the caps, confirm what’s actually available, and walk you through the application before you spend time or money on it.

Going Solo

Just tell them “Ross Quade from Austin Apartment Team” referred you on your tour and application. Text me at 512-360-0852 when you apply so I can make sure everything’s on track.

Contact the property directly: (737) 304-6554 | liveatlosportales.com