Seabrook Square Apartments Austin Review: New Construction, Income Caps, and What Listing Sites Won’t Tell You

Seabrook Square keeps popping up in my searches for a specific reason: brand new construction at rents starting at $658 for a studio and $702 for a one bedroom. In a market where the average Austin one bedroom runs about $1,400, that number gets attention. I’m a licensed Texas apartment locator (TX #679806), and I’ve tracked Austin pricing across 1,000+ properties for the past several years. When something looks too good to be true, I ask the follow up question: what’s the catch?

The catch isn’t hidden fees or bait pricing. It’s that Seabrook Square is a LIHTC tax credit property. Unless you understand how income caps work, you’re going to waste time on an application you either don’t qualify for or didn’t realize you qualified for. Here’s what listing sites won’t tell you: the rent depends entirely on your household income bracket. The application process has already frustrated some of the first people who applied. And no listing site breaks down what “income restricted” actually means for your wallet.

Quick Facts: Seabrook Square at a Glance

That 3.3 Google rating comes from just 11 reviews, which makes sense for a property that only opened in 2026. I’ll break down what those early reviews are saying below, but with only 11 reviews, that rating is going to move around a lot over the next six months.

Best For / Skip If

This Property Makes Sense If…

Your household income fits the LIHTC brackets and you want brand new construction. Most income restricted housing in Austin sits in buildings from the 1970s through the 2000s. Seabrook Square is 2026 construction with granite counters, stainless appliances, LED mirrors, and modern finishes. That’s rare for the price point. A one bedroom at $702 in a new building on Manor Road is not something you find elsewhere in this market.

You need a larger unit at income restricted pricing. Seabrook Square offers three bedroom and four bedroom floor plans, which are hard to find with income restricted housing. A four bedroom at $1,069 (lower bracket) or $2,079 (higher bracket) with over 1,500 square feet is a real option for larger households who qualify.

You’re an artist who needs studio space. This is what makes Seabrook Square different from everything else. Seabrook Square has dedicated live/work floor plans with a first floor entry and built in studio space where you can show and sell your work. The property also has 3,000 square feet of commercial space for Raasin in the Sun (an art incubator) and Origin Studio House (a local café). No other new construction property in Austin offers this.

You have a Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8). LIHTC properties have to accept vouchers. Combined with new 2026 construction, this is a strong option for voucher holders who’ve been limited to older inventory.

Skip If…

You earn too much. This trips people up. Income restricted means there’s a ceiling, not just a floor. If your household income is above the 60% AMI cap, you won’t qualify for any unit here. One early reviewer specifically mentioned being “just above the amount for the lowest rung.” Check the City of Austin income limits before you apply.

You have a pet over 20 pounds. Seabrook Square allows dogs and cats, but the weight limit is 20 lbs and you can only have one pet per unit. That rules out most dog breeds. There’s also a $500 deposit and $35/month pet rent, which adds up. If you’ve got a larger dog, this isn’t your place.

You’re frustrated by paperwork and income verification. LIHTC applications take more paperwork than a regular apartment. You’ll need tax returns, pay stubs, bank statements, and verification from your employer. A few of the early reviews talk about confusion around the qualification process and broken promises about which units they’d get. If red tape isn’t your thing, know what you’re walking into.

You want laundry in your unit. Units have washer/dryer connections (hookups), but the machines aren’t provided. The property has community laundry rooms. At this price point, that’s not unusual, but it’s worth knowing before you sign.

Not Sure If You’d Qualify? Let’s Figure It Out.

Income restricted properties are confusing. I can help you figure out if your income works for the brackets here, or point you toward other options that match your situation. The service is free.

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Location Deep Dive

What’s Actually Nearby

Seabrook Square sits on Manor Road in the 78723 zip code, right at the edge of the Mueller development. Morris Williams Golf Course is directly across the street (you’ll see it from the parking garage). The Southwest Greenway and Butterfly Garden are within walking distance.

For groceries, the Mueller H-E-B is about a mile away at 1801 E 51st St. That’s a 3 to 4 minute drive or a 20 minute walk. The Mueller Town Center retail area has Target, Home Depot, and a handful of restaurants in that same stretch.

The M.L. King Jr. Capital Metro station is about 1.4 miles away, so you can hop the rail if you’re commuting downtown. CapMetro bus routes run along Manor Road and MLK Blvd.

For dining, you’re close to the good stretch of Manor Road restaurants: Contigo, Dai Due, and several food trucks. East 6th Street’s bar and restaurant scene is about 2.5 miles southwest.

Commute Math

Neighborhood Reality

Manor Road in this section is genuinely changing. You’re next to Mueller, which is one of Austin’s most walkable planned communities with parks, trails, and retail. But the walkability score here is only 60 out of 100, and transit sits at 50. You’ll want a car for most daily errands beyond the immediate Mueller shops.

The East Austin character is here. Locally owned cafés, galleries, and studios are all along Manor Road. The property plays right into that with its artist live/work units and onsite art incubator. That said, this stretch of Manor Road is not the walkable bar district section of East Austin near East 6th. It’s quieter, more residential, and it leans more toward the Mueller side of things.

Pricing and True Cost

Understanding the Income Bracket System

This is where Seabrook Square gets complicated. Unlike a standard apartment where the rent is the rent, your price here depends on which AMI (Area Median Income) bracket you fall into. The property has units at 30%, 50%, and 60% AMI levels.

Here’s what that looks like in practice:

Floor Plans and Rent by Bracket

I verified these prices on Apartments.com in July 2026. All units include washer/dryer hookups (machines not provided), granite counters, stainless steel appliances, and vinyl flooring.

Net Effective Rent Calculation

The specials differ by bracket. Here’s the math for two scenarios:

60% AMI Bracket: 1 month free on a 12-month lease

Using the daily multiplier method:

• Base rent: $1,458 (1BR)
• Free days: 30
• Lease days: 365
• Multiplier: (365 – 30) ÷ 365 = 0.9178
• Net effective rent: $1,458 × 0.9178 = $1,338/month
• Monthly savings: $120

50% AMI Bracket: 2 weeks free on a 12-month lease

• Base rent: $1,206 (1BR)
• Free days: 14
• Lease days: 365
• Multiplier: (365 – 14) ÷ 365 = 0.9616
• Net effective rent: $1,206 × 0.9616 = $1,160/month
• Monthly savings: $46

Lower bracket units don’t appear to have a move in special listed. Worth asking about.

Fee Breakdown

Required Fees (everyone pays):

Optional Fees:

True Monthly Cost Scenario

Here’s what someone in the 60% bracket renting a 1BR at $1,458 would actually pay:

• Net effective rent (with 1 month free): $1,338
• Required monthly fees: $0 (based on available data)
• Renters insurance (estimated): $15 – $25
• Electric/water/trash (estimated): $80 – $150
• Estimated true monthly cost: $1,433 – $1,513

That $18 application fee is one of the lowest in Austin. Most properties charge $50 to $75. To move in, you’re looking at the security deposit ($150 for a 1BR) plus first month’s rent. If you have a pet, add the $500 pet deposit.

Want to Know What You’d Actually Pay?

I can run the math on your specific income bracket, factor in the current specials, and tell you what your true monthly cost would look like before you apply. Free service, no strings.

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Screening Criteria

The Income Cap Reality

Standard apartments have income floors: you need to earn at least 2x or 3x the rent. LIHTC properties flip this on its head. You still need to earn enough to pay rent. Their listing says you need 3x the monthly rent in gross household income. But you also can’t earn too much. That’s the part that trips people up.

The city updates income limits every year based on HUD data. For 2026, the Median Family Income for the Austin-Round Rock area is $134,400. Here’s how the brackets break down:

These are the official FY2026 HUD limits for the Austin-Round Rock area, effective June 1, 2026. I pulled the 30% and 50% numbers straight from Travis County’s published tables. For the 60% column, that’s 1.2x the 50% limits. One thing to keep in mind: the property may use slightly different numbers from the MTSP chart, so confirm with the leasing office if you’re right on the edge.

What this means: If you’re a single person earning $55,000 a year, you’d qualify for the 60% AMI units but not the 30% or 50% units. If you earn $60,000, you’re over the 1-person limit and you won’t qualify for anything here.

What Gets Your Application Denied

Based on what I know about this type of property and this management company, here’s what to expect:

• Earning over the income cap for the unit you’re going after. This is the most common reason people get denied, and it’s the one that confuses people the most.
• Missing paperwork. LIHTC verification is strict. Missing pay stubs, tax returns, or bank statements can stall or kill your application.
• Misrepresenting income. They check. If what you put on the application doesn’t match your documents, that’s an automatic denial.
• The usual screening stuff still applies: evictions, criminal background, and rental history all get checked. AOG Living doesn’t publish specific lookback periods, so ask the leasing office about their policies before applying if you have background concerns. If you’re dealing with those kinds of issues, check out my guide to second chance apartments in Austin for properties that work with challenging backgrounds.

Application Process

1. Contact the leasing office or apply through the property website
2. Bring your income docs (pay stubs, tax returns, bank statements, employment verification)
3. Your income gets checked against the LIHTC bracket limits for your household size
4. Standard screening (credit, background, rental history) runs at the same time
5. If approved, you sign your lease and schedule move in

The $18 application fee doesn’t get refunded.

What I Can Do at This Property

Let me be straight with you: Seabrook Square doesn’t pay locator referral fees. I don’t earn anything by sending you here. I’m writing this review because it’s a major new property in East Austin and you deserve honest information about it.

That said, I can still help you figure out whether you qualify for the income brackets and stack this place up against other options nearby. I’ll make sure you’re not wasting your $18 application fee. And if Seabrook Square isn’t the right fit, I’ll point you somewhere that is. There are solid options in Central Austin and North Austin at every price point.

Resident Reviews Decoded

What 11 Early Reviews Tell Us

With just 11 Google reviews and zero reviews on any other platform (I checked ApartmentRatings, Yelp, ApartmentList, AptAmigo, Facebook, Birdeye, ForRent, and RentCafe), there’s not much to work with yet. But early reviews often show patterns that set the tone for a property’s first year.

Review Pattern Analysis

The Good

Three staff members get called out by name: Veronica (the onsite manager), Ayanna, and Gina. When leasing staff get praised by name in separate reviews, that usually means the core team is solid. Veronica gets singled out as “always professional, kind, and willing to help.” Ayanna got credit for helping one renter find their new home at the property.

And people like how the place looks. “Beautiful property” and “such a beautiful property” appear in separate reviews. For a LIHTC building that just opened, that tracks. You’re getting 2026 finishes at income restricted pricing.

The Concerning

Three of 11 reviews talk about broken promises or being misled. One reviewer said her parents were told by phone they qualified for a certain rent and were promised a unit with a balcony. When they showed up, the terms were different. Another reviewer from a group of seniors getting moved to the property wrote that “they have renegged on every single promise they made to us. Every one.”

A third reviewer said she made multiple in person visits, brought all the requested documents, and still ran into misunderstandings while trying to apply.

At a LIHTC property, these patterns usually come from the same place: the income bracket system is complicated. Leasing staff may quote rents before they’ve actually confirmed which bracket you’re in. That creates a gap between what someone is told and what they actually qualify for.

How They Handle Reviews

AOG Living responds to some Google reviews with template language thanking residents. They did respond to one negative review (Nate’s) with an offer to resolve the issue, but the responses stay surface level.

What AOG Living’s Track Record Tells You

Because Seabrook Square only has 11 reviews, the management company’s track record at their other properties tells you more than it usually would. AOG Living manages about 80 communities nationwide. Their ApartmentRatings epIQ grade across the portfolio is a C, based on 24 reviews. On Birdeye, they carry a 2 star rating across 179 reviews. The BBB page has multiple complaints about application processing confusion and billing disputes.

The pattern that shows up most often across AOG Living properties: paperwork and billing mistakes, communication breakdowns, and staff turnover. Their Indeed employee reviews (117 of them) tell the same story: understaffing and high turnover. Former employees describe being “left to figure out everything by myself” and call it a “revolving door.” That matters here. The temp staff complaint and the broken promises about unit assignments at Seabrook Square fit that same pattern exactly. A newly opened LIHTC property running complicated income verification with undertrained or temporary leasing staff? The kind of confusion showing up in these early reviews makes sense.

None of that means Seabrook Square is doomed. The onsite manager (Veronica) and the leasing team (Ayanna, Gina) are getting praised by name, and a good onsite team can be way better than their corporate office. But it’s worth knowing the management company’s track record before you apply.

The Uncomfortable Truth

No listing site will write this section.

Income Caps Can Disqualify You for Earning Too Much

Most apartment searches focus on whether you earn enough. At Seabrook Square, you can be denied for earning too much. If you’re a two person household earning $60,000, you qualify for the 60% bracket but not the 50% bracket. If you earn $70,000, you’re over the 60% limit ($64,560 for two people) and you don’t qualify at all. And the income limits change every year when HUD updates them. The brackets that work for you today might shift next May.

The Application Process Is Already Frustrating People

Three out of 11 reviewers describe being told one thing and finding out another. At a property that’s been open for less than a year, that’s a high percentage. The LIHTC verification process is genuinely more complicated than a standard apartment application. Income docs, proof of who lives in your household, figuring out which bracket you fall into. Leasing staff at a property that just opened are still learning the system. Go in expecting more paperwork and more back and forth than a typical apartment.

The Management Company Has a Mediocre Track Record

AOG Living carries a C grade on ApartmentRatings and 2 stars on Birdeye across their 80-property portfolio. What comes up most at their other properties: billing errors, paperwork confusion, and staff turnover. That’s not unique to any one property. It’s a company pattern. Could the onsite team at Seabrook Square be better than what those numbers suggest? Sure. Staff getting praised by name in early reviews is a good sign. But if you run into billing mistakes or paperwork delays down the road, know that it’s a known pattern with this management company, not a one-off.

No Pool, No In-Unit Laundry, No Frills

This is new construction built under tax credit financing. The money went into the units and the structure, not resort amenities. You get a fitness center, a resident lounge with foosball table, bike storage, EV charging, self serve package lockers, outdoor social spaces with a rain garden, and 24-hour emergency maintenance. But no pool. No in-unit laundry machines (just hookups). Community laundry rooms handle the rest. For the rent you’re paying in the lower brackets, that’s a fair trade. But if you’re in the 60% bracket paying around $1,450 for a one bedroom and comparing against what a regular apartment costs nearby, those missing amenities matter more.

Need Help Figuring Out Your Income Bracket?

The income cap math is confusing. I’ll tell you straight whether you qualify and which bracket you’d fall into, or whether your money stretches further at a different property. Free, no pressure.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is Seabrook Square income restricted?

Yes. This is a LIHTC (Low Income Housing Tax Credit) property. Every unit has an income cap tied to a percentage of the area’s median income. You have to earn below the cap for your household size to qualify.

What income do I need to qualify for Seabrook Square?

It depends on the unit’s AMI bracket (30%, 50%, or 60%) and your household size. A single person earning under roughly $56,500 could qualify for the 60% bracket. Check the City of Austin income limits page for exact numbers.

Does Seabrook Square accept Section 8 vouchers?

Yes. LIHTC properties have to accept Housing Choice Vouchers. That’s a federal requirement.

Does Seabrook Square allow pets?

Yes. Dogs and cats are allowed, with a 20 lb weight limit and a maximum of one pet per unit. There’s a $500 pet deposit and $35/month pet rent. If you have a dog over 20 lbs, this won’t work.

What are the artist live/work units?

Select floor plans include a first floor entry with a dedicated studio space. They’re set up so artists can show and sell work right from their apartment. The property also has Raasin in the Sun (an art incubator space) and Origin Studio House (a café) as onsite commercial tenants.

Is parking free at Seabrook Square?

Yes. The structured parking garage has 237 spaces for 204 units, and parking is included at no extra cost.

Does Seabrook Square have in-unit laundry?

No. Units have washer/dryer hookups (connections), but machines are not included. The property has community laundry rooms.

What school district is Seabrook Square in?

Austin ISD. The zoned schools are Maplewood Elementary, Kealing Middle School, and McCallum High School.

How do I apply for Seabrook Square?

Contact the leasing office at (512) 882-4001 or email seabrooksquare@aogliving.com. Office hours are Monday through Friday 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM, Saturday 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. Bring income documentation: pay stubs, tax returns, and bank statements.

The Bottom Line

Seabrook Square offers something genuinely unusual in Austin: brand new 2026 construction with studios starting at $658 and four bedrooms at $1,069. That’s in East Austin, right next to Mueller. It’s part of a shrinking new construction pipeline across the city, which makes it even more notable. An $18 application fee and $0 admin fee keep your upfront costs down. And the artist live/work units and onsite creative spaces set it apart from every other affordable housing property in the city.

Here’s the trade off: complexity. LIHTC income verification is harder than applying at a regular apartment. Early reviews already show people are running into problems getting qualified. And the amenity package (no pool, community laundry, no washer/dryer in your unit) is modest compared to what regular apartments charge in the same zip code.

This property makes sense if: You fit the income brackets and want new construction. You have a Housing Choice Voucher and want modern finishes. You’re an artist who could use the live/work floor plans. You need a three or four bedroom unit at income restricted pricing.

This property doesn’t make sense if: Your income is over the 60% AMI cap. You’re comparing the higher bracket rents against what regular apartments charge and expecting resort amenities. You have a pet over 20 lbs. You have a low tolerance for paperwork and verification steps.

Seabrook Square is one of the few places in Austin where your income bracket gets you into a brand new building instead of a 1970s renovation. If you qualify, it’s worth the application.

Need Help?

Work With Me

I can help you figure out whether Seabrook Square fits your income bracket and walk you through what documents you’ll need. You won’t walk into the application blind. If this property isn’t the right match, I know which ones are. The service is free.

Go Solo

If you’d rather handle it yourself, call the leasing office directly at (512) 882-4001. 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.