Renter glossary
Forty terms you will meet while renting a studio in Austin.
Community
- Bike storage
- A place at the property to keep a bike off the street and out of your home. Setups vary: racks, rooms or cages.
- Cowork space
- A shared work room in an apartment community. Residents use it to work or study outside their home.
- Fitness center
- An on-site gym for residents. It usually has cardio machines and weights, and no separate membership.
- Resort-style pool
- A larger apartment pool with lounge space around it. The label is a marketing term, not a set size or standard.
Getting around
- Car-light living
- Using foot, bike and transit for most trips and a car only when needed. It cuts parking, fuel and insurance costs.
- Highland station
- The CapMetro Red Line rail stop in the Highland area, the fourth station north from Downtown on Route 550.
- MetroRail Red Line
- CapMetro's commuter train, Route 550, running between downtown Austin and Leander with 10 stations, including Highland.
Lease
- Approval with conditions
- An approval that comes with a requirement, such as a higher deposit, because the application did not fully meet the standard.
- Furnished apartment
- A furnished apartment comes with furniture, such as a bed and couch. Centro lists Furnished Short Term Rentals at $1,954 per month.
- Lease term
- A lease term is the number of months your lease runs. The price often changes with it.
- Month-to-month lease
- A month-to-month lease renews each month with no fixed end date. Either side usually gives notice to end it. Centro has not published this option.
- Rent quote
- A rent quote is a written price offer for a home. Centro honors a quote for 2 business days.
- Rental application
- The form, documents and fee you submit so a property can review you for a lease. It starts the screening process.
- Screening
- The checks a property runs on an application, usually income, credit and rental history, before it approves a lease.
- Short term rental
- A short term rental is a stay shorter than a standard lease. Centro lists Furnished Short Term Rentals at $1,954 per month.
- Unit hold
- A unit hold reserves a specific home for you while you finish the application steps. Centro holds units up to 14 days.
Money
- 3x income rule
- Many Austin landlords ask for gross monthly income of at least three times the monthly rent. It is a common screening rule, not a law.
- Administrative fee
- An administrative fee is a charge paid at approval to cover lease paperwork. At Centro it is returned if you are denied.
- Application fee
- An application fee pays for processing your rental application. At Centro it is $50 and non-refundable.
- Move-in special
- A move-in special is a discount for signing a lease, such as weeks of free rent. Offers change and often depend on the floor plan.
- Net effective rent
- Net effective rent is your total rent over the lease, after free rent, divided by the number of months. It shows the real monthly cost.
- Pet deposit
- A pet deposit is money held for each pet to cover damage. Centro's pet deposit is $150, and the limit is two pets.
- Pet fee
- A pet fee is a one-time charge to bring a pet. Centro charges $250, for up to two pets.
- Pet rent
- Pet rent is a monthly charge added to your rent for each pet. Centro charges $25 a month per pet.
- Pro-rated rent
- Rent charged for part of a month, such as when you move in mid-month. It is the monthly rent divided by days, times days you stay.
- Rent to income ratio
- Rent as a share of gross monthly income. Thirty percent is the common benchmark for housing costs; above it, HUD calls a household cost burdened.
- Security deposit
- A security deposit is money you pay before move-in to cover damage or unpaid rent. Centro studio deposits start at $500.
- Total monthly price
- Total monthly price is base rent plus every required monthly charge. It can be higher than the starting price on a portal.
- Weeks free
- Weeks free means the property waives rent for a set number of weeks. It lowers what you pay over the whole lease.
Place
- ACC Highland
- The Highland campus of Austin Community College, on the site of the former Highland Mall. Centro states it is 1/2 mile away.
- Highland neighborhood
- A north-central Austin area around the ACC Highland campus, the former Highland Mall site, with The Linc and Airport Blvd nearby.
- Mueller
- A 700-acre master-planned community in central east Austin, built on the former Robert Mueller Municipal Airport site.
- The Domain
- A north Austin district of shops, restaurants, offices, homes and hotels. A CapMetro connector bus serves it from Kramer station.
- ZIP code 78752
- The postal code for Centro's address, 824 Camino La Costa, Austin, TX 78752. It also covers the ACC Highland campus.
The studio
- Efficiency apartment
- An efficiency apartment is another name for a small studio. Landlords use the word in different ways, so always check the listing details.
- Floor plan
- A floor plan is the layout of a home. It shows room sizes, doors, windows and where the kitchen and bathroom sit.
- Hard surface flooring
- Any floor that is not carpet, such as vinyl plank, tile, laminate or wood. Landlords often use the term for floors made to look like wood.
- Quartz countertop
- A counter made of engineered stone: ground quartz bound with resin. Many kitchens and bathrooms use it as a hard, wipe-clean surface.
- Square footage
- Square footage is the floor area of a home, measured in square feet. Centro does not publish it, so ask the leasing office.
- Studio apartment
- A studio apartment puts the living, sleeping and kitchen areas in one room. The bathroom is a separate room with a door.
Come see your studio.
Tour in person or by live video. Book a time and we will show you the studios available now.
Leasing office hours: Monday to Friday, 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM; Saturday, 10 AM to 4 PM; Sunday, closed.