Why Alerts Matter
In pre-foreclosure investing, timing is everything. The investor who contacts a distressed homeowner first has a 3x higher conversion rate than the second investor to reach out. When a new lis pendens or notice of trustee sale is filed with the Travis County Clerk, the clock starts ticking — and every day you wait is a day someone else might get there first.
The [Austin Signals dashboard](/) processes new filings within hours of recording. Email alerts deliver those filings directly to your inbox, matched to your specific investment criteria, so you can take action immediately without needing to log in and manually check for updates.
How Alerts Work
Austin Signals monitors Travis County Clerk records daily for new:
•Lis pendens filings (earliest stage of foreclosure)
•Notices of default (formal lender action)
•Notices of trustee sale (auction scheduled)
When a new filing is recorded that matches your saved criteria, you receive an email containing:
•Property address and basic details (beds, baths, sqft, year built)
•Filing type and date
•Intelligence Score at time of alert
•Estimated equity position
•Owner information (name, mailing address)
•Direct link to the full property profile on the dashboard
Setting Up Your First Alert
Step 1: Define Your Criteria
Before configuring alerts, decide what you want to be notified about. The most effective alert configurations are specific enough to be actionable but broad enough to capture real opportunities.
Recommended starter configuration:
•Filing types: All (lis pendens, notice of default, notice of trustee sale)
•Zip codes: Your 2-3 target zip codes (see our [zip code analysis](/blog/austin-zip-codes-most-distressed) if you're not sure where to focus)
•Property type: Single-family residential
•Intelligence Score minimum: 40 (this ensures you're only alerted to properties with meaningful distress signals)
Step 2: Configure on the Dashboard
On the Austin Signals dashboard, navigate to Settings and then Alerts. You'll see options to:
1.Choose filing types — select which types of filings trigger an alert
2.Set geographic filters — select specific zip codes, or draw a custom area on the map
3.Set property filters — property type, bedroom count, price range
4.Set score threshold — minimum Intelligence Score to trigger an alert
5.Choose frequency — immediate (as filings are processed) or daily digest
Step 3: Choose Your Frequency
You have two options:
Immediate alerts: You receive an email within hours of each matching filing being processed. Best for investors who want to be first to contact every new lead and who check email frequently throughout the day.
Daily digest: You receive one email each morning summarizing all matching filings from the previous 24 hours. Best for investors who prefer to batch their outreach into a daily session rather than responding to individual alerts throughout the day.
Most investors start with the daily digest and switch to immediate alerts once they've refined their criteria and built their outreach routine.
Advanced Alert Strategies
Strategy 1: The Two-Tier Alert
Set up two separate alerts with different criteria:
Alert A — High Urgency:
•Filing type: Notice of Trustee Sale only
•Intelligence Score: 60+
•Frequency: Immediate
Alert B — Pipeline Builder:
•Filing type: All filings
•Intelligence Score: 40+
•Frequency: Daily digest
Alert A tells you about properties heading to auction imminently — these are your "drop everything and call" leads. Alert B builds your broader pipeline of elevated-distress properties for systematic weekly outreach.
Strategy 2: The Neighborhood Watch
If you're deeply focused on 1-2 specific neighborhoods or subdivisions, set up a geographic alert with no Intelligence Score minimum. This way, you're notified about every filing in your target area, regardless of the distress level. In a neighborhood you know well, even a low-score filing might be worth investigating if you have personal knowledge of the property or owner.
Strategy 3: The Wholesaler's Filter
If you're wholesaling, your end-buyer's preferences matter as much as your own. Set up alerts that match what your buyers are looking for:
•Price range that aligns with your buyers' budget (typically $200,000-$400,000 in Austin)
•Zip codes where your buyers are actively purchasing (check [cash buyer activity data](/blog/cash-buyer-activity-austin))
•Property types your buyers prefer (most Austin cash buyers want single-family 3BR+)
This ensures that every lead you pursue has a ready buyer waiting, which dramatically reduces your time-to-close and risk of an un-assignable contract.
What to Do When You Get an Alert
A common mistake is treating alerts as interesting information rather than action triggers. Here's what to do the moment an alert arrives:
Within 1 Hour
1.Click through to the full property profile on the dashboard
2.Review the Intelligence Score breakdown — what signals are driving the score?
3.Check the equity estimate — is there enough equity for a deal that works for both sides?
Within 4 Hours
4.If the property passes your initial review, add it to your outreach list
5.For Tier 1 leads (score 70+), call immediately if a phone number is available
6.For Tier 2 leads (score 40-69), prepare a direct mail letter for same-day sending
Within 24 Hours
7.Log the lead in your CRM with all relevant details
8.If you reached the owner by phone, log the conversation and schedule follow-up
9.If you didn't reach the owner, note the date for a second attempt
For a complete workflow from alert to closed deal, see our [signal-to-deal wholesale guide](/blog/signal-to-deal-wholesale-workflow).
Managing Alert Volume
Depending on your criteria, you might receive anywhere from 2-3 alerts per day (narrow filters) to 15-20 per day (broad filters). If you're overwhelmed:
•Raise your Intelligence Score threshold. Moving from 40 to 55 typically cuts volume by 40-50% while keeping the highest-quality leads.
•Narrow your zip codes. Focus on your 2-3 best-performing areas and cut the rest.
•Switch to daily digest. Processing one email per day is more manageable than responding to individual alerts.
If you're not getting enough alerts:
•Lower your Intelligence Score threshold. Even a move from 50 to 40 can significantly increase volume.
•Add zip codes. Expand beyond your initial target area.
•Add filing types. If you're only tracking notices of trustee sale, add lis pendens and notices of default to catch earlier-stage opportunities.
The Speed Advantage
We track outreach timing across our user base, and the data is clear: investors who contact new filings within 48 hours of the alert have a conversion rate 2.8x higher than those who wait a week or more. In the most competitive zip codes (78741, 78745, 78744), the advantage of speed is even more pronounced.
Email alerts are the mechanism that makes that speed possible. Without them, you're relying on manual dashboard checks, which inevitably get skipped on busy days. With them, the data comes to you — and your only job is to act.
Ready to find your next deal? [Start your 7-day free trial](/trial) and access every distress signal in Travis County.