If you’re thinking about hiring a property manager for the first time, especially if you never planned to be a landlord, the fee structure is probably one of your first questions.  Here’s exactly what we charge, what’s included, and what you can realistically expect to net on a typical Tyler-area rental.

What are the actual management fees?

• Our management fee is 10 percent of the monthly rent collected. That’s only charged when your property is occupied and rent is coming in. If it’s vacant, you pay nothing.
• The leasing fee (what we charge to find and place a qualified tenant) is 50 percent of one month’s rent, with a $500 minimum. That covers marketing the property, showing it, screening applicants, and executing the lease.
• Lease renewals are 10 percent of one month’s rent ($100 minimum). Periodic inspections are $65 each. And if we’re coordinating the make-ready process (getting the property tenant-ready), we charge 10 percent of contractor invoices for project management.

What we don’t charge is just as important: no vacancy fees, no maintenance markups, no advertising fees, and no portal or technology fees. We don’t make money when your property sits empty, and we don’t pad contractor invoices.

What will I actually net each month?

Let’s walk through a real example. Take a typical 3-bedroom rental at $1,500 a month.

Your management fee is about $150. If the property was vacant when we started managing it (which it usually is), the leasing fee of $750 is a one-time cost at the beginning.

The bigger variable is maintenance. For a property in average condition, expect maintenance costs to run about 7 to 8 percent of rent annually. That’s roughly $105 to $120 a month averaged out over the year. If the property is in newer condition, that drops closer to 5 percent. If it’s been neglected, you could be looking at 10 to 12 percent. There is never zero percent maintenance. Something always comes up.

So on a $1,500 rental in average shape, you’re netting roughly $1,230 to $1,245 a month after management and typical maintenance. Your mortgage, taxes, and insurance come out of that separately. Those are owner expenses that you handle.

In month 13, you’ll see the lease renewal fee and an inspection charge. None of these are surprises. They’re all spelled out before you sign.

What should I look for in any property manager’s fee structure?

Across the industry, there are a few things worth paying attention to when comparing property managers:

• First, ask whether they charge a fee when the property is vacant. Some do. We don’t. If your property isn’t earning, we aren’t either. That aligns our interests with yours.
• Second, look for maintenance markups. Some companies add a percentage on top of every contractor invoice. Our fee for make-ready coordination is transparent and only applies during the initial make-ready or turnover, not to routine maintenance calls.
• Third, read the cancellation terms. We offer a Satisfaction Guarantee: if you’re not happy, you can cancel with 30 days’ notice, no penalties. Some management agreements lock you in for years with steep early-termination fees.
• Finally, ask about hidden fees: setup fees, advertising fees, technology fees, administrative fees. If you can’t get a clear answer on the total cost, that’s a red flag.

Is a 12-month agreement standard?

Our agreement is 12 months, which is typical in the industry. But here’s what makes ours different: we back it with a 90-day money-back guarantee. If within the first 90 days you’re not satisfied, we’ll refund everything you’ve paid us. That’s how confident we are in the service.

We also offer an Easy Switch guarantee. If you’re leaving another property manager, we’ll handle the transition at no cost and even offset any early termination fees from your existing contract.

Want to see the actual numbers for your specific property? We’ll run a free rental analysis and show you exactly what you can expect to earn and what it will cost.

Use our online calculator or contact us directly. No commitment required.