Property Management Fees for Vacation Rentals: An Owner’s Guide

Property management fees for vacation rentals vary depending on the property manager's business model. First, I will define property management fee.

What is a property management fee for a vacation rental?

A property management fee is the cost of operating, marketing, and maintaining your vacation home as a short-term rental business.

Property Management fees for vacation rentals

• Property management fees can range as low as 10% to as high as 30% commission of rental costs
• Flat-fee companies charge a monthly property management fee to handle guest calls and property maintenance
• Guaranteed income models "lease" your property from you and provide you with a guaranteed monthly income

Initial Fees for Vacation Rental Property Management

Companies may charge a set-up fee when you sign up for their services. These fees can vary from $100-$2000 depending on services and supplies included in the onboarding process. To illustrate, initial fee for vacation rental property management commonly includes the following services:

• Listing your property on multiple channels (HomeAway, VRBO, AirBnB)
• Lock system
• Welcome book
• Photography
• Sign Pacakge
• Inventory

Property Manager Commissions Vary Widely for Vacation Rentals

Finally, you may be asking why fees vary so widely. Well, the truth is vacation rental companies have staff and overhead. Often, companies with a lot of overhead charge more. Though not always true, higher fees cover nicer offices and multiple salaries and it may not impact the quality of service your guest is getting much. Vice versa, if the fee is too low, well you get what you pay for. For more information, USA Today covered vacation rental fees in depth.

Do not decide on price alone. Interview the property manager you intend to hire and make sure you have good working chemistry. Due to the nature of the business, your relationship with your property manager is likely to be long-term. Therefore, choose wisely.

Common Fees for Vacation Rentals

Property management companies for vacation rental charge several other fees in addition to their commission. These include:

• Cleaning fees
• Maintenance fees
• Pool service
• Lawn service
• Pest Control
• Trip Charges

Most importantly, interview your property manager to find out what fees come with their service. 

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