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San Diego Property Management Fees Explained by an Expert Property Manager

Management fees are a common concern of owners when they are looking for professional San Diego property management. Today, we’re talking about what those fees mean.

Fee Structures

There are a few common fee structures that San Diego investors can expect to see. First, there is a management fee plus one or two ancillary fees like a leasing fee or a maintenance fee.

The second structure includes a small management fee, which may be called a discount fee, but then a lot of other extra fees are charged. The third fee structure is what I call a “here today, gone tomorrow” manager. They charge a low fee and you wonder how that can be, and the answer is they aren’t managing well, so they’ll be out of business soon.

Typical Property Management San Diego Fees

You need to understand what these fees mean, so we’re listing 10 fees you may run into.

Set Up Fee

This is sometimes charged to set up your account in a property manager’s system.

Management Fee

This fee is the monthly cost that pays for the ongoing management of your property.

Supervisory Fee

This might be to oversee large repair project outside of normal maintenance.

Advertising Fee

Some companies keep their management fee low but then charge extra for running ads.

Leasing Fee

The leasing fee is a commission paid once the property is leased to a tenant.

Lease Renewal Fee

Another common fee is the renewal fee, which is what you’ll pay for tenant retention.

Maintenance Surcharge

When a maintenance fee is charged, the company will get a percentage of every maintenance item that needs to be completed. So, on a $100 repair, they may keep 10 percent.

Administration Fee

This could also show up as a postage fee or an accounting fee.

Cancellation Fee

Some property managers will charge you a cancellation fee when you want to be released from your contract.

Click Here for a Cost Breakdown

Pay for Performance

When considering the right fee structure for you, try to keep things simple. It’s also important to pay for performance. As an investor, I’m comfortable paying a higher management fee because I know the rent will be tied to that fee. The manager has an incentive to make sure the rents are high. Leasing fees are also performance based. If a lease is successful, the manager gets a fee. If not, they don’t. 

Look out for minimum fees. If your rent is low,  you might pay more of a percentage because they have a minimum. Hire someone good and be willing to pay market rate.

Wondering what your home might rent for? Get a free instant rental report!

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Hey guys, Adam Manley here, Business Development Manager at GoodLye Property Management. Here to break down the fees that you can expect to pay when you hire a property management company. The three main fees associated with property management service are typically a leasing fee, an ongoing management fee, and typically some type of ancillary fee associated on the side as well. I’ll break those down for you here. The first fee you can expect to pay when hiring a property management company is a leasing fee. This fee is typically paid once the property is rented, but some companies may require it up front. It may range from as low as a couple hundred dollars to as high as half a month’s rent, and typically it’ll cover coordinating repairs once the property becomes vacant, all of the marketing, all of the showing and application screening, as well as all of the lease preparation and signing of the property. The second fee you can expect to pay is an ongoing management fee. Typically in the San Diego area, that fee ranges anywhere from seven to ten percent, and the management company may adjust this depending on how high their leasing fee is. For example, if they charge more up front, they might have a slightly lower management fee, so something to consider when you’re hiring a management company. The last is the ancillary fee section, and this is going to vary depending on each individual company. Some companies may charge a fee to renew the lease on the property, like when you have an existing tenant who wants to stay for an additional year. Some companies may not charge that. Some companies may charge to do an annual or buy annual walkthrough of the property, or some companies might. Some companies may even have a startup fee or some type of fee to get the agreement and your property set up as well. These are all things to look at when you’re reading the five-printer of the agreement and determining which company you’re going to select or hire for your property. If you guys are looking for some more information on the topic, we have a full blog on this. We’ll include a link below. And if you’re considering hiring a property management company for your property, we also have a definitive guide on how to hire a property manager, and we’ll include a link to that below as well. Thank you.