Property manager fee/salary? How much do you pay someone to manage your airbnb property?

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Julian295
Level 1
Beacon, NY

Property manager fee/salary? How much do you pay someone to manage your airbnb property?

hi there... a friend has a property and asked if I'd be interested in managing it as an airbnb...it's a luxury property and I'm guessing it'll be very time consuming,, but just not sure what to ask as far as compensation

 

thank you!

 

JP

1 Best Answer
Ari45162
Level 2
Washington, DC

Anyone saying 25-40% for management fees should clarify what they are covering for that amount of take. Are you restocking supplies? Are you available 24/7? Managing cleanings? Covering bills? Covering the cost of repairs? These details matter. I am seeing a very nuanced conversation happen with broad assumptions. 

 

There are many costs in being a home owner: taxes, repairs/maintenance, upkeep, furniture, supplies, etc. At 25-40%, you are profiting, the owner is likely break even at best. Sure the owner is appreciating on the property, as they should. THEY FINANCED THE PROPERTY. Most property managers make 5-25% depending on the level of involvement, number of check ins, size of the property and number of properties managed. If you are just managing turnover and cleanings, you can not expect 30% at scale. 

 

In summary, there are definitely some greedy property managers posting on here. Please do not think 25-40% is the norm, when in fact they are likely sharing in managing costs and risks. 

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57 Replies 57

@Rachel1802 we pay separately, and hourly, for all landscape maintenance including mowing-- this is not part of our co-host's responsibilities. You and the owner need a clear, complete, and written agreement about who is responsible for what, and you need to figure out how much of your time it will take and how much your time is worth. My opinion is the same as @Sarah977 's: you are being ripped off.

@Rachel1802 , Sarah is right, that's toooo low! You should charge, 25 for management, and the other services should be pay separate, check how much people charge in your area. 

Dimitar27
Level 10
Sofia, Bulgaria

25-40%, depending on the size of the property.

Roxanne140
Level 2
Birmingham, AL

I live in Alabama and I will begin managing three units under one roof in 2 months. I have never done this before, but have researched what all is involved. My boss would want me to do walk throughs for all 3 units after a cleaning crew finishes. I would not be able to really have another job because I would need to leave in the middle of the day numerous times a week to do a walk through. At the moment we are at $500 weekly to manage all three units. For those who have managed for some time, what do you think? I have a meeting tomorrow with my potential boss and would like to hear from someone here that is more knowledgeable. 

Annie1353
Level 2
Madison, WI

@Sara977 @Debra300 @Dimitar27 @Lisa723 

 

I really appreciate the discussion and learn a lot  from other’s experiences and opinions on the important work of property management  and the commission/payment topic.

 

I have been managing my brother’s two properties ( in addition to my own listed here with my name ) at 15% of the income. When the amount of income reaches 100k, which it already has, it is bumped up to 20% retroactively. One property has a large spa suite with hot tub, cold plunge, steam room. There are also two rooms available for massage therapy, facials, etc. We rent it at $800-$1000/night and it’s almost always rented May through October.

 

He hires people to clean, and alongside them does two major cleanings and repairs each year. 

 

My work is to do the management, working closely and with quick responses to potential and residing guests. Sometimes I take credit card information and then pass it to my brother who runs the cards. I also work with posting reviews, responding to the reviews, and dealing with add-ons and refunds.

 

I communicate through email, texts, and phone calls. I also communicate with the housekeeper regularly and repair person if anything repairs are needed in between guests... This is my second job and it seems I am always doing this work throughout each day. I haven’t added up hours because it’s kind of hard to do it because it’s here and there, but since I’ve been managing the 2 properties since March 2020, his income has increased 30-50%, and this was during a pandemic.

 

He also has a hot tub biz and employs sales people at various commission rates. He likes the idea of incremental commission structures and recently we had a conversation about changing the commission structure for my management work. I am to propose something.

 

I’m thinking to ask something like this below and  I would really appreciate your comments and feedback. I have a feeling that the commission we started off with is a little bit low. Like many who have posted here I don’t want to be greedy, I want to be fair to both of us. We have a good business relationship and I want to keep it that way.

 

2021 

15% and a retroactive 20% at $100 K/year.

20% at $100K and

    a retroactive 23% at $125 K/year.


2022

20% and a retroactive 25% at $125 K/year.

25% at $125 K and

    a retroactive 27% at $175 K/year.

27% at $175 K and

    a retroactive 30% at $200 K/year.

I came here looking for some good info on pay rates for management. I love this idea of an incremental pay scale with monetary goals. Thanks for this!

 

Tom2861
Level 2
Whitefish, MT

I'm amazed at what people pay to a middle man.  Kind of defeats the purpose of what this whole thing is supposed to be about.

@Tom2861  Well, if a host doesn't want to be burdened with managing their own listing, they should be prepared to pay whoever is doing the actual work a living wage. 

 

Personally, I take care of my own modest listing, and wish Airbnb wasn't full of faceless, property-managed listings, or at least that they were separated in search from actual hands-on hosts.

Yeah I get it if you were talking about the actual housekeeper or maintenance person or landscaper.  Otherwise the middle man situation with these hosts that don't want to be burdened just translates into higher rental rates for everyone.  They aren't in it to provide a great guest experience nor are they in it for the immediate monetary profit.  It's literally a real estate game to them.  I pay my contractors very well and yes, I only have one home but the time I spend "managing it" is very minimal.  Some of these people make as much money managing 4 properties as I did managing a resort with 400 rooms and a restaurant!  LOL 

I agree with you.  I think it would be fabulous if they would distinguish between owner managed and ones that are managed by a management company.  That would completely change who I book with.  

@Tom2861  Well it shouldn't translate to higher booking fees. If a place would rent for $100/night, and the host managed it themselves, that $100 would all go to the host. If they pay a property manager 30%, the manager should get $30 and the property owner (I won't call those hands-off owners "hosts" - they aren't) $70.  End price to the guest the same.

 

Of course if the owner is greedy and wants to still get $100/night in his own pocket and therefore ups the rate to $130/night, that's a different story.

people are lazy!  i do most everything myself along with a helper 10- 15 hours a week.  

No one else will ever care like you do!

 

Prefer to appreciate that not everyone has the skills to do everything or most everything, yet they have a nice property they’d enjoy renting out. My owner lives in her place and works full time but has a place to go when her property rents. She-therefore-is exact opposite from lazy. She is resourceful and also knows her own communication weaknesses, therefore pays me to promptly communicate and do the P.R. And webpage data, all followups. She is smart, resourceful, and generous.

Darrin22
Level 1
Corvallis, MT

Does anyone have a .pdf contract i can look at and use to draft my own contract. I just took on a caretaker position with a Rancher with three homes on the property. He wants me to manage 1 unit as an Airbnb. I have done my own Airbnb with my own home and attained a Super-host rating and had a blast doing it. This is my first attempt to manage some else's property.

Julie4340
Level 2
Marion, NC

Id also be interested in seeing someones contract. 

Helen3
Level 10
Bristol, United Kingdom

If you want a contract as a co-host you need to draw one up based on how you want to run your business and having taken legal advice to ensure it is water tight legally @Julie4340