Our fee schedule is set by region, and the differences are real. Here is every fee we charge, what it covers, and which markets it applies to.
It depends which market your property is in. In Baltimore, Washington DC and Northern Virginia we charge four fees: monthly management of 5% to 8% of collected rent, a tenant placement fee of one month’s rent, a lease renewal fee, and a one-time $99 onboarding fee.
Philadelphia also has four, but a different four: the same 5% to 8% management fee and one month’s placement fee, a lease renewal fee of 10% of one month’s rent, and a $199 rental license admin fee instead of an onboarding fee.
Texas has three: 7% monthly management, a leasing fee of 70% of the first month’s rent, and a 10% lease renewal fee. No onboarding fee and no admin fee.
Our monthly management fee typically falls between 5% and 8% of collected rent across all four, with a full range of 3% to 10%. Where you land depends on the property’s location, the monthly rent, and how many units you have under management with us. The percentage is the same across our Mid-Atlantic regions; what differs between them is the renewal fee and whether there is an onboarding or admin fee.
Three fees. Management is 7% of the rent we collect each month. Placing a tenant in a vacant unit costs 70% of the first month’s rent, charged only after the tenant moves in. Renewing a lease costs 10% of one month’s rent. There is no onboarding fee and no licensing cost, because Texas does not require a rental license statewide.
On a $2,200 rental with one placement, that is $3,388 in the first year and $2,068 in a year where the tenant renews.
Two different reasons, depending on the fee.
The onboarding and admin fees follow the compliance work. Philadelphia requires an annual rental license, a Commercial Activity License and a Certificate of Rental Suitability for every new tenancy – three separate registrations, one reissued every time a tenant changes. That is why Philadelphia has a $199 admin fee and no onboarding fee. Baltimore and Washington DC both require a license and an inspection, which we administer at no extra charge. Texas requires nothing at state level, which is why there is no fee of either kind there.
The renewal fee is regional market pricing. Each of our offices sets it against what is standard in its own market, which is why it ranges from a flat $299 in Baltimore to 25% of one month’s rent in Northern Virginia. The monthly management fee and the tenant placement fee are the same across all four Mid-Atlantic regions.
Collected. We charge the management fee on rent we actually collect, not on rent that is owed. If a tenant does not pay, we do not get paid either. This is true in every market we operate in, and it is deliberate – it keeps our incentives pointed at collecting your rent rather than simply holding the contract.
No. Because the management fee is calculated on collected rent, there is no management fee for any month in which no rent comes in. A vacant property costs you nothing in management fees, in every market.
After the tenant takes possession, in every market. It is one month’s rent in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington DC and Northern Virginia, and 70% of the first month’s rent in Texas.
It is never charged when you sign a management agreement with us, and never while we are marketing the property. If we do not place a tenant, you do not pay a placement fee. The fee covers marketing across the MLS, Zillow, HotPads and other major platforms, running showings, and screening every applicant with income verification required in every case.
Because we would rather win the business than the placement. A full month’s rent is the Texas market standard and what most companies there charge.
On a $2,200 rental, 70% means $1,540 instead of $2,200 – $660 that stays with you on every placement. Across a portfolio, or across a few years of turnover, that adds up faster than a percentage point on the management fee does.
No. You pay what the vendor charges, with no percentage added and no administrative surcharge. We use trusted local vendors and keep in-house maintenance technicians on staff for smaller jobs, which keeps costs down without needing a markup to make the work worthwhile.
There is a one-time $99 onboarding fee in Baltimore, Washington DC and Northern Virginia. There is none in Philadelphia or Texas.
The fee covers setting up your owner account, the initial property assessment, and coordinating the paperwork needed to bring the property under management. For an already-tenanted property it also covers reviewing the existing lease, transferring the security deposit, and introducing ourselves to the tenant.
Philadelphia has no onboarding fee because that work is bound up in the licensing process there, which carries its own admin fee instead. Texas has none because there is no licensing process at all.
Baltimore is a flat $299. Philadelphia and Texas are 10% of one month’s rent. Northern Virginia is 25%. Washington DC ranges from 10% to 25%.
It varies because each of our offices prices to its own market, and renewal fees are one of the least standardised charges in property management. Baltimore is the only market where we charge a flat amount, which means a higher-rent property pays the same as a lower-rent one there.
The fee covers reviewing the tenant’s payment and maintenance history, fresh market research to confirm your rent is still correct, preparing the renewal paperwork, and handling any re-registration or re-inspection the jurisdiction requires.
In every market, a renewal costs less than a turnover. Our renewal rate is 79%, so most of our owners avoid a placement fee and a vacancy period in any given year.
It is our fee for administering Philadelphia’s rental licensing process. Philadelphia requires an annual rental license, a Commercial Activity License, and a Certificate of Rental Suitability issued for every new tenancy – three separate registrations, one of which has to be reissued each time a tenant changes.
We handle the applications, the renewals and the timing so the property stays legally rentable. The $199 covers that work. Any fees charged by the City of Philadelphia itself are separate and passed through at cost with no markup.
It is charged in Philadelphia only. It is not a licensing cost, and it is not charged anywhere else we operate.
It depends where the property is. Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Washington DC and Philadelphia all require a license before you can legally collect rent, and each involves an inspection. Northern Virginia has no statewide requirement, though some jurisdictions require a business license once rental income passes a threshold. Texas has no statewide rental license requirement for a single-family home.
Where a license is required, we handle the registration, inspection scheduling and any lead certification. In Baltimore and Washington DC there is no additional charge for that. In Philadelphia, where three separate registrations apply, there is a $199 admin fee.
It depends when you leave. Ending the agreement at the end of its term costs nothing beyond fees already earned, provided you give written notice at least 60 days before the end date. In Texas the agreement runs for a year and renews automatically, so the 60 days is measured against that anniversary.
Ending mid-term means paying the management fee for the months remaining in the term, calculated on the rent in effect at that point. The same applies if you sell. If we have already secured an approved applicant and you terminate before move-in, the charge is $1,500 or one month’s rent, whichever is greater – the marketing, showings and screening are already done at that point.
Section 11 of the management agreement sets out the full terms, and we will walk you through them before you sign.
Yes, in every market. In our Mid-Atlantic regions, portfolio size is one of three factors that determine where you land in the 3% to 10% range, along with the property’s location and the monthly rent. In Texas, 7% is the standard rate and owners with multiple units can qualify for a reduced percentage.
If you are weighing whether to bring a second or third property over, ask for a quote on the portfolio rather than assuming the rate on your first property carries across. It often does not, and the difference compounds monthly.
Generally yes. Property management fees are usually treated as a deductible operating expense on a rental property, alongside maintenance, insurance and mortgage interest. We provide monthly financial statements and year-end 1099 documentation to support your filing. We are not tax advisers, so check the specifics with your accountant.
The monthly fee covers day-to-day management in every market: rent collection and owner disbursements, maintenance coordination and vendor management, 24/7 emergency response, tenant communication and lease enforcement, monthly and year-end financial statements, and move-in and move-out inspection reports.
Billed separately are the tenant placement fee when a unit needs leasing and the renewal fee when a tenant stays. Add the $99 onboarding fee in Baltimore, Washington DC and Northern Virginia, or the $199 admin fee in Philadelphia. Neither applies in Texas. Repair and maintenance costs are property expenses rather than management fees, in all markets.
Texas, where there is no cost at all to bring a property under management – the first money that changes hands is the leasing fee, after a tenant has moved in. Baltimore, Washington DC and Northern Virginia cost $99 to start. Philadelphia costs $199.
Getting-started cost is worth less attention than it looks, though. Over a full year with one placement, the difference between a $99 market and a $199 market is $100 on a bill of several thousand. The management percentage and the leasing fee are what actually move the number.
A property management fee is what an owner pays a management company to run a rental day-to-day: collecting rent, coordinating maintenance, and dealing with tenants. We charge ours as a percentage of the rent you actually collect, not a flat amount, so the fee scales with your rental income.
Three of our fees are the same in every Mid-Atlantic market. Three differ by region, because the work differs. Philadelphia carries the heaviest licensing burden of anywhere we operate; Texas has no statewide licensing requirement at all. Here is the full schedule.
| Fee | Baltimore | Philadelphia | Washington DC | N. Virginia | Texas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly management | 5–8% | 5–8% | 5–8% | 5–8% | 7% |
| Tenant placement | One month’s rent | One month’s rent | One month’s rent | One month’s rent | 70% of first month |
| Lease renewal | $299 | 10% of one month | 10–25% of one month | 25% of one month | 10% of one month |
| Onboarding | $99 | None | $99 | $99 | None |
| Rental license admin | None | $199 | None | None | None |
| Cost to get started | $99 | $199 | $99 | $99 | Nothing |
| Fee | Baltimore | Philadelphia | Washington DC | Northern Virginia | Texas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly management—single family | 5–8% of collected rent | 5–8% of collected rent | 5–8% of collected rent | 5–8% of collected rent | 7% of collected rent |
| Monthly management—multi family | 4–8% of collected rent | Confirm before publish | Confirm before publish | Confirm before publish | Confirm before publish |
| Tenant placement / leasing fee | One month’s rent | One month’s rent | One month’s rent | One month’s rent | 70% of first month’s rent |
| Lease renewal fee | $299 flat | 10% of one month’s rent | 10–25% of one month’s rent | 25% of one month’s rent | 10% of one month’s rent |
| Onboarding / start-up fee | $99 one time | None | $99 one time | $99 one time | None |
| BMG rental license admin fee | None | $199 | None | None | None |
| Fee | Baltimore | Philadelphia | Washington DC | Northern Virginia | Texas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ending at end of term | None with 60 days’ notice | None with 60 days’ notice | None with 60 days’ notice | None with 60 days’ notice | None with 60 days’ notice |
| Ending mid-term | Management fee for remaining months | Management fee for remaining months | Management fee for remaining months | Management fee for remaining months | Management fee for remaining months |
| Ending after an approved applicant | $1,500 or one month’s rent, whichever is greater | Same | Same | Same | Same |
| Court filing costs | At cost | At cost | At cost | At cost | At cost |
| Fee | Baltimore | Philadelphia | Washington DC | Northern Virginia | Texas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fee while the property is vacant | None | None | None | None | None |
| Maintenance or repair markup | None | None | None | None | None |
| Eviction service fee | None | None | None | None | None |
| Move-in / move-out inspection fee | None | None | None | None | None |
| Statement, portal or technology fee | None | None | None | None | None |
| Metric | Baltimore | Philadelphia | Washington DC | Northern Virginia | Texas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of fees | Four | Four | Four | Four | Three |
| Which fourth fee | Onboarding $99 | Admin $199 | Onboarding $99 | Onboarding $99 | No fourth fee |
| Cost to get started | $99 | $199 | $99 | $99 | $0 |
Monthly management is charged on rent we actually collect. If your property is vacant, or a tenant does not pay, you are not charged a management fee that month. That is true in every market.
Prices and fees are subject to change. Your exact rate is confirmed in writing before you sign anything.
Reviewed by: Patrick Freeze | President of Bay Property Management Group
Fees vary by portfolio size, location, and rent.
In Baltimore, Washington DC and Northern Virginia we charge four fees: monthly management of 5% to 8% of collected rent, a tenant placement fee of one month’s rent charged only after a tenant moves in, a lease renewal fee, and a one-time $99 onboarding fee.
In Philadelphia, we also charge four, but not the same four. There is no onboarding fee. Instead, we charge a $199 rental license admin fee because Philadelphia requires an annual rental license, a Commercial Activity License, and a Certificate of Rental Suitability for every tenancy, and we administer all of it. Lease renewals in Philadelphia are 10% of one month’s rent.
In Texas, we charge three: 7% monthly management, a leasing fee of 70% of the first month’s rent, and a lease rrenewal fee of 10% of one month’s rent. No onboarding fee and no admin fee, because Texas has no statewide rental license requirement.
No region pays both the onboarding fee and the admin fee. No matter which market you are in, you don’t need a 20-page contract to figure out what you will pay.
Across Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, and Northern Virginia, the monthly management fee typically falls between 5% and 8% of collected rent, with a full range of 3% to 10%. Where you land depends on three things: the property’s location, the monthly rent, and how many units you have with us.
In Texas, it is a flat 7%. Not a range to negotiate down from – 7%, quoted the same way to every owner, with reductions available as you add units.
The fee is calculated on rent we collect, not rent that is owed. If a tenant doesn’t pay, we don’t get paid either. We think that is the right way around: it keeps our incentives focused on collecting your rent rather than simply holding the contract.
No management fee is charged while a property sits vacant, in any market.
The placement fee covers everything involved in filling a vacancy: marketing across the MLS, Zillow, HotPads, and other major rental platforms; running showings; and screening every applicant against consistent criteria in line with local, state, and federal law. Income verification is required for every applicant, with no exceptions.
It is one month’s rent in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, and Northern Virginia, and 70% of the first month’s rent in Texas, where a full month is the market standard.
The timing is the same everywhere. The fee is charged after the tenant takes possession – not when you sign with us, and not while we are marketing. If we do not place a tenant, you do not pay a placement fee.
A renewal fee is charged when an existing tenant signs on for another term. It covers reviewing the tenant’s payment and maintenance history, conducting fresh market research to confirm your rent is still appropriate, preparing the renewal paperwork, and handling the re-registration or re-inspection the jurisdiction requires.
Baltimore charges a flat $299 regardless of the property’s rent. Philadelphia and Texas charge 10% of one month’s rent. Northern Virginia charges 25%. Washington, DC ranges from 10% to 25%.
Each of our offices prices it own market. Renewal fees are among the most variable line items in property management, and what reads as standard in Northern Virginia is not what reads as standard in Philadelphia or Austin. Baltimore is the one market where we charge a flat amount rather than a percentage, so a higher-rent property pays the same as a lower-rent one.
Whatever the number, a renewal is almost always cheaper than a turnover. Our renewal rate is 79%, so most of our owners avoid a placement fee and a vacancy period in any given year, and every one of these renewal fees is a fraction of what simpgle empty month costs.
In Baltimore, Washington, DC, and Northern Virginia, a one-time $99 onboarding fee applies. It covers setting up your owner account, the initial property assessment, and coordinating the paperwork and service arrangements needed to bring the property under management. If the property already has a tenant, it also covers collecting and reviewing the existing lease, transferring the security deposit, and introducing ourselves to the tenant.
There is no onboarding fee in Philadelphia or in Texas. In Philadelphia, the work that fee covers elsewhere is tied to the licensing process, which instead carries its own admin fee. In Texas, there is no licensing process, so there is nothing to charge for, and getting started costs nothing. The first money that changes hands is the leasing fee, after a tenant has moved in.
In most places where we operate, a rental license is required before a property can be legally rented, and the process is simple. Baltimore City and Baltimore County both require a license backed by a passed inspection. Washington, DC requires a Basic Business License with a rental endorsement, plus separate registration with the Rental Accommodations Division. Philadelphia requires an annual rental license, a Commercial Activity License, and a Certificate of Rental Suitability issued for every new tenancy. Properties built before 1978 carry lead certification requirements on top.
We handle most of that process for you. Scheduling the inspection, submitting the application, tracking the expiry date, and renewing on time are all part of management, and in Baltimore, DC, and Northern Virginia, we charge nothing extra to coordinate the process. You pay only the direct fees charged by the issuing agencies.
Philadelphia is the exception. The licensing burden there is heavier than anywhere else we operate and includes three separate registrations, one of which must be reissued for every tenancy, plus an annual renewal cycle. We charge a $199 admin fee to cover the cost of administering the process. That is our fee for the work; any fees charged by the City of Philadelphia itself are separate and are passed through at cost.
No management fees while your property is vacant. No markup on maintenance or repair invoices. You pay what we pay. No eviction service fee. If a filing becomes necessary, we handle it, and only the court’s filing costs apply. No statement, portal, or technology fees. No onboarding fee in Philadelphia or Texas. No rental license admin fee outside Philadelphia.
Four fees in most of our markets, three in Texas, and nothing hidden behind them.
We believe having only four fees makes things very easy and transparent for our customers and clients. You do not have to read through a 20-page contract to understand what fees you will and will not be charged.
Prices and fees are subject to change at any time.
| Line item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Onboarding fee | $99 |
| Monthly management, 7% ($140 × 12) | $1,680 |
| Tenant placement fee | $2,000 |
| Rental license admin fee | $0 |
| First-year total | $3,779 |
A single-family rental in Baltimore at $2,000 a month, managed for a full year with one tenant placement. In year two, with that tenant renewing, it drops to $1,680 in management fees plus the $299 renewal fee – $1,979 total, with no placement cost and no vacancy.
| Line item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Onboarding fee | $0 |
| Monthly management, 7% ($126 × 12) | $1,512 |
| Tenant placement fee | $1,800 |
| Rental license admin fee | $199 |
| First-year total | $3,511 |
| Line item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Onboarding fee | $0 |
| Monthly management, 7% ($154 × 12) | $1,848 |
| Leasing fee (70% of the first month’s rent) | $1,540 |
| Rental license admin fee | $0 |
| First-year total | $3,388 |
A single-family rental in Austin at $2,200 a month, managed for a full year with one tenant placement. In year two, with that tenant renewing, it drops to $1,848 in management fees plus a $220 renewal fee – $2,068 total.
For comparison, a Texas company charging 10% management with a full month’s leasing fee would cost $4,840 in year one on the same property.
| Region | Rent used | Renewal fee | Management for the year | Renewal-year total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | $2,000 | $299 | $1,680 | $1,979 |
| Philadelphia | $1,800 | $180 | $1,512 | $1,692 |
| Washington DC | $2,400 | $240 to $600 | $2,016 | $2,256 to $2,616 |
| Northern Virginia | $2,500 | $625 | $2,100 | $2,725 |
| Texas | $2,200 | $220 | $1,848 | $2,068 |
We manage roughly 8,000 units across Maryland, Washington DC, Northern Virginia, and Pennsylvania. The fee structure is identical in every market — the same management percentage, the same placement fee, the same onboarding fee. What changes is local compliance: whether your jurisdiction requires a rental license at all, what a lease renewal actually involves, and how much paperwork sits between you and a legally rented property. Here’s what that looks like market by market.
Baltimore City requires a rental license before you can legally collect rent, and Maryland law is clear that an unlicensed landlord can’t, and getting licensed means passing an inspection by a City-registered inspector, and properties built before 1978 need current lead certification as well, and property registration and the license itself renew on separate schedules, which is one of the most common things owners lose track of.
This is a market where the $199 licensing cost applies to most properties, and where a lease renewal can trigger re-registration rather than a signature, which is why renewals here sit toward the upper end of our range, and Baltimore County operates a separate program with its own rules, so the requirements change depending on which side of the city line your property sits on.
We handle the registration, the inspection scheduling, and the lead certification as part of managing a rental in Baltimore.
DC requires a Basic Business License with a rental housing endorsement, which runs on a two-year cycle and requires passing a Department of Buildings inspection, and separately, every rental unit has to be registered with the Rental Accommodations Division through the DC Rent Registry, including units that are exempt from rent stabilization.
Owners routinely assume the business license covers the registration, and it doesn’t, and they’re two filings with two different agencies, and missing the second one can hold up a license renewal.
The $199 licensing cost applies here, and DC also has the most involved renewal process of our markets, because rent stabilization rules and the District’s tenant protections shape what a renewal can and can’t change, which is reflected in where the renewal fee lands for property management in Washington DC.
Northern Virginia is the least expensive of our markets on compliance, and it’s worth understanding why before you compare quotes across state lines, and Virginia has no statewide rental license requirement, so most owners here never see the $199 licensing cost at all.
What applies instead varies by jurisdiction, and Arlington County requires a business license once annual rental income passes $10,000, and Alexandria requires one for owners operating as a business, and Fairfax County generally exempts single-family rentals while requiring a rental dwelling license for larger buildings, and none of these are property-condition licenses, they’re tax registrations, which is a different and usually cheaper thing.
Renewals are also simpler here, without the re-inspection or re-registration steps other markets add, so renewal fees sit at the lower end of our range, and our Northern Virginia team can tell you which of these applies to your specific property.
Philadelphia requires an annual rental license from the Department of Licenses and Inspections, plus a Commercial Activity License, and to get either, you need to be current on city taxes and clear of open L&I violations.
Every new tenancy also requires a Certificate of Rental Suitability, issued within 60 days of move-in and given to the tenant, and properties built before 1978 need lead-safe or lead-free certification, which expires and has to be renewed, and without a valid license and certificate, a Philadelphia landlord can’t enforce the lease or file for eviction.
The $199 licensing cost applies here, and because the rental license renews every year and a fresh suitability certificate is typically issued at renewal, Philadelphia is our most paperwork-heavy market, and that’s what the renewal fee reflects in the Philadelphia rental market.
Managing property in Austin or San Antonio? Our Texas fees and rates are listed at texasbmg.com/fees-rates.
We don’t just say we’re competitive — here’s how our published rates compare to nationwide benchmarks.
| Fee | Bay Property Management Group | Industry Average |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly management fee | 5–8% of collected rent (range: 3–10%) | 8–12% of monthly rent; 10% is the most commonly cited benchmark |
| Tenant placement fee | One month's rent | 50–100% of one month's rent |
| Lease renewal fee | $299 to 25% of one month's rent, varies by state | $200 to $500 per renewal, typically a flat fee |
Source: DoorLoop, “Property Management Fees by State,” published February 2026. Industry figures vary by market and portfolio size; lease renewal comparison is directional since flat-fee and percentage-based structures aren’t perfectly apples-to-apples.