Property management is priced in a way that makes comparison unusually hard. A quoted management percentage rarely covers leasing, renewal, maintenance markup, or turnover, and the gap between the headline number and the annual cost is where most owner complaints originate.
Our first reading is simply whether a company publishes its fee structure at all. A manager who posts a complete fee schedule is telling an owner something real before the first call. A manager who requires a consultation to disclose pricing is also telling an owner something.
Portfolio type matters more than size. Single family rental management, small multifamily, HOA and condo association work, and commercial property management run on different staffing models and different software, and a company that is excellent at one is often thin at another.
We also record whether the company holds the broker license its state requires for management activity, because in most states collecting rent on behalf of an owner is a licensed activity and the requirement is not universally met.