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How to Charge More in Management Fees (8 minutes)
Raising your management fees by 1% or 2% can significantly boost your fee revenue to your rent roll, but it starts with confidence and strategy.
This video and article explore how to break free from limiting beliefs and charge more by mastering fee objection responses and creating strong points of difference that allow you to stand out from your rivals.
Whether it’s through effective negotiation scripts or standout services like virtual tours and superior tenant screening, you can justify higher fees and command more respect in the market.
Learn the tools and mindset you need to charge what you're worth and take your rent roll to the next level in profitability.
Today, we’re talking about how to charge more in management fees for new business.
Whether you’re aiming to bump up your fees by 1% or 2%, here are some strategies that will help you achieve this with confidence.
Let’s dive into it.
There’s Always a ‘Swing in Fees’
We’ve conducted secret shopping on over 1,300 agencies across Australia, New Zealand, and smaller cities (for the full management fee data report download it at IGTFeeReport.com)
In any market—whether it’s Sydney, Melbourne, or Auckland—you’ll always find a variety of management fees.
Some agents are charging 5%, others 6%, while some are at 4%, 7%, or even 8%.
How is it that in the same market, fees can vary so much?
It’s not like these agents don’t know what their competitors are charging.
In most cases, they’ve secret shopped each other. But despite knowing this, many agents still price themselves lower. Why?
This brings us to the ‘Law of the Fee Lid’.
It states that your fees are capped by your own beliefs. If you could charge more, you would—but you aren’t because something in your mindset says ‘no’ and is holding you back.
Whether it’s the belief that ‘owners only care about cheap fees’ or ‘my rivals aren’t charging that much so we can’t’, you’ve set a limit based on your own mindset belief.
- Standard Marketing Fee This fee covers the costs of listing properties on portals. In Australia, you’re likely familiar with the two major portals that charge fees. New Zealand has its own marketing portal costs as well. Make sure you’re covering those costs, and if you haven’t updated your fee recently, ensure you’re adjusting it, as portal charges tend to increase on a regular basis.
Don’t forget to factor in any additional marketing efforts, such as Facebook or LinkedIn campaigns. Always check your local legislation to ensure you can on-charge these costs. - Professional Photos If you’re taking professional photos for listings, you should be charging a fee to cover those costs. It’s a straightforward service, but make sure it’s reflected in your fee structure.
- Video Walkthrough Fee Offering video walkthroughs is becoming increasingly common. If you’re walking through the property with a camera or phone, narrating as you go, that takes time—editing and uploading included. You should be charging for this service, and the suggested fees are detailed in the book.
- Virtual Tour Fee Using high-tech tools like Matterport or 360-degree cameras to create virtual tours can be time-consuming and require expensive equipment. This is another service where you should be charging a fee for the value you provide.
How to Charge 1% or 2% More
The key to charging more is to change what you believe that you’re worth. This is more about mindset and confidence than market realities. To lift your fees by 1% or 2%, you need to believe in your value and what you bring to the table, and there are two main ways to do this.
1. Get Good at Fee Objection Response Scripts
One of the most powerful tools you have is knowing how to explain why you’re charging more.
Let’s say the average rent in your market is $600 per week. A 1% increase is just $6 more per week—about the price of a cup of coffee.
You can say to the owner, “Mr. Smith, we’re only talking about the cost of a cup of coffee each week for an additional 1% in management fees.”
This trivialises the fee increase and makes it more digestible for the owner.
But here’s the thing: whether you’re charging 8%, 5%, or even 3%, owners will still ask for a discount!
Fee objections will always come up, so you need to get really good at scripts.
It’s how you respond to objections that determines whether you’ll get the fee you want.
Objections like:
• “The other agent is cheaper!”
• “Can you match the agent down the road?”
• “My Sydney property manager only charges X%!”
These are common negotiation tactics. Owners expect to negotiate because you work in real estate. The key is to respond with confidence, which comes when you know your scripts.
That’s why I wrote the PM Fee Scripts Secrets book. It covers 50 fee objections and shows you how to respond effectively. The book is free—you just pay for shipping.
2. Develop Effective Points of Difference
The second way to increase your fees is by standing out from your competitors. You need to have effective points of difference that make you worth the higher fee. Many agents we’ve secret-shopped fail to differentiate themselves in any meaningful way.
When asked how they’re different, most give generic answers like:
• “We’re a boutique agency.”
• “We’re a family-owned business.”
• “We offer great customer service.”
But these statements don’t stand out—they’re just ‘noise’.
If you want to justify charging more, you need to be able to explain why you’re worth it with substance. This could include:
• A unique inspection process with virtual tour technology.
• Superior property marketing with enhanced photography and digital staging.
• Specialised tenant screening.
When you can create real differences that will impress a prospective client, it lifts your professional confidence.
You’ll feel more comfortable saying, “Yes, we charge 1% more, and here’s why we’re worth it.”
When you believe you’re worth it, your prospects will too!
Why Confidence Matters
Ultimately, charging more comes down to your confidence.
The combination of knowing your scripts and offering effective points of difference will make you feel empowered to charge higher fees.
Owners are far more likely to agree to a higher fee when they sense your confidence.
We’ve detailed the ten most effective points of difference in my book, Win Your Worth Secrets.
If you can implement even a few of these points, your confidence—and your fees—will increase.
Summary: How to Increase Your Management Fees With New Business
If you want to increase your fees by 1% or 2%, focus on:
1. Mastering your scripts so you can handle fee objections with ease.
2. Developing strong points of difference that set you apart from your competitors.
It’s easier than you think to raise your fees once you have the right tools and mindset. Both PM Fee Script Secrets and Win Your Worth Secrets are available for free—just pay for the shipping.
Head over to IGTCentral.com to reserve your copy.
WIN YOUR WORTH SECRETS
The complete PM HANDBOOK on how to WIN THE BEST FEES with new clients and INCREASE YOUR FEES with your current clients without losing them to cheaper agents
PM FEE SCRIPTS SECRETS
Access 50 (plus) fee objection responses.
[UNLOCKED] How to WIN the deal and your FULL FEES with CONFIDENCE...no matter how low your rivals discount or reduce their fees.
Every PM fee objection you'll ever face has an effective response! You'll find it...in this book!
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TIME SECRETS
The kick-butt time management handbook for crazy busy property managers who want to beat burn-out, reduce stress, take control and get their life back!
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[UNLOCKED] PROVEN Strategies, Hacks and Techniques.
Revealed...secrets to 40+ effective ways to generate hot leads to grow your rent roll without relying on salespeople.
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