Part of the Short-Term Rental Management Guide, step 2: compare
Why Proposals Are Hard to Compare
Two proposals for the same lake house can look nothing alike. One quotes a percentage of gross, another a percentage of net, a third a flat monthly fee. One includes linens and supplies, another bills them by the stay. One projects a number for the year, another gives no projection at all. Put side by side as written, the cheapest-looking proposal is often not the cheapest, and the one with the biggest projection is not necessarily the one that will earn the most.
The fix is to translate every proposal into the same terms. Five steps:
- Build one hypothetical year for your home.
- Run each proposal's fee definitions through it, in dollars.
- Add every extra each one would charge you.
- Test each revenue projection.
- Score the parts that do not show up in dollars: service, distance, contract.
Step 1: Build One Hypothetical Year
Pick a set of numbers for your home and use them for every proposal. They do not need to be right; they need to be the same. Use your own estimate (see estimate your Airbnb revenue) or the middle of the projections you were given.
The example below is entirely hypothetical. The figures are invented to show the method. They are not a forecast for any home and not the fees of any real company.
- Rent paid by guests over the year: $52,000
- Guest cleaning fees: 40 stays at $200, so $8,000
- Total booking value: $60,000
- Platform fee: Airbnb's help center says most hosts on its single, host-only fee pay 15.5% (as of October 2026). Applied to $60,000, that is $9,300, leaving a payout of $50,700.
- Actual cost of cleaning: 40 turnovers at $180, so $7,200
Step 2: Run Each Fee Model in Dollars
Three made-up proposals:
- Proposal A: 20% of total booking value, including cleaning fees. Owner pays cleaners. One-time setup fee of $1,000.
- Proposal B: 25% of rent after the platform fee. The manager keeps the guest cleaning fee and pays the cleaners. Linen charge of $15 per stay.
- Proposal C: flat $400 per month for a narrower service. Owner arranges and pays cleaning, restocking and maintenance visits.
| Hypothetical year | Proposal A | Proposal B | Proposal C |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platform payout | $50,700 | $50,700 | $50,700 |
| Fee base | $60,000 | $52,000 rent minus 15.5% = $43,940 | Flat |
| Management fee | $12,000 | $10,985 | $4,800 |
| Cleaning fees passed to manager | $0 | $8,000 minus 15.5% = $6,760 | $0 |
| Cleaning paid by owner | $7,200 | $0 | $7,200 |
| Other charges | $1,000 setup | $600 linens | $0 |
| Owner keeps before other costs | $30,500 | $32,355 | $38,700 |
| Work left with the owner | Little | Little | Restocking, vendors, inspections |
In this made-up case, Proposal B costs less than A despite the higher percentage, because it is applied to a smaller base and the cleaning fee covers the cleaning. Proposal C leaves the most money, but it is not the same product: the owner does, or pays someone for, the work A and B include. Put a value on that time, or get a price for it, before you call C cheaper.
Change one definition (whether the percentage includes cleaning fees, whether the setup fee is refunded) and the order can flip. That is why you run the numbers. How management fees work explains each model, and net vs gross income lists the costs that stay with you under any proposal (utilities, insurance, property tax, repairs, heating fuel, plowing).
Step 3: List What Is Included and What Is Extra
Make one row per item and fill in each proposal:
| Item | Included, extra, or owner's job? |
|---|---|
| Listing creation, photography, copywriting | |
| Pricing setup and ongoing rate reviews | |
| Guest messaging and support | |
| Cleaning after each stay | |
| Inspection after each stay | |
| Linens and laundry | |
| Consumables (at cost, or marked up?) | |
| Maintenance coordination (hourly charge?) | |
| Snow removal, lawn, seasonal opening and closing | |
| Hot tub, dock or boat lift service | |
| Damage claims with the platform | |
| Owner stays (cleaning charge?) | |
| Lodging tax filings and permits |
A blank cell is a question to send back. Ask each manager to fill in the same grid so the answers are comparable.
Step 4: Test the Revenue Projection
A projection is a sales document, so treat it as a claim to check, not a promise. Ask each manager how it was built:
- Which comparable listings? Ask for the comps: similar bedrooms, sleeps, location and amenities, in your town or on your lake. A projection built on a waterfront home when yours is across the road will run high.
- Nightly rate and occupancy by season. Ask for the split: ski season, mud season, summer, foliage, holidays. A single annual occupancy figure hides the weak months.
- Gross or net? Is the projection before or after platform fees, cleaning and the manager's own fee?
- First year or a mature year? New listings often start with fewer reviews.
- What would change it? Town rules, minimum stays, pets, owner stays you plan to take.
Then build your own estimate the same way and compare. If one projection sits far above the others and above your own number, ask what it assumes that the others do not. A proposal that promises a set income or occupancy is a warning sign, not an advantage. A proposal that wins only because of its projection has not really won.
Step 5: Service Area, Crews and Contract Terms
Some of what matters most never appears in a fee table.
- Distance. How far is the nearest cleaning crew and the person who checks the house? In a snowstorm or a lake-season Saturday with back-to-back turnovers, drive time is response time.
- Who cleans and checks. Employees, contractors or a mix, how new cleaners are trained, whether someone inspects after each stay.
- Pricing attention. Which tool, and how often a person reviews rates.
- Contract. Term, renewal, notice, termination fee, who owns the listing, what happens to future bookings. Line the agreements up together; see how to read a management agreement.
- References and live listings. Look at homes they manage now, and ask to speak to a current owner with a similar home.
The 24 questions to ask a property manager cover these in detail.
A Scoring Worksheet
Give each criterion a weight that reflects what matters to you (the weights below are only an example), score each proposal from 1 to 5, and multiply.
| Criterion | Example weight | A score | B score | C score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owner keeps in the hypothetical year | 25% | |||
| What is included (fewer extras) | 15% | |||
| Projection is explained and holds up | 10% | |||
| Crew distance and inspection after each stay | 15% | |||
| Pricing method and review frequency | 10% | |||
| Contract terms and exit | 15% | |||
| References and live listings | 10% | |||
| Weighted total | 100% |
The total is a tool for discussion, not a verdict. If the winner surprises you, look at which row decided it and whether you agree with that weight.
How New England Host Co's Proposal Works
New England Host Co quotes its pricing privately for each home. Full-service management is one package, not priced in components, and co-hosting is a separate product. Owners pay license and permit fees, consumables (rebilled at cost), utilities, owner stays and repairs. Every home is within 45 minutes of its crew's base, see the service area. Our short-term rental management guide explains the service, and you can ask for a free property analysis to put next to any other proposal.
Back to the owner hub.
FAQ
How Many Management Proposals Should I Get?
Two or three is usually enough to see the range. More than that tends to add noise unless the homes or services differ a lot.
Should I Pick the Proposal with the Highest Revenue Projection?
Not on that alone. Ask how each projection was built, test it against your own estimate and comparable listings, and compare fees on the same hypothetical numbers.
Is a Lower Percentage Always Cheaper?
No. What the percentage applies to, and what is billed on top, can make a lower rate cost more in dollars. Run each proposal through the same year.
What If a Proposal Leaves Out a Cost?
Ask in writing. A blank in your comparison grid is a question for the manager, and the answer should appear in the agreement.
