Property managers avoid raising fees because of discomfort with appearing greedy, fierce competition, and security-deposit alternatives that let them collect a month's rent upfront from tenants instead. These programs have become a major revenue source.
Do you think people don't charge a higher management fee because they're uncomfortable, quote, making that much money and the owner seeing it? Or do you think they're not charging a higher management fee because of competitive pressures? Competitive pressure. And so then there's enormous pressure to still be profitable. Look, I have multiple competitors in my market that are sort of forcing people into security deposit alternative fee programs because they jack up the normal deposit too high and because they just make it like almost like a de facto they have to opt out. And then they are charging the equivalent of essentially one month's deposit in the first year of the lease. That only goes to the property manager. We might do this. This is a huge revenue source.
