QUICK ANSWER
In Marin County, monthly property management fees run 6–10% of gross monthly rent. Foundation Homes charges 6% monthly (minimum $300) — below the local market average of 7–8%. Add a leasing fee of 6% of total contract value (minimum $3,000) when a new tenant is placed, and an Annual Renewal Protection Service at half a month’s rent. Foundation Homes is one of the only Marin County property management companies that publishes its full fee structure without requiring a phone call. The more important question isn’t what management costs — it’s what you get for it.
Most landlords who call us have already done the math on the percentage. They’ve looked at our fee, maybe looked at a competitor’s fee, and they’re trying to figure out if the difference is worth it.
That’s the wrong question — and I’ll explain why in a moment.
The right question is: what does your rental property actually do for you? Does it send you a reliable check every month and largely take care of itself? Or does it call you, surprise you, and slowly underperform while someone else collects a fee for it?
Here are our exact numbers. Then we’ll talk about what each one actually produces.
The Numbers — All of Them, Upfront
Foundation Homes publishes its complete fee structure. You shouldn’t have to schedule three calls with three different companies just to find out what property management costs in Marin County.
Monthly Management
6% of gross rent
min. $300/month
Your rent arrives, problems get handled, your property stays compliant. Every month.
Leasing Fee
6% of contract value
min. $3,000
A qualified tenant, placed fast, at the highest market rate — with a lease that protects you.
Annual Renewal Protection
50% of 1 month’s rent
capped at $5,000
The service that catches the $25,000 problem before it costs $25,000. More on this below.
For context: other full-service Marin County property management companies publish monthly management fees of 7–8%. On a $6,500/month rental, that’s an $850–$1,040/year difference in management fees alone — before you factor in what each company actually produces.
What Your Monthly Management Fee Actually Gets You
Six percent of monthly rent. On a $6,500/month property, that’s $390/month. Here’s what that produces:
What You Experience as an Owner
✓ Your check arrives by the 3rd of every month. Rent is collected, processed, and disbursed to you on a predictable schedule — regardless of whether your tenant paid on time or not. We manage that relationship so you don’t have to.
✓ Your phone doesn’t ring when the garbage disposal breaks. Maintenance requests come to us, get coordinated with licensed vendors, and get resolved. You see it on your monthly statement. That’s it.
✓ You don’t have to track California landlord-tenant law. AB 1482 rent caps, AB 12 deposit limits, SB 567 just cause rules — these change constantly. We do this professionally. You don’t have to.
✓ Problems get caught before they get expensive. A maintenance issue reported through our system gets addressed when it’s a $350 repair, not when it’s a $12,000 one.
On Maintenance Fees
Standard repairs — a leaky faucet, a broken appliance, a routine work order — carry zero supervision markup. You pay exactly what the licensed vendor charges. A supervision fee applies only when a project requires genuine project management beyond normal repairs: capital improvements, large invoices, remediations, or after-hours emergencies. This is disclosed in writing in your management agreement before you sign anything.
What Your Leasing Fee Gets You
Six percent of the total lease contract value — on a $6,500/month, 12-month lease, that’s $4,680. Here’s the honest way to evaluate it:
Every day your property sits vacant costs you money. At $6,500/month, that’s $217 per day. A property manager who leases in 22 days instead of 35 days saves you $2,821 in vacancy alone — before you factor in the quality of the tenant placed or the rent achieved.
16–20%
faster leasing than Marin market average
5-10%
higher rents vs. self-managed properties
98–99%
on-time rent payment rate
99.97%
eviction success rate over 15 years
The leasing fee also pays for professional photography, syndicated marketing across every major rental platform, tenant screening (credit, background, income verification, rental history), and a lease that complies with current California law. The $3,000 minimum exists because that’s the floor of what a responsible leasing process costs to do right in this market.
Leasing Fee in Context — $6,500/mo Mill Valley SFR
FHPM leasing fee (6% of $78,000): -$4,680
Vacancy savings vs. market avg (16% faster): +$3,100 est.
Rent premium vs. self-managed (+7%): +$5,460/yr
Net Year 1 leasing fee after performance: ~+$3,880 in owner’s favor
The leasing fee isn’t a cost. It’s an investment with a measurable return in Year 1 — and every year after that, you’re still receiving the higher rent the placement produced.
The Annual Renewal Protection Service — and Why It’s the Most Important Fee on This Page
Half a month’s rent, once a year. On a $6,500/month property, that’s $3,250. This is the service I’d argue about with any owner who questioned it — because I’ve seen what happens without it.
Most property management companies in Marin County offer some version of an annual renewal. A lease extension gets signed. Someone walks through the property. A fee is charged — typically in the $300–$500 range. It’s a cursory process. It checks the surface. It misses what actually costs owners money.
We’ve taken over properties from other managers and walked in to find moisture behind the master bath tile that had been slowly migrating for 18 months. A smoke detector that had been disconnected. A tenant who had a long-term unauthorized occupant nobody had noticed. Deferred maintenance items that compounded, quietly, while someone collected a fee for not catching them.
The owners who had those properties weren’t being served. They were being charged.
Here’s what the Annual Renewal Protection Service actually produces:
What Owners With This Service Experience
✓ They don’t get surprised by five-figure repair bills. Moisture intrusion caught in year one costs hundreds to address. Left until year three, it’s mold remediation — $15,000 to $40,000+, potential loss-of-use claims, and a lease termination. The inspection fee pays for itself the first time it catches something.
✓ Their tenants renew at higher rates. We analyze current market rents and time renewals to peak leasing seasons. An owner whose tenant renews in April at $400 more per month than they would have gotten in December made $4,800 more that year — from timing, not luck.
✓ Their property is worth more when they sell. A well-maintained rental with documented habitability inspections, current leases, and no deferred maintenance commands a better price and a cleaner escrow than one that’s been passively managed for five years.
✓ They stay legally current without thinking about it. The service includes preparation of any newly required legislative addenda. California landlord law changed significantly in 2024 and 2025 — AB 12, SB 567, AB 628. Your lease reflects current law because we update it every cycle.
✓ On the Habitability Inspection Specifically
The Annual Renewal Protection Service includes a written habitability and safety inspection. For new owners signing a 12-month management agreement, this inspection is included at no charge. For renewing tenancies covered under the Annual Renewal Protection Service, it is also included at no charge. You are not being charged twice for the same work.
What Happens When Management Is Just Cheap Enough to Feel Acceptable
This is the part most property managers won’t write.
A lower management fee can mean exactly what it sounds like: less management. Rent gets collected. Repairs get called in when the tenant reports them. An annual form gets signed. The owner gets a check, and nobody asks hard questions about how the property is actually doing.
Three years into that arrangement, owners come to us with properties that have been sitting $500 below market rent — because nobody ran the renewal analysis, and the tenant had stopped asking for repairs because nobody came anyway. The turn cost to get the property back to rentable condition runs $15,000–$30,000 because small things compounded into large things while the fee kept being collected.
We’re not the cheapest option in Marin County. We’re the option with the 4.8-star Google rating across 170+ reviews, a 99.97% eviction success rate over 15 years, and a client portfolio where properties perform instead of just exist.
The Full Cost Picture Over a Typical Year
Full-Year Cost — $6,500/mo Corte Madera SFR (Year 2, Renewing Tenant)
Monthly management (6% × 12 months): -$4,680
Annual Renewal Protection Service: -$3,250
Annual Administrative Service: -$175
Legislative Compliance Review: -$175
Total annual cost of management: -$8,280
Rent premium vs. self-managed (+7%): +$5,460/yr
Renewal timing premium est. (+$300/mo): +$3,600/yr
Avoided deferred maintenance (est. avg): +$3,500/yr
Net owner benefit vs. self-managing: ~+$4,280/year
Plus: your time back, legal protection, and zero late-night calls.
When Professional Management Doesn’t Make Sense
Not every Marin County landlord needs us — and I’d rather tell you that than have you find out three months in.
If your property grosses under $4,000/month, the percentage fees compress your margin in ways that make self-management worth reconsidering — especially if you live nearby and have the bandwidth. If you’re an experienced investor with trusted contractors, a property attorney you use regularly, and time to manage the relationship directly, you may be in better shape than most.
But if your rental is your retirement plan, if you’re not local, if you’re working full-time, or if you’ve ever had a tenant situation that cost you sleep — the outcomes above are what professional management is supposed to produce. If your current manager isn’t producing them, the fee you’re paying isn’t a deal. It’s a loss.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does property management cost in Marin County?
Monthly management fees in Marin County run 6–10% of gross monthly rent depending on the company. Foundation Homes charges 6% (minimum $300/month), which is below the local market average of 7–8%. There is also a leasing fee of 6% of total contract value (minimum $3,000) when placing a new tenant, and an Annual Renewal Protection Service fee of half a month’s rent charged once per year. Foundation Homes publishes its full fee structure — no phone call required to get a number.
What does a property management fee actually get you?
When management is working, you get: rent delivered to your account on a reliable date each month, qualified tenants placed faster and at higher rents than you’d achieve alone, problems caught and resolved before they become expensive, and full legal compliance without you tracking California’s constantly changing landlord-tenant laws. If your property manager isn’t producing those outcomes, the fee isn’t a bargain at any percentage.
What is the Foundation Homes Annual Renewal Protection Service?
It’s our annual program that combines a thorough habitability and safety inspection with strategic lease renewal management. The inspection identifies moisture intrusion, deferred maintenance, safety hazards, and lease violations before they become costly. The renewal management times lease renewals to peak market conditions to maximize the rent you receive. The fee is 50% of one month’s rent, capped at $5,000 for properties over $10,500/month. For new owners and renewing tenancies, the habitability inspection is included at no additional charge.
Do property managers mark up maintenance costs?
Foundation Homes charges zero on normal maintenance calls — routine repairs, standard work orders. A supervision fee applies only when a project requires genuine project management beyond normal repairs: capital improvements, large invoices, remediations, or after-hours emergencies. This is fully disclosed in writing in the management agreement before signing. Always ask any property manager for their written maintenance fee policy before you sign.
Is it worth paying for property management in Marin County?
For most Marin landlords, yes — when the manager actually performs. Foundation Homes achieves rents 5–10% above self-managed market rates and leases 16–20% faster than market. On a $6,500/month property, that combination more than offsets the annual management cost. The Annual Renewal Protection Service compounds that value over time by preventing the deferred maintenance and below-market rents that quietly drain owner returns when a property is passively managed.
