Owner Math · No Sales Pitch
What does the first month really cost you?
Most property management companies keep your entire first month's rent to place a tenant. We keep half and you keep the rest. It sounds like a small difference — one month out of many. Put your own numbers in and watch what it actually does to your cash over the life of the lease.
Company A — their quote
% of one month's rent
—
Company B — Touchstone
% of one month's rent
—
$0
—
Run your actual numbers with us. Send the address and the rent you're targeting, and we'll come back with a real quote in writing — half the placement fee most companies charge, and nothing hidden underneath it.
Estimates only, for comparison purposes. Assumes continuous occupancy and no other fees, maintenance costs, vacancy, or turnover. Where a leasing fee is larger than the first month's rent net of management, the shortfall carries into month two. Actual management agreements vary — enter the terms from any written proposal you've received to compare it directly. Not tax, legal, or investment advice.
How to use it
Bring a real quote.
This works best when you stop guessing. If you have a written proposal from another management company sitting in your inbox, pull it out and type those exact numbers into the first column — their monthly percentage, and whatever they charge to place a tenant.
The second column is ours. It starts at half a month's rent to place a tenant, which is what we charge. Change our numbers too if you want to test something.
The chart shows cumulative dollars in your pocket, month by month. The shaded area is the gap.
The background
Where the first month goes.
A leasing fee — sometimes called a placement fee or a tenant procurement fee — is what a management company charges to fill a vacancy. In the St. Louis metro it commonly runs a full month's rent, on top of the monthly management percentage.
It pays for real work. Photographs, the listing, the showings, running applications, verifying income, pulling credit and background, and preparing the lease. Nobody should pretend that's free, and we don't — we charge for it too.
The question is how much of that first check has to leave, and what the size of the fee quietly rewards.
The incentive
A fee charged at move-in is a fee that repeats at every turnover.
Think about what each structure pays for. A monthly percentage earns more when a good tenant stays and the rent keeps arriving. A placement fee earns again every time a tenant leaves and a new one signs.
We're not suggesting anyone sets out to churn tenants. But structure shapes behavior over time, and it's worth knowing which way yours points before you sign a two-year agreement. The smaller the placement fee, the more the agreement depends on the tenant staying.
Ask any company you're considering one question: what do you charge when a tenant renews? The answer tells you what the agreement is built to reward.
What we do
We'd rather earn the renewal.
Half the placement fee
Most companies keep the whole first month's rent when they place a tenant. We charge half of one month and the other half stays with you — on every placement, not just the first one.
One point of contact
The same person from the first walkthrough through every renewal. You'll have a cell number, not a ticket queue.
Screening that's built for staying
Credit, verifiable income, rental history and background on every adult applicant, applied consistently and in line with fair housing law. We're looking for the tenant who renews, not the one who signs fastest.
A quote in writing
Our terms come to you on paper before you commit to anything. Compare them line by line against whatever else is on your desk.
Straight answers
Questions this raises.
What do you charge to place a tenant?
Half of one month's rent. The common charge in this market is a full month. That difference is exactly what the calculator above is measuring, and it repeats every time the property turns over.
Isn't a lower monthly rate worth a bigger placement fee?
Sometimes. Put both sets of numbers into the calculator and find out — if a competitor's monthly rate is genuinely lower, the chart will show them ahead, and we'd rather you see that than take our word for it.
What if the tenant leaves after six months?
Then the placement fee gets charged again. That's the scenario where the size of the fee matters most, and it's the one worth asking about before you sign.
Does the calculator include maintenance and vacancy?
No. It isolates one variable — fee structure — so the comparison stays honest. Real ownership has repairs, turnover and vacancy on top, and those hit every option roughly the same way.
Can I just get a straight quote?
Yes. Send the address and the rent you're targeting and you'll get real terms back from the person who'd be managing the property.
No obligation
Now get a real number.
Send the address and the rent you're targeting. You'll get an actual quote from the person who'd be managing the property — not a range, and not a callback from a sales rep.