Melbourne letting fees

Hey Melbournians... what are you guys negotiating by way of letting fees for Melbourne S.E and Bayside areas. Namely:

• Letting Fee (I normally do 1-1.5 weeks rent + GST)
• Marketing Fee (never paid)
• Management Fee (5-6% + GST)
• Statement Fee ($3.30)

Do you also pay for professional photography separately?

Thanks in advance.

 

I'd say management fees are about 6% - 8% + GST in Melbourne.

You can get them to email statements to avoid those fees.

There are a few that only charge 5% management fees, but you really do get what you pay for. I'm back in the rental market myself right now. We applied for and were offered a property, the PM did not call either of my references, one of which was another property manager.

I've also noticed that many PMs are only able to open property for 10 minutes, which is not enough time to:
a) Really look at the property and decide if it's where you want to live as a tenant.
b) Does not give the PM enough time to speak with the applicants and get to know them a little.

It seems that those with the lower fees are really in a race to the bottom, which has a direct effect on your outcomes as a landlord.

 

I have several IPs in Melbourne and have used a number of different agencies to manage those properties. Both bad ones and good ones. Irrespective of whether they are good or not, you can negotiate a reasonable extent for the following:
- 5.5-6.6% management fees
- 1 weeks rent + GST for leasing fee
- All were willing to waive re-leasing fee as there is practically minimal work involved!
- Marketing fee really depends but if you want listing on realestate.com and Domain, then you have to expect to contribute the cost price at least (approx $275).
- Most will be willing to waive the statement fee if you push hard enough.