(916) 596-1665
Serving Sacramento County Since 1998
(916) 596-1665Sacramento Rental Owners
Rental Property Management In Sacramento
What you keep from a rental depends on vacancy, tenant turnover, and how your management fee is structured. Alpha manages Sacramento rentals for a flat $99 per month for a single-family home.
What affects your rental income:
- ✓Days your property sits vacant
- ✓How often your tenants turn over
- ✓Where your asking rent lands
- ✓How your management fee is structured
Founded by Sally LaBate, Alpha has managed Sacramento rentals since 1998 with flat monthly pricing that does not change when your rent goes up.
Rental Income
What a Sacramento Rental Nets in a Year
A Sacramento single-family home renting at $2,200 a month carries a gross scheduled rent of $26,400 a year, before any vacancy, turnover, or management costs.
Three things reduce that figure before it reaches you: the days the property sits empty, the cost of turning the property over between tenants, and the fees your manager charges.
The example below assumes $26,400 in gross scheduled rent, 21 vacant days at $73 per day ($1,533), and $1,800 in repairs billed at cost, in a year with one tenant turnover.
The percentage-manager figures are an illustration, not a quoted competitor rate. Your own figures will depend on your rent, vacancy, and repair costs.
Owner-side costs, including property taxes, insurance, mortgage interest, and make-ready work, are not included in the table under either model. Our property management fees page lists every fee in detail.
Vacancy
The Cost of Vacancy on a Sacramento Rental
At $2,200 a month, a vacant property loses about $73 in rent each day, so 21 vacant days cost $1,533 and 45 vacant days cost $3,285.
Rent-Ready Condition
A property listed before make-ready work is finished shows poorly and tends to attract fewer qualified applicants.
Time To List
We aim to have photos, the listing description, and syndication in place within 48 hours of the property becoming rent-ready.
Asking Rent
A rent priced above comparable listings usually stays on the market longer while similar homes nearby are leased.
Showing Availability
Many applicants work during the week, so offering evening and weekend showings helps more prospective tenants see the property.
Vacancy is best budgeted property by property. A three-bedroom home in Elk Grove and one in Carmichael may rent for the same amount and still lease on different timelines, depending on applicant demand, competing listings, and the season. During your rental analysis, we estimate a days-on-market range for your address so your budget starts from a realistic figure.
Our typical tenant placement timeline is approximately *10 days once the property is rent-ready, although timelines are estimates and cannot be guaranteed. Our tenant placement service covers marketing, showings, and screening.
The flat $99 monthly fee is billed whether the property is occupied or vacant.
Rent Setting
Setting the Right Rent for Your Sacramento Rental
A higher asking rent can look better on paper, but it is worth comparing the added rent against the risk of a longer vacancy.
Asking $2,300 instead of $2,200 adds $100 a month, or $1,200 over a 12-month lease, while each vacant day at that rent costs about $77.
An overpriced listing often stays on the market longer and may end with a price reduction and fewer qualified applicants.
Pricing too low has a cost as well, because future rent increases start from the lower amount.
We set your asking rent using current comparable listings in your area, and you review the recommended rent and the comparables before we list.
Turnover
Reducing Tenant Turnover in Sacramento Rentals
Each tenant turnover brings vacant days, make-ready work, and a new lease-up fee for the next placement.
Longer tenancies begin with a comprehensive screening. Every applicant is screened with the same written standard, and we verify credit history, income and employment, rental history and references, and background information.
Over the years you own a rental, fewer turnovers mean fewer lease-up fees, less make-ready work, and less time vacant.
If a tenant we've placed in a property under our full-service management contract breaks their lease within the first year, we will place the next tenant with no additional lease-up fee. Normal cleaning, repair and vacancy costs still apply.
Fee Structure
Flat-Rate Property Management in Sacramento
With flat-rate pricing, your management fee stays the same when your rent goes up.
At a 10% fee, a $2,200 rental pays $220 a month in management fees, and that fee rises to $260 when the rent reaches $2,600.
Alpha charges a flat $99 per month for a single-family home, which is about 4.5% of a $2,200 rent and about 3.8% of a $2,600 rent.
What You Pay
Alpha Property Management Fees
Monthly Management
Billed whether the property is occupied or vacant.
- ✓$99 per month, single-family home
- ✓$125 per month, duplex
- ✓$225 per month, fourplex
- ✓More than four units, call for a custom quote
Everything Else
Charged separately from the monthly fee.
- ✓Lease-up fee, half of the first month's rent, when we place a tenant
- ✓Maintenance and repairs at cost plus a 5% markup
- ✓Annual inspection with photo report, optional, $125 per year
- ✓Lease renewals, included in the monthly fee
- ✓Tenant application fee, $51 per applicant, paid by the applicant
You can find full details on our property management fees page, and a complete list of services on our owner services page.
Rental Costs
Costs That Reduce Rental Income
Markup On Every Invoice
As an illustration, a 15% markup on $4,000 of annual repairs adds $600, while Alpha's 5% markup on the same work adds $200.
Renewal Fees
Some managers charge a fee each time a tenant renews the lease. Lease renewals are included in Alpha's monthly fee.
Deferred Maintenance
A small repair that is put off can turn into a larger and more expensive one, and it can affect whether a tenant renews.
Unscreened Tenancies
Late payments and property damage fall on the owner, which is why we take the screening process seriously.
Annual Review
Two Figures to Review Each Year
Rent collected is only part of the picture, so we suggest reviewing these two figures for each rental property every year.
Days Vacant Per Year
Add up the vacant days over the last 12 months and multiply by your daily rent. A high figure is worth reviewing for pricing, condition, or listing speed.
Net Operating Income
Net operating income is the rent collected minus management fees, lease-up fees, repairs, insurance, and taxes. Dividing it by the property's current value gives you its yield.
Your monthly and year-end statements include both figures, and every statement is available 24/7 in your secure online owner portal.
Self-Managing Owners
Leasing Only Service for Self-Managing Owners
Some Sacramento owners prefer to manage their property themselves and only want help finding and placing a qualified tenant.
Our leasing services cover marketing, showings, screening, lease preparation, and move-in for a one-time lease-up fee of half the first month's rent.
Common Questions
Rental Owner FAQs
Request a Free Rental Analysis for Your Sacramento Rental
Request a free rental analysis and we will review comparable rents for your address, estimate days on market, and show your annual figures under flat-rate management. You can also call Sally at (916) 596-1665.
- What does a Sacramento rental net after management costs?
- Do I pay the $99 while my property sits vacant?
- How much does one vacant month cost me?
- Do you mark up repairs?
- Is the annual inspection included?
- What is the lease-up fee?
- How do you set my asking rent?
- Does the tenant guarantee apply to leasing-only clients?
On a $2,200 single-family rental with 21 vacant days and one turnover, our illustration nets $20,689 before owner-side costs such as property taxes, insurance, mortgage interest, and make-ready work, compared with $18,110 under a 10% manager. Your own figure depends on rent, vacancy, and repair costs.
Yes. The monthly management fee is billed whether the property is occupied or vacant. During a vacancy it covers marketing, showings, and applicant screening.
On a $2,200 rental, a vacant month costs roughly $2,200, or about $73 for each vacant day.
Yes. Vendor invoices are billed at cost plus a 5% markup.
No. The annual inspection with photo report is optional and costs $125 per year.
The lease-up fee is half of the first month's rent, billed separately from the monthly management fee and charged when we place a tenant. It covers marketing, showings, comprehensive screening, lease preparation, and move-in.
We set your asking rent using current comparable listings in your area, adjusted for condition, season, and property type. You review the recommended rent and the comparables before we list.
No. The 1-year guarantee applies only to tenants we place in a property under Alpha's full-service management contract. For Leasing Only Service clients, Alpha can place a new tenant for the standard lease-up fee.
