Percentage vs flat fee: how to pay a property manager in Batumi
A percentage of income is the more sensible choice for short-term rental in Batumi: revenue depends heavily on the season, and in quiet months you pay the manager less. A flat fee suits cases where the work and the income are almost the same every month, such as long-term rental or looking after an empty apartment. With either model, the details of the contract decide everything: what the percentage is based on, what the flat fee covers and what is charged on top.
Updated 17 October 2026
Comparison by criteria
| Criterion | Percentage of income | Flat fee |
|---|---|---|
| Manager's motivation | Grows with revenue: occupancy and price matter | Independent of bookings; the amount of work matters |
| Payment in a strong month | Higher, growing with income | The same, and all the extra stays with you |
| Payment in a weak month | Lower, close to zero in an empty month | The same, even with no bookings |
| Cost predictability | The amount changes every month | Known in advance |
| Risk of a bad month | Shared between you and the manager | Entirely on the owner |
| Weak point | Chasing revenue without regard for wear | The temptation to do the bare minimum |
| Suitable formats | Short-term and mixed rental | Long-term rental, looking after an apartment |
| What to check in the contract | The percentage base and what is deducted before it | The list of tasks and visits, and what is charged on top |
The manager's fee looks like a single line in the contract, yet it decides who carries the risk of a bad month. Percentage vs flat fee pricing answers that question in two different ways. With a percentage, the manager shares the risk with you: no bookings, no earnings for the manager. With a flat fee, the risk is all yours, but everything the apartment earns above that fee is yours too.
What motivates the manager
With a percentage, the manager gains when the apartment is booked more often and at higher prices. That matches your interest, but not completely. The manager's earnings are calculated on revenue, while cleaning, linen, utilities and wear are paid out of your share. So a manager on a percentage may benefit from taking many short bookings at a low price: revenue grows, while the costs and the wear fall on the apartment.
With a flat fee, the manager's earnings do not depend on bookings. The manager loses nothing if the apartment stands empty for an extra week and gains nothing by getting a good price for the holidays. A conscientious manager works the same way under both models, but it is better to write the contract so that it does not rely on good faith.
How the season shifts the balance
A short-term rental in Batumi earns its revenue unevenly over the year: most tourists come between July and September, and in winter there are few bookings. With a percentage, your payment to the manager follows the same curve. You pay more in summer and less in winter, and in an empty month the commission almost disappears.
A flat fee works the other way round. In summer it looks cheap next to the revenue, but in winter it can be more than the bookings brought in, and you pay the difference out of your own pocket along with the utilities. So with seasonal short-term rental, a flat fee is justified if you are confident of winter bookings or switch the apartment to monthly rental for the winter.
Mixed schemes
There are options between the two models. A percentage with a monthly minimum gives the manager some pay in winter and works like a normal percentage in summer. A low flat fee plus a small percentage splits the risk between you. There is also a seasonal scheme: a percentage in summer and a flat fee for looking after the apartment in winter.
Whatever option you are offered, calculate it on the same months as the pure models. A mixed scheme works well when you understand how much you will pay in a weak month and how much in a strong one. If the apartment is rented short-term in summer and looked after while empty in winter, the seasonal scheme is usually fairer to both sides.
Percentage vs flat fee: what to put in the contract
The payment model takes up one line in the contract, but the disputes later are about everything around it. Before signing, check:
- What amount the percentage is calculated on: the booking price, the amount after the platform commission or the amount after cleaning
- Which costs are deducted before the percentage and which after it
- What the flat fee covers: the list of tasks, the number of visits to the empty apartment, check-ins, messages with guests
- What is charged on top, such as cleaning, laundry or a tradesman's call-out, and at what rates
- Whether there is a monthly minimum and when the terms can be reviewed
- Whether a percentage is paid on bookings for dates after the contract ends
We take our percentage from the money received for the stay after the platform commission, and the report shows this amount separately. Whichever company you work with, ask for the same clarity. Without it, "a percentage of income" can mean anything.
How to calculate net income under each model
Take a month-by-month forecast for the year, ideally in two versions, cautious and typical. For each month, go through the same steps:
- The bookings total after the platform commission
- Minus cleaning, linen, supplies, utilities, the building service charge and repairs
- Minus the manager's pay: a percentage of the agreed base or the flat fee
- Minus tax under your regime
Add up the months and compare the totals for the year, but base the decision on the worst month too. If a winter month shows a loss with a flat fee but not with a percentage, decide if you are prepared to cover the difference yourself. We make this calculation before the contract is signed, and after the first season it is worth checking it against the reports.
Which to choose
When to choose: Percentage of income
Choose a percentage when the apartment's income changes a lot from month to month and you want the manager to have an interest in every booking.
- The apartment is rented short-term and depends on the summer season.
- You are not prepared to pay the manager out of your own pocket in empty winter months.
- The contract clearly states what amount the percentage is calculated on.
- It also sets a minimum nightly price and a minimum stay, so that revenue does not grow at the cost of wear.
When to choose: Flat fee
A flat fee is the better option when the manager's work is roughly the same every month and the income is steady or there is none at all.
- A long-term tenant rents the apartment.
- The apartment stands empty and only needs looking after.
- You handle prices and bookings yourself and leave the on-site work to the manager.
- You want to know your management costs in advance.
Questions and answers
What does a flat management fee for an apartment include?
Exactly what is listed in the contract, so the list of tasks should be detailed. It usually covers messages with the tenant or guests, checking that rent comes in, paying the bills, scheduled visits to the apartment and organising repairs. Cleaning after guests, laundry, supplies and a tradesman's work are often charged separately, as they occur.
Ask how many visits a month the flat fee includes, what counts as an urgent call-out and how extra tasks are paid for. Otherwise the flat fee in your report soon comes with extra charges.
Is a flat fee for the manager the same as an income guarantee?
No. A flat fee is your cost: you pay the manager a set amount, and the rental income after costs stays with you, whatever it turns out to be. An income guarantee usually means subletting: the company rents the apartment from you for a fixed payment and lets it out itself.
With subletting, the risk of empty months lies with the company, but so does the summer income above the agreed amount. You also have less say over who lives in the apartment and how fast it wears out. Read the terms of such a scheme especially carefully.
Can I change the payment model after the first season?
Yes, if the contract provides for it. It helps to write in a review date from the start, for example the end of the season, when the real bookings and costs are visible. By then you will have reports for several months and can discuss the models using your own figures.
It is also worth changing the model when the format changes. An apartment that has moved from short-term rental to a long-term tenant needs different work, and a percentage of short-term revenue no longer fits it.
Which payment model should I choose if the apartment is rented long term?
Work with a long-term tenant is steady: find the tenant, draw up the lease and the inventory, check the rent and the bills every month, and occasionally call out a tradesman. The income is steady too, so the difference between a percentage of the rent and a flat fee is small here, and you can choose whichever is more convenient.
Agree separately on payment for finding a new tenant. It is a one-off job and is often paid for separately from the monthly fee. Spell out in the contract what the monthly fee includes and how many visits to the apartment it covers.
We'll work out both payment models month by month for your apartment
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