THE TRUE COST OF SELF-MANAGEMENT

Is DIY Property Management Really Cheaper?

We sometimes hear from do-it-yourself (DIY) landlords who say, “Your management fees are too expensive—I can do it myself for less.”

At Blue Fox Properties, we believe that’s a costly misconception. Let’s break down what truly goes into managing a single rental property over the course of a year into three steps—and see if self-management really saves money.

Step 1: What Is Your Time Worth?

To evaluate the true cost of DIY property management, we must first assign a value to your time.
According to multiple sources, the average rental property owner earns at least $75,000 per year. Using a standard 40-hour work week over 52 weeks, that comes out to $36/hour. We’ll use that figure for our analysis (though many owners earn much more).

We also need to factor in travel time. In Tucson, a 30-minute drive each way is a reasonable average for most landlords, adding up to 1 hour round trip per property visit.

Step 2: The Time Costs of Managing a Rental

Managing a rental isn’t just collecting rent once a month. Below is a time estimate for common tasks involved in leasing and maintaining a single property:

Initial Leasing Process:

• Rent-ready evaluation, including travel – 2 hours
• Travel to/from property – 1 hour
• Find vendors & get bids – 2 hours
• Coordinate work & follow-ups – 6 hours (OR, DIY landlord completes all the work personally)
• Marketing the listing (research & posting) – 2 hours
• Respond to inquiries (email & phone) – 4 hours
• Showings (5 showings, including drive time) – 7.5 hours
• Find application processing software & complete the setup – 5 hours
• Applicant Q&A and application processing – 2.5 hours
• Lease preparation, delivery & respond to questions – 1.5 hours
• Pre-move-in evaluation & key handoff, including travel time – 4 hours

Ongoing Management:

• Maintenance coordination (including after-hours, weekends, holidays) – 6 hours
• HOA violations – 2 hour
• Rent collection & ledger management – 3 hours
• Mid-lease property check, including travel – 2 hours

Move-Out Process:

• Coordinate move-out – 1 hour
• Move-out evaluation, including travel – 3 hours
• Complete the move-out repairs: vendors & follow-ups – 8 hours (OR, DIY landlord completes all the work personally)
• Complete the security deposit disposition, send to resident, resident dispute – 2 hours

Estimated Total Time: 70+ Hours
At $36/hour, that’s about $2,240/year in time value alone—and we’re just getting started.

Step 3: The Hidden Costs of DIY Management

Additional Time Costs:

• Staying educated on Arizona landlord-tenant law, fair housing, emotional support animals, Section 8, etc. – 24 hours minimum per year = $864 more

New Total: $3,264/year in time cost alone.
This doesn’t even include the stress, mental load, or the time spent thinking about what might go wrong.

Out-of-Pocket Costs:

• Purchase a bonafide lease (not a store-bought template)
• Website listing fees
• Application and screening software
• Accounting tools
• Ongoing legal updates to your lease and systems

Even if some of these are claimed to be “one-time fees,” most have recurring or maintenance costs. Software typically charges monthly. Leases need regular legal updates. Nothing is truly set-it-and-forget-it.

The Higher Your Income, the More Expensive DIY Becomes

If you earn more than $75,000 annually, your time is worth more—and so is the opportunity cost.
At $150,000/year? Your DIY time cost doubles to over $6,000/year.

The Bottom Line

When you add it all up—time, stress, learning curve, and hard costs—DIY management often costs more than professional property management, especially for owners who value their time or own multiple properties.

At Blue Fox Properties, we’ve already built the systems, refined the processes, and earned the designations to handle it all for you—efficiently, legally, and professionally.

So the next time someone says, “I can do it myself for cheaper,” we suggest a closer look. Because in reality, your time is too valuable not to hire a pro.