Owner guide · residential tenancies
Tenant placement vs property management: which do you need?
Placement is a one-time service that ends at move-in. Management runs the tenancy for as long as it lasts. David's placement fee is half of the first month's rent and full management is 8% of collected rent: on a $3,500 home that is $1,750 once, or $3,360 over a 12-month year. If you live nearby and will keep to the Residential Tenancy Branch dates, placement is often enough.
For owners of houses, condos, townhomes and suites in Metro Vancouver · 10 min read · RTB rules checked against gov.bc.ca, September 2026
What each costs
David's fees
| Monthly rent | Placement | Management |
|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $1,250once | $2,400$200 a month × 12 |
| $3,500 | $1,750once | $3,360$280 a month × 12 |
| $5,000 | $2,500once | $4,800$400 a month × 12 |
½ month
Placement, once per new tenancy
8%
Management, of collected rent
Management is worked over a 12-month year with every month's rent collected. Repairs and third-party costs are separate under both.
What is the difference between tenant placement and property management?
Both start the same way. The home is priced, marketed and shown, applicants are screened, and the tenancy begins on the Province's RTB-1 agreement with deposits taken and a move-in condition inspection report signed. With placement only, that is where the service ends and you take over. With full management, it keeps going until the tenant moves out and the next one moves in.
David has handled more than 50 rental properties across Metro Vancouver, as placements and as managed tenancies, and focuses on long-term tenancies, not short-term or nightly rentals. David Siccia is licensed with BCFSA as a Rental Property Management representative at Heller Murch Realty, licence RE605349.
Tenant placement only
One-time. Ends at move-in.
- Included
- Rent range, photos and listing, inquiries and showings, screening with a written summary, RTB-1 agreement and addendum, deposits, move-in condition inspection report, keys
- You do
- Collect rent, handle repairs, inspect, serve rent increases, deal with the strata, do the move-out inspection and return the deposit
- Fee
- Half of the first month's rent, once per new tenancy
- You choose the tenant
- Yes, from a written summary
Fits owners who live in Metro Vancouver, have one or two units and have trades they trust.
Full management
Ongoing. Placement plus the tenancy.
- Included
- Everything in placement, then rent collection and arrears follow-up, monthly owner statements, one contact for the tenant, trades dispatched, periodic inspections, rent increase notices on form RTB-7, dispute filings, move-out and re-letting
- You do
- Approve repairs above an agreed limit, and decide on tenants and rent
- Fee
- 8% of collected rent
- You choose the tenant
- Yes, from a written summary
Fits owners who are away, busy, hold several units, or would rather not be the person the tenant calls.
The screening is the same under both, and it is set out step by step in how to screen a tenant in BC. The service pages are tenant placement in Vancouver and long-term rental management.
Which one fits your situation?
The honest answer depends less on the property than on you: where you live, how much time you have, and whether you will keep a calendar of legal dates. This table is how we talk owners through it, including the cases where the cheaper service is the right one.
Swipe sideways to see the full table
| Your situation | Usually fits | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You live nearby and are handy | Placement only | You can be at the door within the hour and you have trades you trust. Pay for the part that is hard to do well, finding and verifying the tenant, and run the rest yourself. |
| You live out of town or abroad | Full management | Inspections, repairs and notices all need someone on the ground. A tenant with a leak should not be waiting on a time zone. |
| First-time landlord | Placement, then decide | Start the tenancy on the right paperwork, then see how the first months go. If the forms and deadlines below look like a chore, take management from the start. |
| Several units | Full management | The rules are the same per unit, but the dates multiply: a rent increase date, an inspection cycle and a deposit for every door. One missed date costs more than a month of fees. |
| Strata condo | Either | The strata already looks after the building and the common property, so a condo is the easiest home to self-manage. What is left is the tenant, the inside of the unit, the bylaws and the Form K. |
| Furnished home | Full management | Shorter tenancies mean more turnovers, more inspections and an inventory to check each time. The work is in the changeovers, which is when an owner is least available. |
A starting point, not a rule. Two owners with the same condo can sensibly choose differently.
What does each cost?
David's fees are simple. Placement is half of the first month's rent, charged once when a new tenancy starts. Management is 8% of collected rent, charged only on rent that actually comes in. For comparison: Published rate cards from Vancouver residential property managers (2025–26) put unfurnished management at roughly 8–12% of collected rent.
Placement and management at three rents, over a 12-month year
Swipe sideways to see the full table
| Monthly rent | Placement (once) | Management per month | Management per year | Market range per year, 8–12% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $1,250 | $200 | $2,400 | $2,400 to $3,600 |
| $3,500 | $1,750 | $280 | $3,360 | $3,360 to $5,040 |
| $5,000 | $2,500 | $400 | $4,800 | $4,800 to $7,200 |
Placement is 0.5 × the first month's rent. Management is 8% × monthly rent × 12, assuming every month's rent is collected. Market range from published Vancouver rate cards, 2025–26. The table compares each fee on its own; ask for the full fee schedule in writing, including what applies when a managed home is re-let. Repairs, trades, professional photos, strata move-in fees and Residential Tenancy Branch filing fees are separate under both.
½ month
Placement fee
Of the first month's rent, once per new tenancy
8%
Management fee
Of rent collected, not rent owed
$280
Per month at $3,500
$3,360 over a 12-month year
8–12%
Market range
Published Vancouver rate cards, 2025–26
The comparison that matters is not $1,750 against $3,360. It is $280 a month against your own time and the cost of one mistake. At a $3,500 rent, a year without a rent increase at the 2026 limit of 2.3% is about $966 of rent not collected in the following year, and it compounds because every later increase starts from a lower base. A $1,750 deposit ordered repaid at double is $3,500. To see what is left after all costs, use the rental income calculator.
When is self-managing after placement perfectly fine?
Often. A well-screened tenant in a sound home, on the right agreement, with a proper move-in report on file, is not a demanding thing to look after. If the lines below describe you, take the placement and keep the 8%.
Self-management readiness check
If you can tick every line, placement only is a sound choice
You
- You live close enough to be at the home the same day
- You have a plumber, an electrician and a handyman who answer the phone
- You are willing to take the 9 pm call about a leak
The paperwork
- You will use the Residential Tenancy Branch forms: RTB-1, RTB-27 and RTB-7
- You will diarize the rent increase date and serve three full months ahead
- You will give written notice, at least 24 hours ahead, before a routine entry
- You will do the move-out inspection with the tenant and deal with the deposit within 15 days
The home
- One or two units, not a portfolio
- Unfurnished, on a tenancy of a year or more
- In a strata, you have read the bylaws and will pass strata notices to the tenant
What goes wrong most often for self-managing owners?
Rarely the tenant. The expensive problems are usually dates and forms: three of them, each tied to a Residential Tenancy Branch rule that applies whatever the agreement says.
01
Rent increases served wrong
The rule
The Residential Tenancy Branch allows one increase every 12 months, on three full months' notice, using form RTB-7, up to the annual limit: 2.3% for 2026 and 2.2% for 2027. Landlords cannot round up.
What it costs
The RTB says tenants do not have to pay an increase that is over the limit or was not given with proper notice, and can deduct an overpayment from future rent. Owners who never serve a notice fall further behind the market every year, because each later increase starts from a lower base.
02
Missed inspections
The rule
At move-in and move-out the landlord offers the tenant two opportunities, inspects with them, completes the condition inspection report (form RTB-27 or equivalent) and gives the tenant a copy. At move-in the copy is due within 7 days. During the tenancy the RTB allows a condition inspection once a month, on written notice given at least 24 hours and not more than 30 days ahead, stating the date, a time between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. and the reason.
What it costs
The RTB says a landlord who skips the move-in steps loses the right to claim against the deposits. Owners who never inspect during the tenancy find the slow leak or the extra occupant at move-out.
03
Deposit disputes
The rule
A security deposit is capped at half of the first month's rent, and a pet damage deposit at the same amount regardless of the number of pets. After the tenancy ends and the landlord has the forwarding address in writing, the landlord has 15 days to return the deposits with any interest owed, or to file a claim.
What it costs
Miss the 15 days and the RTB says the landlord may be ordered to pay the tenant double the deposit.
None of this needs a manager. It needs a calendar and the right forms, all free on the Province's Residential Tenancy Branch pages. This is general information, not legal advice, and the rules change: check the current gov.bc.ca page before you serve any notice.
How do you switch to full management later?
Owners move from self-managing to management when they relocate, add a second property, or have one bad month. The tenancy carries on unchanged. What moves is who does the work.
- First01
Gather the tenancy file
The signed tenancy agreement and any addendum, the move-in condition inspection report and photos, the deposit amounts and the date they were paid, every notice of rent increase served, the rent ledger, the strata bylaws and Form K, and the insurance policy. Gaps are useful to know about on day one, not at move-out.
- Then02
A walkthrough and a paperwork review
We see the home with proper written notice to the tenant, and read the file against the Residential Tenancy Branch rules: is the agreement on RTB-1 or equivalent, was the inspection report done, when is the next lawful rent increase date, is the deposit within the limit.
- Then03
A management agreement
It sets the fee, the repair approval limit, how and when you are paid, and who holds the deposit. The tenancy itself does not restart. The same tenancy agreement continues with the same rent, the same deposit and the same rent increase anniversary.
- Then04
The tenant is told in writing
A short letter from you introducing the manager: who to contact for repairs, where rent is paid from the next due date, and that nothing else about the tenancy changes. A change of contact handled politely is usually welcomed by a tenant who has been waiting on a repair.
- From then on05
Rent, repairs and dates move over
Rent collection, maintenance requests, periodic inspections and the rent increase calendar are handled for you, and you receive a monthly statement. You can move back to self-managing on the notice set out in the management agreement.
8%
Of collected rent, full management
Vancouver specifics
- Condos dominate. In a strata the corporation maintains the building, which removes the roof, the boiler and the landscaping from your list. What stays with you is the bylaws: give the tenant the current bylaws and rules, and deliver a signed Form K (Notice of Tenant's Responsibilities) to the strata corporation within two weeks of renting.
- Houses with suites are more work than they look. Two tenancies, two sets of dates, shared utilities and a yard. Owners who self-manage a condo comfortably often want help with these.
- Furnished and executive homes turn over more often, and each turnover is an inspection, a deposit and an inventory. See furnished rental management and executive rental management.
- Own commercial space as well? Different statute, different service: see commercial leasing services and the commercial portfolio, or contact us.
Owner questions
Not sure which one you need?
Send the address, the date the home is available and where you will be living. You get a rent range and a straight answer on placement, full management or neither.
David Siccia Properties handles leasing and management. Property sales are executed by Lawrence Siccia, REALTOR®, Engel & Völkers Vancouver.
Related
General information, not legal advice
This guide describes the BC Residential Tenancy Act as summarized on the Province's Residential Tenancy Branch pages in September 2026. Rent increase limits are set each year and the rules change, so check the current gov.bc.ca page and confirm with a lawyer before you serve a notice or withhold a deposit. Fees shown are David's current fees and a published market range; the worked figures assume a 12-month year with all rent collected and are not a quote for your property.