Owner Frequently Asked Questions
Information About Our Commonly Asked Questions
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FAQs
How can I get specific questions answered about my property?
What are my monthly costs?
Your only recurring monthly cost is the management retention fee—no vacancy fees, tech fees, or hidden charges. Our transparent management fee structure is as follows:
1–2 units managed: 9%
3–10 units managed: 8%
11+ units managed: 7%
Please note: Tenant placement services and billing services are not included in the monthly retention fee.
What start up costs should I expect?
Our start up fee is $375 per unit and includes the onboarding and the installation of the smart lock system.
Professional Cleaning: To maintain a standard of cleanliness upon a tenant’s move out, we do require that homes are professionally cleaned prior to the tenant moving in. Cleaning generally runs between $55-$65/hour. Carpets are also required to be professionally cleaned unless they are brand new.
Tenant Placement Charges: When a new tenant is placed in a property, there is an additional 15% tenant placement fee on the first month of rent. This occurs whenever there is a new tenant move in.
Owner Reserve: A $250 refundable reserve is held in trust to keep your account balanced. It will be returned upon cancellation, provided there are no outstanding charges.
How long is the management contract for?
Management agreements last for 12 months and auto renew unless notice is received 30 days prior to the renewal date. For owners that sell to non-related parties or need to owner occupy the property, we will waive our contract term length as a courtesy (this does not negate any active lease agreements which are separate contracts).
Where and how are properties marketed?
We market your property across top rental platforms, including:
- Our website
- Zillow.com
- Rentler.com
- Realtor.com
- Apartments.com
- TenantTurner.com
- And many other syndicated sites
- Due to restrictions, we do not post listings in community or yard sale Facebook groups, but you’re welcome to do so! Simply search for your property by address on any of the above platforms and share the link.
We invest in professional photography and 3D Matterport tours for most listings. To ensure top-quality marketing, we ask that properties be in show-ready condition before photos are taken. These photos are reused for future listings to maximize exposure and minimize downtime.
How do you screen & select tenants?
We do full background and credit checks on potential renters. Owners are welcome to choose additional screening criteria ahead of marketing their property but in general we look for the following:
- Credit Score of 600 and above
- No felonies within the past five years
- No violent or drug misdemeanors within the past three years
- No sex offenders
- No eviction history
- 2.5x the rent in gross income
- 2 months of pay stubs, 3 months of bank deposit statements, or 2 years of tax returns
- Ideally 5 years of residential history and references
In order to maintain compliance with Federal and Local Fair Housing Laws, we do not allow “cherry picking” or “owner selection”. If a tenant meets the requirements mentioned above (or the pre-determined owner criteria) they will receive an approval email and have the opportunity to reserve the unit.
What is Fair Housing and how does it affect me?
The Fair Housing Act is a federal law that prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status (having children under 18, including pregnancy), and disability. Utah additionally adds protections for sexual orientation, gender identity, and source of income. As a property owner, Fair Housing law applies to you and your rental property regardless of whether you self-manage or use a property manager, since owners can be held liable alongside a management company for violations. There are very few exemptions to this law and even then there is risk.
In practice, this affects several parts of the rental process: how a property is advertised, how applicants are screened (the same criteria must be applied consistently to every applicant, not adjusted case by case), how requests for reasonable accommodations are handled, and how tenants are treated throughout their lease.
Violations — even unintentional ones — can result in complaints to HUD, lawsuits, and significant financial penalties. This is one of the reasons owners hire a professional management company: Incline Property Management applies objective, documented screening criteria and consistent policies across every applicant and resident, which protects you from the liability that can come with informal, case-by-case decision-making.
How do I receive payments? How are expenses handled?
We aim to make receiving rent and having bills paid simple!
- Rent proceeds are deposited directly to your bank account by the 10th of each month (or following banking day), as long as the tenant has paid on time.
- We deduct the management fee, authorized utility payments, and maintenance expenses directly from collected rent.
- You’ll receive a monthly owner statement via your online portal and email.
How do I know what's happening with my properties?
We want you to feel confident in what’s going on with your property! You receive access to your online owner portal which includes reporting, history & notes, copies of documents, inspections, tenant maintenance requests, and much more.
Additionally, we have many automated notifications, including weekly marketing reports, reminders of upcoming renewals. Our team also continuously reaches out to you as needed or is happy to answer any questions you may have.