The five criteria that actually matter
1. How they get paid. Commission-only (a share of the revenue your villa earns) aligns their success with yours. Fixed monthly fees are due even in an empty month, and hybrid models often hide the true cost in setup fees and extras. Benchmark: 15% to 25% commission is the professional range in Bali. Full fee breakdown in our management cost guide.
2. Who does the work. Many managers subcontract housekeeping, maintenance and even guest messages. Every layer of outsourcing dilutes quality and accountability. Ask directly: who employs the people who will enter my villa? An in-house team is the strongest signal of a serious operator.
3. How they price your nights. A rate set once and forgotten is the single biggest source of lost income. Serious managers reprice daily against live market data, the way hotels do. Ask to see how pricing decisions are made and how often rates change.
4. What you can see. You should never have to ask what your villa earned. Look for real-time reporting: every booking, every expense, every payout visible as it happens. If reporting is a monthly PDF and a bank transfer, expect surprises.
5. How easy it is to leave. Confident managers keep owners with results, not with contracts. Long lock-ins with exit penalties are a red flag. A short rolling minimum, enough to build ranking and reviews, is the fair standard.
Red flags to walk away from
- Guaranteed income promises with no audit of your villa first
- Setup fees or retainers due before the villa earns anything
- No named team, no office, no owners you can talk to
- A calendar they control but you cannot see
- Vague answers about who handles maintenance and what it costs
- Multi-year contracts with penalties for leaving
Ten questions to ask before signing
1. What exactly is your fee, and what does it include? 2. Are there any other charges, ever? 3. Who employs the housekeeping and maintenance staff? 4. How is my nightly rate set, and how often does it change? 5. What reporting do I get, and how often? 6. How do you screen guests, and what happens when something is damaged? 7. Can I block dates for my own stays, at no charge? 8. What is the minimum commitment, and how do I exit? 9. How many villas do you manage, and in which zones? 10. Can I speak to two current owners?
A serious operator answers all ten without hesitation. We publish our answers openly: 15% or 20% commission only, nothing else, an in-house team of 55+, daily AI repricing, a real-time owner portal, owner dates blocked whenever you want, and a short rolling minimum. That is the standard we think every owner should demand, from us or anyone else.