Built America Magazine | South
“I started looking around and realized how messed up the entire industry is,” Autry says. “These property managers, even the best ones out there, they rip off their homeowners.” Autry’s response? A radical restructuring of Colonial Property Management into what he describes as “America’s first nonprofit approach to rental management.” A Nonprofit Model
for Property Management
In February 2024, Colonial Property Management adopted a new business model, charging homeowners a flat management fee of $49 for single-family homes and $39 for multi-family units. Unlike competitors who take 10% or more of the monthly rent and tack on fees at every turn, Colonial Property Management operates at cost. “The second thing is renewal fees,” Autry explains. “Every year, when they renew your tenant, they charge you $100 to $300. We don’t charge that. They charge you inspection fees, warranty call fees. And then, the real kicker—what I call literal theft —is in-house maintenance. These managers own the maintenance companies, so they inflate the bills. We don’t do that.” The impact of this model is enormous. “We just got a homeowner the other day, she’s a single mother, owns seven duplexes. She was paying 10% to another company, and by switching to us, she’s saving $20,000 a year.”
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