AIM Special Report: Measurable Benefits of Fee Transparency

While fee transparency regulations are increasingly being considered at state as well as federal levels, it’s still early enough for a first-mover advantage. And it’s really resonating with rental prospects, according to experiences reported during a panel on day two of the 2026 Apartment Innovation and Marketing Conference.

A year ago at AIM, transparency was raised as a key means to build trust with rental prospects. The earlier the disclosure takes place during the leasing process, the higher the likelihood of closing, researchers reported. As the legislative landscape continues to evolve, further experimentation is producing further measurable benefits.

Greystar has seen a number of quantifiable financial improvements from marketing total monthly price to renters, noted Managing Director Greg Benson. Over the past year, the firm found that 69 percent of its properties saw an increase in reputational score tied to such reporting. In monetary terms, that came to $76,000 in estimated NOI improvement.

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The approach is catching on as more property management companies realize how meaningful simplification of fees can be during the rental journey. Ten percent have fully adopted it across their portfolios, according to Engrain data, and 52 percent have rolled it out across at least a quarter of their properties.

With online property searches often specifying total monthly cost rather than just rental rate, they have reported 73 percent higher page views and a 45 percent increase in both users and sessions, noted Engrain Founder & CEO Brent Steiner. Even more noteworthy, it has resulted in 64 percent higher form submission activity and 18 percent greater form starts per visitor and click-to-call activity, among other findings.

Apartments.com has also measured performance improvements relating to fee transparency, as indicated on the site by a blue badge that Vice President of Product Stuart Richens says users are growing accustomed to recognizing. That has included at least a 17 percent increase in search results and about 20 percent improvement in lead-to-lease conversion.

Fee transparency best practices

To be effective, it’s important to ensure your messaging reaches prospects however they’re searching as well as resonating once they arrive at your site, advised Reach by RentCafe Senior Director Catriona Banks-Orosco. A Reach study found favorable consumer response to implementation of a number of elements.

Among them, Banks-Orosco suggested:

• • Optimize the total monthly leasing price page to maximize SEO and AI indexing. That includes addressing the technical architecture.

• • Clearly express the total monthly leasing price on the property website, as it’s the second most-visited portion of a site. The Reach study found the share of floor plan visitors clicking to the page grew from less than 1 percent to 8-11 percent, with 93-96 percent engagement.

• • Include a price calculators. People are actively engaging with them, personalizing their experience.

Overall, the Reach study found a 96 percent increase in leads and 122 percent in leases among communities testing fee transparency measures, while both measures decreased among a control group.

BH Management also found favorable response during its 12-month pilot study among a range of asset classes in both small and midsize markets. The firm simplified pricing by combining all mandatory add-on fees into one monthly price, related Chief Strategy Officer Brandy Daniel. Despite the resultant perceived rent increase, the properties performed favorably over comparable communities, with monthly NOI rising by an average of 7.8 percent, and bad debt and delinquencies both decreasing. Overall satisfaction and Google scores both rose.

A year ago at AIM, Steiner said, he advised on the value of fee transparency. “Everything to do with fee transparency is critical at this point.”