Property Management Fees
Property management fees in Liverpool: what landlords actually pay in 2026
Property management fees in Liverpool typically run 8 to 14 per cent of monthly rent inclusive of VAT for full management, a wide spread and lower than most large cities, reflecting Liverpool’s low rents and high yields. The bigger local factor for a landlord here is licensing, because Liverpool has the longest and most aggressive selective licensing history of any English city outside London, and the scheme is expanding again in 2026.
This guide covers what Liverpool agents actually charge, how the city’s licensing scheme affects landlords, and when self-managing makes financial sense. For the generic mechanics of how management fees are structured across the UK, the full guide to UK property management costs is the place to start. This page focuses on Liverpool.
What Liverpool property managers charge
Full management in Liverpool spans a wide 8 to 14 per cent inclusive of VAT band, with letting, setup and renewal fees charged separately. The examples below are representative of Liverpool agents.
Agent type | Management fee | Setup / notes |
|---|---|---|
Liverpool agent | 7.95 per cent of rent | Tenant-find fee £295 |
Central Liverpool agent | 13.2 per cent inclusive of VAT | Minimum management fee £66 inclusive |
Liverpool firm | 14.4 per cent fully managed | Renewal fee £180, rent-increase fee £72, setup charge |
Aintree-area company | 12 per cent of monthly rent | Ongoing management |
The wide spread is real: low-touch rent-collection-style services sit near the bottom, full hands-off management near the top. As elsewhere, the percentage rarely captures the full cost, because inventory, inspections, renewal and contractor mark-ups sit on top. Always ask for a full written schedule of fees before instructing an agent, and confirm whether each figure includes or excludes VAT.
Liverpool’s selective licensing: the longest-running scheme outside London
Liverpool pioneered large-scale selective licensing and has stuck with it longer than almost anywhere. Between 2015 and 2020 the council ran a citywide scheme that required every privately rented property in Liverpool to be licensed, with nearly 52,000 properties licensed by the end. After the government rejected a citywide renewal, Liverpool introduced a new selective licensing scheme on 1 April 2022, running to 31 March 2027, covering 16 wards where private renting is most concentrated, including Anfield, Everton, Kensington, Picton, Princes Park, Riverside, Tuebrook and Stoneycroft, and Wavertree. In those wards an ordinary single-let or family-let property needs a licence regardless of whether it is an HMO.
Two further points matter for 2026. First, Liverpool is expanding the scheme again, reportedly back toward citywide coverage, and has increased its enforcement team to police it alongside the Renters’ Rights Act, so the area covered is growing and scrutiny is rising. Second, on top of selective licensing, mandatory HMO licensing applies across Liverpool to any HMO of five or more people, though the council is not currently running a separate additional HMO scheme. Because the footprint is changing, check a property’s position using Liverpool City Council’s licence checker before letting. The selective licensing definition explains how these schemes work.
This is the same pattern seen in Birmingham and Nottingham, a broad selective scheme reaching ordinary lets, but Liverpool’s is the oldest and is enforced hardest. The Birmingham guide sets out that city’s version for comparison.
How Liverpool differs from a Welsh city such as Cardiff
Liverpool is in England, so the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 applies here in full, including the abolition of Section 21 and the move to assured periodic tenancies from 1 May 2026. Liverpool’s larger enforcement team means that compliance is being watched more closely than in many cities. A Welsh city such as Cardiff runs on the separate Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016, so a landlord with property in both nations should treat the two regimes as distinct. The Renters’ Rights hub covers the English position in full; this page does not reproduce it.
What pushes Liverpool fees up or down
Location and tenant profile drive most of the variation. The city-centre, waterfront and Baltic Triangle flats attract strong demand and frequent turnover, which pushes agent costs up because each re-letting carries work. The older stock of Kensington, Toxteth and Edge Hill needs more maintenance, and Kensington is one of the selective licensing wards. The settled house lets of Woolton, Allerton, Childwall and Mossley Hill see lower turnover but more external upkeep. The lower-rent areas of Anfield, Everton and Walton are within selective licensing wards, so a percentage fee plus a flat licence fee bites hardest proportionally there. Student demand around the University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores and Liverpool Hope adds turnover in the inner areas.
Worked example: a Liverpool flat at £800 a month
For a flat let at £800 a month on full management at 12 per cent inclusive of VAT, the first-year figures with a single tenant-find look like this.
Cost item | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Management fee (12 per cent inclusive) | £96/month, £1,152/year | Ongoing monthly charge |
Tenant-find / setup fee | around £295 to £480 | One-off, on a new tenancy |
Inventory and inspections | £100 to £200 | Often charged separately |
First-year total | around £1,550 to £1,830 | Roughly 16 to 19 per cent of annual rent |
If the property sits in a selective licensing ward, the licence fee, typically several hundred pounds per property over the scheme, plus any works to meet its conditions, sits on top. This is where Liverpool’s low rents matter: a flat licence fee and a percentage management fee both take a larger proportional bite out of an £800 rent than out of a £1,400 rent elsewhere, so the saving from self-managing is proportionally large. In a year with no new tenant-find, the recurring cost falls to around £1,250 to £1,350. A flat software subscription covering the same rent collection, compliance and document tasks costs a small fraction of that regardless of portfolio size. The rental yield calculator shows how a fee of that size moves net yield on a Liverpool property.
Self-managing in Liverpool with August
In a city where selective licensing is widespread and enforcement is rising, and where a licence requires a current gas safety record, EICR and EPC plus a written statement of terms and regular inspections, self-managing suits software well, because those are the same documents and tasks a landlord must keep on top of anyway. August lets Liverpool landlords collect rent automatically through Open Banking, track compliance tasks such as gas safety, EICR, EPC and licence conditions, and store certificates and tenancy documents in one place through the document store, with tenant maintenance requests logged and timestamped. With a larger council enforcement team conducting inspections, keeping that documentation complete and to hand is exactly what protects a licensed property. Even landlords who outsource the occasional inventory or legal task keep the management margin rather than paying a percentage every month. Landlords who manage this way are often called digital landlords, and the guide to what a digital landlord is explains the model.
See how August handles rent, compliance and documents for self-managing landlords.
Are Liverpool property management fees tax deductible?
Yes. Letting agent and management fees are allowable expenses that can be deducted from rental income before income tax, including management fees, tenant-find fees, inventory charges and licence fees. With Making Tax Digital for Income Tax live from 6 April 2026 for landlords with qualifying income above £50,000, keeping accurate digital records of these costs matters more than before. The national guide covers the tax treatment in full.
Frequently asked questions
How much do letting agents charge to manage a property in Liverpool?
Full management in Liverpool typically costs 8 to 14 per cent of monthly rent inclusive of VAT, a wider spread than most cities, with letting and setup fees on top. Rates are lower in absolute terms than the southern cities because Liverpool rents are lower.
Does my Liverpool property need a licence?
Quite possibly, and not only if it is an HMO. Any HMO of five or more people needs a mandatory HMO licence anywhere in Liverpool. Beyond that, Liverpool runs selective licensing requiring a licence for ordinary lets in 16 wards including Anfield, Everton, Kensington, Picton, Princes Park and Wavertree, and the scheme is being expanded in 2026. The council is not currently running a separate additional HMO scheme. Because the covered area is changing, check the position using Liverpool City Council’s licence checker.
Does the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 apply in Liverpool?
Yes. Liverpool is in England, so the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 applies in full, including the abolition of Section 21 and the move to assured periodic tenancies from 1 May 2026, and the council has expanded its enforcement team to police it. This differs from Welsh cities such as Cardiff, which are governed by the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016.
Can letting agents charge tenants fees in Liverpool?
No. The Tenant Fees Act 2019 bans most fees charged directly to tenants in England, so costs that were once split now sit with the landlord, which is part of why management and setup fees are structured as they are.
Disclaimer: This article is a guide and not intended to be relied upon as legal, financial, or professional advice, or as a substitute for it. August does not accept any liability for any errors, omissions, or misstatements. Every effort was made to be accurate at the time of writing.
Author
August Team
The August editorial team lives and breathes rental property. They work closely with a panel of experienced landlords and industry partners across the UK, turning real-world portfolio and tenancy experience into clear, practical guidance for small landlords.
