The verdict in three sentences
For an Austin property management company, the website has two jobs: win owner leads (local landlords, relocated homeowners and out-of-state investors) and serve current residents and owners through clear links to the portal, maintenance requests and available rentals. A local Austin agency earns its higher fee when you need repeated on-site shoots, in-person workshops with several partners or a heavy custom integration, while a remote studio is usually enough for a well-scoped marketing site connected to your property management software. Settle the decision criteria first (ownership, time-zone overlap, listing feed, Texas compliance), then compare quotes.
What does an Austin property management website actually need?
Austin is a market of single-family rentals, build-to-rent communities and small multifamily, spread over Travis, Williamson and Hays counties. Many owners are accidental landlords who moved for work, or investors who live in California, New York or abroad and will never visit your office. Your site must reassure them in two minutes, and in parallel route residents to the right tool so your phone line stops ringing for rent questions.
| Site component | Who it serves | Typical 2026 scope | Point to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner landing page and free rental analysis form | Landlords, investors | 1 page, form with address, property type, door count, timeline | Qualifies leads before a call |
| Service area pages (Austin, Round Rock, Cedar Park, Georgetown, Pflugerville, Kyle) | Owners searching locally | 4 to 8 pages with genuinely local content | No copy-paste between suburbs |
| Available rentals | Prospective residents | Feed or embed from your property management software | Sync delay, mobile filters |
| Resident and owner portal links | Current clients | Buttons to your existing portal (a custom portal is on quote) | Clear login path on mobile |
| Maintenance request page | Residents | Form or portal link, emergency number, after-hours rules | Response time promise |
| Fees and management agreement summary | Owners | Transparent fee table, leasing fee, renewal fee | Reviewed by your broker |
| Fair housing, privacy and accessibility pages | Everyone | Footer links plus dedicated pages | Kept current |
Three regulatory facts shape the build. In Texas, leasing and managing property for others generally requires a real estate license under a broker supervised by the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC), and TREC rules expect the homepage to link to the Information About Brokerage Services form and the Consumer Protection Notice; confirm the current wording with your broker. The federal Fair Housing Act applies to every rental listing and ad: no stated preference about family status, religion, national origin or disability. The Texas Data Privacy and Security Act, in force since July 2024, may apply depending on your size and data practices, and rental applications with Social Security numbers and income should live in your software, never in a plain website form. For accessibility, target WCAG 2.2 AA: ADA Title III website claims are common in the US. This is not legal advice.
Local agency or remote studio: which criteria matter?
| Criterion | Local Austin agency | Remote studio (such as Kolonell) | What to verify |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time-zone overlap | Same Central Time | Project manager reachable in your time zone, with set meeting slots | Named contact, weekly call |
| In-person meetings | Office workshops, easy site visits | Video workshops with screen sharing | Number of workshops included |
| On-site photo and video | Agency photographer can visit properties | You book a local photographer (USD 150 to 350 per property, 2026 ballpark) | Who coordinates shoots |
| Copywriting | Local English, local references | Native English copywriting included; Spanish version on quote | Sample pages before signing |
| Listing feed and portal links | Depends on the team | Depends on the team | A live demo with real listings |
| Ownership of domain, code and content | Must be written in the contract | Domain and hosting in your name, code handed over | Exit and handover clause |
| Build price | USD 8,000 to 30,000 (typical agency quotes) | USD 2,900 / 4,900 / 8,900 fixed | What is excluded |
| Delivery | 6 to 12 weeks | 3 to 4 weeks | Who supplies content and when |
The Kolonell grid is simple: Starter USD 2,900, Growth USD 4,900, Premium USD 8,900, with a project manager in your time zone, native English copywriting, delivery in 3 to 4 weeks and 3 months of support. Custom applications, such as a bespoke owner dashboard, and SEO work are quoted separately. Details are on the international websites page.
When is a local Austin agency clearly the better choice?
Be honest about your situation. A local agency is the stronger option if you manage several hundred doors and want new photos or drone video of build-to-rent communities every month, because a team that can drive to Leander on short notice saves you coordination time. It also wins when three or four partners insist on in-person workshops, when you plan a deep integration between your accounting system, your software and a custom owner reporting tool with on-site IT meetings, or when the same agency will run local events, signage and paid campaigns with relationships in the Austin market.
A remote studio is usually enough when the scope is a marketing site plus links to the tools you already pay for, when you already have decent property photos or a photographer you trust, when the decision maker is comfortable with video calls, and when the budget sits under USD 10,000. You can look at a live remote build: Kolonell built the website of Orven Properties (orvenproperties.com), a real estate company in Dubai.
Questions to ask both types of provider: Who registers the domain, and in whose name? Can you show a live site connected to my property management software? Who writes the copy and the fair housing wording? How are the TREC links handled? What does acceptance testing include (mobile, forms delivered to the right inbox, accessibility checks)? What happens to my site if we stop working together?
How do the costs compare over three years?
| Cost item over 36 months | Local Austin agency | Freelancer | Kolonell Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Build | USD 12,000 to 25,000 | USD 3,000 to 8,000 | USD 4,900 |
| Property photography | Often bundled or USD 1,500 to 4,000 | You hire, USD 1,500 to 3,000 | You hire, USD 1,500 to 3,000 |
| Hosting and maintenance | USD 3,600 to 14,400 (retainers) | USD 1,800 to 7,200 | 3 months included, then third-party hosting around USD 20 to 50 a month |
| Content updates | Often in the retainer | Hourly | Small updates during support, then on quote |
| Total, 2026 ballpark | USD 17,000 to 43,000 | USD 6,300 to 18,200 | About USD 7,100 to 9,600 |
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These are prudent ranges built from typical agency quotes and public rate pages, not a survey. The gap matters less than fit: a cheaper site that does not qualify owner leads costs you more than it saves.
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Maria runs a property management company with 180 doors in Round Rock and north Austin. A local agency quotes USD 22,000 plus a USD 250 monthly retainer, so USD 31,000 over three years. A remote Growth build costs USD 4,900, plus USD 2,000 for a local photographer and USD 40 a month of hosting for 33 months (USD 1,320), so USD 8,220. Maria keeps the USD 22,780 difference for later, when she may want a custom owner dashboard. If the new rental analysis form brings one extra owner with three homes renting at USD 2,100 and a fee of 8%, that owner alone adds about USD 504 a month, roughly USD 6,000 a year.
FAQ
Can a remote studio handle my rental listings feed?
Yes, as long as your property management software offers an embed or a feed, which most do. Ask for a test with your live listings during the first 2 weeks, not at launch.
Do I need to be in Austin to shoot property photos?
No. A local real estate photographer typically charges USD 150 to 350 per property in 2026, and the studio sends a shot list. Plan photos before week 3 so delivery stays within 3 to 4 weeks.
Who should own the domain and hosting?
Your company, always, whatever the provider. Put it in the contract along with a handover of code and content within 30 days of a request.
Is a resident portal included in the USD 4,900 Growth package?
The package includes clear links to your existing portal and a maintenance request page. A custom portal or owner dashboard is a separate application, quoted on scope.
What accessibility level should I require?
Require WCAG 2.2 AA on the main templates and forms, with a short accessibility statement. Checking 5 to 10 key pages before launch costs far less than answering an ADA demand letter.
Let's scope your project. Tell us your door count, the software you use and your target launch date, and we will propose a scope and a fixed price from USD 2,900. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.