The verdict in three sentences
In Basel, a property management company website built by a local agency costs, as a 2026 ballpark, 12 000 to 45 000 CHF, and much more if the agency develops an in-house tenant portal. Kolonell builds the owner pages, the list of units to let, the damage report form and the management enquiry for a fixed price of 2 700, 4 500 or 8 200 CHF, in 3 to 4 weeks on Starter and Growth. For a Basel manager, the 3-year total cost turns mainly on two lines: the German version, which Kolonell does not write, and the tenant portal, which is often best left to your management software.
What do Basel agencies, freelancers and Kolonell charge?
Prudent ballparks, drawn from public rate cards of agencies in north-western Switzerland, minimum project sizes on Clutch.co, hourly rates published by Basel agencies (often 130 to 210 CHF per hour) and rates visible on Malt or Upwork.
| Criterion | Basel agency | Local freelancer | Kolonell |
|---|---|---|---|
| Build cost, 2026 ballpark | 12 000 to 45 000 CHF and up | 4 000 to 12 000 CHF | 2 700 / 4 500 / 8 200 CHF, fixed |
| Hour outside scope | Often 130 to 210 CHF | Often 90 to 140 CHF | Quoted before any work |
| Usual timeline | 10 to 16 weeks | 6 to 10 weeks | 3 to 4 weeks, Premium usually 4 to 6 |
| German copy | Native | Native | Supplied by you or quoted separately |
| English or French copy | Often extra | Varies | Native, included |
| Building photography | Option | Rarely | No: your images or a local photographer |
| Site ownership | Check | Check | Domain in your name, access handed over |
Your project manager works in your time zone: Google Meet calls at your hour, a written update every week. The team is based in Senegal (GMT), one to two hours behind Basel depending on the season. Payment by bank transfer or Wise, 50 % to start, 50 % at delivery. Details are on our international website offer.
What does the site cost over 36 months, additions included?
A property manager regularly adds buildings, renovation projects and letting pages. The table uses the same maintenance assumption on both sides, since Kolonell maintenance after the support period is quoted on request.
| Item over 36 months | Basel agency (mid range) | Kolonell Growth |
|---|---|---|
| Website build | 22 000 CHF | 4 500 CHF |
| German version | Included | Independent translator, assumption 1 800 CHF |
| Maintenance (same assumption) | 160 CHF per month over 33 months, 5 280 CHF | 5 280 CHF, quoted on request |
| 8 building or project pages | 12 hours at 170 CHF, 2 040 CHF | Quoted beforehand, assumption 1 200 CHF |
| Building photography | 1 800 CHF | Basel photographer booked separately, 1 800 CHF |
| Indicative total | 31 120 CHF | 14 580 CHF |
These amounts structure the comparison and do not predict your invoice.
What does each tier contain for a Basel property manager?
| Item | Starter 2 700 CHF | Growth 4 500 CHF | Premium 8 200 CHF |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner pages | Services and contact | Management, letting, condominiums (StWE), fees shown or on request | Journeys by segment: residential, commercial, condominium, investors |
| Units to let | Link to your Homegate or ImmoScout24 listings | Feed from your software | Polished integration, filters by district and type |
| Damage reports | Simple form | Form by building with photo upload | Link to your software's tenant tool |
| Management enquiry | Form | Form with unit count | Qualified form and investor page |
| Bilingual FR/EN site | No | No | Included |
| Support | 3 months | 3 months | 6 months |
A custom tenant or owner portal (statements, documents, condominium votes) is a custom application, quoted on request. So is ongoing search work.
What makes the Basel market different
Basel is a city of tenants, with dense older housing in Grossbasel and Kleinbasel, buildings owned by cooperatives and foundations, and a commercial portfolio driven by life sciences and Rhine logistics. The large chemical and pharmaceutical employers recruit worldwide, so a share of rental applicants read English before German, and some live across the border in France or Germany.
- German for most tenants and owners, English for international employees, French for the neighbouring Haut-Rhin.
- The application file explained clearly: documents required, debt collection register extract, lead times.
- Factual renovation pages: Basel-Stadt applies its own cantonal housing protection rules, to be checked before any communication about works.
- Rent adjustments: the reference mortgage rate published by the federal authorities is the basis; an explainer page saves phone calls.
- Google reviews and office hours consistent with the site.
On data, the revised Federal Act on Data Protection (nLPD/revFADP) has applied since 1 September 2023. Applications contain income details, identity documents and debt collection extracts, so do not collect them through a standard form: use your software's tool or a secure solution. WCAG 2.1 AA remains a good accessibility reference. This is not legal advice.
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Which questions should you put to each supplier?
- Who writes the German, and who checks the technical terms (condominium, service charge statements)?
- Does the listings feed connect to your software, or will everything be retyped?
- Is the tenant portal an off-the-shelf product or in-house code someone must maintain?
- Who owns the domain and the hosting account?
- What does one building page cost after launch?
Mini case study
Illustrative example. Daniel M., head of marketing at a 3 200-unit property manager (residential and commercial) in Basel, compares a local agency at 38 000 CHF, in-house tenant portal included, with Kolonell Premium at 8 200 CHF (native English and French) plus 2 200 CHF of German translation, linking the tenant portal already included in his management software.
Build: 38 000 CHF versus 10 400 CHF, a 27 600 CHF gap. With the same maintenance assumption over 30 months (4 800 CHF on each side), the 3-year total is 42 800 CHF versus 15 200 CHF. Daniel notes that the gap comes mostly from the in-house portal: at equal scope without a portal, the agency would have been closer.
FAQ
How much does a property management website cost in Basel in 2026?
With a local agency, a ballpark of 12 000 to 45 000 CHF; with a freelancer, 4 000 to 12 000 CHF. Kolonell charges a fixed 2 700, 4 500 or 8 200 CHF.
Does Kolonell write in German?
No. We write native English and French; German is supplied by you or quoted separately, often 1 500 to 2 500 CHF for a property management site.
Can you reuse our Homegate or ImmoScout24 listings?
On Starter, we link to your listings; on Growth (4 500 CHF), we integrate the feed from your management software when it offers one.
Do we need a custom tenant portal?
Rarely at the start: many management software packages include one. A custom portal is a custom application quoted on request, to be weighed against that existing option.
How does payment work?
By bank transfer or Wise, 50 % at kickoff and 50 % at delivery, which means two payments of 2 250 CHF on Growth.
Let's scope your project. Send us your unit count, your management software and your languages, and we come back with a fixed-price tier and a 3 to 4 week timeline. Request your free quote or see the international offer.
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.
