A real numbers case study: where owners actually keep more money
Let’s look at a real-world example.
A self-serviced aparthotel building with 20 units in Athens.
Annual gross revenue: €480.000
After platform fees and taxes, net revenue: €400.000
Now let’s compare three ways to run it.
Option 1: In-house management
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Cleaning team: 3 people at €1.500 per month
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On-site management staff: €2.500 per month
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Software and revenue support: €1.500 per month
Total annual operating cost: €102.000
Net profit before tax: €298.000
The owner is heavily involved every week.
Option 2: Traditional management company
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Management fee: 15 percent of €400.000 = €60.000
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Cleaning still paid by the owner: €54.000
Total annual operating cost: €114.000
Net profit before tax: €286.000
Less involvement, but higher total cost.
Profit goes down even though effort goes down.
Option 3: UPKEEP model
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Fixed management retainer: €12.000 per year
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Guest management per booking: €22.000
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Outsourced cleaning: €30.000
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On-site staff: €30.000
Total annual operating cost before success fee: €94.000
Net profit before tax: €306.000
UPKEEP earns a success fee only if the bottom line improves.
The owner keeps more money and stays hands-off.
The takeaway
Revenue looks impressive in all three scenarios.
Profit does not.
The difference is not how much the building makes.
It is how much the owner keeps.
Aparthotel management is not about chasing bookings.
It is about running a clean, disciplined operation that protects profit.
That is where most traditional models fail.
And where a cost-focused model wins.
