Property Owners
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We lease your unit fast and at top dollar, then run it for you. Rent collection, maintenance, renewals, and full Massachusetts compliance, all handled.
PH Realty Group provides full service property management for rental owners across Newton, Watertown, Waltham, and the surrounding towns. We place a screened tenant fast and at or above asking rent, then run the property for you: rent collection, maintenance, renewals, financial reporting, and full Massachusetts compliance. You own the asset without running it.
Full management covers the entire life of the tenancy, from an empty unit to the deposit return. Every property runs on the same system, so nothing depends on you remembering a deadline or chasing a vendor. Here is what is handled for you:
Many of our managed owners hold multifamily investing properties where a single missed step erases a month of cash flow, which is exactly why a repeatable system matters.
Because Massachusetts is one of the most tenant protective states in the country, and the rules that carry the steepest penalties are the easy ones to get wrong. Two areas catch owners most often.
First, leasing costs. Since August 1, 2025, the party who hires the leasing broker must pays the fee. A landlord who hires a broker to fill a unit now carries that cost and cannot pass it to the tenant, so your leasing plan and your numbers have to account for it.
Second, security deposits. The money must sit in a separate interest bearing Massachusetts bank account kept apart from your own funds, the tenant needs a receipt with the bank and account details within 30 days, and the deposit has to come back within 30 days of move out with a sworn itemized list of any deductions. Miss a step and a tenant can recover up to three times the deposit plus attorney fees under Chapter 93A. Handling these rules correctly is a core part of what a property manager does.
| Requirement | Massachusetts rule | Deadline or penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Who pays the leasing broker fee | The party that hired the broker pays; a landlord who hires a broker to lease cannot pass the fee to the tenant | In effect since August 1, 2025 |
| What you may collect at move in | First month rent, last month rent, a security deposit, and the cost of a new lock only | At lease signing |
| Holding the deposit | Kept in a separate interest bearing Massachusetts bank account, apart from your own money | Receipt with bank and account details due within 30 days |
| Statement of condition | A written statement of the unit's condition given to the tenant, who may amend it | Provide within 15 days of the start of the tenancy; tenant has 15 days to return it |
| Deposit interest | Pay the tenant 5 percent or the actual bank interest, whichever is lower | Each year and again at move out |
| Returning the deposit | Return it with interest plus a sworn itemized list of any deductions | Within 30 days of the tenancy ending |
| Penalty for noncompliance | The tenant can recover up to three times the deposit plus attorney fees under Chapter 93A | Applies to any violation |
Source: Massachusetts Attorney General advisory and M.G.L. c. 186, section 15B and c. 112, section 87DDD½, 2025.
We fill units fast and at strong rents because every listing runs the same proven process, not a different effort each time. A full media package and interactive virtual tour go out to more than 100+ sites at once, that often results in a single group showing run like an open house, turning demand into competing applications on the spot, and in any market, competition pushes offers at or above it.
Screening is where the real protection happens. Every applicant goes through our portal: full credit reports with trade lines and payment history, income verified against pay stubs and tax returns, employment confirmed directly with the employer, and current and former landlords reached by both questionnaire and a live phone call. The same standard applies to every applicant in keeping with fair housing law, and you get a clean summary report so you make the final call without doing the work.
It helps to know where rents actually sit before you set a number. Here is the current market across our core towns.
| Town | One bedroom | Two bedroom | Three bedroom |
|---|---|---|---|
| Watertown | $2,385 | $2,895 | $3,696 |
| Newton | $2,722 | $3,186 | $4,389 |
| Waltham | $2,075 | $2,686 | $3,742 |
Source: MLS PIN, average leased rents, [Last 6 months].
We take on full management selectively and on a case by case basis. Before we manage a property, we look at whether it is the right fit for how we work, and we want you to feel the same about us, so every management relationship starts with a conversation rather than a set price.
If you would rather stay hands on and only need the unit filled, we also offer tenant placement as a standalone service. Many owners start there and move to full management later.
We focus on Newton, and we actively manage across Watertown and the towns around it. Waltham, Belmont, Arlington, Cambridge, Brookline, and Somerville are all in our footprint. If your property sits anywhere in the Greater Boston market and you want it run rather than babysat, we should talk.
Full management covers tenant placement, deep screening, rent collection, maintenance coordination with local vendors, lease renewals at no extra charge, security deposit compliance, and owner financial reporting. You own the property and we run it.
Massachusetts has strict rules around security deposits and leasing fees that carry triple damages for mistakes. A manager holds the deposit correctly, hits every notice deadline, and absorbs the broker fee rules that took effect in August 2025, so the owner carries none of that exposure.
Most of our units lease in under 14 days, and often within 7 to 10, frequently above asking. A Watertown rental we listed at $5,000 leased for $5,500 in 3 days with four applications. A Newton rental we listed at $3,200 leased for $3,500 in 4 days with nine applications. A third, also in Watertown, we listed at $4,500 and leased for $4,700 in 5 days. We list at strong market rents and use a full media package, wide syndication, and a group showing to create the competition that drives those results.
We handle property management on a case by case basis rather than a flat published rate, since the right structure depends on the property and the fit. Contact us and we will talk through your specific situation.
Yes. If you want to stay hands on, we offer tenant placement on its own, then you take over from there.
Written by Ethan Piani-Hohmann, licensed Massachusetts real estate broker and founder of PH Realty Group, a boutique Greater Boston brokerage focused on multifamily, rentals, and landlord representation. Last updated June 2026.
We take on a limited number of properties so we can deliver hands-on oversight, strong tenant screening, and long-term asset protection.
Submit a few details, and if it's a match, we'll reach out to schedule a call!