Marketing Budget Per Lease Calculator

CAC measures tenant acquisition. This calculator computes.

Annual marketing budget

Units leased

Organic %

Blended CAC

$563

Paid-only CAC

$750

Paid leases

240

How the math works

CAC = budget / total leased. Paid CAC = budget / paid leases.

$180k / 320 leases = $563 blended. Paid-only $750 (240 paid). Above $800 blended: review spend efficiency. Below $400: under-investing, possible missed opportunities.

How to Use

Enter annual marketing budget.
Enter units leased.
Enter organic %.
Read CAC and effective paid CAC.

Frequently Asked Questions

Typical CAC?

Multifamily: $300-700/lease paid marketing. $600-1,500 total acquisition incl brokers. Retail: $1,000-3,000/tenant (much longer sales cycle). Office: $500-2,000/deal via listing portals and brokers. Industrial: $500-2,000 (single-tenant often). Class A vs C: 2-3x variance.

Channels?

Zillow/Apartments.com: 60-80% of paid marketing in mid-market multifamily. Social (Google, Meta): 10-20%. Signage/collateral: 5-10%. Broker commissions: separate line (not typically 'marketing'). Portfolio can optimize mix by data.

Organic rate?

Word-of-mouth/drive-by: 20-40% of leases in stabilized asset. New lease-up: 10-20% organic. Established brand (multi-portfolio operator): higher organic rate. Track source of leases to optimize channel spend.

What documentation matters here?

Written leases, move-in/move-out inspections with photographs, ledger entries showing every payment and charge, served notices with proof of service, and contemporaneous emails or texts. Courts weigh written evidence heavily; informal understandings rarely stand. Institutional operators run a monthly file audit to catch gaps before they matter. Good paper trails recover most of what's owed.