Cost Guide
How Much Does Make-Ready Cost Per Unit?
By All Purpose Anytime Services LLC
Most make-readies land between $3,000 and $5,000 per unit once repairs, cleaning, lost rent and the leasing handoff are counted, according to Lula's 2026 guide. The repair share depends on one thing: how many lines of your checklist the unit fails.
Market rates
- Make-ready per unit, all-in: $3,000 to $5,000
- Average vacant days between move-out and new occupancy: 34.4, about $60 a day on the national average rent
- Washington, DC drywall patch: $135 to $385
- Washington, DC door adjustment or repair: $85 to $240
- Washington, DC room painting: $436 to $1,742
Sources: Lula, What Is a Make Ready? (2026); Lula citing RealPage Market Analytics; Angi, Washington DC handyman prices (Jun. 2026); Angi, Washington DC room painting (Jul. 2026). Market rates, not ours. Your unit gets its own written price after we walk it.
The short answer
Make-ready costs are priced per unit against your checklist. A unit that needs paint touch-ups, two cover plates and a closet door back on its track is a short list. A unit with wall damage in every room is not a make-ready anymore. It is a turnover, and we will tell you so at the walkthrough.
Make-ready is only part of a turn's cost. What is the average cost of turnover? covers lost rent, cleaning and leasing as well.
What moves the per-unit price
- How long your checklist is, and how many lines on it the unit fails
- Whether the walls take touch-ups or need patching first
- Whether any flooring needs repair
- How many fixtures and hardware items are missing or broken
- Whether several units are being turned at the same time
How much do make ready repairs cost for a typical unit?
Less than the $3,000 to $5,000 all-in figure, which also counts lost rent and leasing. The repair share is built from line items. Angi's 2026 Washington figures run $135 to $385 for each drywall patch, $85 to $240 for each door repair and $436 to $1,742 for each painted room. A unit that fails on a few patches, one door and two rooms of paint adds up from those lines. Those are market rates, not our prices, and our make-ready price comes in writing after the walkthrough.
Make-ready or turnover?
If the unit needs mostly cosmetic work, it is a make-ready. If it needs repairs before the cosmetics can even start, it is a turnover. The walkthrough settles it, and the written scope names it.
Price your make-ready
Send us your make-ready checklist and the unit number. We check the unit against it and price each failed line in writing.
Price the Make-Ready on Your Unit
Send the checklist and the address. Each failed line gets its own price.
Request a Unit Walkthrough
Checking a unit against your make-ready list costs nothing. Each failed line is priced on paper first.