How Much Does Make-Ready Cost Per Unit?

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). These are published market figures, not our prices. Your written price after the walkthrough is your exact number.

The short answer

Make-ready is 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.

This is one question in our apartment turnover cost guide, which covers the whole unit.

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

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.

Get the number for your unit

Send us your make-ready checklist and the unit number. We walk it and send a written price for that unit.