Real estate website costs.
Build a clearer budget.

Start with the website you actually need.

A personal agent website, a brokerage website and a property portal are different projects. Before comparing prices, write down your audience, the pages you need, where enquiries should go and whether visitors need listing search on your own site. A quote for a large portal is not a useful benchmark for a focused agent website.

HomePage.Studio’s Brand + SEO & AEO website package starts from US$500. It includes one custom homepage, five custom interior pages and up to 30 additional useful landing pages, with complete launch SEO, AEO and GEO. Extra custom pages, enterprise-level search work and full brand development are separately scoped.

The starting price is not an all-in annual operating cost. Scope, price and review terms are agreed before work begins.

Keep five cost categories separate.

1. One-time build. Design, agreed pages, content responsibilities and launch work. Ask what additional custom work would change the quote.
2. Domain and hosting. Identify who pays, the renewal date and the renewal price. A first-year promotion should not silently become the assumption for every year.
3. Listing search and other software. If you need IDX or other licensed tools, confirm the provider, plan, setup charges and any applicable MLS costs.
4. Optional ongoing services. Record what maintenance, content or marketing work is actually included. An available monthly service is not automatically a requirement.
5. Variable and occasional work. Keep advertising spend, usage charges, new custom features and later content work visible instead of assuming they are included.

Compare the same scope and time period. Do not add an annual amount again as a monthly fee, or count a bundled hosting charge twice.

Your first-year worksheet.

Copy these lines into a note or spreadsheet. Put “not yet quoted” beside an unknown amount; do not turn it into zero.

• Agreed one-time build and setup: B
• Domain and other annual charges, counted once: A
• Combined monthly charges you choose to start immediately: M
• Expected variable usage for the year: U
• Separately quoted additions during the year: E

First-year subtotal = B + A + (12 × M) + U + E.

Add applicable taxes separately. If a subscription starts partway through the year, multiply that fee by its actual number of billed months instead of 12. For year two, use renewal prices and remove one-time items that do not recur.

Next to each line, record the supplier, what it includes, when it renews and whether it is optional. If a provider bundles several items, enter the bundle once and mark those components as included.

Two examples—not all-in quotes.

Monthly services start from US$49. That starting figure does not include every service or make IDX, advertising, software or usage free. The example assumes the selected service is actually available to you at that quoted price; confirm its scope first.

Decide on IDX before adding its cost.

On-site listing search is a requirement to assess, not a box every agent must buy. If the main job of your site is to explain your expertise and generate direct enquiries, start by deciding how visitors should find properties and contact you.

If you do need IDX, confirm coverage, eligibility, the desired search experience and the ongoing fees before agreeing the website scope. For example, IDX Broker’s published options distinguish tools for an existing website from hosted website packages. The provider’s current plan and applicable MLS terms—not a generic estimate—belong in your worksheet.

A listing feed does not automatically include every CRM connection. Check where property enquiries will arrive and who is responsible for following up.

Five questions before you accept a quote.

1. Which pages and custom functions are included, and who supplies the approved text and images?
2. Which costs are one-time, annual, monthly or usage-based?
3. Who controls the domain, hosting account, editable content and any paid licences?
4. What happens to access and recurring services if you change provider?
5. Who receives an enquiry, and what checks are included before launch?

Ask for the answers in the agreed scope. HomePage.Studio’s website offer has zero upfront build payment: only pay if you love it, under the scope, price and review terms agreed before we start. Optional monthly services are a separate decision.

Compare the arrangement, not only the price.

Use the responsibility comparison to decide who handles the work, then check what access and deliverables you receive at handover.

Prepare a clearer website brief.

List the audience, page purposes, approved assets and enquiry owners before comparing quotes. Separate launch essentials from later options.