“The only things certain in life are death, taxes, and rising per-user SaaS costs.” While Benjamin Franklin might not have included that last part, anyone managing technology for a growing real estate team feels its truth deeply. As your brokerage adds agents—presumably to increase revenue and profitability—your technology costs rise in lockstep, creating what amounts to a hidden tax on growth.
So what exactly is this growth tax? It’s the ever-increasing technology expense that comes from per-user pricing models, where you pay for each additional seat or license. And nowhere is this more evident than in your email costs.
The per-agent pricing model is particularly problematic for brokerages because of the 80/20 rule in real estate. As one industry expert notes, “This pricing model makes it very difficult for brokers with already thin margins to provide good tech to their team. For example, a broker with 100 agents, on average, only has 20 or maybe 30 agents that are truly profitable contributors that incentivize the broker to provide more tools.”
Let’s break down exactly what this hidden tax looks like in real numbers.
The Real Cost of Growing Your Brokerage
Consider a mid-sized brokerage with 35 agents using Microsoft 365 Business Standard ($12.50/user/month):
- Current annual email cost: $5,250
- Add 15 more agents this year: Annual cost jumps to $7,500
- That’s a 43% increase in email expenses just for doing what every brokerage wants to do: grow
For larger brokerages, the numbers become even more dramatic:
Each new agent represents not just an opportunity for more transactions, but also an inescapable, permanent increase in your technology overhead.
The Desk Fee Advantage with Fixed-Cost Email
This chart illustrates how fixed-cost email aligns with standard brokerage desk fee models ($100-200/month) by creating predictable technology expenses that support growth.
Comparing Hidden Costs: Per-User vs. Fixed-Cost Models
To truly understand the value proposition of each pricing model, let’s examine their hidden costs:
Per-User Model Hidden Costs:
- Scaling Penalty: Each new hire directly increases your technology expenses, regardless of their productivity
- Budget Variance: Fluctuating headcount creates unpredictable monthly bills, complicating financial planning
- Administrative Burden: Individual account creation, management, and billing for each user
- Unused Licenses: Paying for inactive or underutilized accounts during agent transitions
- Growth Disincentive: The psychological barrier of knowing each new hire triggers additional recurring costs
- Inconsistent Per-Agent ROI: High-producing and low-producing agents cost exactly the same
- Mid-Month Prorations: Most providers still charge for full months even when users are added or removed mid-cycle
- Desk Fee Misalignment: Difficult to maintain consistent agent desk fees when underlying costs constantly change
Fixed-Cost Model Hidden Costs:
- Initial Higher Expense: For smaller teams below the break-even point, monthly costs are initially higher
- Possible Tier Transitions: Significant jumps in cost when moving between tiers (though far less frequent than per-user increases)
- Potential Overprovisioning: Paying for capacity you might not fully utilize at the beginning of a growth phase
- Provider Lock-In: Potentially higher switching costs once your entire team is on the platform
As this comparison shows, per-user models embed numerous hidden costs that compound as your team grows, while fixed-cost models front-load expenses for predictability and growth-friendly pricing. The hidden value of fixed-cost models becomes particularly evident when you factor in growth trajectories, administrative savings, and the ability to maintain stable desk fees for agents.
Beyond the Basic Numbers
This hidden tax on growth affects more than just your bottom line. It creates several cascading problems:
- Budget Unpredictability: Technology costs become a moving target, making financial planning difficult. How do you accurately forecast technology expenses when they fluctuate with every hiring decision?
- Desk Fee Calculation Challenges: With fluctuating per-user costs, brokerages struggle to set appropriate desk fees that cover expenses while remaining competitive for agent recruitment.
- Growth Hesitation: Some brokerages unconsciously limit recruitment because each new agent represents another ongoing expense, undermining the entire business model of growth.
- Technology Compromises: Teams may opt for inferior solutions to keep costs manageable. This often means choosing email platforms with weaker security, poor deliverability, or limited features.
- Administrative Overhead: Managing individual accounts, licenses, and billing becomes increasingly complex. Each new agent requires account creation, license assignment, and ongoing management.
The Fixed-Cost Alternative
The fixed-cost email model eliminates the growth penalty by charging based on team size tiers rather than individual users:
- Small Teams (1-30 users): $599/month
- Medium Teams (31-99 users): $999/month
- Large Teams (100-199 users): $1,399/month
- Enterprise (200+ users): Custom pricing
Using this model, our 35-agent brokerage would pay $999 monthly ($11,988 annually) regardless of whether they have 35 agents or 99 agents. This creates several immediate advantages:
- Predictable Budgeting: Technology costs become a fixed line item regardless of agent count fluctuations.
- Stable Desk Fees: Brokerages can confidently set desk fees knowing their underlying technology costs won’t constantly increase.
- Growth-Friendly: Add agents without triggering immediate cost increases. For a brokerage in expansion mode, this alignment of cost structure with growth strategy is invaluable.
- Protection Against Turnover Costs: In traditional per-user models, you typically pay for a full month even if an agent leaves mid-month. With fixed-cost email, agent turnover doesn’t create billing headaches.
- Seasonal Flexibility: Many brokerages experience seasonal fluctuations in agent count. Fixed-cost models accommodate these variations without penalty.
The Long-Term Financial Impact
Let’s visualize the difference between these pricing models over a three-year growth period:
Scenario: Brokerage starting with 40 agents, growing by 15 agents annually
Per-User Email Model:
- Year 1 (40 agents): $6,000 annually
- Year 2 (55 agents): $8,250 annually
- Year 3 (70 agents): $10,500 annually
- Three-Year Total: $24,750
Fixed-Cost Email Model:
- Year 1 (40 agents): $11,988 annually
- Year 2 (55 agents): $11,988 annually
- Year 3 (70 agents): $11,988 annually
- Three-Year Total: $35,964
At first glance, the fixed-cost model appears more expensive. However, this calculation doesn’t account for the one factor that makes fixed-cost email truly advantageous: the ability to grow without penalty.
If we factor in the company’s growth trajectory to 100 agents over five years, the financial picture changes dramatically, with potential savings exceeding $25,000 compared to per-user pricing.
Beyond Cost Savings: Additional Benefits
Fixed-cost email solutions offer advantages beyond just predictable pricing:
- Enterprise-Grade Features: Professional email with advanced security features at a predictable price, regardless of team size.
- Simplified Administration: One solution instead of managing individual accounts, saving administrative overhead.
- Streamlined Onboarding: Add new agents without additional licensing steps or approvals.
- Enhanced Deliverability: Specialized real estate email platforms often provide better deliverability than general-purpose solutions.
- Email Client Flexibility: Agents can use their preferred email applications (Outlook, Gmail, Apple Mail, etc.) to access their accounts, eliminating the learning curve when onboarding new team members and allowing them to maintain their existing email workflows.
- Migration Support: The best providers handle the transition with zero downtime.
Industry Expert Insights
Technology adoption is accelerating across the real estate sector, with the global real estate software market expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 12.8% from 2023 to 2030, reaching $25.39 billion by 2030 according to Grand View Research. Amid this technology boom, industry experts are emphasizing the importance of strategic investment in tools that scale with growth.
According to Travis Saxton, EVP of Technology at T3 Sixty, “In the past three years, with socioeconomic factors contributing to some changes, this number has increased to 20.4 technology solutions” from 12.4 tools in 2020. This proliferation of tools has led many brokerages to reconsider their technology strategy, with cost structure being a primary consideration.
When it comes to pricing models for real estate technology, experts point to the importance of understanding value-based versus cost-based pricing. As one industry expert notes, “Cost based pricing means that the vendor assesses the cost of creating the tool or service, and adds a layer for profit. Value based pricing, takes less into account the cost of creating the tool or service, and more into the ROI or perceived value received by the buyer.”
Addressing Common Concerns
Of course, switching email platforms raises legitimate questions:
- “Will we lose features we currently have?” Most fixed-cost platforms offer feature parity with major providers like Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, including mobile access, calendar integration, and document storage.
- “Is migration complicated?” A proper migration plan ensures seamless transition with no email downtime or data loss. The best providers handle the technical aspects entirely.
- “What about email addresses we already use?” Fixed-cost email solutions allow you to keep your existing domain names and email addresses.
- “Can agents keep using their favorite email apps?” Yes—unlike some solutions that force users into proprietary interfaces, MacguyverTech’s Email Server works with standard protocols that are compatible with Outlook, Gmail, Apple Mail, and virtually any other email client. This means agents can continue using familiar tools with zero learning curve.
- “How secure are these solutions?” Leading fixed-cost email platforms typically offer enterprise-grade security, often exceeding what’s available in standard per-user plans.
Real-World Results
Delaware Valley Realty, a mid-sized brokerage in the Philadelphia area, switched to a fixed-cost email solution in 2024. Starting with 24 agents, they planned to grow to 50+ within 18 months.
“We were paying over $700 monthly for email with our per-user system,” explains Operations Director Jennifer Harris. “After switching, we not only saw immediate savings of $101 monthly, but we’ve since added 15 new agents without our email costs increasing at all. That’s a projected annual savings of over $12,000 as we continue our expansion.”
Beyond direct cost savings, Harris notes additional benefits: “Email deliverability has improved significantly, meaning our agents’ messages to clients are actually reaching inboxes rather than spam folders. And administratively, onboarding new agents is much simpler now.”
Making the Switch: What to Consider
If you’re contemplating moving to a fixed-cost email solution, consider these factors:
- Migration Planning: Ensure your provider offers a comprehensive migration plan that preserves all existing emails and contacts.
- Contract Timing: Plan your transition around the end of your current provider’s contract term to avoid paying for overlapping services.
- Team Growth Projections: Calculate your break-even point based on your growth trajectory. The faster you’re growing, the more compelling the fixed-cost model becomes.
- Desk Fee Structure: Review how email costs factor into your current desk fees and how fixed-cost email could improve your fee structure.
- Feature Requirements: Make a list of must-have email features for your team and ensure your new solution provides them.
- Integration Needs: Verify compatibility with your other systems like CRM, transaction management, and document storage.
The Bottom Line: Growth Without Penalty
Real estate is fundamentally a growth business. Your technology costs shouldn’t penalize you for success. Fixed-cost email aligns your technology infrastructure with your business goals, creating predictable expenses regardless of how many agents you bring on. It also perfectly complements the desk fee model most brokerages already use, creating a stable, predictable cost structure that supports growth.
As you evaluate your brokerage’s technology strategy for 2025 and beyond, consider whether your current email solution is imposing an unnecessary tax on your growth. After all, your technology should enable your expansion, not penalize it.
MacguyverTech provides fixed-cost email solutions for real estate teams of all sizes. Our migration experts ensure a seamless transition with zero downtime. Calculate your potential savings with our Email ROI Calculator or schedule a consultation to learn more about our implementation process.
