They may be charging a full month's rent for the leasing fee and keeping every penny of it.

They typically charge to find a new tenant, renew leases, and upcharge on maintenance.

I'm not crazy about the big box stores as they seem to charge too much. 

Vrbo has free price automation software.I use Excel for book keeping.I don't pay for any third party software, not really needed on 1 or 2 properties.I charge a little extra for cleaning fee than actual cleaning costs.

You don’t think you can charge $2/day more with appliances?

Are you set up as a legitimate business?

I charge two months security deposit (roughly $3,850) per unit and have only once needed to deduct for anything other than a cleaning fee.

It costs me $50/ PER MONTH and I can use it as a hotspot at no additional charge. 

Some common names you'll see thrown around a lot: Stessa, Apartments.com, RentRedi, TenantCloud, Innago, RentManager, Avail, Rentec Direct, Doorloop, etc.I recommend you search for each of those apps online and see what they offer, how much they charge, etc.

From what I've read, some electric providers might not charge for the new service upgrade itself, but adding the meters, connecting the upgraded service and adding/updating panels would require an electrician, which would incur costs.If anyone has experience with this type of electrical service upgrade, particularly in Chicago, I would appreciate your advice and any information on costs and the process involved.