How the Investor Top 10 rankings work
Every company in a list is scored with the same formula and the same public data, whether or not it has claimed its profile. Here is exactly how.
- $0for placementNo one can pay to be listed or to move up.
- 1formula for everyoneFive parts, the same weights in every list.
- 100%public evidenceEvery number has a source you can check.
- 1stof every monthScores refresh with new data; rank history is kept.
The score: five parts
Every company gets a score out of 10 from five parts. The weights are the same in every list.
How the score works. Star ratings are scored as stars. Everything else is compared with the strongest companies on the same list, in the same city. Be among the best in your market at something, and you get full marks for it. That keeps one national brand or one giant from setting an impossible bar, and it means a 9 in Atlanta is one of the best in Atlanta.
From the October 2026 editions, each part except customer satisfaction is compared with the strongest companies on the same list. Earlier editions keep the scores they were published with.
- Each review counts by how much its site matters for the list: see how much each review site counts.
- A rating is pulled toward the list type’s typical rating until there are enough reviews to trust it: 25 reviews for investor-friendly agents and 25 reviews for local services, so a few perfect reviews cannot beat hundreds of strong ones.
- 3.0 stars or lower scores 0; 5.0 scores 10.
- A 10-point checklist, one per list: see the investor fit checklists.
- Each point needs a public fact: the company’s own website, a license record or its reviews.
- Full marks on a part go to the companies in the top tenth of the list for that part. The bar never drops below a minimum, so a weak list cannot make its leader look perfect.
- The minimum on this part is 5 points.
- Monthly US searches for the company’s top five search phrases that name it with a place, the service, or a request for its reviews or phone number. The company’s name alone never counts; for software, searches for its login do.
- On a log scale.
- Full marks on a part go to the companies in the top tenth of the list for that part. The bar never drops below a minimum, so a weak list cannot make its leader look perfect.
- The minimum on this part is 50 searches a month.
- Total reviews count 60% and reviews in the last 12 months 40%, each on a log scale.
- Full marks on a part go to the companies in the top tenth of the list for that part. The bar never drops below a minimum, so a weak list cannot make its leader look perfect.
- The minimums on this part are 60 for agents, 200 for property managers, 150 for short-term rental managers, 75 for attorneys total reviews, and 23 for agents, 75 for property managers, 56 for short-term rental managers, 28 for attorneys reviews in the last 12 months.
- When no site in a list dates its reviews, total reviews alone count.
- Publishes its fees or pricing: 3 points.
- Years in business: 2 points.
- BBB accredited or rated A- or better: 1 point.
- A professional designation or membership confirmed in the organization's directory: 1 point.
- A line that does not apply to a list, such as a license for software, shares its points across the others.
- License: 3 points when the company publishes its license number and the state’s own license lookup confirms it active; 2 points when the number is published but the lookup cannot confirm it (the company can then send a copy of its license for our team to review); 0 when the state requires a license for the work and none is published. Where no license is required, the line does not apply and its points are shared across the others. When a state’s license file cannot be read, we use the last one we read, and the profile says from when. See where a license is required.
- Full marks on a part go to the companies in the top tenth of the list for that part. The bar never drops below a minimum, so a weak list cannot make its leader look perfect.
- The minimum on this part is 5 points.
One score, added up
TJS Team / Tina Jingru Sui (Keller Williams), #1 of the Atlanta agents for November 2026.
A 10 would take perfect stars across many reviews and the lead on every part. We never round up to 10; we show 10.0 only when it is exactly true.
A tie goes to the higher unrounded score, then to more reviews, then to alphabetical order.
Review sites and how much each counts
How much one review on each site counts toward a list’s picture of customer experience. A site where a company has no listing adds nothing; it is never counted as a bad review.
For property managers, short-term rental managers, and attorneys, Google counts most: it is where their customers review them. A value of 1.0 means each review counts in full; 0.5 counts as half a review.
For agents, Zillow and Realtor.com reviews count too, since that is where many agents are reviewed. A value of 1.0 means each review counts in full; 0.5 counts as half a review.
Google, Yelp, and Facebook count zero for software, because a listing there reviews an office, not the product. A value of 1.0 means each review counts in full; 0.5 counts as half a review.
For national services such as insurance and tenant screening, Trustpilot counts most. A value of 1.0 means each review counts in full; 0.5 counts as half a review.
Investor Top 10 is not affiliated with these review sites. Their names and marks belong to them and show only where each rating comes from.
Who gets ranked
A company must pass all four checks before it can be ranked.
Each company is checked to confirm it does the list’s work for rental owners. When we are unsure, our team reviews it before it can be ranked.
Closed companies are not ranked. Local lists include only companies with an office or a stated service area in the metro.
A company needs at least 10 effective reviews. Below that it shows as “Not enough public reviews to rank yet,” never ranked.
A license or bar suspension, revocation, or public disciplinary order in the last five years removes a company, and our team reviews it.
Lists update on the 1st of every month from fresh data. Every month’s rankings are kept, so a company’s rank history is permanent.
Investor fit checklists
Each list has its own 10-point checklist of public evidence that a company serves rental investors. Each point needs a public fact: the company’s own website, a license record or its reviews.
- Public evidence of investor clients (closings, listings or site)2 points
- Works with rental property types (single-family rentals, 2–4 units, small multifamily)1 point
- Runs deal analysis for buyers1.5 points
- Works with out-of-state buyers1.5 points
- Off-market or wholesale deal access1 point
- Share of reviews written by investor clients3 points
A point counts only when a public source shows it: see why only public evidence counts.
- Manages single-family or 2–4 unit rentals2 points
- Supports owners who live out of state1.5 points
- Owner portal with monthly statements1 point
- Investor tools or services (rent analysis, rent-versus-sell, acquisition help, rehab coordination)1.5 points
- Portfolio or multi-door pricing1 point
- Share of reviews written by owners, not tenants3 points
A point counts only when a public source shows it: see why only public evidence counts.
- Offers full-service management2 points
- Dynamic pricing1.5 points
- Lists on two or more booking platforms1.5 points
- Manages single-family or small multifamily homes1 point
- Handles mid-term stays1 point
- Share of reviews written by owners, not guests3 points
A point counts only when a public source shows it: see why only public evidence counts.
- Represents landlords only2 points
- Handles property-manager accounts (volume filings)1.5 points
- Handles the whole eviction (uncontested filings through the writ of possession)1.5 points
- Accepts cases online1 point
- Files in more than one county1 point
- Share of reviews written by landlords, not tenants3 points
A point counts only when a public source shows it: see why only public evidence counts.
Where a license is required
Whether each state requires a license for each kind of company we list, and which one, from the state’s own law. Where a license is not required, the license line does not count for or against a company.
- Georgia. Required: real estate broker license (or a salesperson under a broker)Source
- North Carolina. Required: real estate broker licenseSource
- Texas. Required: real estate broker license (or a sales agent sponsored by a broker)Source
- Florida. Required: real estate broker license (or a sales associate under a broker)Source
- Indiana. Required: real estate broker license (under a managing broker)Source
- Ohio. Required: real estate broker license (or a salesperson under a broker)Source
- Georgia. Required: real estate broker license (or a salesperson or associate broker under a broker), Georgia Real Estate CommissionSource
- North Carolina. Required: real estate broker license (North Carolina Real Estate Commission)Source
- Texas. Required: real estate broker license (or a sales agent sponsored by a broker), Texas Real Estate CommissionSource
- Florida. Required: real estate broker license (or a sales associate under a broker), Florida Real Estate CommissionSource
- Indiana. Required: real estate broker license (Indiana Real Estate Commission)Source
- Ohio. Required: real estate broker license (or a salesperson under a broker), Ohio Division of Real Estate and Professional LicensingSource
- Georgia. Required: license to practice law (bar admission)Source
- North Carolina. Required: license to practice law (active member of the North Carolina State Bar)Source
- Texas. Required: license to practice law (State Bar of Texas membership)Source
- Florida. Required: license to practice law (Florida Bar admission)Source
- Indiana. Required: license to practice law (admission by the Indiana Supreme Court)Source
- Ohio. Required: license to practice law (admission by the Ohio Supreme Court)Source
When evidence is missing
Missing evidence is handled the same way for every company, so no one is punished for a gap in our sources.
Its weight is shared across the other parts in proportion, and the list says so. The weights still add up to 100%.
If a company has not published something, such as its fees, that line scores 0. Publishing it is in the company’s hands.
If a source is missing for a whole list, such as a state’s license records, that line isn’t scored and its points are shared. It returns once the source exists.
- Investor-Friendly Real Estate Agents in Atlanta: license or bar status verified active on the state record, because Georgia’s agent license records are not available to us yet.
Safeguards and honest limits
A rating counts only after its listing is matched to the right company by name, city and website.
A jump in reviews far above a company’s normal pace is checked before the list is published.
What a company adds after claiming is shown but never scored unless it is also public. AI summaries in search results are never scored.
A score compares companies in the same list, never across lists.
New companies start lower on review volume and years in business. Review count counts twice on purpose: once for how sure we are of the rating, once for size and activity.
How “Best for” labels are chosen
Always the company with the highest score in the list.
Each label, such as “Best for out-of-state owners”, goes to the highest-scoring company in the top 10 that lists the service on its website or claimed profile.
One label per company, up to four per list. A label stays empty when no company qualifies.
Attorneys are recognized, not ranked “best”. Lawyer advertising rules limit how attorneys may present awards, so attorney lists use “Recognized for” labels, and attorney badges carry the year, the city and a link to this page.
Rules we keep
No company can pay to be listed, to move up, or to be removed.
A claimed profile can add photos, services, fees and a lead form. Its score comes from the same public data as everyone else’s.
OneMoreDoor Capital, a business-purpose loan brokerage. Its business has no effect on any ranking, and we do not rank lenders.
About the publisherLenders of any kind, investment offerings such as syndications and crowdfunding, courses and coaching, wholesalers and turnkey sellers.
If a fact about a company is wrong, anyone can request a correction. We check every request against its source.
Request a correctionAny business can ask to be removed, and the request is honored.
Request removalInvestor Top 10 is published by OneMoreDoor Capital, a business-purpose loan brokerage that arranges DSCR and other investor loans through its lending partners. Our loan brokerage business has no effect on any ranking.
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