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Frank Porter Dubai Review: What Owners Should Know Before Switching
A neutral look at what Frank Porter charges, how it operates and what it does not publish upfront, for owners weighing it against a smaller boutique manager.
The Verdict
Frank Porter is one of the more established names in Dubai short-term rental management. Founded in 2017 by Anna Skigin, it now manages more than 650 properties across Dubai and the wider UAE at a flat 17% commission, a rate the company applies to booking revenue with no tiers or seasonal variation. That scale and tenure are genuinely useful signals for an owner comparing options, and its public review base, 2,100+ reviews at a 4.4-star rating, reflects a company that has served a large number of owners over several years.
What is less clear from Frank Porter's own site is the practical detail an owner needs before signing. It does not publish a contract length, minimum term, or cancellation notice period anywhere checked for this review, its FAQ page walks through an eight-step onboarding process but stops short of stating how long an owner is committed once that process is complete. It also does not name specific Dubai neighborhoods it operates in beyond 'Dubai and the UAE' generally, so an owner in a particular building or area should confirm local coverage directly instead of assuming it.
None of this makes Frank Porter a poor choice, its scale, review base and multi-year track record are real advantages. It means the fee percentage and portfolio size are only part of the picture, and the parts that are not published, contract terms chief among them, are worth getting in writing before an owner switches from an existing manager.
At a Glance
The table below summarises Frank Porter's own published figures, sourced directly from frankporter.com at the time of writing.
| Metric | Frank Porter |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2017, by Anna Skigin |
| Management Fee | 17% flat, performance-based |
| Portfolio Size | 650+ properties |
| Coverage | Dubai and wider UAE (specific neighborhoods not published) |
| Reviews | 2,100+ reviews, 4.4-star rating |
| Contract Terms | Not published, confirm directly |
Figures sourced from frankporter.com at the time of writing. Contract terms and neighborhood-level coverage were not found published on Frank Porter's own site during this review.
What Frank Porter Offers
Frank Porter positions itself as a full-service short-term rental manager. Its published service list covers multi-platform listing across Airbnb, Booking.com and TripAdvisor, interior design and staging, cleaning and maintenance between stays, 24/7 guest management and support, accounting, tax and compliance handling, and professional photography. On paper this is a complete, hands-off package aimed at investment property owners who want passive income without day-to-day involvement.
Frank Porter's own FAQ page describes an eight-step onboarding flow: an initial inquiry, a signed contract, DET registration, a property inspection, styling, maintenance, professional photography and listing creation, then ongoing guest management and payments. That sequence gives a reasonably clear picture of what happens before a property goes live, even though the company does not publish how long that whole process typically takes or what happens if an owner wants to exit afterward.
- Multi-platform listing: distribution across Airbnb, Booking.com, TripAdvisor and other channels.
- Interior design and staging: furnishing and presentation work ahead of the first listing.
- Cleaning and maintenance: turnover cleaning and upkeep between guest stays.
- 24/7 guest management: round-the-clock support and communication for guests.
- Accounting, tax and compliance: handling the administrative side of running a short-term rental.
- Professional photography: listing photos as part of onboarding, not a separately billed extra.
Pricing, As Far As It's Public
Frank Porter charges a flat 17% commission on booking revenue, with no tiers and no seasonal variation published. The company frames this as performance-based, since the fee only applies to revenue actually generated, an owner with no bookings in a given month is not charged a management fee for it. Onboarding itself is free, and any additional services beyond the standard package are priced on request; there is no separately published fixed-price list for extras.
Two separate owner costs sit outside Frank Porter's own fee and are worth knowing about upfront: property insurance, which the company's pricing page lists at roughly AED 500 to AED 1,800 per year, and the DET government licence fee, listed at roughly AED 370 to AED 1,270 per year. Neither of these goes to Frank Porter, they are standard costs of operating a licensed short-term rental in Dubai regardless of which manager an owner uses.
What is not published anywhere checked on frankporter.com, including its dedicated FAQ page, is a contract length, minimum term or cancellation notice period. This is a genuine gap, not a red flag on its own, but it means an owner cannot compare Frank Porter's exit terms against another manager's published policy without asking directly. Anyone weighing a switch should get the notice period and any early-termination terms in writing before signing; a standard market timeline should not be assumed.
Reputation and Track Record
Frank Porter's public review base sits at 2,100+ reviews with a 4.4-star rating, a sizeable sample built up since the company's 2017 founding. A review count in that range is meaningfully larger than most boutique competitors in the Dubai market can show, and it is a fair, genuine signal of a company that has served a large number of owners and guests over several years.
Founder Anna Skigin has been profiled in Arabian Business and other regional outlets discussing how she identified the gap in Dubai's short-term rental market and relocated to start the company, and Frank Porter has continued a visible press and PR presence since, including company announcements distributed via Zawya and, as of late 2025, a dedicated Middle East PR agency appointment. No public source found for this review discloses external funding or investor backing either way, so that detail is best treated as unconfirmed, not assumed, in either direction.
Who Frank Porter Suits
Frank Porter tends to suit an owner who wants a large, established operator with broad platform reach and a long public track record, and who does not need a highly personalised, high-touch relationship with their manager. Multi-property investors and first-time owners who value process, scale and a wide review base over a smaller boutique relationship are a reasonable fit for what Frank Porter offers.
Owners in a specific Dubai building or area who want confirmed, area-specific expertise upfront may want to ask directly whether Frank Porter actively manages in their exact location, since the company's own site describes coverage only at the 'Dubai and the UAE' level and does not name specific neighborhoods. The same applies to anyone who wants contract and notice-period terms settled in writing before committing, since those specifics are not part of Frank Porter's public marketing.
Tradeoffs to Weigh
- Scale versus attention: a portfolio of 650+ properties can mean less individual attention per property than a smaller operator can offer, even where the published service list is the same.
- Fee level: 17% sits two percentage points above a boutique competitor charging from 15%, a modest but real gap on annual booking revenue.
- Contract terms: length and notice period are not published upfront, so there is nothing to compare in advance, they have to be requested and confirmed directly.
- Area specificity: coverage is described at the Dubai and UAE level only, so an owner in one particular building or community should confirm local familiarity rather than assume it from the company's general marketing.
Where a Boutique Alternative Fits
For an owner weighing Frank Porter's scale against a smaller, more hands-on operator, Royale Stays is a Dubai-only boutique manager charging from 15%, built around direct founder contact instead of portfolio scale. It offers the same core service areas, furnishing, photography, pricing optimisation, check-in, guest communications and maintenance coordination, at a smaller scale with a 5.0-star rating from 46 reviews, a considerably smaller sample than Frank Porter's but a genuine Dubai-only track record. Owners who want to weigh the two directly can compare with Royale Stays Airbnb management before deciding.
For a full side-by-side breakdown of fees, ratings and operating models between the two companies, read our full side-by-side comparison. Owners who want a direct quote instead of relying on published percentages alone can also list your Dubai property for management to compare a real proposal against Frank Porter's published 17% fee.
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