Buy a villa in Bali where you holiday: let it 11 months, live in it one — the numbers

In brief

In Bali a foreigner can hold a villa on a leasehold or Hak Pakai title, but letting it out needs a business licence, a tax number and, reportedly, a company structure, and a Hak Pakai house is for residential use. On our illustrative two-bedroom Canggu villa at $248,000 the year nets about 5.6% before income tax; at the 20% non-resident withholding on gross rent it falls to about 3.7%, and a 25-year lease loses $9,920 of value every year. Figures as of 1 November 2026; the nightly rates and occupancy are our assumptions, not market data.

Why Bali needs a different calculation

On paper the idea is simple: buy a villa where you love to holiday, let it for 11 months, stay for one. In Bali three facts bend the arithmetic. First, the licence: short-term letting requires registration in the national business system with a business number (NIB), an accommodation activity code and a tax number (NPWP). Agent summaries say the small homestay licence (pondok wisata) is not open to foreigners and that a company with foreign investment (PT PMA) must find an activity code that is open to it. Second, the title: a Hak Pakai house is described as residential only. Third, the lease: most villas a foreigner buys are leaseholds of 25 to 30 years, so the capital itself runs down. Our guides to Hak Pakai, leasehold and PT PMA and to villa management and tax cover the rules; this article puts numbers on the plan.

This article is general information, not tax or legal advice. The campaign overview is in the hub guide; the method for choosing your month is in the owner month against rental income.

Seasonality: peaks, wet months and the owner month

• Peak months. Sources name July and August and the turn of the year, roughly 20 December to early January. One agency guide puts Canggu occupancy near 88% in those periods and an annual average of 68% to 76%; another says occupancy has stayed above 80% all year; a third gives 60% to 67% across villa sizes. They conflict, and all are agency material.
• Low months. The same first guide reports 50% to 60% occupancy from January to March. The wet season, commonly given as roughly November to March, is the weather trade-off.
• Rates. Agency material puts peak-season rates about 45% to 60% above low season. A single Canggu booking page showed about $224 to $236 a night in low season against $394 over 20 December to 9 January (a 2024-25 listing, not an average).
• Market averages. AirDNA's Bali data shows about 57% occupancy and $75 revenue per available night over the year; the AirDNA overview quoted in our villa guide shows about $15,600 a year at 48% occupancy and about $169 a night, while Airbtics shows about $22,700 at 66% and $93. Neither tells you what your villa will do.

What the same money buys, by budget

Prices are asking levels from our Bali areas guide and the Indonesia areas guide, converted at about IDR 18,000 to the dollar. None is a sold price.

• About $100,000. Ubud leaseholds are quoted from about $80,000 to $250,000 (2026 guide), so this tier buys a small leasehold villa or a studio-style unit there. Ubud is a quieter, more inland market with its own visitor base.
• About $150,000. Canggu 25-year leasehold villas are quoted from about $150,000, and Nusa Dua villas from about $150,000 in an agent guide. Expect a small villa, a short lease or a project unit.
• About $250,000. Canggu two-bedroom villas from about $248,000; Uluwatu and the Bukit villas from about $277,000. This is the tier we model below.

The sources also give about $1,670 per built m2 in Canggu and about $1,220 in Seminyak (blogs, 2026). See what can you buy in Indonesia for $70,000-350,000 for the wider picture. Canggu and the Bukit have the deepest visitor demand; Nusa Dua is a managed resort enclave where operator contracts can limit your own use and bind you for years.

The model: 12 months of letting against 11

Arithmetic on stated assumptions, not a forecast. Replace every number with a licensed manager's quote.

Assumptions: a two-bedroom Canggu villa on a 25-year leasehold bought for $248,000; licensed and legally let; peak months July, August and December (3 months) at $150 a night and 75% occupancy; shoulder months April to June and September to November (6 months) at $100 and 55%; low months January to March (3 months) at $90 and 42%; 30.4 nights a month; management 25% of revenue; running costs of $4,000 a year (staff, pool, utilities, repairs, insurance); tourist accommodation tax (PBJT, reported at 10% in Bali) charged to guests and left out.

• Gross revenue: peak $10,260 plus shoulder $10,030 plus low $3,450 equals $23,740 a year, 9.6% of the price.
• Less management $5,935 and running costs $4,000: net $13,805, or 5.57%, before income tax.
• Income tax on the rent: reported as a 10% final tax on gross rent for a resident individual and a 20% withholding on gross rent for a non-resident (a treaty may reduce it). At 20% the tax is $4,748 and the net falls to $9,057, or 3.65%. At 10% it is $2,374 and the net is $11,431, or 4.61%.
• The lease. $248,000 over 25 years is $9,920 a year of capital that returns to nobody. Net income before tax minus that is $3,885, or 1.57%; after 20% withholding the result turns slightly negative (about -$860) in the worst case with no residual value. Remaining lease length and extension terms decide what you can resell for, so this is a floor, not a forecast.
• Sensitivity before tax: occupancy 10 points lower in every season gives net $10,795 (4.35%); nightly rates 10% lower gives $12,024 (4.85%). Break-even: running costs are covered at about 13% of the maximum possible revenue.

Compare with the published yield range for Bali in our Bali yield guide and the short-term against long-term comparison; brochures promising double-digit net returns or guaranteed income deserve caution.

Which month to take for yourself

The cost of your month is the revenue you would have earned, less the management fee you save. Running costs are paid either way.

• February (low): lost revenue $1,149, saved fee $287, net loss $862. The year nets $12,943 (5.22%) before tax.
• June (shoulder, between the two peaks): lost revenue $1,672, net loss $1,254. The year nets $12,551 (5.06%).
• August (peak): lost revenue $3,420, net loss $2,565. The year nets $11,240 (4.53%).
• The spread between February and August is $1,703 a year. At the same nightly rates, a comparable villa would cost about $2,740 in February, $3,040 in June or $4,560 in August to stay in.

Two practical points. A villa that is only 42% booked in February earns little anyway, so the saving from taking it is small and the weather is the cost; June is dry and usually quieter. And the figure above assumes the villa would have been booked at the average; if your manager can show a month that sells out every year, treat it as unavailable.

Ownership and licences that decide whether it works

• Title and use. Hak Pakai is described by agents as residential use only, so tourist letting needs another structure such as a lease with a licensed operator or a company title. Some sources also say Hak Pakai is open to foreign individuals who hold a residence permit (KITAS or KITAP); a tourist on holiday does not. Check this first, because it decides whether you can hold the title at all.
• The licence. Registration, NIB, an accommodation activity code and a tax number. Sources disagree on the right activity code for a villa (55130, 55190 and 55193 all appear), and we found no 2026 official source, so the code must be confirmed with a notary. Bali reportedly closed new foreign registrations in some categories in May 2026, and platforms were reported to remove unlicensed listings in 2026, about 1,600 in August.
• Land use. Agricultural (green zone) land is generally not licensed for tourist stays; the building also needs its permit.
• Your own month. Staying in your own villa is not a letting. The legal risk sits in the other eleven months: an unlicensed listing can lose its bookings overnight.
• Visa. A holiday month does not give residence; check the stay period you will use, and note that the Hak Pakai residence requirement above is separate.

Taxes and costs in short

Rent from Bali is taxed in Indonesia and is also income at home. Under the treaty text we checked, income from real estate may be taxed where the property is, and the country of residence then gives relief by credit or exemption; see personal-use days and rental income taxes. Reported selling costs are 2.5% income tax on the transfer value for the seller and 5% acquisition duty for the buyer above a regional threshold, with notary fees extra; verify with an Indonesian adviser. Management companies quote about 20% to 30% of revenue plus separate costs; see managing a holiday home abroad and the legal guide on licences, house rules and insurance. For a comparison with the Thai route see Thailand against Bali.

Common mistakes

• Buying a Hak Pakai house for tourist letting.
• Believing the brochure's occupancy and licence claims without checking the NIB and zoning.
• Ignoring that a 25-year lease is a depreciating asset.
• Taking August as your month because the beach is best.
• Forgetting the withholding tax on gross rent, which hits harder than a tax on profit.
• Signing a resort-operator contract that restricts your own use and binds you for years.

Checklist before you buy

• The title type and the remaining lease length, with extension terms in writing.
• The business licence, NIB, activity code and zoning for the exact villa.
• Twelve months of the manager's booking and rate history for the same villa.
• A manager contract with a free owner-month clause and a notice period.
• A tax adviser's view of Indonesian and home-country tax.
• Your visa for the month.

FAQ

Can a foreigner rent out a Bali villa legally? Yes, but only with the right structure and licence: registration with a business number, an accommodation activity code and a tax number, and usually a company or a licensed operator. The small homestay licence is reported as closed to foreigners.

What is a realistic return on a Canggu villa? On our illustrative inputs about 5.6% a year before income tax, about 3.7% after a 20% withholding on gross rent, and close to zero once a 25-year lease's loss in value is counted. Published ranges are wider; check against the licensed manager's real figures.

Which month should I take for myself? A low or shoulder month such as February or June costs $862 to $1,254 in net income in our example against $2,565 for August.

Can I hold Hak Pakai as a tourist? Agents report that Hak Pakai requires a residence permit, so a holiday visa is not enough. Confirm with a notary before you plan around it.

Is the owner's own stay taxed? Staying in your villa is not rental income, but home-country rules on personal use of a rented property vary; see the tax article and ask an adviser.