Buying in Batumi to use yourself and rent out the rest of the year: how to run the numbers
In the worked example, three summer months in your own apartment cost about $2,250 a year in lost rent, and a seasonal tenant pays less than a year-round one. That is a reasonable price for your own home by the sea, as long as you know it in advance.
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All numbers in this example are assumptions. Use your own.
The worked-example apartment
Price $60,000. Rented out year-round, it brings in $450 a month. You want to live there for three months: June, July and August.
Three ways to use it
| I rent it out all year | I live there in summer, rent it out for 9 months | I live there in summer, it stands empty the rest of the time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Months rented | 12 | 9 | 0 |
| Rent per month | $450 | $350 (assumption: a tenant from September to May usually pays less) | 0 |
| Rent per year | $5,400 | $3,150 | 0 |
| Where you live in summer | you rent a place | in your own apartment | in your own apartment |
The difference between the first and second columns: $2,250 a year. That is the price of your three summer months. If renting a similar apartment for the summer costs more than $2,250, living in your own place also makes financial sense. If it costs less, you are paying for the convenience of your own home, and that is a reasonable choice too. It is just worth seeing clearly.
What changes when the tenant isn't there all year
- A new tenant every year. That means a search, viewings and often an agent fee every year. If the tenant changes once a year instead of once every two years, these costs double.
- Getting ready for your arrival. Cleaning, small repairs after the tenant, sometimes storage for your things. These are costs an apartment that is “only for renting out” doesn't have.
- The risk of not finding a winter tenant. In a seasonal city, demand is lower in winter. Budget for at least one vacant month.
- Short-term rentals in the other months. Possible, but occupancy is lower off-season, and management and cleaning costs are higher. We covered how they eat into revenue in “Renting out in Batumi: what is left after the management company”.
How to think about it
If the apartment is first and foremost your own home by the sea, it is not an investment but a purchase, and that is the right way to see it. Renting it out the rest of the year simply lowers what it costs you to own. That is the subject of our column “We don't buy square meters”.
The mistake starts when people buy an apartment like this at a price based on rental income for the whole year. The seller counts 12 months. You will get 9, and at a lower rate.
What to work out before you buy
- What it costs to rent a similar place for your months.
- What apartments near yours actually rent for from September to May.
- Annual ownership costs: building fees, tax, repairs, getting ready for your arrival.
- What the same money would earn in a savings account: the comparison is in “An apartment in Georgia or a savings account: what the same money earns in 10 years”.
How to run it in the calculator
The calculator does not yet have a separate “I live there part of the year” scenario. It calculates a long-term rental, so you can't reproduce the second column of the table in it, and we don't suggest bending the fields to fit. What is useful is this: calculate the first column, the full-year rent, and see how much you would get if you didn't live there yourself. The difference from your own option is the price of your months.
The scenario below: an apartment rented out long-term only, year-round. Price $60,000, rent $450 a month, a tenant from day one, a new tenant every 2 years, with 1 vacant month and an agent fee at each change.
Try the calculator with this property's numbers
The same calculator as on our home page. Change any number and the result updates.
Questions and answers
Why $350 and not $450? It is a worked-example assumption: a tenant who agrees to move out for the summer usually pays less. Check the listings in your area.
Can I rent it out short-term while I'm away? Yes, if the building allows it and you are ready for the management and cleaning costs. Count the revenue after all costs, not the nightly rate.
This is a worked example, not investment, tax or legal advice.
REAL ESTATE I YIELD I TAXES · Levelvale
Sources
This is a calculation, not investment, tax or legal advice.
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