Advice on Renting a Villa in Bali

This post is intended for a follow up to my post about renting a house/apartment in Bali as many of my readers want to know specific information about renting a villa in Bali rather than just a house. For this, I will try to give as much info as possible about the said villas and costs involved.

One of the first things to note is that, similar to renting a house/apartment in Bali, long-term rent is usually paid in a lump sum in advance for the 6-month/year period of rent as, from the owners' perspective, anything less would not be worth it compared to renting it out short-term to tourists. Unfortunately, that is the way it is here - although you can find monthly villa rental, this usually equates to a much higher price for obvious reasons.

Moonlight Villa, Uluwatu, courtesy of
All Bali Villas & Hotels

Villa location is high up on many people's lists - obviously, prices vary greatly depending onthe area in which a villa is located. For example, the most expensive areas to rent a villa are generally Seminyak, Nusa Dua, Sanur, Canggu, Ubud, the island of Nusa Lembongan or the Bukit Peninsula due to their close proximity to beaches and abundant tourist facilities such as supermarkets and restaurants.  As for the cost of rent for 1 year's rent in any of the above locations, expect to pay upwards of US$4,000 a 3-bedroom villa - please note that this is a rough estimate based on current prices! Cheaper villa options (starting at around $3,000 per year) are available in Jimbaran, Tuban, Kerobokan and Denpasar (around Renon is probably best) but this also means being further from the beach and having slightly less tourist amenities than the areas mentioned previously. If you are wishing to get away from it all and live in relative seclusion from all things western, then very good prices on villa rentals can be found in places such as Tabanan, Lovina, the island of Nusa Penida and the Karangasem Regency in East Bali and just about anywhere else in North, Central, West & East Bali. This topographic map of Bali should help you to have a better idea of exactly where these places are.

Another point about villa rental in Bali is that many villa owners will offer to include a maid (or pembantu in Indonesian) - this may or may not be to your tastes as most people I know who have had one are divided 50/50 by those who have had positive or negative experiences. Maids in Bali are easy to find and inexpensive (many working for as little as US$100 full-time) but knowing exactly what work has been done is an issue and the problem of security of your personal belongings is very common - this is not to say that all maids are untrustworthy but finding a good one can be stressful and time-consuming. You could try Bali Krisna Service, a job agency run by a friend, who offer maids and other domestic workers for long or short-term work at competitive prices. These can be live-in maids or simply ones who work as and when required.

Villa Dadi, Canggu, Bali
Courtesy of Top Canggu Villas

As for the costs of living in a villa in Bali, this will also depend greatly on its location - an airy villa on the Bukit Peninsula will not require nearly as much air-conditioning as one in the heart of the immensely over-crowded Seminyak, affecting electricity bills quite substantially. As a rough estimate with current prices, it would cost around US$150-200 per month for electricity with an average family of four  staying in a villa.

One final point to note would be that of furnished villas - houses for rent in Bali generally come unfurnished while villas in Bali are usually furnished - you can get a substantial discount on an unfurnished villa yet this is not an ideal option for everyone as furnishing one can be an unnecessary hassle. All the same, make sure you ask the villa owner if it is furnished or not in clear terms as they do sometimes avoid telling potential tenants until after receiving payment! Obviously, if you are already here in Bali, this can be easily resolved/avoided.

Here are some useful links for finding accommodation in Bali:

Real Estate for Sale / Rent: Bali Advertiser

Villas/Houses/Apartments for Rent in Bali

Here is some useful vocabulary for villa hunting in Bali:

Indonesian                             English

AC                                        Air-con

 air panas                               hot water

bulan                                     month

 bulanan                                 monthly

dapur                                    kitchen

 dijual                                     for sale

 disewakan                             for rent

juta                                       million

                          kos                                        bedsit / boarding house

kosong                                  empty

                          lengkap                                 complete (i.e. furnished)

 listrik                                    electricity

 mandi                                    shower

 pembantu                              maid

                                     perumahan                            housing complex / residence

 tahun                                     year

© Stephen Beale @ livebali.net 

That's all for now! If there's anything I've missed or which is unclear, drop me a comment below and I will get back to you ASAP!

I hope it helps and happy villa hunting!