The pool
Green water and an unfinished shell – that is how the property stood when we took it over.
Bali property
I am not an agency. I built two villas here myself.
I show off-market properties, run the numbers in front of you and name the commission the developer pays me. Sometimes the best thing I can tell you is not to buy.
How I ended up here
In November 2022 I flew to Bali with my wife and two children. Wintering in Asia had been a long-standing plan and we had bought the tickets back in spring. In 2023 we bought into a villa under construction, on the recommendation of a friend who already lived in that developer’s complex. I inspected his finished properties, the price matched the quality, we paid half the amount and flew back to Russia. That summer the developer stopped sending progress photos. That was the signal.
We came back, transferred the land into our own name and finished the build ourselves. The first contractor worked so slowly that our rent money ran out before the roof was on – we asked him to finish just one room and the four of us moved into it. The villa ended up two storeys tall, the only one like it in the complex. Then came the second one, which the same developer had abandoned at bare walls, with no roof and no wiring. I know the true cost of every stage, I know where foundations get built without waterproofing on this island, and I know what happens to your land when the developer goes under. You cannot learn that from articles.
I am not an agency. Agencies show you properties and quote 15–35% returns – those are numbers from the developer’s brochure. I quote mine: my villas return 8–10% net, and I show the calculation. The commission the developer pays me I also say out loud – you do not pay extra for it, but you should know it exists. I meet you on the island, show you what is not on the public listings and explain why I pick these properties and walk away from others.
What backs this up
Numbers are checked in two clicks, so only my own are on this page.
2villas built on the island with my own hands and my own money
2022the year we moved to Bali with two children
450Cashflow games run on the island over four years
~1000people have come through my games and meetups
8–10%real net yield on my villa, calculation shown on request
10 yearsmanufacturing business in Russia before the move
Two numbers buyers choose between
The gap between them is exactly what people come to me for.
The brochure promises
15–35%
A number from the developer’s presentation. Calculated on perfect occupancy, before tax, before management fees, before vacancy and before maintenance.
My property delivers
8–10%
Calculated on the purchase price, after every expense. Not an estimate and not a forecast – this is my villa and my statements.
Where the 8–10% comes from
- Base – purchase price of $125,000.
- Rental income – $15,600 a year at actual occupancy.
- Costs – 33% of revenue: tax, management fee, maintenance of about 2 million rupiah a month.
- Result – 8.3% net through a management company and up to 10% renting it out directly.
And what the brochures leave out
Almost all Bali property is sold as a land lease, not freehold. My villa has 18 years left on the lease – which means the capital itself goes to zero by the end of the term, and counting that in drops the yield to low single digits. That is why I always state the remaining term next to the percentage. A 30-year lease and an 18-year lease at the same price are two entirely different deals, and the listing will not tell you that.
Before and after
The developer went bankrupt and walked away from the site. We transferred the land into our own name and finished it ourselves. These photos were not taken for a website.
The bathroom
The stone bath sat on bare concrete while the contractor worked behind the glass.
The living room
Double-height space and the stair to the loft – the only two-storey villa in the complex.
The loft
The timber floor went down while the family was already living on the floor below.
The kitchen
A fridge, a sink and a plastic table. This is where we cooked as a family.
How I work
I name my commission out loud
The developer pays me between 5 and 10 percent of the deal. You do not pay extra for that, but you have to know it: otherwise it is unclear why I am showing you these particular properties. Very few people on Bali do this, which is exactly why you should ask any agent the same question.
I put two numbers side by side
In every document the developer’s promise sits next to the result of my own check. On one property in Nusa Dua the developer promised 12–15% a year, while actual rental rates in the same area produced 5–7.5%. I run that check before the viewing, not after the deal.
I talk you out of bad properties
The worst property in my practice is my own villa, built without foundation waterproofing. I know what that looks like during construction and what it turns into after two rainy seasons. Sometimes the best thing I can say is do not buy at all, or wait.
I check zoning in the document, not the listing
Zoning wording in a listing is marketing. Residential building is banned in the green zone, and that is precisely the land most often sold as suitable. The check goes through the RTRW document at the local administration or a notary before the deal, not through the agent’s word.
I convert lease prices to the term
A listing shows the price for the current lease, and the terms differ from plot to plot. The same land on 26 years and on 35 years differs by half again in price once you count the rate per are per year. Comparing listings by headline price is meaningless.
I know the cost of every stage
I built myself and I finished what others abandoned. When a developer quotes a price per square metre, I can see what is inside it and where the corners will be cut. You cannot get that from a presentation.
Services
You can start with an hour of conversation instead of a flight to the island.
Online consultation
$100
An hour on your situation before you spend money on tickets and deposits.
- We go through budget, timing and purpose – income or living here
- Which areas fit your goal and which are already overheated
- What to look for in a land lease and what almost nobody checks
- An honest answer on whether you should enter this market at all right now
Property audit
$500
Up to five properties you picked yourself. Including my visit to each construction site.
- I go to every site and film what is actually there
- I recalculate the promised yield against real rental rates
- I check RTRW zoning, title and the remaining lease term
- A written breakdown of each property with my verdict and my reasons to walk away
A day on the island
$1000
A full day of viewings with a driver. Not sightseeing – work against your list.
- The route is built in advance around your budget and goal
- Off-market properties that never reach public listings
- Meetings with developers, where I ask the questions
- An evening debrief – what stays on the list, what is cut and why
Portfolio, end to end
Price – after a consultation or a meeting in person
Placing $1–20M of capital into island property. Months of work, not a single day.
- Entry strategy: rental income, resale or land
- Sourcing and due diligence, negotiating terms and price
- Deal structure, legal support and registration
- Post-purchase support: rental launch and management
Get in touch
I answer myself, with no managers and no autoresponders. Bali runs on UTC+8.
- Phone
- +62 819 7253 104
- Telegram
- @MaximCashflow