The Complete Guide on How to Rent a House in Ubud

The more time we've spent traveling throughout the years the more we’ve found ourselves longing for a place to stay for an extended period of time. Slow, long-term traveling offers the incredible opportunity to live in different regions around the world and create a base. This allows you to truly get to know a place in a way that you wouldn't if you were only there for a few days or a week. 

We first visited Bali in the beginning of 2016 and instantly fell in love with the island. This was definitely a place we could see ourselves living in and we couldn't wait to rent a house in Ubud. The serenity, the rice field views, the fun cooking classes, and the abundance of vegan food - it was perfect for us.

Unfortunately, we had other plans that time and left after a week.

But Ubud stayed with us and a few months later we decided to return - this time to stay for longer. Three months to be exact.

We wanted to rent our own villa that we could call home for awhile. The problem was that we didn’t know where to start or what to look out for. It can be a daunting experience trying to find a long term villa rental in Ubud, Bali or in any foreign country to be honest. Every place has its own rules and systems in place.

Here is our complete guide based on our experience on how to rent a house in Ubud, Bali.

One of the first things you have to figure out when you want to rent long-term accommodation in Ubud, Bali is where to start. It doesn’t work quite like it does in the Western world where there are legit rental portals online and agencies that you can go to.

We recommend starting with two options, Facebook groups and locals advertising in popular areas:

• Facebook groups

There are a few different Facebook groups that we have used and even though we did not end up renting through these groups, we did contact between 20 and 30 people with different offers.

This is also the best way to find other expats that rent out houses in Ubud, especially if you want to rent a room in a shared villa. These Facebook groups can also be a good resource for information about the area as well as scams to avoid.

Here are a few of the groups we used:

1. Ubud, Bali - Housing & Rental
2. Ubud Rentals
3. The Ubud Community

• Local advertising

Locals usually advertise properties they have available on signs in the area around their rental. This means that you should head to the main areas and start calling the numbers on the signs.

This is what we were doing when we ran into a local guy who called his friend, who then called his friend, who ended up becoming our landlord. As you can see word of mouth travels fast.

Also, locals actually make a small commission from the landlord and are eager to help. 

Walking around an area you would like to stay in is a quick way to get in contact with the locals and get a feel of what’s available. It is also practical because you usually get a chance to see the house in person right away. Getting your own phone number is easy and can be done in most corner stores.

• Agencies

We never tried this option and believe that it's mostly for people who are looking to settle down or purchase, but it is worth mentioning anyways. There are a couple of agencies with realtors spread out around Ubud and they are usually open for you to just walk into.

Private

You have the option to rent a private villa in Ubud and have it all to yourself. This is the option we chose. We rented our own villa during our stay in Ubud and loved it. The villa was quite small with two bedrooms and an outdoor kitchen, but it came with a large lush garden, a private pool, and a small gazebo where we spent most of our time.

In the future when we go back to Ubud, we would like to find an indoor living room and kitchen but these are quite hard to find in Indonesia as they are usually built outside.

Shared

Shared accommodation can mean several things. You can live on a compound with several villas sharing a garden and pool with others, sometimes even with the locals on their own family compound. Also, you can rent a room in a big villa and share all the common areas such as the living room, kitchen, and bathroom.

There are pros and cons with all of the options and it is really up to you to decide what suits you best depending on your budget and if you're traveling alone or with others.

Even though renting a villa in Bali can be a dream come true for many, there are certain aspects that you should be aware of. Not every house is in great condition and not every place will be quiet and tranquil if there are roosters around crowing at all hours.

We encountered three major problems that we would like to highlight for anyone interested in renting a home in Ubud.

• Mold

Mold is a huge problem for most people in any tropical region where things never really dry. Combine that with somewhat careless architecture and a monsoon season, and you have a disaster on your hands.

We had a great experience renting our own villa in Penestanan, but the last few weeks we started getting mold in the bathroom and the mold quickly spread to the rest of the house. It literally took over every wall and most of our clothes in a matter of days and a good experience turned bad pretty fast.

We quickly realized that the issue was in the construction of the villa we lived in along with the unintentional carelessness of the landlord.

The issue is that the locals themselves are used to mold and aren't really sure how to treat it. Instead, they paint it over and wait for it to start spreading again when they paint it over once more. The cycle continues until eventually the house is ruined.

• Roosters

Sadly in many parts of the world cockfighting is a common sport and Bali is no different. It's extremely sad and widespread throughout the island. In Ubud, everyone and their neighbor seem to have roosters, and the crowing is incessant and loud.

It's a good idea to scope out the area you will be renting if you're a light sleeper or want to live in a peaceful environment. That was a big plus with the house we rented as there were no roosters around.

Unfortunately, when we stayed in a guesthouse prior to finding our villa they had roosters and it was hard to even enjoy yourself sitting outside during the day let alone sleep at night.

• Construction

Construction is rampant in Ubud these days, and it can be hard to find a home that is not affected by the noise. Case in point, we found a beautiful house that we would have loved to have rented.

But unfortunately, when we went to check the house out in person, we were in for a rude awakening. The villa was literally located right next door to a construction site, and it was loud. We mean loud.

The relentless construction is a hard thing to avoid which can make hunting for a house in Ubud difficult.

The price to rent a villa in Ubud fluctuate a lot depending on what season it is and the locals will do whatever they can to convince you that it's always high or peak season.

Do your research before you arrive so you know what to expect. Prices also tend to get lower the longer you are willing to rent.

Seasons in Bali

The main high season runs from July to August when the humidity is low and rainfall is minimal. Low season is connected to the monsoon between November and March, and during this period you can expect heavy rainfalls on a daily basis.

However, the weeks surrounding Christmas and New Years are considered peak season. And due to the summer school breaks in Australia, the tourism can be high in December and January.

The best time to rent a house in Bali is at the end of September through the beginning of November or in the spring. During this time, the weather is the most pleasant and the island feels much less crowded. This is also when you have the best chances of getting yourself a good deal.

If you're planning to rent a villa in Ubud and stay for a while, check out our guide on how to extend your Bali visa on arrival.

Our Rental Expenses

We arrived in low season and were lucky enough to find a nice guy that was eager to rent. Therefore, we ended up getting what we think is a great deal. As mentioned earlier we rented a private two bedroom villa with our own garden and pool.

The location was amazing just a short walk to Yellow Flower Cafe and the popular yoga studio Intuitive Flow. We also negotiated with our landlord to install AC in our bedroom the day before we moved in. It's highly recommended to have AC in Bali. 

At the time of our stay we paid 9,000,000 IDR which converted to roughly $670/month for a two month rental.

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