CoreInvestments

Rental Income & Cashflow

What is net rental yield?

Direct Answer

Net rental yield is annual cashflow received by the investor — after operator share, FF&E reserve, sinking fund, vacancy, FX conversion and withholding tax — divided by total invested capital (purchase price + acquisition costs + furniture pack). It is the only honest yield measure for comparing Thai property to other income assets.

Detailed Explanation

Gross yield = annual gross rental revenue ÷ purchase price. It ignores operating costs and inflates the apparent return. Most brochure figures quote gross.

Net yield = annual distributed cashflow after the full deduction stack ÷ total invested capital. The Net Yield Underwriting Method standardises the deduction stack and the capital base to produce a comparable, institutional number.

Total invested capital must include: purchase price, transfer fee and legal costs, FF&E/furniture pack (often THB 0.5–2M on resort condos), FX conversion cost, and any contingency reserve.

Investor Considerations

  • Use net yield only when comparing across deals and asset classes.
  • Include FF&E and acquisition costs in the capital base.
  • Apply withholding-tax assumption appropriate to the investor's home-country tax treaty.

Risks & Limitations

  • Confusing gross with net yield is the single most common first-time-investor error.
  • Excluding FF&E and acquisition costs from the capital base flatters yield by 5–10%.
  • Operator-share misreading can make a 7% gross deal look like a 6% net deal when it is actually 4%.

Related Questions

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About the Author

Frank Satar

Chief Founder & Research Director · Core Investments

Frank Satar is the Chief Founder & Research Director of Core Investments. With more than three decades of experience across real estate, finance, hospitality and investment advisory, he specialises in analysing tourism demand, infrastructure growth and property market fundamentals across Thailand. His research is guided by a simple principle: We begin with demand, not property.