Rental yield calculator
The yield that is left after every cost, next to the one the listing quotes.
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- We store nothing
- Sources cited
- Last reviewed: September 2026
What you paid for the property, or what it is worth today if you already own it.
A full year at the figure you expect. This site does not know what rents are and will not suggest one.
Tax, fees, commission and everything else it took to own it. They count as invested, so they lower the real yield.
Owners association or community fees, shared maintenance and security, for a full year.
A share of the rent held back for repairs. Taken from the full year's rent rather than what you collected, because an empty flat does not need less painting.
Insurance, letting or management fees, and any other recurring yearly expense.
Worked out in your browser: nothing is sent to a server
Net yield
4.11%
against the 6% gross yield in the listing
Breakdown
| Gross yield | 6% |
| Net yield | 4.11% |
| The gap between them | 1.89% |
| Lost to empty weeks | 3,692.31 SAR |
| Rent actually collected | 44,307.69 SAR |
| Maintenance set aside | 2,400.00 SAR |
| Total annual costs | 10,400.00 SAR |
| Net annual income | 33,907.69 SAR |
| Total invested | 825,000.00 SAR |
| Years to earn it back | 24 years |
- The yield quoted in listings is the gross one: rent over price, with no fees, no empty weeks and no maintenance. The gap between it and the net figure here is 1.89%, and it appears in no advertisement.
- This is an estimate and not investment advice. Every figure is your own; this site uses no market data for rents or prices.
How are the gross and net yields worked out?
- Gross yield = annual rent / purchase price
- Rent collected = annual rent minus (rent x empty weeks / 52)
- Net income = rent collected minus service charges, maintenance and other costs
- Net yield = net income / (price + purchase costs)
Symbols
- Gross yield
- Rent over price with nothing taken off. The advertised figure, and always the larger one
- Total invested
- Price plus purchase costs. The right denominator, because you paid those costs out of your own money
- Payback
- Total invested divided by net annual income. Much longer than dividing the price by the rent suggests
What is left of a 6% yield on an 800,000 flat?
A flat at 800,000, letting for 48,000 a year, with 25,000 paid in fees and commission to buy it, 6,000 a year of service charges, 5% of rent set aside for maintenance, four expected empty weeks and 2,000 of other costs.
- Gross yield: 48,000 / 800,000 = 6.00%, which is the figure in the listing
- Lost to empty weeks: 48,000 x 4 / 52 = 3,692.31, so 44,307.69 is collected
- Costs: 6,000 service + 2,400 maintenance + 2,000 other = 10,400, leaving net income of 33,907.69
- Net yield: 33,907.69 / (800,000 + 25,000) = 4.11%
The gap is 1.89 points, so about a third of the advertised yield goes before anything reaches you. Payback is 24.3 years rather than the 16.7 that dividing price by rent would suggest.
What separates the two yields, and why it matters
Work out the net rental yield after service charges, maintenance, empty weeks and purchase costs, and compare it with the gross yield properties are advertised at.
The yield in a listing is the gross one: annual rent divided by price, with no service charge, no maintenance and not one empty week in it. It is always the larger number, which is why it is the one advertised. The net yield starts from the rent you actually collect, takes off what you pay each year, and divides by what the property really cost you rather than by its price alone.
Three things make the difference. Empty weeks: four between tenants takes about 7.7% of the year rent. Service charges and maintenance, which are an annual obligation that does not pause when the property is empty. And the one-time purchase costs, which are the neatest of the three: you paid them out of your own money, so the calculation is right to count them as invested and to lower the yield by them.
Maintenance here comes off the full year rent rather than off what was collected. A flat that stood empty for two months did not need less painting for it; if anything a void is when the work gets done. And this page knows no rents and no prices and will not suggest one: every figure is yours, which is more honest than a market average that does not describe your property.
- Gross yield = annual rent / purchase price
- Rent collected = annual rent minus (rent x empty weeks / 52)
- Net income = rent collected minus service charges, maintenance and other costs
- Net yield = net income / (price + purchase costs)
Questions about rental yield
What is the difference between gross and net yield?
Gross is annual rent over the price and takes nothing off. Net takes off service charges, maintenance and the rent lost to empty weeks, and divides by the price plus what it cost to buy. Gross is always the larger figure, which is why properties are advertised at it.
How big is the gap in practice?
It depends on the service charge and the vacancy, but one to three percentage points is common. In the example above a 6% yield falls to 4.11%, so a third of the advertised return goes on costs before anything reaches you.
Why do purchase costs go into the calculation?
Because they are money you paid out of your own pocket to own the property, so they are part of the amount invested just as the price is. Leaving them out flatters the net yield and shortens the payback, both of which favour the seller rather than you.
How do I estimate the empty weeks?
From the area, the type of property and how quickly it re-lets there. The figure is your assumption, and this page will not suggest one. Try two weeks and six to see how sensitive the yield is to it; this is usually the most underrated input.
Why is maintenance taken from the full rent rather than what was collected?
Because an empty flat does not need less maintenance. Often the reverse: the void is when the painting and repairs get done before the next tenant. Taking the share off the collected figure would shrink the reserve in the very year that needs it most.
Does this calculator use market rent data?
No. It knows no rents and no property prices and suggests neither; every figure is yours. A market average for a property that is not yours gives an appearance of precision and nothing else.
Sources
Reviewed September 2026- Every figure on this page is one you entered: the site uses no market data for rents or property prices and suggests no default for either
- Maintenance is taken from the full annual rent rather than from the rent collected, because a void does not reduce maintenance and is usually when it happens
- Vacancy is worked out against a 52-week year, a simplification that does not distinguish between longer and shorter months
Statutory articles this calculator applies
Saudi Labor Law: Royal Decree No. M/51 dated 23/8/1426H (27 Sep 2005), as amended (latest amendment Royal Decree No. M/44 of 1446H, in force 2025-02-19)