Pricing a rental
How to work out what to charge for a rental property
Three ways to arrive at a number, and none of them is the whole answer alone. Where they overlap is. This page works comparable listings, the 1% rule and cost-based pricing through one flat, shows where they agree, and gives you a calculator to do the same with yours.
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Three methods, one flat
A two-bedroom flat worth €150.000
- What comparable flats ask€1.250 – €1.380
- The 1% rule of thumb€1.200 – €1.650
- What it costs you to hold, plus margin€1.020 and up
All three agree: €1.250 to €1.380Rent chosen: €1.300
Method 1
Start with what similar properties actually rent for
The most reliable number is not a formula at all: it is what near-identical properties nearby are currently asking and, where you can find it, what they actually let for. Match on location, size, condition and furnishing as closely as you can; a flat two streets over with an extra bedroom is not a comparable.
Four listings nearby, three comparables
- Two bedrooms, same street, unfurnishedComparable€1.250
- Two bedrooms, next street, unfurnishedComparable€1.300
- Two bedrooms, same block, new kitchenComparable€1.380
- Three bedrooms, two streets overNot a comparable: an extra bedroom€1.650
Range worth starting from€1.250 – €1.380
What a comparable has to match
- 1The same area, ideally the same street or block
- 2The same number of bedrooms and a similar size
- 3A similar condition: kitchen, bathroom, heating, energy rating
- 4Furnished or unfurnished, the same as yours
- 5What it actually let for, where you can find it, rather than what it asked
Method 2 · A sanity check, not a rule
The 1% rule: useful as a gut check, wrong as a formula
A common rule of thumb says monthly rent should sit somewhere around 0.8% to 1.1% of the property’s value. Treat it exactly as that: a rough range to sanity-check a number against, never a way to set one. It was never derived from your market, and a real answer always comes from the comparables above.
The rule of thumb, worked out
- €150.0000.8%€1.200
- €150.0001.1%€1.650
The 1% rule of thumb€1.200 – €1.650
What comparable flats ask
The formula
Rule-of-thumb range = Property value × 0.8% to Property value × 1.1%
The 1% rule is a rule of thumb from the United States. Gross yields in many European cities are far lower than it assumes, so there it can point to a rent no comparable home achieves, and the comparables should win.
Method 3
Cost-based pricing: cover what the property costs you, plus a margin
Add up what the property actually costs to hold each month: the mortgage payment, insurance, a maintenance provision, any management fee. Then add the margin you want on top. This sets a floor: a rent below it is a property that loses you money the moment something needs fixing.
What the flat costs you each month
- Monthly mortgage payment€700
- Monthly running costs€150
- Margin, 20%€170
Target rent€1.020
The formula
Target rent = (Monthly mortgage payment + Monthly running costs) × (1 + Margin)
Putting it together
Where the three numbers agree
None of the three methods above is the answer by itself; where they overlap is. In this example, the comparables cluster between €1.250 and €1.380, the rule-of-thumb range is a wide €1.200 to €1.650, and cost-based pricing sets a floor of €1.020. A rent of €1.300 a month sits inside all three, comfortably above the cost floor and in line with what similar flats nearby are actually asking, which is a more defensible number than any single method produces alone.
The rent, checked three ways
€1.300a month
- Above the cost floor of €1.020, with €280 to spare each month
- Inside what comparable flats ask, €1.250 to €1.380
- Inside the rule-of-thumb range, €1.200 to €1.650
Before you finalise a number
Check what the address allows before you advertise
Some markets cap what a landlord may charge, or how much rent may rise between tenants or from one year to the next, rent control zones and statutory indexation rules being the two most common shapes it takes, so check what applies to your specific address before you settle on a final figure.
- 1
Is the address in a rent control zone?
Some cities set a reference rent or a ceiling by area and property type. If one applies, it caps the number whatever the comparables say.
- 2
Is the rise between two tenants capped?
Some markets limit how far a new tenant’s rent may move from the last one. The previous lease is then part of the calculation.
- 3
How may the rent change during the lease?
A yearly indexation is often allowed only if the lease provides for it, and only by the index the law names.
What the address allows depends first on the country, and in Belgium on the region. Here is what caps or steers the rent where you are.
Elsewhere
General guidance- Many countries let the landlord set the first rent freely but regulate how it may change during a lease.
- Some cities cap rents or tie them to a reference grid, so ask the local housing office.
- A rise during a lease often needs a clause in the lease and a named index.
Rules change and often depend on the exact address and the date the lease is signed. Check the official rent tool or housing office for the address before you advertise.
Your own numbers
Rent price calculator
Type in what the property is worth, three comparable rents and what it costs you to hold. The chart shows where the three methods agree.
- What comparable flats ask€1.250 – €1.380
- The 1% rule of thumb€1.200 – €1.650
- What it costs you to hold, plus margin€1.020 and up
All three agree: €1.250 to €1.380
Worked out in your browser; nothing you type is sent or stored. It does not know your local rent rules.
Where Dardaris fits
The lease and the law your rent has to sit inside
Setting the number is one decision; keeping it legal as the tenancy goes on is another. Dardaris reads the law that actually governs a building’s address through its jurisdiction packs, so the notice periods and indexation rules a lease carries are the ones that apply there, not a generic assumption.
Dardaris, flat 2B lease
Rent a month
€1.300
- Rules that applyRead from the building’s own address
- IndexationDate tracked from the lease, never left to memory
- PaymentsEach month matched against the bank
The right rules for the address
Rent control zones, indexation limits and notice periods are read off the building’s own jurisdiction, not guessed.
Indexation tracked automatically
Where a lease allows a yearly rent revision, Dardaris tracks the date rather than leaving it to be remembered.
Every figure per building
Rent, costs and the numbers behind them are tracked in cents against the property they belong to.
Questions about setting the rent
How do I know if my rent is too high or too low?
Compare it against similar properties actually renting nearby right now, matched on size, condition and location as closely as you can find. If your number sits well outside that range in either direction, and the 1% rule does not explain the gap, it is worth a second look before you advertise.
Does the 1% rule actually work?
It works as a rough sanity check and nothing more. It was never derived from any specific market, produces a wide range rather than a single number, and says nothing about what nearby properties are actually renting for or what the property costs you to hold. Use it to catch a number that is clearly out of line, not to set the final figure.
Can I always raise rent to match the market?
Not necessarily. Some markets cap how much rent may rise between tenants or on a yearly review, so what the market would bear and what you are legally allowed to charge are not always the same number. Check the rules that apply to the specific address before you count on an increase.
Should the rent cover my mortgage?
Ideally, yes, with room to spare for repairs and empty months: that is what the cost-based floor on this page measures. But tenants pay what the market asks, not what your loan costs, so if the comparables sit below your costs, the rent will not fix that; the purchase price or the financing is what needs a second look.
How often should I review the rent?
Look at the comparables again before every new tenancy, because that is usually when the rent can move most. During a lease, change it only in the way the lease and the local law allow, which in many places means a yearly indexation on a set date rather than a new price.
Keep the number, and the law it sits inside
Once you have set a rent, Dardaris carries it: the lease, the indexation date if one applies, and every payment reconciled against what was expected, all filed against the one building it belongs to.
14 days before the first charge · Nothing is switched on until you say so