A tracker, a post generator, and some hard-won lessons from the Facebook group trenches.
Finding a long-term villa in Bali is surprisingly terrible.
There’s no Zillow. No MLS. No central listing service. Just Facebook groups, WhatsApp chains, agents and owners of questionable legitimacy, and photos that might be five years old.
After spending dozens of hours navigating the chaos, I built a system for myself.
I haven’t published here since November. In that time I’ve been slow-traveling through Southeast Asia – Bangkok, Manila, Vietnam, back to Bali: living the thing instead of writing about it. This post is me catching up.
Right now I’m in the middle of something that everyone who’s tried to rent long-term in Bali has probably experienced: the chaos of actually finding a place.
The process, as it exists, is genuinely terrible.
The problem with villa hunting in Bali
I eventually tracked down 31 Bali villa hunting groups. Six of them were effectively dead, despite having more than half a million combined members.
The Facebook group approach: posting a request and waiting for DMs is actually one of the better methods. The groups are active, landlords and agents watch them, and you can reach a lot of people quickly. But there are problems:
- There are dozens of groups, and posting to all of them manually takes an hour or more.
- Some groups have mods who never approve posts. You sit in pending indefinitely. You only know this after wasting time waiting.
- There’s no way to track which groups you’ve posted to, when you last posted, and which ones are worth re-posting to every 10–13 days.
- Writing a good bilingual post (English and Indonesian) from scratch is another 30–60 minutes if you don’t have a template.
So I built a system.
How I Track My Long-Term Villa in Bali Search
The first thing I built was a Google Sheet tracker. It’s got three main components:
The tracker keeps a running database of every group I’ve found, when I last posted there, and whether it’s worth posting there at all. It highlights when it’s time to repost and quietly buries the dead groups that waste your time.
The FB Groups sheet tracks every Bali villa group I’ve found, when I last posted there, and whether it’s worth posting there at all. It reminds me when it’s time to repost and quietly pushes dead groups to the bottom.
The Websites sheet is a curated list of Bali listing sites worth checking regularly — Bali Villa Hub, Rumah123, Dot Property, Lamudi, and a few others — with a Last Checked date so you know what’s stale.
The My Hunt sheet is your hunt HQ. It has a Posting Rounds section (log each round you post, how many groups, how many responses, how many leads it generated) and a Villa Leads section to track every property you’re pursuing, with status dropdowns (ACTIVE / HOLD / PASSED / SKIP), priority badges, and a last contact date.
Once I built it, I realized I never wanted to repeat this research again.
The FB Groups sheet is permanent — it accumulates knowledge over time (new groups, newly-dead groups). The hunt sheet gets duplicated each new search.
You can grab a free copy here: [LINK TO SHEET](Google Sheets — File →Make a copy)
The Long-Term Villa in Bali Post Generator
The second tool is a post generator. Fill out a short form: your target area, bedroom preferences, must-haves, move-in date, lease term and it generates a ready-to-post villa request in both English and Indonesian.
The Indonesian version is the real value-add. Most foreigners can write the English portion themselves. The Indonesian section is the difference between broadcasting your request to expats and putting it in front of local landlords and agents as well.
The English and Indonesian templates are pre-built; your inputs just slot into them. You can add your own must-haves beyond the defaults, include an optional budget if you want to set expectations (though I have learned that it’s often best not to as agent/owners might up the price to match your ceiling), and leave the About Me section blank if you’d rather not share anything about yourself.
Use it here: [LINK TO POST GENERATOR]. It’s embedded directly on the page, no signup required.
What I’ve learned so far
I’m still actively hunting as I write this. Here’s what the process has taught me:
I’ve looked at six villas so far. One viewing involved coordinating with an Australian who held the lease on the property. The villa was occupied by Hotel.com guests who had reluctantly agreed to let me see it. Roughly three minutes after I walked through the door, I was abruptly told it was time to leave.
It was a perfect example of how chaotic and occasionally absurd this process can be.
The dead group problem is real and under-discussed. Six of the 31 groups I tested, including some with 100,000+ members, have mods who simply never approve renter posts. Maybe you’ll have better luck, but they just let mine sit in pending.
Bilingual posts get meaningfully more responses. The Indonesian section isn’t just courtesy, landlords and agents who might scroll past an English-only post will stop at one that demonstrates you’ve made the effort.
For me, April and May are the optimal negotiation window. Bali’s low season is when landlords are most motivated. If you can time your hunt for January–May, you’re negotiating from a stronger position than if you’re scrambling during peak season.
The DM-only instruction matters. Posting your requirements publicly and asking for DMs keeps the conversation private and filters out low-effort responses. Agents and landlords who send a full breakdown via DM are the ones worth talking to.
What does a villa actually cost?
I don’t have a number yet. I have leads ranging from 225M to 350M IDR per year (roughly $14,000–$22,000 USD) for a 2-bedroom with a private pool in the Seminyak / Legian / Kerobokan area. That’s a wide range, and the variance comes down to condition, location precision, what’s included in the price, and how motivated the landlord is.
I’m holding off on publishing a cost breakdown until I actually sign something. I’d rather give you a real number than a range I haven’t personally validated. Part two of this post will have the actual figures, the negotiation story, and what I ended up with.
I don’t know exactly what my villa will cost yet. I don’t know which neighborhood I’ll end up choosing. What I do know is that the process is far easier once you stop treating it like random browsing and start treating it like a system.
I’ll report back once I actually sign a lease.
If you’re hunting for a villa in Bali (or planning to) grab the tracker and the post generator. They’re free, they require no signup, and they’ll save you several hours of repetitive work.
If you find a group I’ve missed, or discover a new dead group, or have a negotiation tip worth sharing, drop it in the comments. This is a living document as much as it is a blog post.
More soon. I’ve got a villa to find.
Frequently Asked Questions About Finding a Long-Term Villa in Bali
How much does a long-term villa in Bali cost?
I’m currently seeing prices between 225M and 350M IDR per year (approximately $14,000–$22,000 USD) for a two-bedroom villa with a private pool in Seminyak, Legian, and Kerobokan. Pricing varies considerably based on condition, exact location, and what’s included.
What’s the best way to find a long-term villa in Bali?
Facebook groups remain one of the best methods because landlords and agents actively monitor them. Posting a detailed request and asking for DMs can generate leads quickly.
When is the best time to rent a villa in Bali?
January through May generally offers more negotiating leverage because it overlaps with Bali’s lower season and landlords may be more motivated.
Should I include my budget in my villa request?
Not necessarily. I’ve found it can sometimes anchor agents and owners to your maximum price. In many cases, it’s better to discuss pricing after you’ve seen the property.
How long does it take to find a long-term villa in Bali?
It varies widely. I’ve already spent dozens of hours researching groups, posting requests, and viewing properties, and I’m still actively searching.
1 thought on “How I Hunt for a Long-Term Villa in Bali (And the Free Tools I Built to Do It)”