You can buy two apartments at the same price in Tbilisi and end up with two completely different outcomes: one stays occupied with stable tenants and predictable cash flow, the other churns through short stays, maintenance calls, and vacant weeks that quietly erase your yield. The neighborhood is usually the difference.
This is a practical, operator-first breakdown of tbilisi rental yield by neighborhood – not as a promise of “the best area,” but as a way to match each district with the right tenant profile, renovation level, and management intensity. Yield is never just a number. It’s rentability, seasonality, building quality, and how many problems your local team has to solve per month.
How to read rental yield like an operator
Most investors start with gross yield: annual rent divided by purchase price. It’s a useful first filter, but it can mislead you in Tbilisi because operating friction varies sharply block to block.
Net yield is what you actually keep after vacancy, repairs, common-area fees, utilities during gaps, furnishing replacement (if you run short-term), and periodic CapEx like HVAC, water heaters, or elevator-related assessments in older buildings. In some neighborhoods, gross yield looks lower but net yield is stronger because tenants stay longer and maintenance is predictable. In others, gross yield looks fantastic until you factor in vacancy and turnover.
A good way to think about it: the “highest yield neighborhood” is the one where you can execute your strategy consistently – with tenants you can qualify, a building you can maintain, and rents the market will actually pay 11 months out of 12.
Tbilisi rental yield by neighborhood: realistic ranges (gross)
These ranges assume a typical one-bedroom to compact two-bedroom apartment in rentable condition. Renovation quality, view, floor, building class, and proximity to Metro stations can move results up or down.
Saburtalo: stable demand, mid-to-strong yields
Saburtalo is the workhorse district for long-term rentals. It’s where many professionals and families actually live, and it tends to perform with less drama.
Typical gross yield range is often 6% to 9% when the unit is priced correctly and located near major roads, hospitals, universities, or Metro access. The trade-off is that Saburtalo is not a “tourist premium” market. You win here by keeping occupancy high and turnover low, not by squeezing peak nightly rates.
Execution note: building selection matters. New-build complexes with competent management and reliable elevators reduce maintenance surprises. Older Soviet-era blocks can still work, but budget for plumbing and common-area wear.
Vake: premium pricing, lower yield but high-quality tenants
Vake is typically the “capital preservation” play. Purchase prices are higher, and rents are also higher, but not always high enough to keep yields at the top of the city.
Typical gross yield range is 4.5% to 7%. Where Vake shines is tenant quality and stability: executives, diplomats, and high-income locals often prefer it. If your priority is fewer headaches, longer leases, and better unit care, Vake can outperform a higher-yield area on a net basis.
The trade-off is entry price and renovation expectations. Tenants in Vake notice details, and they will negotiate hard if the finish quality is inconsistent.
Vera: central, flexible, but building-by-building
Vera can rent well because it sits close to central Tbilisi while still feeling residential. It can work for both long-term and mid-term rentals.
Typical gross yield range is 5.5% to 8%. Results depend heavily on the building: a well-maintained entrance and clean stairwell can lift rent; a neglected common area can drag it down fast. Parking also matters more than buyers expect.
If you’re aiming for professionals who want walkability, Vera is a strong contender. If you’re betting on constant short-term demand, you’ll need a standout unit and a management plan for frequent turnover.
Sololaki and Old Tbilisi: short-term upside, higher operational load
Old Tbilisi areas like Sololaki can show impressive gross numbers on paper, especially for short-term rentals. Beautiful architecture and tourism demand can lift rates.
Typical gross yield range is 6% to 11%, but that range is wide because vacancy and seasonality are real. Net yield is highly sensitive to your operational discipline: guest communication, cleaning quality, linen replacement, and fast response to issues in older buildings.
The biggest risk is building condition. Older stock can mean unpredictable plumbing, humidity, and electrical limitations. If you want “hands-off,” this neighborhood only works if your local team is truly handling everything, not just collecting rent.
Avlabari: improving demand with value pricing
Avlabari has been steadily improving and can offer better entry pricing while still being close to the center.
Typical gross yield range is 6% to 10%. It can perform well for value-focused long-term tenants and also for selective short-term units near key attractions. Like Old Tbilisi, it’s neighborhood-micro specific: one street can feel polished, the next can feel disconnected.
Look for walkability, building access, and realistic tenant profiles. Investors often overestimate what a “central” label means if the building is hard to reach or the unit is dark and noisy.
Isani and Samgori: higher yields, more tenant management
These districts often produce strong gross yields because purchase prices are lower while rent demand remains consistent for local tenants.
Typical gross yield range is 7% to 12%. The trade-off is operational intensity: more price-sensitive tenants, higher wear-and-tear, and a tighter line between “rented” and “problem tenant” if screening is weak.
This is where professional qualification and consistent enforcement matter most. One bad tenant can wipe out a year of extra yield through arrears, damage, and legal steps.
Didi Dighomi: family demand, slower leasing, solid stability
Didi Dighomi is more suburban in feel. It can be a strong long-term rental market for families, especially if schools, supermarkets, and transit links are convenient.
Typical gross yield range is 6% to 9%. The leasing cycle can be slower than central districts, but tenancy can be longer once placed. Unit layout matters a lot here. Families care about storage, heating efficiency, and building safety more than trendy design.
Chugureti (parts): emerging pockets, mixed risk
Chugureti includes pockets that are clearly improving and pockets that still feel transitional. That’s why it can look like a bargain and a headache at the same time.
Typical gross yield range is 6% to 10% depending on the exact micro-location and building stock. If you buy in the wrong pocket, you may deal with longer vacancy and heavier negotiation. If you buy in the right pocket with a clean renovation, you can capture central demand without paying Vake prices.
What actually drives yield differences between neighborhoods
Neighborhood labels matter, but they are not the whole story. In Tbilisi, yield is often decided by five practical factors.
First is tenant type. Saburtalo is professional and student-adjacent. Vake is premium long-term. Old Tbilisi leans short-term and mid-term. Isani and Samgori are value-driven long-term. If your unit and pricing don’t match the local tenant type, you’ll feel it as vacancy.
Second is building class and maintenance predictability. Newer complexes tend to rent faster and require fewer emergency repairs. Older buildings can rent, but you need tighter inspection, clearer rules on utilities and moisture, and a real budget for replacements.
Third is seasonality and turnover. Short-term heavy neighborhoods can produce spikes, but they also produce empty weeks and constant reset costs. Long-term neighborhoods rarely give you “record months,” but they keep you paid.
Fourth is transit and walkability, especially Metro proximity. In Tbilisi, being “close” on a map is not the same as being convenient on foot.
Fifth is regulatory and neighbor friction. Some buildings tolerate short stays; others push back hard. If you ignore that, you can end up with constant complaints and unstable operations.
Picking the right neighborhood by strategy
If your goal is predictable cash flow with low vacancy, neighborhoods like Saburtalo and parts of Didi Dighomi tend to match that profile well. You can underwrite conservatively, place long-term tenants, and focus on stability.
If your goal is premium tenant quality and asset preservation, Vake and select pockets of Vera are usually the more disciplined path, even if headline yield looks lower.
If your goal is higher gross yield and you accept heavier tenant and maintenance management, value districts like Isani and Samgori can perform. The condition is strict: screening, lease enforcement, and quick issue resolution must be non-negotiable.
If your goal is short-term upside, Old Tbilisi can work – but only when you treat it like an operating business, not a passive rental. Furnishing quality, cleaning, guest messaging, and rapid repairs become your “occupancy engine.”
The mistakes that quietly destroy yield
The most common yield mistake we see is buying based on neighborhood reputation alone and ignoring the building. A great district doesn’t save a poorly maintained entrance, unreliable elevator, or a unit with chronic humidity problems.
The second mistake is underwriting rent based on the top listing you saw online. Those rents are often achievable only for the best renovated units, on the best floors, with the best light, and with professional photos and fast response times.
The third is treating tenant placement as a formality. In higher-yield districts, one weak qualification decision can turn “12% gross” into months of arrears and legal work.
Where local execution turns averages into results
If you’re investing remotely, your neighborhood choice should match how much you want to personally deal with operations. The best-performing owners usually do two things: they buy an asset that fits the tenant base, and they put a local team in place that treats the apartment like an income-producing machine, not a side project.
That includes disciplined tenant screening, documented move-in condition, rent collection follow-up, and maintenance coordination that prevents small leaks from turning into major repairs. If you want that handled end-to-end, this is the day-to-day work we do at Property Management Georgia – protect the asset, stabilize occupancy, and keep your yield from being eaten by preventable problems.
A helpful way to move forward is simple: pick two neighborhoods that fit your strategy, then underwrite three actual units in each with conservative rents and realistic expense assumptions. The neighborhood will tell you the story, but the building and the operating plan will decide whether that story pays you every month.
