Investing in a 1-bedroom apartment in San Miguel, Lima

The numbers for a 1-bedroom in San Miguel are clear enough: about 6.3% gross yield if you rent long-term, against roughly 3.1% gross if you put it on Airbnb. That's not a close call. Long-term brings in roughly double the gross return here.

I'll be blunt about what these figures are and aren't. Both are gross numbers, before management, maintenance, taxes, and vacancy. Airbnb's 3.1% is especially deceptive because it's gross of the extra work short-term rentals demand: cleaning, guest turnover, furnishing, and the higher wear on the place. Once you subtract all that, the gap between the two only widens in favour of long-term.

So for a 1-bed in San Miguel, the long-term lease is the stronger play. You get a better headline yield with far less operational hassle. Airbnb here doesn't earn enough of a premium to justify the effort or the risk of empty nights.

Who does this suit? Someone who wants a relatively passive rental income and isn't looking to run a hospitality side-business. If your plan was to Airbnb your way to a higher return, the San Miguel 1-bed doesn't support that thesis on these numbers.

One caveat: I don't have the net figures, price points, or vacancy data in front of me, so treat 6.3% and 3.1% as starting points, not the bottom line. Run your own costs before committing. None of this is investment advice.

Related: San Miguel overview · Best district by size