Real estate careers in Ubud

The market in Ubud

Ubud's hotel revenue per room rose 5.6% in 2025 on an 11% rise in average rates (Horwath HTL), while a 3-bedroom villa in Sayan can earn about USD 400 to 700 a night (Rumavi, 2026).

Ubud, in Gianyar regency in the hills of central Bali, is the island's cultural and wellness capital: temples, art villages, yoga retreats and rice terraces draw longer-staying guests rather than beach crowds. Land is cheaper than on the coast, at an average of about IDR 5.18 million per sqm on listing data (Own Property Abroad, 2026), and leasehold villas range from about USD 100,000 to 180,000 for 1 to 2 bedrooms up to USD 800,000 to 2 million or more on the Ayung River valley (Rumavi, 2026). The hotel market is growing: Horwath HTL reports that Ubud's revenue per room rose 5.6% in 2025 thanks to an 11% rise in average rates, and Colliers expects Ubud to receive the largest number of new hotel rooms due by 2027. The big constraint is zoning, since much of the land around Ubud is green belt or protected subak rice irrigation land, and Bali's 2026 rice field law is enforced most strictly in Gianyar and Tabanan.

Foreign buyers

Ubud draws wellness travellers, retirees, artists and remote workers from Europe, Australia and North America, many of whom stay for weeks or months, which supports long-term and monthly rentals. Foreign buyers use leaseholds, usually 25 to 30 years. Before any purchase, the zoning of the plot must be checked with the Gianyar regency planning and licensing office, because villas on green or protected rice field land cannot get building approvals and the province has frozen rice field conversion permits.

Main neighbourhoods

Central Ubud (Jalan Monkey Forest, Jalan Hanoman)PenestananSayan and the Ayung River valleyNyuh KuningTegallalangMasPeliatanKeliki and Payangan (north)

Agent licence

A brokerage must be a legal entity (a PT, a single-founder PT Perorangan, a cooperative or a public corporation) with an NIB under the real estate brokerage code KBLI 68200 (being moved to KBLI 68210, real estate intermediation services, covering online and offline brokerage, according to the Trade Ministry in January 2026). Under Permendag 33/2025, which Kemendag now treats as a medium-high risk activity, the P4 must employ certified property brokers (Broker Properti) as its expert staff, use written agreements with clients and co-broking partners, file an annual activity report with Kemendag by 30 April, show its licences on its website and in its advertising, and follow e-commerce rules when it works online. Brokerage managers and property management managers must hold a work competency certificate from the National Professional Certification Agency (BNSP), issued through accredited certification bodies against the national competency standard (SKKNI), and may be registered with only one P4. The Indonesian Real Estate Brokers Association (AREBI) is the main professional body: it is running the certification drive (about 5,000 people had registered for certification by January 2026) and asks banks to work only with licensed brokers. In Bali, AREBI estimated in November 2025 that about 200 brokerage companies operate on the island, of which about 110 are registered with the association, for more than 3,000 agents, many not yet certified. The full guide