An 8% gross yield sounds impressive on paper and by regional standards, it genuinely is. Galt & Taggart’s 2025–2026 data puts Tbilisi’s average gross yield at around 8.5%, ahead of nearly every comparable capital in the region except Ankara and Astana. But gross yield and what actually lands in your pocket are two very different numbers.

What actually eats into 8%

Property management (if you use it): For owners who don’t live in Tbilisi or don’t want to handle tenant relations, viewings, and maintenance themselves, professional management typically takes a meaningful cut of monthly rent. This is often the single largest recurring deduction from gross yield for absentee owners.

Income tax: Registered landlords pay a flat 5% tax on gross rental income when renting to individuals or to a company where the owner is properly registered in Georgia’s landlord registry. This is genuinely low by international standards, but it’s a real deduction most first-time calculations forget to subtract.

Vacancy periods: Even in a healthy market, apartments don’t rent from day one. A month or two of vacancy between tenants common during off-peak seasons or after a tenant’s lease ends can shave a full percentage point or more off your annualized yield.

Maintenance and repairs: Wear and tear, appliance replacement, and periodic touch-ups are unavoidable costs of being a landlord, particularly in older or heavily used units.

Furnishing depreciation: If you furnished the unit to attract tenants faster (a smart move in most districts), that furniture wears out and needs periodic reinvestment.

A rough real-world picture

If you strip out a realistic combination of management costs, the 5% tax, a modest vacancy allowance, and ordinary maintenance, an 8.5% gross yield commonly nets down to somewhere in the 5.5–7% range for a self-managed, well-tenanted property and can dip further for owners living abroad who rely fully on third-party management.

Why 8% is still meaningfully good

Even after those deductions, Tbilisi’s net yields tend to outperform comparable investments in most Western European cities, where gross yields of 3–4% are common before any expenses are even subtracted. Combined with Georgia’s flat, low tax rate, no capital gains tax after a two-year hold, and no restrictions on foreign ownership, the after-expense picture in Tbilisi remains genuinely competitive on a regional and even global basis.

The takeaway

Don’t evaluate your investment on the gross number alone. Build a simple annual budget rent income, minus tax, minus management (if used), minus an honest vacancy estimate, minus maintenance and use that net figure to judge performance. An apartment yielding a net 6% after all costs is still a strong result; just don’t market or plan around the gross 8% as if it were spendable income.

Data referenced: Galt & Taggart rental yield data (2025–2026); Georgian tax authority landlord registration rules (5% flat rate); general market commentary on property management costs in Tbilisi.