How To Rent An Apartment In Bolivia

Two common reservations we hear about Bolivia’s suitability for longer-term visits and as an expat destination are poor internet speeds and a lack of apartment options. We’ve already noted that internet speeds in Bolivia’s larger cities have improved of late. Now here’s our guide for finding an apartment or house in Bolivia. Like any other country around the world, there are plenty of options – it’s just a case of knowing where to look.

Airbnb

Airbnb is designed to allow property owners to rent out their available rooms, apartments and houses. It’s a great site for finding places to stay, and one we’ve used it extensively during our travels. In fact many of the best apartments we’ve found while traveling were through Airbnb. There are currently 300 Bolivian properties on Airbnb at the moment, making it easier than ever to rent an apartment instead of relying on a hotel.

Rental Listing Sites

There are a number of property rental sites with apartments and houses for rent throughout Bolivia.

• Inmobiliaria – One of the best sites we’ve found for property listings of all types in Bolivia is Inmobiliaria.com. Their property listings pages have a wide selection of properties and can be sorted by property type, number of rooms required, etc.  As well as rentals it is also the place to find properties and land for sale. Note that the site is in Spanish.
• ArrangeYourVacation.com – It doesn’t have as many options as Inmobiliaria, but English language ArrangeYourVacation.com does have a few Bolivian city vacation rentals listed.
• Doplim – Doplim is a free Spanish classified ad site which has a good selection of rental properties throughout Bolivia listed.
• Evisos – Similar to the others, Evisos has as range of places for rent. Use the boxes on the left of the website to filter on location, price and for casas (houses) or departmentos (apartments), or you’ll have to scroll through a range of other “accommodation” options such as wedding marquees.
• Yakaz – Another Spanish site with a selection Bolivian properties is Yakaz. It’s an aggregator which mainly seems to show listings taken from Doplim and Evisos, but may be worth a look.
• Tuinmueble – Mainly featuring houses for sale in Bolivia, Tuinmueble also lists the occasional apartment rental. You can filter the results to show rentals by clicking “alquiler” in the sidebar.
• Sublet.com – Another English language site, sublet.com has a small selection of Bolivian properties listed.

Apartment Blocks

There are a number of dedicated apartment blocks scattered around Bolivia’s major cities. Here are a few options: La Paz

• Almudena Apart Hotel – great-value units located just outside of the downtown area. Offers 1, 2 an 3 bedroom apartments all modern, spacious, clean and well furnished.
• Alcalá Apart Hotel – Offering elegant accommodation with free Wi-Fi and flat-screen cable TV, Alcalá Apart Hotel is a 15-minute drive from La Paz city centre and a 5-minute walk from the Sopocachi viewpoint.
• Aparthotel A La Maison – Located 500 metres from 20 de Octubre Avenue and 1km from San Francisco Cathedral, Aparthotel A La Maison offers 8 luxury self-catering apartments with free Wi-Fi and breakfast. Each apartment is also decorated with artwork made by local artists.
• La Lodge – Situated above the highly regarded La Comédie restaurant, are 5 stylish apartments, all beautifully designed with  modern and stylish trimmings. The comfortable rooms include cable TV, a coffee percolator, mini fridge, microwave, wi-fi, and fee laundry service.

Sucre

• Apart-Hotel – a four-story apartment block with apartments with space for up to 5 people.
• Villa de La Plata Guesthouse – Part hostel, part apartment block, Villa de La Plata offers a range of basic studio apartments fitted out with a fridge, kitchen area and bathroom. It can be found at Calle Aniceto Arce #369.
• La Villa Francesa – part of the French consulate, La Villa Francesa has 3 beautiful, centrally-located French-style studio apartments available for rent.

Cochabamba

• Apart Hotel Violettas – charming, clean and comfortable 1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments located 200 metres from Colon Square.
• Apart Hotel Regina – Featuring free WiFi and an on-site restaurant, Apart Hotel Regina offers pet-friendly accommodation in Cochabamba. Colon Square is 300 metres from the property. Free private parking is available on site.
• Agarthan Hideout Apartments – offers self-catering accommodation with free Wi-Fi, flat-screen TV, microwave, refrigerator and shared terrace. The bus terminal station is 300 metres away and the the city’s commercial area, only 1.5 km away.

Santa Cruz

• House Inn Apart Hotel – featuring an outdoor pool, separate living, kitchenette, cable tv and free Wi-Fi, the House Inn is located 5 minutes by car from Ramada Market and just 20 minutes from Trumpillo Airport.
• Aparthotel Premium Suites – Located 100 metres from San Martin avenue and 300 metres from a number of shops and restaurants, Premium Suites Santa Cruz offers 1 or 2 bedroom self-catering accommodation with free Wi-Fi and city views of Santa Cruz.
• Terrasol Apartamento – Only 500 metres from Santa Cruz’s financial centre, Terrasol Apartamentos offers fully furnished self-catering accommodation with free Wi-Fi, kitchen facilities, flat-screen TVs and air conditioning. Daily maid service is also provided.

Real Estate Agents in Bolivia

In Bolivia’s major cities, there are a number of real estate agencies, or inmobiliarias, who can help find apartments for you. You can find a full list of Bolivian-based estate agents on bolivia.inmobiliaria.com.

Apartment Listings in Local Papers

Local Bolivian newspapers such as La Paz’s El Diario and Sucre’s Correo del Sur run a regular classified section which includes listings for apartment rentals.

Bolivian Life Accommodation Section

Don’t forget to have a look through our section on accommodation in Sucre and accommodation in La Paz which covers a range of accommodation options including apartments, B&Bs, hotels and hostels.

Apartment Hunting Tips

Before we send you on your apartment hunting way, here are a few tips to help you out. Anticretico (aka renting for free) Rent on many properties, particularly those targeted at tourists are carried out in a manner familiar the world over – you pay rent by the week or month and may be asked for a deposit which is returned at the end of your stay. However, another fascinating rental method is traditionally used in Bolivia and you may occasionally see it being offered. Called anticretico, the method works as follows. In order to rent a property, you pay a lump sum to the owner at the start of the rental period. You then stay in the property for the agreed length of time – at the end of which the owner returns all of your initial payment. So in effect you pay absolutely nothing for the rental! What’s more, a contract is usually drawn up transferring ownership of the house to the renter in the event that the lump sum is not returned. Of course, there is a benefit to the owner too. Rather than receiving rental income, the owner is in effect receiving an interest-free loan and simultaneously bypassing the need to obtain approval from a bank. The owner can then earn money by using your lump sum to invest, start a business or simply earn interest in the bank. The threat of a loss of their property is a strong incentive to use your money wisely! “Apartment For Rent” Signs Before coming to Bolivia we read online that a good way to find an apartment was to wander round town looking for buildings with an “apartment for rent” sign outside (in Spanish, of course). This advice doesn’t seem to apply any more; in 5 months living in Sucre we never once saw such a sign, and we had friends who spent an entire day walking around looking for one only to draw a blank. You may get lucky and find an apartment this way in other cities throughout Bolivia, but don’t rely on it. Rental Bond Most private rentals will not require you to pay a large deposit. Instead, you will usually only be asked to pay the first and last months rent upfront. Do you know of any other apartment options in Bolivia? Let us know in the comments below.