A three-bedroom villa with a pool, to renovate, in Flic en Flac
Buy a villa to renovate, refurbish it, then let or resell it. What this example shows: at the prices noted, renovating makes sense to keep and let; a quick resale does not cover the costs. Buying at the right price decides everything.
The profile (fictional)
A Mauritian couple living in London, in their fifties, who sold a property there and have about €300,000 available, no loan. They want a villa for holidays back home, let the rest of the year, and wonder whether renovating beats buying a villa that is ready. Profile made up for the example.
The essentials in three blocks
What you pay
≈ €280,090
out of your pocket at the start, excluding insurance
- Property price≈ €202,800
- Purchase tax and notary≈ €11,600
- Zilstone: study, reports, project space≈ €2,090
- Works and furniture≈ €58,090
- Zilstone set-up≈ €4,500
- Bank, survey, licence application≈ €1,010
No loan: no monthly repayment. Keep a reserve for unexpected works, at least 15% of the works budget.
What you receive
If you keep the villa to let, what is left each year, no loan, before tax:
If you resell after the works, result after transfer tax and commission, before tax:
To lose nothing, you would need to resell for at least ≈ €301,170 (Rs 16.3M). With 30% more works, that threshold rises to Rs 17.1M.
What can go wrong
- Reselling right after the works loses money: ≈ −€57,190 to ≈ −€22,900 depending on the resale price.
- Heavier works than planned: the range is Rs 1.8M to Rs 3.5M; 30% more raises the resale threshold to Rs 17.1M.
- Pool, roof, termites, damp: checked by a surveyor before the offer, priced by two quotes.
Assumptions. Letting: cautious scenario, Flic en Flac average occupancy (40.2%) [1]; optimistic scenario, the median of active listings in Mauritius (65%) [2]; $128 a night, the top-quartile threshold of Flic en Flac listings [1], a three-bedroom villa with a pool may aim higher. Resale: Rs 13M (cautious) and Rs 15M (optimistic), based on listings of comparable villas [17]; selling costs at most 7% (5% transfer tax and an agency commission of at most 2%) [5]. Purchase price and works: assumptions to be confirmed [14] [17]. Before tax.
What the figures say. At these prices, reselling the villa right after the works loses money in both scenarios: buying, works and selling cost more than the renovation adds. To get your money back by reselling at Rs 14M, you would need to buy at about Rs 8.9M at most. That is why buying at the right price decides everything, and why we turn down an offer when the margin is not there.
Kept and let, the villa leaves 3.7% to 6.0% of total cost a year before tax, with your dates for the family. It is a project to hold, not a quick resale.
The property and the area
A three-bedroom villa of about 150 m², with a pool and garden, to renovate, in a residential part of Flic en Flac, on the local market. Price used: Rs 11M, ≈ €202,800. This is an assumption: when we checked on 05/10/2026, we found no strictly comparable listing “to renovate”. Benchmarks: a four-bedroom villa with a pool in Albion was listed at Rs 11.9M (condition not stated), a renovated four-bedroom villa in Flic en Flac at Rs 11.8M (2023 listing), and a recent unfinished villa in Flic en Flac at Rs 18M [17]. These are asking prices, not sale prices.
Works used here: Rs 2.5M, within a range of Rs 1.8M to Rs 3.5M: roof and waterproofing, wiring, plumbing, kitchen, bathrooms, pool refurbishment. There is no public renovation price scale in Mauritius; we start from the cost of new building (Rs 21,500 to 37,700 per m²) [14], of which a medium to heavy renovation is about a quarter to a half. The real amount comes from a survey and at least two quotes.
Benchmarks after works: villas with a pool in good condition in Flic en Flac and Tamarin, from Rs 16.5M (four bedrooms, new) to Rs 20M, often larger [17]. For a comparable villa, we use Rs 13M to Rs 15M. To get your money back by reselling at Rs 14M, you would need to buy at about Rs 8.9M at most.
Flic en Flac has many holiday lets: average occupancy 40.2%, average price $116 a night, a quarter of listings above $128 [1]. The west coast is dry and sheltered in winter. Unlike offer 2, the local-market villa bought in good condition and ready to let, here the purchase price is lower but the works, their duration and their risk come on top.
Steps and timing
- Week 120-minute call and one-page pre-study, free.
- Weeks 2 to 4Project study and engagement letter: scoping call, then a written report within 10 business days of receiving the documents.
- Months 1 to 3Search, viewings, checks: surveyor, title, managing agent, permits, price.
- Months 2 to 4Offer, preliminary contract at the notary, loan application.
- Around month 4Completion at the notary, keys handed over.
- After completionWorks according to the quotes you approve, paid directly to the tradespeople.
- ThenResale under a written mandate, or letting (licence, listings).
Purchase in 3 to 4 months; 4 to 8 months of works depending on the quotes; resale time not guaranteed.
Support fees
| Service | Price and payment | Here |
|---|---|---|
| Scoping call and file opening | invoiced by Zilstone, never refunded on ordering | €200 |
| Your project study | €500 deducted from the set-up price if you take it; if not, it stays due on ordering | €500 |
| Agency commission | at most 2% of the price, invoiced by a REAA-registered estate agency with which we are preparing a partnership, most often paid by the seller on completion, if due from you | €0 |
| Observation reports | €350 per property visited, €900 for 3, due even without a purchase at each visit | €900 |
| Project space | €90 a month or €990 a year, includes the professionals’ calendar monthly or yearly | €990 |
| Set-up | fixed fee of €4,500, no works: compulsory equipment, letting licence, listings go live on set-up | €4,500 |
| Agency commission (resale) | at most 2% of the sale price, invoiced by a REAA-registered estate agency with which we are preparing a partnership on sale | ≈ €5,160 |
Launch price list of 06/10/2026. Final Zilstone prices: nothing is added. Agency commission: at most 2%, paid to the agency, most often by the seller; no money moves between Zilstone and the agency. Amounts confirmed in writing in the engagement letter before any commitment. The notary, bank, surveyor and tax adviser bill you directly. Your money never goes through Zilstone. Invoiced in euros or Mauritian rupees. Other currencies are shown for guidance only; any exchange fees are yours.
The detailed figures
The budget, line by line
| Property price | ≈ €202,800Rs 11M |
| Purchase tax (registration duty, 5%) | ≈ €10,140 |
| Notary (official scale, VAT included) | ≈ €1,460 |
| Agency commission (at most 2%, most often paid by the seller) | €0 |
| Scoping call and file opening (Zilstone) | €200 |
| Your project study (Zilstone) | €500 |
| Study fee deducted from the set-up price | −€500 |
| Observation reports (3 properties visited) | €900 |
| Project space (1 year, includes the professionals’ calendar) | €990 |
| Works, coordinated by you with your tradespeople (central value, to be set by two quotes) | ≈ €46,090Rs 2.5M (Rs 1.8M to Rs 3.5M) |
| Furniture and equipment for letting (assumption) | €12,000 |
| Zilstone · Set-up (no works: equipment, licence, listings) | €4,500 |
| Technical survey before the offer (estimate) | ≈ €920 |
| Letting licence: application fee (Rs 5,000) | €90 |
| Total cost, no loan | ≈ €280,090 |
| Land surveyor, insurance | to be confirmed case by case |
The works are coordinated by you, with your own tradespeople; Zilstone does not charge for coordinating them at this stage (an offer to come). No loan here; the MHC Diaspora Home Loan also finances renovation [8].
Both scenarios, line by line
| Cautious | Optimistic | |
|---|---|---|
| Share of nights let | 40.2% [1] | 65% [2] |
| Nightly rate | $128 [1] | $128 [1] |
| Rent collected over the year | €16,810 | €27,180 |
| After platforms, running costs, management and licence | €10,240 | €16,670 |
| Letting: as a share of total cost, before tax | 3.7% | 6.0% |
| Resale: price after works | ≈ €239,680Rs 13M | ≈ €276,550Rs 15M |
| Resale: result, before tax | −€57,190 | −€22,900 |
| Resale threshold (planned works / +30%) | Rs 16.3M | Rs 17.1M |
Where your rent goes, out of 100
- Platforms
- Running costs
- Letting management
- For you, before loan and tax
Costs while letting
| Platforms (Airbnb, Booking) | about 12% of income [11] |
| Running costs: energy, building charges, upkeep, insurance | about 14% of income, refined property by property [11] |
| Letting licence (TAC) | application fee Rs 5,000, then Rs 10,000 a year (≈ €180) [12] |
| Cleaning and linen | paid through the guests’ cleaning fees |
| Tourist fee | €3 per night per guest aged 12 or over, paid by the guest and passed on monthly to the MRA; guests with a Mauritian passport are exempt [7] |
| Tax on rent | in Mauritius, 15% for a non-resident under the law, regime to be confirmed with a registered tax agent [16]; in your country of residence, with your tax adviser |
| On resale | 5% transfer tax (seller) [5] and an agency resale commission of at most 2% |
| Pool | upkeep, water and filtration power, included in running costs |
All the risks, in detail
- The value after works does not reach the resale threshold: selling would lose money. Letting remains, or waiting, with no certainty about prices.
- Heavier works than planned: structure, roof, termites, damp, utilities, pool. Every euro over budget raises the resale threshold.
- Extensions without a building permit (Building and Land Use Permit, BLUP): to be regularised, sometimes impossible, and blocking a letting licence.
- Competition: in Flic en Flac, the number of listings rose by half in a year [1]; nightly rates may fall.
- Time to sell: it can take months, during which the villa costs money without earning any.
- Tax: a one-off resale is not taxed on the gain in Mauritius, but repeated buy-to-sell deals can be taxed as a trade. To be confirmed with a tax adviser.
Rounded figures. Property prices noted in rupees; Zilstone fees in euros; nightly rates published in dollars. Rates fixed on 05/10/2026 (Bank of Mauritius, indicative rates, mid-point between buying and selling), indicative: your bank will apply its own rate.
Sources and assumptions
- AirROI, Airbnb data by market, 12 months to 12/09/2026 (average of all tracked listings) · www.airroi.com
- Airbtics, median of active listings in Mauritius, data of 12/03/2026: 66% occupancy, active listings +23% in a year · airbtics.com
- Local-market listings noted by Zilstone on 05/10/2026 (OFIM, Westimmo, PropertyFinder): asking prices, not sale prices. These properties are not offered by Zilstone. · real-estate-mauritius.mu
- Land (Duties and Taxes) Act: 5% registration duty (buyer), 5% land transfer tax (seller) · www.mra.mu
- Notaries’ scale of fees (Notaries Act 2008), 15% VAT included, to be confirmed by the notary · www.propertymap.mu
- MRA, tourist fee of €3 per night per guest aged 12 or over, since 01/10/2025 · www.mra.mu
- MHC Diaspora Home Loan: from 6.80%, up to 35 years, Rs 1 to 15M; purchase, building, renovation · www.mhc.mu
- Zilstone working assumptions (September-October 2026): platforms ≈ 12% of income, running costs ≈ 14%, loan of 70% of the price over 15 years at 7%, works and furniture ≈ €19,000 for a two-bedroom flat, survey ≈ Rs 50,000; cautious occupancy of 50% for a flat. Launch price list of 06/10/2026
- Tourism Authority: tourist residence licence (TAC), application fee Rs 5,000, then Rs 10,000 a year (type C); use permit and managing agent’s letter required · www.tourismauthority.mu
- House building cost: Rs 2,000 to 3,500 per square foot turnkey (≈ Rs 21,500 to 37,700 per m²), Défi Media, 24/01/2026, based on builders; official building cost index +6.1% year on year in June 2026 (Le Mauricien, 28/07/2026) · defimedia.info
- Exchange rates: Bank of Mauritius, consolidated indicative rates of 05/10/2026, mid-point between buying and selling. Indicative: your bank will apply its own rate · www.bom.mu
- Income Tax Act: rent of a non-resident individual taxed at 15% in Mauritius; treatment of holiday letting to be confirmed with a registered tax agent · www.mra.mu
- OFIM and real-estate-mauritius.mu listings noted on 05/10/2026, local market: Albion, 4-bed with pool, Rs 11.9M (ofim.mu/72216, listing since withdrawn, noted on 05/10/2026); Flic en Flac, renovated 4-bed, Rs 11.8M (ofim.mu/67763, 2023 listing); Flic en Flac, unfinished villa, Rs 18M (ofim.mu/72376); Flic en Flac, new 4-bed, Rs 16.5M (ofim.mu/72522); Tamarin, single-storey 3-bed with pool, Rs 19.9M. Asking prices, not sale prices; none of these properties is offered by Zilstone · www.ofim.mu
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