Cap Rate / Rental Yield (Tasa de Capitalización / Rendimiento)
Cap rate (capitalization rate) is a property's annual net operating income divided by its current market value or purchase price, expressed as a percentage. Investors use it to compare income-producing properties and estimate what they are worth.
By Daniel Ortega · Last reviewed 7 November 2026
How it works
Cap rate expresses one year's net operating income as a percentage of the property's price or value; to calculate it, divide annual NOI by the purchase price or market value. For a USD 300,000 condo in Playa del Carmen generating USD 24,000 in annual gross rent, with USD 9,000 in operating costs (HOA, predial, platform fees, cleaning, management), the NOI is USD 15,000 and the cap rate is 5 percent. In Playa del Carmen, well-located short-term rentals range from 8 to 12 percent gross annually; after platform fees, cleaning, professional management, HOA, property tax and stabilization months, net yield lands between 6 and 10 percent. Median gross cap rate for a one-bedroom unit near the beach is 10.1 percent in Playa del Carmen and 8.4 percent in Tulum as of November 2026. Operating costs in Quintana Roo include fideicomiso annual fees (typically USD 500 to 900), predial (0.1 to 0.2 percent of cadastral value), HOA (USD 100 to 400 monthly for beachfront condos), and the 6 percent Quintana Roo lodging tax on digital-platform rental income. Cap rate is an asset's unlevered return and a reflection of relative risk; low cap rates of 3 to 5 percent mean the asset is lower risk and higher value, while higher cap rates of 8 to 10 percent reflect higher risk and higher return.