In Belgium

An apartment building (immeuble de rapport) is a residential building with multiple rental units, owned by a single investor. It is the most traditional form of property investment in Belgium, particularly popular in cities like Brussels, Liege, Charleroi and Antwerp.

The main advantage over buying individual apartments is risk diversification: if one unit is vacant, the others continue generating income. The main challenge is management complexity: common areas, shared heating systems, multiple tenants to manage.

Typical configurations in Belgium:

  • Small building: 2-4 units, often a townhouse converted into apartments
  • Medium building: 5-10 units, purpose-built or converted
  • Large building: 10+ units, usually in city centres
i
Good to know
Unlike individual apartments in co-ownership, a single-owner apartment building has no syndic or co-ownership association. The owner makes all decisions directly, which simplifies management but concentrates all responsibility.

Practical example

Pierre buys a 4-unit building in Liege for 380,000 EUR. Each unit rents for 550 EUR/month = 2,200 EUR/month total = 26,400 EUR/year. Gross yield: 6.9%. Even if one unit is vacant for 2 months, he still collects 25,300 EUR (96% of potential income).

Key considerations

i
Warning
Before purchasing an apartment building, verify the EPC certificates, electrical compliance certificates and urban planning status of each unit. Non-compliant units may require significant investment before they can be legally rented.