Condo Hotel and Aparthotel in Poland – Is It a Good Investment? 2026 Comparison

A condo hotel is an investment in a unit in a hotel run by an operator, where you receive an agreed rent or a share in profits – with no need to look for tenants. Compared with a flat to let it tempts with a "guaranteed return", but you usually buy a commercial unit: with 23% VAT, without the protection of the Developer Act, with higher property tax and weaker liquidity. Below we explain how this model works, what risks and taxes it carries, and we calculate an example: a condo hotel unit with a 5% guarantee versus a studio flat from our offer in Wroclaw.

Key facts

• You buy a commercial unit in a condo hotel with 23% VAT; the preferential 8% applies to residential units (art. 41 para. 12–12a of the VAT Act).
• The Developer Act covers a commercial unit only if you buy it together with a flat in the same development project – buying a hotel unit on its own gives you neither an escrow account nor DFG (Developer Guarantee Fund) protection.
• Property tax for buildings connected with business activity can be up to PLN 35.53/m² a year in 2026 – compared with PLN 1.25/m² for flats in Warsaw and Wroclaw.
• In our example the "guaranteed" 5% net gives in reality about 4.3% a year (with VAT deducted) or 3.5% (without deduction), and after the guarantee period about 2.5% with a 3% share in profits.
• A 29.13 m² studio flat from our offer in Wroclaw, at NBP rental rates, gives about 3.5% net – no guarantee, but with full control and an easier sale.

What are a condo hotel and an aparthotel?

A condo hotel is a hotel in which rooms or apartments are sold to individual investors. Each buyer becomes the owner of a unit (or of a share in co-ownership) but does not use it like a flat – they hand it over for rent or management to an operator who runs the hotel and shares the revenue. An aparthotel is a property with apartments (often with a kitchenette) let by the night and by the week; it is sometimes sold under the same investor model.

The key question is what exactly you are buying. In hotel properties the investor usually acquires a commercial (non-residential) unit. There are also aparthotels in residential buildings where the item sold is a residential unit – in which case different rules on VAT and buyer protection apply. You can check the unit's status in the draft contract, the information prospectus and – once the unit has been separated as a legal title – in section I of the land and mortgage register (księga wieczysta); more in the article on a commercial unit from a developer.

How does the "guaranteed return" in a condo hotel work?

After the purchase you sign a lease or management contract with the operator, usually for many years. The most common models are:

• fixed rent ("guaranteed rate of return") – the operator pays an agreed percentage of the unit's price for a set period, regardless of occupancy;
• share in revenue or profit – you receive part of the result of the whole hotel or of your unit, so income changes with the season and the economic cycle;
• mixed model – a few years of guarantee, then a share in profits.

A "guarantee" is a contractual commitment of the operator, not insurance and not a state guarantee. It is worth as much as the financial standing of the company giving it and the security written into the contract. Pay attention to what amount the percentage is calculated on (net or gross), whether it is indexed, who pays for replacing equipment and for the renovation fund, how many days of stay you are entitled to as an owner, and on what terms the contract can be terminated.

Condo hotel – the risks that are talked about less

No protection under the Developer Act

The Act on the protection of the rights of a purchaser of a flat or single-family house and on the Developer Guarantee Fund applies to contracts whose purpose is to transfer ownership of a residential unit or a house (art. 2 para. 1). A commercial unit is covered only if you conclude the contract together with a contract for a residential unit in the same development project (art. 2 para. 2). When you buy a hotel unit on its own, you therefore have no statutory residential escrow account, no information prospectus and no DFG protection – how these mechanisms protect flat buyers we describe in the article on the escrow account and DFG. Security for your payments depends solely on what you negotiate in the contract. It is worth having the preliminary contract in the form of a notarial deed (akt notarialny) – then you can sue for conclusion of the final contract (art. 390 § 2 of the Civil Code).

The operator's condition and the tourism cycle

If the operator gets into trouble, payments may be delayed or stop, and changing the operator requires the consent of many owners. The pandemic showed that hotels can operate with restrictions for a long time – in such a period the fall in revenue hits the operator's ability to pay the guaranteed rent. A flat let long-term can quickly be let to another tenant; a hotel unit usually cannot be let by you independently outside the operator's system.

Liquidity and credit

The pool of buyers of a hotel unit is narrow: they are investors, not people looking for a home. Resale takes longer, and the price depends on the hotel's results and the terms of the contract with the operator. For the same reasons banks approach financing units in condo hotels with caution – the offer is narrower than for a residential mortgage and usually requires a higher deposit. A loan for a flat to let is a simpler path, which we describe in the article Mortgage for a buy-to-let flat.

A commercial unit in an aparthotel – VAT and other taxes

VAT on purchase. The 8% rate applies to construction covered by the social housing programme, i.e. residential buildings or parts of them excluding commercial units, and to residential units in non-residential buildings (art. 41 para. 12–12a of the VAT Act). The unit's status therefore decides: you buy a commercial unit in a hotel with 23% VAT, and if the apartment were separated as a residential unit – even in a hotel building – the 8% rate would apply.

VAT deduction. Letting a unit to a hotel operator does not serve residential purposes, so it does not benefit from the exemption in art. 43 para. 1 point 36 and is a taxable transaction. If you register as an active VAT taxpayer, you can deduct VAT from the invoice for the unit (art. 86 para. 1), and you add 23% VAT to the rent. You then give up the small-business exemption for sales up to PLN 200 000 a year (art. 113 para. 1). Remember the adjustment: for real estate, deducted VAT may be subject to adjustment for 10 years (art. 91 para. 2), e.g. if you start using the unit privately. Details of buying with VAT deduction are in the article on buying a flat through a company.

PIT. An individual without a business settles rent from the operator as private letting – with flat-rate tax of 8.5% up to PLN 100 000 of revenue and 12.5% on the excess. In a business on general rules or linear (flat) tax, a non-residential unit – unlike a flat (art. 22c point 2 of the PIT Act) – can be depreciated at a rate of 2.5% a year (KŚT 121, the Polish classification of fixed assets).

Property tax. Buildings and units connected with business activity, i.e. held by a business owner (art. 1a para. 1 point 3 of the Local Taxes and Charges Act), have the highest rate. Which rate the municipality will apply to your hotel unit depends on the circumstances – it is worth confirming this with the office before buying.

Item	Flat to let	Commercial unit in a condo hotel
VAT in the developer's price	8% (up to 150 m²)	23%
Deduction of VAT on purchase	as a rule no (residential letting is exempt)	possible after VAT registration
PCC when buying from a developer	no (sale with VAT)	no (sale with VAT)
Max. notary fee for a sale contract	½ of the rate from § 3 (§ 6 points 16 and 19)	for an ordinary sale contract the full rate from § 3; ½ among others for a contract transferring ownership in performance of an earlier obligation contract (§ 6 point 2)
Property tax 2026 (upper limit)	PLN 1.25/m²	PLN 12.00/m² (other) up to PLN 35.53/m² (business)
Depreciation in a business	no	yes, 2.5% a year
Escrow account and DFG	yes	no (unless you buy together with a flat)

Example: a condo hotel with a 5% guarantee versus a studio flat from our offer

Condo hotel (our own assumptions): a 30 m² unit for PLN 450 000 net, i.e. PLN 553 500 with 23% VAT. The operator undertakes to pay 5% of the net price a year, i.e. PLN 22 500, and covers running costs. You buy a finished unit under a single sale contract, so the notary fee is the full rate from § 3 on PLN 553 500: PLN 2 984 + 23% VAT = PLN 3 670, plus PLN 300 of court fees (opening the register and entering ownership). We calculate property tax conservatively: 30 m² × PLN 35.53 = PLN 1 066 a year. The 8.5% flat-rate tax on rent: PLN 1 913.

Flat: a 29.13 m² studio flat for PLN 495 210 in Apartamenty Krakowska 8 in the Krzyki district of Wroclaw, in a building already completed – according to TM Invest offer data as of 27.09.2026. Rent: the average NBP rate for the six large cities including Wroclaw for the first quarter of 2026 – PLN 67.5/m², i.e. PLN 1 966 a month. Occupancy 95%, flat-rate tax 8.5%, property tax PLN 1.25/m², reserve of 5% of revenue, fit-out and furnishing to an economy standard of about PLN 61 700, notary fee (½ rate) with VAT and court fees about PLN 1 992.

Variant	Amount invested	Net income / year	Net yield
Condo hotel, 5% guarantee, VAT deducted	453 970 PLN	19 522 PLN	4.3%
Condo hotel, 5% guarantee, no VAT deduction	557 470 PLN	19 522 PLN	3.5%
Condo hotel after the guarantee period (3% profit share), VAT deducted	453 970 PLN	11 287 PLN	2.5%
29.13 m² studio flat, Wroclaw-Krzyki, long-term letting	558 897 PLN	19 353 PLN	3.5%

Conclusion: a "5% guarantee" is not 5% in your pocket. The condo hotel's advantage over the studio flat appears only if you deduct VAT (and so keep VAT accounts for years) and only while the guarantee lasts. Without the deduction the result is practically the same as with a flat, and after the guarantee ends – clearly weaker. How we calculate rental yield step by step is shown in the article Rental yield 2026.

Considering an investment flat instead of a hotel unit? We will help you choose and buy a flat from a developer – we will compare units for letting, check the contract and the payment schedule. For the buyer in most cases no commission – the developer usually pays our fee.

Condo hotel vs a flat to let – comparison

Criterion	Flat to let	Condo hotel / aparthotel
Involvement	finding tenants, administration (or a management company)	passive – the operator does everything
Income predictability	depends on the rental market and vacancies	fixed during the guarantee, then variable
Control over the unit	full: choice of tenant, price, sale	limited by the contract with the operator
Protection of payments at purchase	escrow account, DFG	contractual only
Liquidity on sale	broad market (investors and buyers for themselves)	narrow market of investors
Loan	standard mortgage	narrower offer, usually a higher deposit
Main risk	vacancies, a bad tenant	the operator's condition, the tourism cycle

If nightly lets appeal to you but you want to keep control, the alternative is a flat in the centre let short-term by yourself or through a management company. Here, however, new registration obligations arise from EU Regulation 2024/1028 and the owners' association's rules – we describe them in the article Short-term rental 2026. You will find studio flats in the centre of Wroclaw and in Krzyki in our catalogue on the page new flats in Krzyki. A broader picture of property investing is given by the guide A flat as an investment.

Frequently asked questions

Summary

A condo hotel and an aparthotel are a convenient investment, but not as safe as the word "guarantee" suggests. You usually buy a commercial unit without the protection of an escrow account and DFG. After taxes the promised 5% gives in our example 3.5–4.3%, and after the guarantee period clearly less. A studio flat from the Wroclaw offer achieves about 3.5% net, while keeping full control and liquidity.

Want to compare specific flats to let in Warsaw or Wroclaw? Get in touch with us – we will help you choose a unit, check the developer contract (umowa deweloperska) and take you through the purchase. On the market since 2016; for the buyer in most cases no commission – the developer usually pays our fee.

Legal position as of September 2026. The calculations are indicative and based on the stated assumptions; the article is not tax, legal or investment advice. Before buying a unit in a condo hotel, have the contract reviewed by a lawyer, and VAT and PIT settlements by an accountant or tax specialist.

Sources

• Act on the protection of the rights of a purchaser of a flat or single-family house and on the Developer Guarantee Fund – consolidated text Dz.U. 2026 item 880 (art. 1, art. 2 para. 1–2).
• Value Added Tax Act – consolidated text Dz.U. 2025 item 775 as amended (art. 2 point 12, art. 41 para. 12–12a, art. 43 para. 1 point 36, art. 86 para. 1, art. 91 para. 2, art. 113 para. 1).
• Personal Income Tax Act – consolidated text Dz.U. 2026 item 592 (art. 22c point 2, annex no. 1 – KŚT 121).
• Act on flat-rate income tax on certain revenue earned by individuals – consolidated text Dz.U. 2025 item 843 as amended (art. 12 para. 1 point 4).
• Settling revenue from private letting – Ministry of Finance, podatki.gov.pl.
• Local Taxes and Charges Act – consolidated text Dz.U. 2025 item 707 (art. 1a para. 1 point 3, art. 5 para. 1 point 2).
• Announcement of the Minister of Finance and Economy on the upper limits of fixed-amount rates of local taxes and charges for 2026 – M.P. 2025 item 726; resolutions of the Council of the Capital City of Warsaw (XXIX/1066/2025) and of the Wroclaw City Council (XXV/500/25).
• Regulation on maximum notary fee rates – consolidated text Dz.U. 2024 item 1566 (§ 3, § 6).
• Act on court costs in civil cases – consolidated text Dz.U. 2025 item 1228.
• Civil Code – consolidated text Dz.U. 2026 item 795 (art. 390 § 2).
• Information on housing prices and the situation on the residential and commercial property market in Poland in the first quarter of 2026 – National Bank of Poland.
• Flat prices: TM Invest investment catalogue, as of 27.09.2026.