One-Bedroom Apartment Prices in Phnom Penh, District by District

A one-bedroom apartment in Phnom Penh can cost as little as 45,000 dollars or as much as 180,000, and the entire difference is location. A factor of four on the same type of unit is why the real question behind the price of a one-bedroom is three questions: which district, which tenant, and how far from the center you are willing to sit.

Here is what a one-bedroom costs across the districts buyers ask about most, read on three axes each time: the entry price, the rental base behind it, and the quiet cost of distance. Because prices and rents here are set in US dollars, a foreign buyer carries no currency risk on either side of the trade.

The central tier

BKK1 is the top of the market, home to embassies, ministries and the corporate expat base. New premium projects run 2,800 to 3,500 dollars per square meter, which puts a typical 45 to 55 square meter one-bedroom between 130,000 and 180,000. Older resale units start nearer 120,000. One-bedrooms let for roughly 700 to 1,000 dollars a month, with furnished luxury reaching 1,800, and the tenant pool is the deepest in the city. BKK2 trades some prestige for calmer streets, generally 1,600 to 2,200 per square meter, most one-bedrooms 80,000 to 130,000, with steady rather than spectacular demand.

The value districts beside the core

BKK3 sits a few minutes across Monivong Boulevard from BKK1, yet one-bedrooms start around 45,000. Much of the stock is local-style apartments without pools or gyms, so the headline yield looks high while the amenity and tenant profile run thinner. Russian Market, or Toul Tom Poung, is the district that has changed the most, now full of renovated shophouses, coffee shops, coworking and boutique projects. Condos there start around 1,800 per square meter, compact one-bedrooms of 40 to 55 square meters trade between 48,000 and 70,000, and furnished units let for 500 to 700 a month. Set against entry prices well below BKK1, that rent has historically produced a stronger gross yield, often by two to three points.

The residential ladder and the southern corridor

Toul Kork offers the widest range in the city, built around schools and hospitals. Affordable projects start near 1,000 to 1,300 per square meter, so a one-bedroom runs 50,000 to 60,000, while new luxury towers open from about 120,000. Rents are moderate, often 500 to 700, but demand is consistent and vacancy low, which is the profile a first-time landlord wants. The Hun Sen Boulevard corridor to the south has pushed entry prices down and floor plans up, with new one-bedrooms from roughly 50,000 to 90,000. The value is real, but the number missing from the brochure is distance.

A unit several kilometers from the offices and embassies that generate dollar rent carries costs the spreadsheet tends to leave out: fuel, daily commute time and vehicle wear, all of which a tenant prices in even when the buyer does not. The corridor rewards buyers who underwrite the commute, not only the purchase.

Where a budget should start

Read across the six and the city sorts into three honest tiers.

• Under 70,000 dollars: BKK3, Russian Market, affordable Toul Kork and the Hun Sen corridor. Where most first-time investors begin, and the deciding question is the rental base, not the price.
• Between 70,000 and 130,000: BKK2, mid-tier Toul Kork and smaller BKK1 resale units. The broadest band, and usually the best balance of entry and tenant quality.
• Above 130,000: prime BKK1 and new-build Toul Kork, paying for the deepest tenant pool and the shortest vacancy the market offers.

The cost of a one-bedroom is set less by the building than by the district's rental base and its distance from where dollar income is earned. Build the budget backward from the tenant you intend to house, not forward from the lowest price per square meter you can find. The cheapest district and the right district are rarely the same address, and the gap between them shows up in occupancy, not on the listing.

This is general guidance, not personal advice, and no outcome is guaranteed. If you tell us your budget and the tenant you have in mind, our team can point you to the districts that fit, with no pressure to buy.